BoDog Fight: Did Calvin Ayre Make a Huge Mistake?

Calvin Ayre is a name that over the past few years has become more and more public; first for his online gambling site, BoDog.com, and now for his recent foray into the arena of Mixed Martial Arts. I'll put this lightly; I love Mixed Martial Arts. When I moved, I left behind boxes of DVDs, tapes, magazines and posters dedicated to MMA, kickboxing and shoot-wrestling at home, only taking with me a few unwatched Shooto, K-1 and Pancrase DVDs with me.

Since moving, finishing college and getting my feet wet in the silly business world it has become more and more trying to keep up with the world of MMA. Never mind that changing time zones has really messed me up. I have to catch most stuff on replay due to it airing while I'm at work or just enjoying time with my girlfriend, friends, etc. That being said, I still make an effort to find most MMA stuff. The problem comes when an upstart company starts putting on shows, with little name value involved, and when the content isn't easily available.

This not only means IFL to me, but specifically BoDog. By now I've caught IFL a few times, know the names involved and have a passing interest in it. Once in a while I'll catch a fight that happened in IFL, but when it comes to BoDog -- I HAVE NO CLUE. I couldn't name you one name of a fighter involved with BoDog, couldn't tell you what their show is about, and until I started writing this couldn't tell you when their big PPV was (Sat, BTW). Their television show airs on ION, which I don't get out here, or on the internet. I strongly dislike the internet show thing, as the quality is usually kind of poor or choppy, plus sitting down and watching a small, windowed program is just annoying. I'm sure there is a full screen option, and because ION is such a small network that the streams are of decent quality, but it is hard to get the initiative to just sit down and watch something new like this.

Since we are being inundated with MMA now; UFC is doing WM-like numbers for regular PPVs, PRIDE is a common name in the US, etc, etc, there is just so much MMA content, discussion and so on that I know a lot of people like me who get stuck in their ways and stick to what they know. I'll follow UFC, PRIDE, Shooto, K-1 (including K-1 MAX and HEROS) and maybe a ZST show here and there, but tend to shy away from anything else. I mean, UFC has stuff on free TV almost all the time now, and has monthly PPVs, it is difficult to have a huge appetite for MMA right now. I'm not saying its the same for everybody, but I think as someone who has been watching MMA since the early 90's that I'm not a part of this rabid hunger for more MMA like a lot of newer fans might be.

So is Calvin Ayre a fool for starting BoDog in an already saturated market where UFC is completely monopolizing the fight game? Up until now I'd say yes, and until we see the affects of this BoDog Fight PPV, I'll continue to say so. UFC has branded MMA into 'Ultimate Fighting' in a very Vince McMahon-like term that casual fans know, much like 'Sports Entertainment' for his brand of pro-wrestling. Your casual fan won't know the name MMA, but will know the name 'Ultimate Fighting,' as well as you'll see gyms springing up with 'Ultimate Fighting' classes. In this market right now it seems everybody is trying to jump onto the MMA bandwagon, but just don't have the means to do so. UFC is barely getting on ESPN right now, and this early into the craze, starting a new company seems foolish. Its a good idea to beat the rest to the punch, but to survive the early woes might be difficult.

The step in the right direction was the huge steal of Fedor Emelianenko from PRIDE FC. Fedor, still PRIDE's Heavyweight Champion, will fight Matt "The Law" Lindland on Saturday night, in what most fans will see as an easy fight for Fedor and a huge test for the former Olympian Lindland. Regardless, that and the rest of the announced card (Aleks E. vs Eric Pele, Eddie Alvarez vs Nick Thompson) are decent, if not sort of 'blah' additions to a strong main event, but enough to catch the attention of the hardcore fan who hasn't already checked out BoDog Fight. I know it has caught my attention, and maybe in the future BoDog will do more to catch the eye of fans, but until then its a wait and see kind of thing.