The UFC is a controversial kind of sports organization with a lot of brutal fights, interesting opponents, and intense fans in equal measure.
It’s come a long way since its inception in the early 1990s and has since taken giant leaps in the MMA world. Over the last few decades, the UFC has also solidified over 60 broadcast partners, and has its matches streamed live in over 165 countries around the globe!
And with an impressive roster of talent constantly joining the ranks of big names like Conor McGregor, Israel Adesanya, and Amanda Nunes, to name a few, it’s more important than ever for fans to stay up to date with UFC betting odds.
Here are 7 facts about the UFC that you need to know.
- UFC Is Owned By Endeavor
This may seem like one of the most obvious facts to know about the UFC. But if we were to ask what the name of the company that owns the UFC is, would you know the answer?
If not, there’s no shame in it. Not many people know who the powerhouse behind the UFC promotion is! This is mainly because the name “Endeavor Group Holdings” doesn’t appear in any live UFC broadcasts or events.
Endeavor bought the UFC in 2016 for a whopping $4 billion. The company also represents the NFL and NHL and owns the Miss Universe.
- The UFC Invests A Lot In China
The UFC has recently started to invest in the Chinese martial arts market, and it’s paying off! A few years ago, in 2019, the UFC opened a 93,000-square-foot MMA training facility in Shanghai — the biggest in the city.
It cost over $13 million to build and currently stands at over three times the size of the Las Vegas equivalent! In addition to MMA fighters, it’s also used by Chinese athletes training for the Olympics.
- UFC Doesn’t Include All Weight Classes
There were no weight classes in the early stages of the UFC. Back then, weight division was not a thing. There was often a huge difference in weight between the two athletes.
Nowadays, such a difference would be completely unfair to either athlete. But back then, there were no rules, and people didn’t care much about the weight of the athlete.
In UFC 12 in 1997, the promotion introduced its first weight divisions: lightweight and heavyweight.
Even today, the UFC doesn’t include the following weight classes for men:
- Cruiserweight (225 lbs)
- Super Middleweight (195 lbs)
- Super Lightweight (165 lbs)
- Strawweight (115 lbs)
- Super Heavyweight (N/A)
- UFC Has Impressive Audience Attendance
It may come as no surprise to learn that the UFC has hosted many record-breaking crowd events during its nearly three-decade run.
In 2019, during UFC 243, they set the record for live attendance at the iconic Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. It remains the most-attended event in UFC history!
Over 57,127 people watched Israel Adesanya defeat Robert Whittaker to take the middleweight title. The previous record of a 56,214-strong audience was set at the same stadium during UFC 193 for Holly Holm vs Ronda Rousey.
- UFC Success Is Often Determined By Personality
If a UFC fighter has the skills but cannot trash-talk an opponent, their success may suffer as a result of this. We aren’t saying that they won’t ever be renowned in the UFC world, but that they might not be as popular if they cannot trash talk.
Simply put, the UFC appears to favor less polished fighters with strong personalities rather instead of skilled yet incredibly meek fighters.
This is because a fighter with lots of character is likely going to be able to hype up a crowd and build up a fanbase much faster than a fighter without personality.
- The UFC Championship Belt Is Expensive
At first glance, the UFC belt may look like nothing special. But it’s said to be made of real gold – or gold plating at the very least, which makes it that bit more special.
These UFC championship belts (in addition to pretty much every other championship belt) are created by two guys: Javier Cortez and Dave Millican.
The coveted belt that is always held with pride is worth roughly around $333,000.
- The Chuck Norris Connection
We’re going to end this article with a fun UFC fact. But we’ll start with a bit of background.
The Octagon is a term that is now pretty much synonymous with the UFC. For those who don’t know what the Octagon is, it’s the trademarked name given to the UFC’s cage.
However, it was film and video director Jason Cusson who originally came up with the concept when the UFC began in 1993.
The iconic Octagon design was inspired by the 1980’s film, The Octagon starring our favorite redhead, Chuck Norris. It was an immediate hit and has stuck ever since!
Summary
These are 7 facts you need to know about the UFC. Without much question, it is safe to say that the UFC is the largest MMA promotion in the world. It’s also the most popular after achieving astonishing mainstream success.