Welcome to another edition of Payout Perspective. This time we take a look at UFC 303 which highlighted International Fight Week in Las Vegas.
Pereira makes claim for top P4P in UFC
Alex Pereira used a switch-kick to KO Jiri Prochazka in the beginning moments of Round 2 to retain his UFC Light Heavyweight title. In round 1 Pereira knocked down Prochazka as the round ended which may have set up the sequence at the beginning of round 2.
Pereira received one of the Performance Bonuses for 303 and his coach told Ariel Helwani on Monday that Dana White actually gave him a $303,000 bonus for his work on Saturday night. Notably, Pereira took the fight short notice as we all recall that Conor McGregor had to pull out of his fight with Michael Chandler due to a broken toe. Pereira last fought at UFC 300 where he KO’d Jamahal Hill in the first round of his title defense. One might see the extra bonus money as a “thank you” for saving the event.
Co-Main changed at very last minute
The Diego Lopes-Brian Ortega saga was the news of the weigh-ins and then on Saturday night. The fight that was scheduled for a Featherweight fight was negotiated to be a 155-pound matchup because Ortega could not make the 145 limit. Three hours prior to the fight occurring, Dan Ige stepped in because Ortega was had to withdraw due to sickness. Ige put on a good fight but Lopes earned the unanimous decision.
It was an interesting set of circumstances which led to the very late replacement. Ige was going to fight in July and was already in fight camp. So, a set of strings being pulled by the UFC and fight managers and the commission’s compliance to allow it to happen. The UFC broadcast had on a representative from the Nevada Athletic Commission to advise on the protocol for allowing the fight to go forward on such short notice.
Probably wouldn’t see such a thing happen most events but since this was one of the biggest events for the company, I’m sure there was some leniency.
Attendance, gate and bonuses
Despite offering up two Fight of the Night bonuses, the UFC only awarded one. It went to Cub Swanson and Andre Fili. Fili earned the nod via unanimous decision. Notably, the social media posts were sponsored by Toyo Tires
The Performance Bonuses went to Alex Pereira, Macy Chiasson, Joe Pyfer and Payton Talbott. The social media posts were sponsored by Prime.
Pre-Fight Hype
It was International Fight Week so there were additional events for fans which included the usual autograph and meet and greet sessions. There was the annual induction of members in the UFC Hall of Fame and PowerSlap was added to string of events that the company help prior to the fight card.
This year Paige VanZant competed at PowerSlap which brought some notoriety to the event. PVZ did win her match so there could be a further career for her. It will be interesting to see if other former UFC fighters attempt to enter PowerSlap events.
John Wall Street wrote about how Dana White is using social media and influencers to bolster the profile of PowerSlap.
Sponsorships
The sponsorships in the Octagon were Call of Duty Mobile, Howler Head, Bud Light, Black Rifle Coffee Company, VeChain, http://Crypto.com, Air National Guard, New Amsterdam Vodka, BlockAsset, Prime, Rizz Pharma, Budweiser, easypost, DraftKings, Cuervo Tequila, Toyo Tires, Monster and Family Dollar. Also, the movie Twister, Dav.org, Stake.com, and Monster in the middle.
DraftKings, Manscaped and VeChain were prevalent outside of the Octagon.
Monster unveiled a new Juice flavor as it was displayed on one of the posts in the Octagon.
UFC Embedded was sponsored by the Call of Duty Mobile game coming up. Recently, Activision forged a deal with the TKO Group to advertise the game with both WWE and UFC.
Also of note, Jose Cuervo renewed its deal with the UFC for another 5 years.
Odds and ends
The UFC received $250K from the Las Vegas tourism board for this past weekend’s event.
UFC 303 was shown at Cosm Los Angeles
The UFC has a partnership with Cosm in Los Angeles to host watch parties on a massive 8k curved LED screen at the company's new 65,000-square-foot venue.
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) July 2, 2024
Cosm also signed a deal with the NBA last year and will be opening more venues.
Looks incredible.pic.twitter.com/tkOQTjFfWq
Michelle Waterson retired after her loss at UFC 303. The UFC interviewed her and gave her a nice video tribute.
Blue Man Group was there at the Performance Institute for Alex Pereira to paint his face.
Prior to pulling out of his fight, Brian Ortega indicated he was going to pledge $100K to a Church in LA.
Talk about company synergy, UFC fighter Rei Tsuruya was accompanied by WWE superstar Shinske Nakumara. Tsuruya won his match and remains undefeated.
Conclusion
Without McGregor-Chandler at the top of the card, the buys will suffer. Even with the ESPN+ deal to get $10 off the PPV price point, one might expect this PPV to be 350-375 buys. This is a testament to the UFC brand and the expansion of the core base of fans. While Alex Pereira is a rising star, he does not garner the notoriety of a McGregor or Jon Jones. Moreover the co-main had to be changed several time with the final match not even advertised. Yet, the UFC still had a $16 million gate as well as drawing money from all of the other ancillary business with International Fight Week.
Leave a Reply