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MMA Debate – Why Bellator will never succeed

Why Bellator Will Never Succeed


Tournaments have always appealed to fans. It is the closest thing MMA has that resembles the playoff structures held by the NFL, NBA, or MLB. There is an absence of subjectivity that sometimes taints MMA. Bellator promotes their tournaments as an opportunity for fighters to control their own destinies rather than promoters or politics.

Bellator proved true to their word when  they made big free agent signings, Roger Huerta and Jay Hieron. Just like any other fighter, Huerta and Hieron had to prove their worth based on performance, rather than their popularity. If Bellator promoter Bjorn Rebney wanted ratings, he would have given Huerta or Hieron 1st round byes in the tournament. Though Bellator’s tournaments have been plagued by controversial judges’ decisions, they have delivered exciting fights amongst legitimate top talent fighters.

Yet, the reason Bellator has failed to make stars out of their talented marquee fighters, is the lack of familiar named fighters that common fans may know from the UFC, participating in their tournaments.

I am a huge proponent of developing new stars and giving deserving fighters on the independent scene a chance to prove themselves on a grander stage, but a promoter has to be careful in how they do so. We have seen promoters fail because they overpaid for talent that had little relevancy with common fans. Affliction, Shine Fights, and Shark Fights all have made these mistakes in recent years. They attempted to assemble stacked fight cards with former big promotion talent, but instead of having them face their homegrown prospects, they attempt to book a former UFC vet vs. another former UFC vet, which is just not smart business.

If Bellator were wise they would continue to build their talent in tournaments by having them face former UFC or Ultimate Fighter veterans. Fighters like Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, Cole Konrad, or Ben Askren have proven that they are top talents, but until they start knocking off name opponents, they will continue to be regarded as unproven talent. Bellator has done a decent job as of late attempting to put their tournament champions against former UFC vets, Eddie Alvarez vs. Roger Huerta/Josh Neer and Hector Lombard vs. Jay Silva/Niko Vitale, but what about fighters like Thales Leites, Gerald Harris, or Patrick Cote.

What I believe would advance Bellator tournaments in the eyes of MMA fans would be the inclusion of former UFC stars sprinkled amongst their ranks. Not fighters who went 0-2 in the UFC and were released, but more along the lines of Leites, Cote, Kendall Grove, Efrain Escudero, Marcus Davis, etc. No matter how much Bellator promotes Christian M’Pumbu vs. Rich Hale as a tournament championship finale, it fails to attract common fans. Now throw a name like Keith Jardine(recently re-signed by ZUFFA) in the mix and fans may be more apt to tune in.

Bellator has an abundance of talent on their roster, but fighters like Dan Hornbuckle and Brent Weedman need to face off with a name like Ben Saunders, rather than each other. Prospect vs. prospect does little to raise the name value of the winner.

I understand Bellator’s hesitancy with building their promotion through the UFC’s former stars, but that is the only way to do it. The UFC and Strikeforce did the same thing with PRIDE fighters. Mirko Cro Cop is the reason Gabriel Gonzaga became a star. In MMA, to make a star, you have to beat a star.
We’ve seen it done countless times over the years. The torch is passed from B.J. Penn to Frankie Edgar, Matt Hughes to Georges St.Pierre, Rich Franklin to Anderson Silva, Shogun Rua to Jon Jones, and Brock Lesnar to Cain Velasquez. Bellator will never build their stars if they don’t book their marquee names against the top talent available. Eddie Alvarez vs. Josh Neer does not satisfy fans, nor does Hector Lombard vs. Jay Silva. Ben Askren vs. Nick Thompson, and Cole Konrad vs. Paul Buentello don’t do it either. Unfortunately, Strikeforce can no longer be a viable partner in co-promotion. So, they are forced to develop their stars through tournaments. If a UFC veteran defeats a promising young talent that Bellator was hoping to develop in the tournament, so be it. That is the nature of MMA, nothing is guaranteed.

Imagine the middleweight tournament that Bellator could hold. UFC vets vs. Bellator unknowns, with the winner taking on Hector Lombard.
Thales Leites vs. Bryan Baker
Kendall Grove vs. Jared Hess
Patrick Cote vs. Brett Cooper
Maiquel Falcao vs. Alexander Shlemenko

Instead Bryan Baker fights Eric Schambari or Shlemenko beats Jared Hess and no one, but dedicated hardcore fans take notice, and it’s a shame because they are just as talented as many fighters currently on the UFC roster. Bellator cannot make their own stars because they don’t have the ratings to do so. Common fans are not tuning in to Bellator. It’s the hardcore MMA fans that are the only ones taking notice, and as we have seen, their audience, though loyal, will never lead to pay-per-view dollars or mainstream appeal.

If Bellator wants to change their fledgling popularity, they need to accept what they are. Rather, than going on air and claiming their fighters are the best in the world in their weight classes, which holds virtually no weight with fans because they know it’s simply untrue. They need to become the UFC’s minor leagues. They need to relinquish their tight grips on fighter contracts and allow Eddie Alvarez and Hector Lombard to move on with their careers. What better promotional tool for Bellator than for their champions to possibly become UFC champions.

Bellator cannot continue to stay afloat amongst half-empty crowds. Fans need to know that Bellator houses the best fighters not in the UFC. They need to become the UFC’s Ultimate Fighter, and allow their tournament champions to move on to the UFC once they have proven themselves as the best in Bellator. Bellator’s reputation will only grow when they allow their champions to move on, instead of holding them captive and having them fight journeyman to keep them busy.
How is it good business for Bellator to have their new tournament champion lose to their past year’s champion. It’s as if all that promotion and hard work for the current year was completely washed down the drain. Bellator, should consider that once a fighter has won the tournament championship, and been awarded their $100,000 prize, that having them move on to the UFC can only be viewed as a positive in the grand scheme of things.

Once Bellator champions sign with the UFC and show what they are capable of, mainstream fans will wonder where they came from, and they will soon take notice of Bellator, that up until now is only known amongst hardcore MMA fans.

Fights fans want to see:
Joe Warren vs. Jose Aldo
Eddie Alvarez vs. Frankie Edgar
Anderson Silva vs. Hector Lombard

Until Bellator realizes they should take the role of the NCAA, rather than the CFL to the NFL, they will continue to function in anonymity.

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