TNA vs. MMA

[Disturbed]

About a month ago I made a forum about a partnership between MMA and wrestling and I said MMA could bring TNA more ratings. SOmeone mentioned a storyline about MMA vs. TNA and I loved there idea so sorry I stole your idea but I had to use it.

So how about an invasion angle where the MMA invades like Nexus. They say they are taking over because wrestling is fake. This should work because TNA and UFC could have a partnership since they are both on spike. Just imagine Lesnar showing up with a bunch of UFC guys claiming they are Taking over TNA and Spike TV.

This storyline could last a long time. They could even have Dixie and Bischoff screw TNA over and Join with UFC. SO they would be behind the invasion and turn heel.

What are your thoughts.
I know I will get plenty of red reps for this but I don't care.

 

[Fan_of_Wrestling]

UFC will not do this, they already have way better PPV buys and ratings, they would gain nothing from this... and could loose a lot of face. UFC have done a lot to be the real alternative to pro-wrestling. This could do serious damage to UFC image.

If it was another MMA promotion that has something to gain maybe... but being on Spike TV it's unlikely that we would see a different MMA promotion getting time.

Final option... a MMA themed stable, fail written all over it.

 

[Daniel]

This will not work purely because MMA fighter are not trained professional wrestlers (with the exception of Lesnar and Lashley). MMA fighters are what they are: fighters.
Also where does this angle leave UFC? Does it just stop while this storyline is on? Does UFC allow its fighters to risk injury? No, of course not because that would lose them a ton of money.

You say they should say they're "taking over because wrestling is fake". Have you ever heard of a word called "kayfabe"? You know, the main thing that pro wrestling is based on. Sure, we all know it is scripted, but companies just don't acknowledge it outright, and they never should. Not even TNA would be stupid enough to do that.

What's in it for UFC? Surely people would start to treat them like a wrestling promotion, aka a fake sports show. Let me tell you, UFC is bigger than TNA could ever hope to be and therefore don't need TNA. Being the biggest MMA association in the world, they could do alright just sticking to that.

On a separate note, I've got an idea where the cast of Psych invades Raw as they're both on USA Network.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Not going to work – the two companies take on too much risk in doing so by one looking weaker than the other.

If anything, a partnership could work if various MMA fighters from the UFC show up (in the audience, or backstage) in TNA on various nights the way you see the WWE showcase various sports stars/entertainers in their crowd on any given night, as well as TNA stars showing up for UFC fights in the same effect. It's double exposure where neither company looks "bad" as a result.

 

[Chadmw]

So you want TNA to admit that wrestling is fake, while having a bunch of real fighters come in and have fake fights, to see who what type of promotion has the best fighters. ooooh my head hurts

 

[neildittmar]

While an interesting idea, I don't see how an MMA invasion could benefit either TNA or UFC. However, I do see how it could cause harm (possibly irreparable) to both companies.

As wrestling fans, who are we supposed to cheer for in this invasion? The knee-jerk reaction obviously would be for TNA, but why? Because they're the wrestlers? Suspension of disbelief only goes so far.

I'm fairly certain folks know the primary distinction between pro-wrestling and MMA. TNA represents fake wrestling, while UFC represents real fights. Therefore, contests pitting the two against one another ultimately don't mean anything. If "real" MMA fighter loses to "fake" TNA wrestler, then it's expected because it's a wrestling show... it's not real. If "fake" TNA wrestler loses to "real" MMA fighter, then it just solidifies the argument that UFC is better than TNA because it's real. No matter which organization goes over, nobody really wins.

At the end of the day, the fans of MMA and TNA represent two very distinct audiences. MMA fans don't want to see their guys get beat by pro wrestlers, especially in "fake" fights. Likewise, TNA fans don't want to see their favorites get beat up by the MMA guys. The concept really is a lose/lose situation.

Unless we're talking about the second coming of "Brawl For All", then it's a lose/lose situation with potential career-ending injuries for the TNA guys.

 

[shogunsrampage]

About a month ago I made a forum about a partnership between MMA and wrestling and I said MMA could bring TNA more ratings. SOmeone mentioned a storyline about MMA vs. TNA and I loved there idea so sorry I stole your idea but I had to use it.

