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sweet_deals · 10-18-2006, 09:53 AM

I think it's time to do a little audit on "The Ultimate Fighter" reality show. I believe thay have signed a contract with SpikeTV to take the show to a seventh season (maybe someone can verify that for me), but the truth of the matter is, 75% of the show is getting boring. I think when it comes down to it, the majority of MMA fans want two things. To know each fighter before the fight, and to see a good fight. So when they house all the fighters in the same dorm-style house and make some obviously staged antics between the fighters (sometimes, I'll admit, they're funny, but that's not what I'm tuning in for), I feel the show loses some credibility.

Let's face it, TUF is in a unique position here. They have the potential to be the only true reality show on television, but instead (and I'm going to get bombarded for saying this), they've borrowed a page from the book of America's Next Top Model. People tune into the aformentioned show because they enjoy the side effects of putting a bunch of young woman on ego trips in a house and watch the hilarity ensue. People tune into TUF to learn about each fighter, form their own opinion about who is a better fighter, and watch them prove or disprove their opinion.

I was going to leave the ratings out of this post because they have nothing to do with my opinion, but when you have professional fighters on the show like Rich, Matt, GSP and Chuck, and the ratings continue to plummet, something's amiss.

And then there's the whole timing issue. One thing I love about MMA is the uncertainty of what's going to heppen next. Pure domenience of a round can be countered in a millisecond with a smart submission or a surprising knock out. When a fight begins at the half way mark of the show, you know that it's going past the first round, and although I enjoy watching it for the sake of a good fight, some of that uncertainty is lost.

So how can they make it better? Here's one suggestion:

- Same fighter format 16 fighters, two weight classes (definetly a strong point of the current show).
- Each figher submits their own bio to the show previous to picking them, in the form of a video, showing their training from their home town.
- The fight bracket for each class is predetermined
- The first show it dedicated to introducing each fighter, showing clips from their home-made videos, and show the first matchups. No fights on the first night.
- Each show afterwards will show how the fighters have trained for the upcoming fight with their own coaches. 10 min. dedicated for each fighter.
- Then the fight. Any time afterwards can be used to preview the next fight.

Aside:
- Get rid of the house. Instead each fighter stays in a hotel with their own coach(s).
- Use multiple gyms / multiple camera crews.
- Abolish any staged comedy from show.

I think something along these lines would make for a true reality show and more exciting to watch in it's entirity.

10-18-2006, 09:53 AM	#1 (permalink)
sweet_deals Amateur Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Toronto Posts: 10 Points: 2,030 Bank: 0 Total Points: 2,030 Donate	The Ultimate Fighter show just isn't working I think it's time to do a little audit on "The Ultimate Fighter" reality show. I believe thay have signed a contract with SpikeTV to take the show to a seventh season (maybe someone can verify that for me), but the truth of the matter is, 75% of the show is getting boring. I think when it comes down to it, the majority of MMA fans want two things. To know each fighter before the fight, and to see a good fight. So when they house all the fighters in the same dorm-style house and make some obviously staged antics between the fighters (sometimes, I'll admit, they're funny, but that's not what I'm tuning in for), I feel the show loses some credibility. Let's face it, TUF is in a unique position here. They have the potential to be the only true reality show on television, but instead (and I'm going to get bombarded for saying this), they've borrowed a page from the book of America's Next Top Model. People tune into the aformentioned show because they enjoy the side effects of putting a bunch of young woman on ego trips in a house and watch the hilarity ensue. People tune into TUF to learn about each fighter, form their own opinion about who is a better fighter, and watch them prove or disprove their opinion. I was going to leave the ratings out of this post because they have nothing to do with my opinion, but when you have professional fighters on the show like Rich, Matt, GSP and Chuck, and the ratings continue to plummet, something's amiss. And then there's the whole timing issue. One thing I love about MMA is the uncertainty of what's going to heppen next. Pure domenience of a round can be countered in a millisecond with a smart submission or a surprising knock out. When a fight begins at the half way mark of the show, you know that it's going past the first round, and although I enjoy watching it for the sake of a good fight, some of that uncertainty is lost. So how can they make it better? Here's one suggestion: - Same fighter format 16 fighters, two weight classes (definetly a strong point of the current show). - Each figher submits their own bio to the show previous to picking them, in the form of a video, showing their training from their home town. - The fight bracket for each class is predetermined - The first show it dedicated to introducing each fighter, showing clips from their home-made videos, and show the first matchups. No fights on the first night. - Each show afterwards will show how the fighters have trained for the upcoming fight with their own coaches. 10 min. dedicated for each fighter. - Then the fight. Any time afterwards can be used to preview the next fight. Aside: - Get rid of the house. Instead each fighter stays in a hotel with their own coach(s). - Use multiple gyms / multiple camera crews. - Abolish any staged comedy from show. I think something along these lines would make for a true reality show and more exciting to watch in it's entirity.