The UFC will be heading to China as it officially announced that it will hold a Fight Night Saturday, November 10th at the Venetian Macau Resort and Hotel off of the mainland of China. The Fight Night event will air on Fuel TV according to the UFC press release.
In addition, November 10th is the same night that Manny Pacquiao is scheduled to fight. This will be the second year in a row that the UFC will hold an event the same night as a Pacquiao fight as we all recall last November’s debut on Fox.
Via UFC press release:
Over the last several years, the UFC has built its broadcast reach in China to more than 450 million television viewers via a dozen provincial broadcasters, and more than 500 million unique viewers through the nation’s leading internet portals. UFC fighter Zhang Tiequan leads a growing group of professional MMA fighters in mainland China, several of whom are candidates to make their UFC debut in Macau.
“This event is a major step in the development of the UFC brand in this region of the world, and China in particular,” noted Mark Fischer, UFC Managing Director of Asia. “We are delighted by this opportunity to build on the media growth and attention we have received and to finally bring a live event in prime time to the millions of fans in this area, and especially to those lucky enough to come and experience all the excitement of the UFC in person.”
Payout Perspective:
This will be an important card for the UFC as it tries to make inroads into Asia and specifically China. As always, it will depend on the fighters on the card to determine the level of interest from the public. Despite being the same day as the Pacquiao fight, the time difference will likely mean that if Fuel airs the event live, it will not compete with the Saturday night fight. The UFC will hope for a good debut for the company in China as it will try to garner fans for its product as it continues its global expansion.
Leave a Reply