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LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 06: Diego Sanchez enters the octagon against Michael Chiesa in their welterweight fight during the UFC 239 event at T-Mobile Arena on July 6, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC)
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LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 06: Diego Sanchez enters the octagon against Michael Chiesa in their welterweight fight during the UFC 239 event at T-Mobile Arena on July 6, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC)
The UFC is one such MMA promotion, whose spectatorship is growing on an exponential scale. UFC adheres to a true form of entertainment that is boiled down to two individuals trying to best each other with their fists. Thus, from before a decade to now, the viewership count has been tremendous.
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A large fan following and spectatorship towards a particular fighter is a direct consequence of how bold, charismatic, skillful, and confident they are. With a large fan following comes a greater Pay-Per-View count, which in turn, say perhaps, a certain form of credit in the UFC.
Diego Sanchez, the former ‘King of the Cage’ welterweight champion and the winner of UFC’s ‘The Ultimate Fighter 1’ middleweight tournament, recently appeared in an interview with MMA Junkie. He covered a plethora of topics regarding the fight game, his relationship with the UFC and the leverage that some fighters have over the renowned promotion.
“You know, there’s only three people to ever get leverage on the company UFC. The first one’s Conor McGregor, with the Irish mob coming in. Um, you got Nate who beat Conor and then Masvidal because he beat Nate, and like maybe Brock Lesnar. You can add Brock Lesnar to the list… so that’s like the, really. The only three guys… those are the only guys that ever really accomplished it, man, and so hats off to them for what they did, you know?” said Sanchez.
Stardom in the UFC
Achieving star-status in the UFC is a lot harder than being the best in your division. This is because not all fighters can be performers.
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NEW YORK, NY – NOVEMBER 12: UFC lightweight and featherweight champion Conor McGregor of Ireland celebrates after defeating Eddie Alvarez in their UFC lightweight championship fight during the UFC 205 event at Madison Square Garden on November 12, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
For others, it could take years to learn the business and behaviors to mould themselves into a star like material. But by the time this happens, their careers usually end. It seems counterproductive, if anything.
Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz, and Jorge Masvidal are some of the biggest names in the game. As stated by Sanchez, these three individuals have a natural charm and suaveness for them that their business seems to run by itself. They’ve come to a point in their profession that they have a lot more say than the other fighters in the game today.
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