My write-up from MMANews.com - for those who missed it:
Here's a detailed run down of the UFC coverage on ESPN's "The Hot List":
At 4:30PM ET. on "The Hot List" which airs on the ESPN NEWS channel, the host ran down what's coming up on the show, and mentioned the UFC president would be in the studio to announce a big fight, and that both of the combatants would be on the show as well to talk about the fight.
At 4:38PM ET. as they were going to commercial, the host said UFC president Dana White would be on, and went on to mention how the sport of mixed-martial arts (didn't refer to it as that) is taking over. He said again how White had a big fight to announce on the show.
At 4:40PM ET. on the "bottom line" stats bar on the screen, it read "*Program Alert* Ahead: Major UFC announcement." It remained on the screen during a Texas Rangers pro baseball interview.
At 4:50PM ET. the show returned, still featuring the Program Alert note on the UFC announcement as it never came off and is still on now as they show another segment about the Make a Wish Foundation and Kobe Bryant.
At 5:01PM ET. we return from break, and the Program Alert note is still up, hasn't come off in a long while. They recap some hockey stuff and return in-studio with host Dari Nowkhah and they preview upcoming segments, again repeating the first note here in this article about the "major UFC announcement."
At 5:09PM ET. they mention again how they've got UFC. They talk in amazement at how UFC has sold out the Staples Center and Arrowhead Pond and said, "this thing is coming man [laughs]" while the other host said, "it's here [laughs]." They show clips of GSP fights and Hughes fights as they go to break, and announce at 5:20PM ET. Hughes and GSP will be in studio to talk about their upcoming rematch.
At 5:13PM ET. we return with the Hot List host and UFC president Dana White. They mention how he bought UFC 5 years ago, and Dana White is talking about how they weren't in any major states or even on PPV when they bought the company. He said his partners and him got introduced to the sport and met the fighters and became obsessed with it. He felt they could make changes and get it bigger. He said they changed the rules, got it sanctioned in many more states, etc. They ask about The Ultimate Fighter. Dana White explains the concept. During this part of the interview they break off and show a bunch of notes about the upcoming fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter. Dana White puts over the ratings the show does. The host mentions Randy Couture and Georges St. Pierre as the coaches. Dana mentions how this upcoming season is different than the rest because it's established past-UFC fighters as opposed to up-and-coming fighters trying to make it to the UFC. The host mentions the John McCain issue. Dana said McCain went after UFC before they owned it, and feels he helped save the sport. He mentioned how the events should be sanctioned by the state commissions and how they applaud John McCain. They ask about drugs. Dana mentions how guys even coming on The Ultimate Fighter are tested, and that all events are under state commission rules which includes tests. They ask about how Mike Tyson would of done in UFC in his prime. Dana said he didn't want to bash Tyson, that he's got knockout power, but he probably wouldn't do much now at his age, and might not have even done much in his prime. The host says Dana has an announcement to make.
At 5:17PM ET. Dana White announces Matt Hughes will defend his title against Georges St. Pierre at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California. Dana mentions how Hughes won the first fight with only one second remaining in the round, pulling off an armbar. The host asks what an armbar is. Dana mentions that submissions are part of the game and mentions how you need to be good at several disciplines. Dana explains an armbar specifically, and the host laughs and says the fighters are tough. The host wraps up the Dana White interview, and plugs the upcoming segment with Hughes and GSP coming up after the break.
At 5:22PM ET. we return with a clip of the announcement after the first fight of Hughes-GSP. Then they show GSP begging for his title shot after winning a later fight. We return in-studio with both Hughes and GSP. Hughes is in a white t-shirt, while GSP has a suit and tie on. The host plugs the specifics of the fight, where, when, etc. He recaps the result of the first fight and asks Hughes what to expect in the rematch. Hughes says they've both gotten better. The host asks GSP what's different about the upcoming rematch. He says he wasn't ready, third fight in UFC, Hughes was his idol, and he gave him too much respect. He says now he's improved so much and he'll fight Hughes like everyone else. The host mentions how Hughes just beat Royce Gracie and asked him if he felt guilty beating him up so bad. Hughes said he didn't feel guilty. The host asked him what he said to Gracie after the fight and he just said he told him good job and maybe his days in the sport are done. They ask GSP how he's training, he says 6 days a week, "two-trainings a day" at four hours a day. Boston - Muay Thai, Wrestling, and Jiu-Jitsu. Hughes said you got to be well rounded, and said that's why if a boxer came into MMA they'd just get taken down and beaten there. He goes on to mention about how you need to be well rounded. The host mentions the reality show and how Hughes coaches series two and series four GSP will be one of the coaches. They ask GSP the best part of shooting it, and he said the best part was learning just as much as everyone in the house, especially training with Randy Couture. He feels it made him a better fighter and that his english speaking improved because of the show. He's asked if he's helping the sport in general grow, and he said it's getting bigger and he's doing the best he can to represent the sport and Canada. The host asks for the best story outside of the cage fighting for Hughes, and he says once he started fighting for money he stopped fighting on the streets. He says no one picks on him because he doesn't put himself in those situations. GSP says pretty much the same thing. GSP says he'd just walk away if something like that happened, he doesn't need to prove anything. The host plugs the specifics of the fight again and goes to break at 5:29PM ET. to wrap up the UFC segment.
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