So how about an invasion angle where the MMA invades like Nexus. They say they are taking over because wrestling is fake. This should work because TNA and UFC could have a partnership since they are both on spike. Just imagine Lesnar showing up with a bunch of UFC guys claiming they are Taking over TNA and Spike TV.

This storyline could last a long time. They could even have Dixie and Bischoff screw TNA over and Join with UFC. SO they would be behind the invasion and turn heel.

What are your thoughts.
I know I will get plenty of red reps for this but I don't care.

1. mma vs mma/k-1 has already been done. njpw had a rivalary in the mid 2000s with k-1 which they had several shows. i cant say whether its fact or not but i see it quite hard for a wrestler to being ko'd the way nakanishi was.... so this would lead to be that the matchs were legit. NO WAY would a tna PROWRESTLER ever EVER compete in a legit fight with a mma fighter, they would get killed. atleast in wwe u have swagger who has a legit wrestling background he wouldnt be completely defenseless... yes theres angle but his neck would NEVER be able to last a real fight, this is why he hasnt made the jump. after angle i dont think theres anyone with legit fighting background in tna(i could be wrong).

2). no way in hell would dana white ever go for this. 1) its pro wrestling, mma in no wayy wants to be associated with pro wrestling. whenever brock is brought up look how often they bring up his real wrestling background to overshadow his wwe days. strikeforce brings up lashleys pro wrestling background often and they get BLASTED for it , and when they signed batista. and announced a future batista vs lashley fight strikeforce basically got written off as the #2 mma promotion(other things have also lead to this). when hogan announced the monday night move on ufcs ufn, look at rogans facial reaction during the interview, u can tell he wasnt enthused at ALL to be doign it and was basically mocking hogan with his facial reactions.

3) spike has more control over tna than it does with ufc. this was shown when lashley left the company. lashley knew very well what his signing with sf meant. he decided to keep his pro wrestling value bc he knew signing with a rival org would have spike put pressure on tna to bury lashley for not going to ufc. spike can strong arm tna because tna doesnt really have anywhere else to go. if spike even tried to do that with zuffa, zuffa would drop them in a bad habit and go to a different station/company. its not like there stuck on spike, they just have recieved offers they "liked".

in closing... we will NEVER see a legit pro wrestling(american) vs mma fued in the us. the 2 sides are too far apart. we'll see occasional appeareances( ufc ww division fighter marcus davis appeareaed on impact, rampage appeared on on raw), or old/unestablished mma fighters who switch over to make money(shamrock,severn,tank abbott,dan puder). but keep in mind they all entered pro wrestling in the non mainstream phase of mma..now that mma exploded top fighters are making 10x more than any wrestler... some guy a few months ago dared to laugh at why lesnar would be dumb enough to make the move over bc he got paid alot more in wwe...he was QUICKLY corrected as lesnar was earning 400-600 YEARLY in wwe and hes making 1.5-3 million PER fight in the ufc... you even have your pro wrestlers with legit backgrounds banging there heads about the wasted oppurtunity to go to mma now that its big(angle,benjamin and im willing to bet eventually swagger).... to end this.... it wont happen, again the sides are 2 far apart.. zuffa/ufc doesnt need pro wrestling at all, as u can literally combine wwe and tnas ppvs a month and it wont equal a low buyed ufc event and even if pro wrestling reached outt the ufc would basically laugh in its face as dana would never let his fighters be in a long running physical appereance due to risk of injury.

 

[Bobby B]

The only thing tying TNA and UFC is Spike. Their popularity couldn't be any further apart.

I think the most cross-promotion you will see is TNA adverts on UFC programming.

It would be a one-sided deal that would do absolutely nothing for UFC. If anything, combining it with a scripted product might hurt it's image.

Same goes for WWE too.

And besides, Eric Bischoff described Wrestling vs MMA as "apples and bricks", so he clearly thinks there would be no benefit. This is what he said:

"People have a tendency to wanna compare MMA to professional wrestling, and for the life of me, I just can't figure out why. It's not even apples & oranges as I've said before, it's apples & bricks. One is a real sport & the other is scripted entertainment, and beyond that, if anyone can point out any similarities between the two and why wrestling should modify its business model based on what's happening in MMA, I would be very interested in hearing it, because last time I checked, they are two entirely different products."

