UFC
Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney says pay-per-view might possibly be in their future
Apr 30, 2012 - 12:05:47 PM Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney says pay-per-view might possibly be in their future

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Bellator Fighting Championships lost their Middleweight Champion this week, opting not to match the offer the UFC gave to Hector Lombard. One of the main reasons they couldn't match the UFC's offer is the lack of a pay-per-view option, as Bellator to date has not been a pay-per-view organization.

Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney has remained non-committal on the topic of Bellator moving to pay-per-view in the future, but in the wake of Lombard's departure he hasn't ruled it out, either.

"I think what you'll see is as this is monetized and that sector plays out, it'll play out with the big fights on that platform," he said in an interview with MMAFighting.com. "You need that kind of platform for what they're doing. We may get there. I never wanted to make a firm commitment to it as far as when and if we'll get there, though. It's really something that we might do, but it needs the right fights and the right talent to get you there."

Penick's Analysis: MMA on pay-per-view outside of the UFC has not been successful to date, and I don't see it being a realistic step for Bellator. It doesn't fit with the model they've set up, and they don't have the right type of fights that will garner interest for a pay-per-view event. The exposure on Spike TV next year might open the door a little bit for it, but it's not necessarily a feasible option for any organization that's not the UFC.