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Tuesday, 10 November 2009 01:23 |
- I'll continue saying it until they listen to me - Pat Miletich should be an announcer for all of Strikeforce's major events. The fact he is passed over for Frank Shamrock boggles my mind. Honestly, Frank Shamrock isn't even that well known. Most casual fans probably think it's Ken. Maybe that's what Strikeforce is going for, but they'd be a lot better off with Miletich in the booth. He's my favorite MMA announcer because of his concise explanations of the action. He doesn't use excessive technical jargon to make himself sound smart. For him, it's about getting the point across, which is crucial for a TV broadcaster. Next time you watch an event he works, pay attention to the replays. He's perfect every single time. It's really amazing. Are you listening Coker? You've got a star sitting in the minor leagues. Time to cut the fat and put him into the lineup.
- They need to fine tune the fight lineup. The main event did not start until after 11pm ET, which is a major problem because it was not included in the primetime ratings. Although the card was solid, this event was about Fedor/Rogers. You gotta do whatever it takes to have that fight begin at no later than 10:30pm ET. My solution is pretty simple. First, if you're gonna have a five round fight that isn't the main event, limit the live card to three fights. If you happen to have extra time, you can always show an exciting fight from the prelims. Second, tighten up the broadcast and eliminate the fluff. We don't need to see Jason Miller's entrance (we didn't even get to see Fedor or Rogers enter). We also don't need ten minutes of the announcers talking to start things out. No one watches MMA to hear announcers talk. We want to see fights.
- The audio was excellent. I kept a notepad next to me and wrote down random thoughts during the event. Two times I scribbled, "Audio!". I can't remember the last time I noticed the in-cage sounds. The two instances were when Mousasi was punching Sokoudjou from the top and Fedor's KO punch on Rogers. Whatever they did to mic up the cage, I hope they keep doing it.
- Please don't book Fedor/Werdum. You're wasting one of his fights. It's not like MMA fans are clamoring for it. It makes even less sense because the rumor is Brett Rogers will fight Alistair Overeem. Rogers loses to Fedor then gets a title shot? The number one reason why the UFC kills other promotions is because they don't mess around with building to fights. If there is a hypothetical fight that fans want to see, they usually book it. For example, Brock Lesnar could have spent his last two fights working his way towards a title shot. Instead the UFC matched him up with Randy Couture and sold about a million PPVs. Since then Lesnar has become their biggest PPV draw. When a big fight is out there, you gotta take it. MMA is unpredictable and building does not work. Too many things can happen and ruin the script.
- For those of you who do not know, the scheduled bout between Deray Davis and Mark Miller was canceled due to time constraints. It was reported that the fighters only received their "show" money (translation: hardly anything). Canceled fights are a touchy subject. Fighters do not get paid until after the bout. It's not like when you sign a contract with a promotion that you receive two paychecks a month. This means fighters must pay for their training camps out of pocket. Most times sponsors step up and front most of that, but it's not always the case. Also, a sponsor wants to see their brand during the fight, so they're going to pay after it happens. There was some backlash against Strikeforce for canceling the fight and only giving them their "show" money. I contacted the promotion earlier today and they told me they're currently working on the situation and would have more news in the next couple days. As soon as I hear anything, I'll pass it along. Sounds like Davis and Miller will at least get something additional (rescheduled fight for the December event is my guess, but we'll see). Either way, I'm glad Strikeforce is trying to figure something out. It's important for the major promotions to treat fighters well, especially the guys who aren't making the big bucks.
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Agree about the in ring audio. I heard the Fedor KO punch and literally didn't breath for 30 seconds as I just gasped.
I think they also need to tune up the post fight interview with Fedor and his translator. That really kind of sucked and dragged out.