I for one think he's very wrong.

 

[16mikeytot]

I read your thread TaylorNix and im just going to say this. Dana White Wants Nothing To Do With Professional Wrestling!!! The last thing Dana White wants is to be associated with pro wrestling. Dana White doesn't want his fans thinking hey The UFC is connected with pro wrestling the last thing he wants his fans saying is hey wrestling is fake so maybe some of the UFC fights are scripted. This idea would never work because Dana wants to distance himself from wrestling as far as possible.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

There's no chance whatsoever of this happening. Both companies have too much to risk in terms of looking badly against one another. TNA is pro wrestling, MMA is about 100% real fighting and the UFC would lose any and all credibility in the eys of many MMA fans if they ever agreed to do something like this.

On top of that, the UFC has absolutely nothing whatsoever to gain from this. In general, their programs often outdraw TNA in terms of ratings and the UFC is a ppv juggernaut in terms of buys. When it comes to ratings, UFC television programming isn't nearly as big as some claim in is. Most of the time, they don't draw all much better than TNA but they usually do outdraw them most times and, sometimes, they outdraw them by a significant margin. The biggest rating UFC popped on tv, if I'm not mistaken, was the episode of The Ultimate Fighter that featured Kimbo Slice's first fight on the show. It drew well into the 3s but, after that, it was back down to drawing in the low to mid 1s as it usually does. Where the UFC does their biggest business is on ppv as most of their monthly shows tend to draw in excess of 1 million buys.

If this sort of MMA Invasion angle did take place, it could have a positive effect on TNA in the short term. UFC fans that might not normally watch TNA or pro wrestling in general might tune in to see what's up as would more casual fans, but I don't think it'd last for long. The interest would soon die down, especially among MMA fans once they saw some of their favorite fighters losing in "fake" fights. It'd be good for TNA for a brief period but it could very well damage the UFC's long term credibility to the point that the might not be able to fully recover their reputation.

 

[shogunsrampage]

There's no chance whatsoever of this happening. Both companies have too much to risk in terms of looking badly against one another. TNA is pro wrestling, MMA is about 100% real fighting and the UFC would lose any and all credibility in the eys of many MMA fans if they ever agreed to do something like this.

On top of that, the UFC has absolutely nothing whatsoever to gain from this. In general, their programs often outdraw TNA in terms of ratings and the UFC is a ppv juggernaut in terms of buys. When it comes to ratings, UFC television programming isn't nearly as big as some claim in is. Most of the time, they don't draw all much better than TNA but they usually do outdraw them most times and, sometimes, they outdraw them by a significant margin. The biggest rating UFC popped on tv, if I'm not mistaken, was the episode of The Ultimate Fighter that featured Kimbo Slice's first fight on the show. It drew well into the 3s but, after that, it was back down to drawing in the low to mid 1s as it usually does. Where the UFC does their biggest business is on ppv as most of their monthly shows tend to draw in excess of 1 million buys.

If this sort of MMA Invasion angle did take place, it could have a positive effect on TNA in the short term. UFC fans that might not normally watch TNA or pro wrestling in general might tune in to see what's up as would more casual fans, but I don't think it'd last for long. The interest would soon die down, especially among MMA fans once they saw some of their favorite fighters losing in "fake" fights. It'd be good for TNA for a brief period but it could very well damage the UFC's long term credibility to the point that the might not be able to fully recover their reputation.

the kimbo episode did something like 5.2 or something....it was very close to strikeforces fedor vs rogers which did 5.4. as u said normally they do like 1 to 1.5 but its view as a success bc of the channel there on. if they were on usa or a network like that(cbs fox ect ect) there number would be MUCH higher. not everyone gets spike tv, its a pay channel so u cant accurately compare numbers..as evidence ill do this..... the kimbo episode was deemed A huge success, the fedor fight which drew 200,000 more was deemed a failure because cbs reaches something like 96 million homes to spikes like 12 million. not all there monthly shows do near a million..there avg is like 550,000-600,000. gsp,penn,brock,rampage are there big money earners...they just realeased the top draws .. brock was 1 avg at over a million, gsp was at 2 with 800k plus rampage was in the 7s penn 6s...ufc 100 did 1.7 million which was almost double what wrestlemania did only a couple months prior..

