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Jan 29, 2010 - 9:06:46 PM

By Steve Sutcliffe, MMATorch columnist

In the oftentimes turbulent yet somewhat overlapping and symbiotic relationship between the fan bases of mixed martial arts and professional wrestling, one thing that both groups of fans can agree on is that the time between late December and January is a period filled with expectations and hype, or at least in theory.

The New Year has now become synonymous with delivering a UFC pay-per-view that, barring injuries or other unforeseen events, should be stacked with title and number one contendership matches. Pro wrestling fans know all too well that the so-called Road to WrestleMania begins at the Royal Rumble event. And for the segment of the fan bases that overlap - a percentage probably underestimated by most - some will inevitably have to pick one event over the other.

On a macro-level, all forms of entertainment are technically competition for both WWE and the UFC. Video games, movies, and concerts all pluck away dollars from wallet, cash that could've been spent elsewhere, whether it be for a pro wrestling event or ordering a UFC pay-per-view.

But looking at it from a narrower perspective, WWE markets itself as "sports entertainment," a phrase maligned by certain individuals as a marketing gimmick to describe the combination of athletics with soap opera style drama.

Mixed martial arts broken down to its simplest level is a combat sport. But think back to all of the greatest and/or most heated rivalries we've seen over the years and oftentimes it's what happens outside the cage that's as important as what happens inside it.

Tito insists on not fighting Chuck because they're best friends but Chuck claims the extent of their friendship was that they split a case a beer once. Matt Serra constantly reminds everyone that rival Matt Hughes is the biggest jerk on the planet while the latter counters by saying that Serra is not even in his league and that his title win was a fluke. B.J. Penn and his Vaseline-gate accusations against GSP. Hell, Nick Diaz and Joe Riggs slugged it out in a Las Vegas hospital after their fight at UFC 57.

What's the pattern here? It's called drama. All sports have them to some extent, on and off the field. There's good guys and bad guys, fan favorites and cheats. Whether you think something like Brock Lesnar's post-UFC 100 victory tirade was good or bad for the sport, people were talking. More eye balls than ever were directed toward MMA.

While certain segments of the fan base are hesitant or downright dismissive of the more entertainment aspects, does personality-deprived robots fighting in a cage sound like a good long-term investment of your time and money? You need colorful characters to keep things fresh. You need trash talk to keep things interesting.

Yes, Ali-Frasier was about determining who was the best boxer in the world, but it was also about two men who absolutely loathed one another. At a press conference, Ali punched a rubber gorilla meant to represent Frasier to hype up the Thrilla in Manilla. Bad for the sport of boxing? Hardly.

So on one side, we've got fake sports combat with a cast of over the top characters reading from a script to hype up fake fights. And on the other, real sports combat with a cast of characters who are often over-the-top who may or may not be reading from a script to hype up real fights. Not direct competition you say?

Dana White and Vince McMahon will argue that their audience demographics are different, that the WWE is a television company while the UFC is a pay-per-view business.

Ignore the fact that many of your friends who used to watch wrestling back in the late-'90s are instead now listening to Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg spew off cliches once a month on a Saturday night. Don't worry about how you'd rather be caught dead than admit that you still watch wrestling in public.

The Hooters down the street that used to play all the wrestling pay-per-views? They decided they'd like to actually start attracting people in their restaurant and switched over to the UFC. Why buy this year's wrestling video game, which contains just marginal cosmetic enhancements over last year's model, when you could get a whole brand new game in UFC Undisputed?

But this isn't the time to start drafting a eulogy for the WWE or collecting charity money for Vince McMahon. The company in and of itself is doing just fine, thank you very much. Although interest is down in the States, the WWE is tapping into new revenue streams and new markets like Mexico and China to off-set any decline in their bottom line. International tours still bring in big business and Titan Towers remains a merchandising machine, regardless if they haven't made a legitimate new star in years.

But don't think Dana White is just sitting back and resting on his laurels. The recently announced deal in which Flash Entertainment, whose sole shareholder is the Abu Dhabi government, purchased a minority stake in UFC is a clear indication of their commitment in going global. There's even talks of having region-specific Ultimate Fighter reality shows.

No matter what your opinion is of pro wrestling and its similarities to mixed martial arts, or lack thereof, the bottom line is that WWE isn't viewed as a big deal or a much-watch product unless there's a major event like a WrestleMania or a Royal Rumble.

A few weeks ago, guest host Mike Tyson wrestled on Monday Night Raw. If this were 1999, it would have been a huge deal. But because of general apathy to the product, no one noticed besides getting a few seconds of air time on SportsCenter. One of the most infamous sports figures of all time goes on what is still one of the highest rated shows on cable television and actually participates a match and no one gives a damn. Inconceivable.

Yet Brock Lesnar announces he's not dying and that the Canadian health care system sucks and that gets front page coverage on ESPN.com. At one point, UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn was a regular wrestler on Monday Night Raw, and despite frequent mention of his past accolades in mixed martial arts, wasn't treated as a a big superstar.

How do you think they would treat a UFC Champion now if he appeared on WWE television? The times, they are a-changing.

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Steve Sutcliffe is a self-loathing wrestling fan. Send get well wishes to steve.w.sutcliffe@gmail.com.

[Vince McMahon art credit Grant Gould (c) MMATorch]

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