It’s hard to compete with all the social media traffic analyzing the latest adventures of Jon Jones, but UFC is doing its best to grab some of that oxygen back to hype up this weekend’s UFC 317: Topuria vs. Oliveira fight card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
It’s curious that so much of the gossip surrounding this fight is about everything surrounding it because the fight itself should be excellent. The UFC 317 main card is pretty decent on paper. UFC management needs this event to deliver big time with ESPN executives watching in Las Vegas. The last thing anyone wants to see is another UFC 313 scenario.
This week’s edition of The MMA Draw podcast covers some incredible high-stakes scenarios that could generate big bucks for UFC — if their alchemist gambles pay off.
The free portion of this week’s podcast takes a look at the recent UFC title shenanigans with Ilia Topuria moving up from 145 to 155 pounds and Islam Makhachev moving up from 155 to 170 pounds. This recent Twitter post regarding Hunter Campbell’s role in matchmaking decisions caught our eye:
There is a method behind the madness of UFC having interchangeable champions. More titles, more contractual control. But there are some serious risks involved and we take a deep look at those risks on The MMA Draw podcast.
The paid portion of this week’s podcast is where the real money is at. Our paid subscribers get a peek behind the curtain to see how TKO’s government contractor strategy is playing out. In a here-today, gone-tomorrow story in the Hollywood trade publications, it was revealed that TKO hired former Netflix executive Dean Garfield. Mark Shapiro has been telegraphing some big impending TKO hires for both lobbyists and C-Suite executives.
We explain the significance of TKO’s political strategy and how they are cleverly setting up a scenario to completely wipe out other boxing promoters.
In 2025, you can no longer simply promote fights. If you are not acting as your own advertising agency that can bring your own title sponsors and your own investment banking assets to financially carry big fights, you stand little chance against UFC & WWE. This is a major promotional point that flies over the heads of so many people but we are here to break it down and explain how all of this works in a very easy-to-understand format.
We also have an extensive discussion about the future of Eddie Hearn with Matchroom Boxing. Eddie Hearn is positioning himself to be the odd-man-out, the last survivor in a Zuffa Boxing war. Will Eddie Hearn sell to TKO and grab a big pay day or will he continue to roll the dice as a semi-independent player?
Our paid portion of this week’s podcast also takes a look at major news regarding subscriber data from the major streaming platforms.
We have two reader recommendations regarding streaming news. On Substack, go with Entertainment Strategy Guy. On Twitter, check out TV Grim Reaper.
For the longest time, Netflix avoided live sports content and built a media monopoly on scripted binge watching. Now there is an adaptation in strategy and TKO is taking advantage of it. Why did Netflix management change course? And what does it mean for the future of fight sports when it comes to DAZN, Amazon, ESPN, and Roku?
Finish the week out strong by listening to our podcast. Become a paid subscriber today. You won’t regret it.
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