but i agree with your post..it would be much much much more to tnas benefit, they would get a new audience and a boost into mainstream.. ont he other hand it would hinder the ufc as it makes its image look bad

 

[INDYjon22]

The UFC doesn't cross promote for a reason. That reason being that it doesn't benefit them when they are bigger then any company that wants a partnership. M-1 Global has been trying top cross promote for years with the UFC and it will never happen. Why in the blue hell would the UFC give another company a chance to promote through them? It doesn't make sense from a business stand point, if anything it could hurt them, because it sure as fuck wouldn't benefit them that much.

Also, Dana White has been out spoken about keeping the UFC as removed as possible from wrestling. MMA and wrestling are not the same thing, and White would never want them to be compared in that manner. One if pre-scripted while the other is a complete shoot. If MMA worked with wrestling and became a co-promoters then the detractors of MMA would start in immediately about how MMA is fake and rigged, like wrestling and like how boxing has got for a while. Once again, that would only hurt MMA and the UFC as a whole.

It makes no sense whatsoever for the UFC to ever cross promote with any wrestling company unless it was like what Rampage Jackson did, and that wasn't even to promote MMA, it was to promote the A-Team movie. To summarize, no.

 

[Cmac3311]

I was in Toronto for No Surrender when Frank Trigg faced AJ Styles and it was the worst shit I have ever seen. It was disrespectful to AJ to put him on a sideshow match, Frank Trigg got cheap heat by bringing an American flag to the ring and seriously, wrestling and MMA do not mix. I love the UFC and combining the 2 does nothing for the UFC, who happens to have all of the top PPV buys and merchandise sales in the world.

 

[Reddannihilation]

LOL, I remember saying something like this regarding one of those "who are They" threads, of course I was joking. No, no co-promotion through the UFC and TNA. The UFC isn't the only MMA company for one, but no. The only parts of MMA that need to be brought into wrestling are faster tapouts and tko's. The only co-promotion between the UFC and TNA is the occasional "stay tuned for the best in wrestling" on the occasional UFN.

 

[Rayne]

Oh yeah, this could work, if it wasn't for the fact that the larger portion of the MMA audience absolutely despises professional wrestling. And not in that "I hate it to boo the heels but I still watch it" way, the "if I suspect for a second that this is fake I will no longer watch" way.

Brock Lesnar has huge X-Pac heat with a large portion of the MMA audience because he used to be a professional wrestler. (His pre-intestinal difficulty antics didn't exactly help his image.) The Sherdog forums ate it up when Bobby Lashley got exposed against Chad Griggs (apparently, Mr. Lashley covers and runs when you crack him good in the face.)

Granted, I think about as highly of the internet MMA community as I do the IWC; the Sherdog forums are a wretched hive of scum and villany. But it gives you an idea of just how this idea would be received; fans would turn on the UFC in droves. Hell, people still hold grudges against Ken Shamrock, and all he was looking to do was make some money.

So let's analyze their deal. Dana White, perhaps the best fight promoter in the last 25 years, starts doing heavy needle drugs and decides to work with TNA. He absorbs a few marks from TNA, while the majority of TNA fans demand to see wrestling. (I still flinch when I watch Frank Trigg vs. AJ Styles- wow, that sucked.) UFC loses shitloads of fans because they throw away their image for the sake of... well, I'm still not sure what UFC would stand to gain by this.

This idea sucks. Hard. It is the stuff of markish fantasies and is a guaranteed money loser for the side most needed to make it work.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

the kimbo episode did something like 5.2 or something....it was very close to strikeforces fedor vs rogers which did 5.4. as u said normally they do like 1 to 1.5 but its view as a success bc of the channel there on.

The fight in and of itself drew a 5.4, but the entire show as a whole drew in the mid 3s, which is still a big number. Kimbo Slice had massive amounts of hype and many people were interested to see if the hype was justified or if he was just some overrated hack. They tuned in for the fight, they saw him lose, the show's numbers went back down to where they normally do.