UFC returns 'The Ultimate Fighter' to a taped format in hopes of ratings boost

Cat--Smasher · 06-12-2012, 09:09 PM

UFC returns 'The Ultimate Fighter' to a taped format in hopes of ratings boost - Yahoo! Sports

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Though UFC president Dana White said he loves the live version of "The Ultimate Fighter," the reality series will return to a taped format for its next season, he told Yahoo! Sports on Tuesday.

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The show will remain on Friday at 10 p.m. ET on FX, though White said if "this next season isn't up to the standards I expect, they promised me we can move it to Tuesday or Wednesday." He said casting for Season 16 would begin in three weeks and will debut in September. Season 2 on FX will feature welterweight fighters.

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"FX wants to try it again on Friday nights," White said. "But if it's not up to the standards I'm expecting, I'm pretty sure they'll give me what I want. But this season was a smash hit home run for them."

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According to FX spokesman Dominic Pagone, TUF was the second-most watched series on basic cable on Friday nights among men 18-34 and 18-49, which is the UFC's key demographic, trailing only ESPN, which generally broadcast an NBA game in that slot. Adding women, TUF was the third-most watched network on basic cable among adults 18-34 and 18-49.

Pagone said among adults aged 18-49, FX's ratings with "The Ultimate Fighter" improved 69 percent year over year. It went up 141 percent among men 18-49 year-over-year, Pagone added.

White said that although he prefers the live format, he was unable to delve into the fighters' lives as much as in seasons past.

He said that the perception that TUF was drawing poorly on FX was because Spike executives were leaking ratings to MMA web sites and presenting them in a misleading way. The overall viewership from the last season on Spike compared to the first season on FX was less, but it was largely because of the switch in days, White noted.

He said Spike also tried to create confusion in the marketplace by running reruns of TUF programming against the live show on FX. Spike has the right via its contract with the UFC to run its UFC-related shows through the end of this season.

Chuck Saftler, the executive vice president of FX, said there is always risk involved in television when things such as time slot, day and network are changed. He said TUF's ratings were on par with WWE "Smackdown" on Syfy, "which has been an institution on Friday nights." Saftler said that "was a good thing."

He also said the timing of the deal, which began in January for the network and in March with "The Ultimate Fighter," created promotional challenges.

All of the Fox networks are renowned for superb cross-promotion of shows, but TUF wasn't able to benefit from that in March.

"At that point, a lot of the big promotional platforms that are within the company are on hiatus," Saftler said. "The NFL wasn't there. [Major League Baseball] wasn't there. "Sons of Anarchy," "American Horror Story," "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," which are all big promotional horses within the Fox and FX world, were all being rested."

"Considering that we launched when we launched without those promotional platforms, I'm really happy with where we are ... for it to improve FX's time period on Friday nights the way it did, that also says good things."

CtGreat · 06-12-2012, 09:18 PM

Are the people at Fox retarded?! Obviously I think they are, but honestly what will it take to make them realize that Friday is a HORRIBLE day for ratings??

Cat--Smasher · 06-12-2012, 09:25 PM

I call Spike and Bellator are going to swoop in with a reality show and fight night on Wed nights starting in 2013 to capture all those classic TUF fans.

Rumble · 06-12-2012, 11:44 PM

Clearly the show needs to be moved to the middle of the week to get the most rating possible. Fucking suits.....

RearNakedStroke · 06-13-2012, 12:18 AM

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Originally Posted by CtGreat

Are the people at Fox retarded?! Obviously I think they are, but honestly what will it take to make them realize that Friday is a HORRIBLE day for ratings??

It was clear that the people at FOX were functioning retards when they cancelled Futurama and Family Guy.
It's very sad that Dana is being influenced by these assholes.

RonPaulForPeace · 06-13-2012, 12:36 AM

fridays a terrible night, they really must be retarded or sum shit, they really should move early say like mid week after 2 and a half me re-runs or sumthing, i mean thats 1 of the most watched shows on tv, this 10 on friday shit is just retarded, doesnt bellator run on fridays sumtimes? maybe thats y?? straight up friday is for the wwe smackdown fans, lets be real they cant compete with pro wrestling just yet so stay clear of monday thursday and friday id say, get back to weds already morons