HBO: bitching about signing UFC

Report: HBO to Televise Three UFC Cards in 2007

Report: HBO to Televise Three UFC Cards in 2007Monday,

January 08, 2007

by Sherdog.com Staff

HBO will televise three Ultimate Fighting Championship cards in 2007 and holds an option for three more broadcasts, respected boxing scribe Thomas Hauser reported Monday. According to the report on SecondsOut.com, HBO's UFC cards will air at midnight on to-be-determined dates.

Hauser's report confirms the long-rumored deal between HBO and UFC, though the agreement did not come without objections from HBO Sports President Ross Greenberg. "He did everything in his power not to televise mixed martial arts," Hauser wrote of Greenberg. "But in the end, he had no choice."

Speaking last week with Hauser, Greenberg said he's not a "big" fan of the UFC -- and one would presume MMA -- but also conceded he wasn't much of a boxing fan when he joined HBO. "I recognize the fact that UFC appeals to a fan base and demographic that boxing doesn't have right now," Greenberg told Hauser.

Greenberg's predecessor, Seth Abraham, voiced his displeasure to Hauser over UFC's association with HBO.

"I think it's ridiculous for HBO to televise UFC," Abraham said. "When I was at HBO, we had discussions once or twice a year about professional wrestling. We all agreed that it would get good ratings and we also agreed that it would tarnish our boxing franchise. I feel the same way about UFC. Boxing has a storied history. When HBO attaches itself to boxing, it attaches itself to Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Muhammad Ali. It attaches itself to history, achievement, and glory. UFC has none of those things, and it will tarnish HBO's boxing franchise. Will UFC get good ratings? Probably. But so would naked boxing."

Despite the wishes of HBO's current and former sports chiefs, HBO chairman Chris Albrecht, hoping to court younger viewers to the premium cable network, "insisted on the telecasts," Hauser reported, after being pitched by UFC-hired Hollywood agent Ari Emanuel.

"he had no choice"

Bow down bitch's!!!

Boxing will be taken over by 2012 easily. (If not already.)

I don't call it rap music ... i call it crap music.

Because the UFC is as fake as pro wrestling...proof that darwinism is a fraud. Nature wouldn't let idiots like him live.

yay double post

57? Well then, that just leaves the dark-age UFC's then...

"When HBO attaches itself to boxing, it attaches itself to Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Muhammad Ali. It attaches itself to history, achievement, and glory."

and scandal, and fixed fights, and felons, and pre fight press conference brawls, etc etc. What a know nothing loser Seth Abraham is.

Because the UFC is as fake as pro wrestling...proof that darwinism is a fraud. Nature wouldn't let idiots like him live.

since when is "history" more inportant than ratings? I would much rather see chuck liddell knock someone out than to was 2 muscle heads avoid each other for 15 rounds. No wonder that dude isnt there anymore.

Wow, that dudes living in the past. Yea good idea stick with boxing Dildo's

Sounds like someone is afraid of competition to the terrible state of boxing right now.

Fuck HBO then, we don't need asshole like that.

Boxing is a mess. The histroy of MMA is being written right now.

abraham is an irrelevant douche. next thread, please.

who cares? the sport is bigger than any one man... i am just psyched that
we are going to have MMA on HBO!!

HBO can dominate MMA if they want to.... and the promoters will HAVE to
deliver great fights to them in order to "get HBO dates".. just like in
boxing, it goes by whichever promoter can deliver the goods...

this will not be a UFC monopoly for long.. it will soon be open
competition... this is awesome!

But so would naked boxing.

lmao

not a pretty visual - then they'd be bitching about being tied to gays watching...wah-wah.  baby steps and we just keep evolving.  personally glad the doors are opening up - you'll have good and bad to come with this new can of worms.  but still better than backing up.

I still like my share of boxing and care nothing for pro wrestling and am a hard core mma fan.  also I choose to not bitch about things I have no control over (most of the time ;-)

later, ma

Disrespectful to the extreme.

"When HBO attaches itself to boxing, it attaches itself to Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Muhammad Ali. It attaches itself to history, achievement, and glory. UFC has none of those things, and it will tarnish HBO's boxing franchise. Will UFC get good ratings? Probably. But so would naked boxing."

I may be wrong, but I'm pretty sure NONE of the above guys ever had a fight on HBO! Not sure. Did they have HBO and cable in the 1950's?

By attaching itself to the UFC and MMA it is getting a sport that people actually give a shit about!

Give me the myth and legend of guys like Kimura, Helio Gracie, Rickson Gracie, Royce, Mark Kerr, Fedor, Hughes, Penn, CroCop over those guys anyday.

Ali vs Frazier is on ESPN Classic 6 effin' days a week. That's all they got. The past!!!

Greenberg is probably one of those douchebags like Sugar that thinks he know more about boxing than people actually boxing, training and managing fighters. A pretender. The fucking guys talks about obscure fights that NOBODY has ever seen to make himself look like something he isn't......a boxer.

"The best fight ever was in 1902 between Swingin' Penny Douglass and Mad Dog Shaw. They went 123 rounds and knocked eachother out 18 times." Blah, blah, blah!

Anyway, step aside Greenberg and let the man come through!

At one time, newb, Mark Kerr was regarded as unbeatable. The second coming of Jesus. Nobody thought he could be beat. The reason headbutts are illegal is because of Kerr.

Get ready HBO.

these guys so sound like the Old guard.. resistant to change.
fuck the history of Boxing, it's a mess now.
Those guys are not realising they have an opportunity to be at the birth of the history of MMA. (yes it's 13 years old now, but it will still be seen as the beginning 100 years from now)

It's a catch 22 situation, you want to say fuck HBO, I don't wanna suppor those douchebags.. but on the other hand if you do watch and give MMA very high ratings on HBO, they'll have to admit it's bigger than boxing and make them eat crow.

wether you like or hate UFC, it's still MMA and it's up against boxing and the establishment behind it and I think we should all try and give UFC ratings on HBO..