To start with I think the team event can work but needs to be marketed
better.
I train at Renzo's and when his team fight I love it. I also like watching
Militech's guys fight because I have seen them before and enjoy their
fights. But I tuned in to Battleground last night and was bored, plain
and simple. The only good fight was the Russian guy because he had
real skill. The fights were average kickboxing then a takedown, crappy
ground and pound and then stood up. And once the fights begin i
don't care who the coaches are, i only care who the fighters are. I even
find myself forgetting who is on which team.
Comparing it to a UFC PPV or a Pride PPV is not possible, they are on a
different level of excitement. It's about matching up fighters for
compelling fights not teams, unless you can get people "emotionally
involved" with the team. With Renzo i am, so it works. Really works.
So battleground needs to focus more or getting to know the teams and
not just the coaches. What they do is build the coach and then
introduce the fighters before eah fight. They should build coaches and
teams at the same time (in a way that is interesting, at the moment it is
not). Also they should focus on the region each team comes from and
build that.
It can be done but i think they need a change of style.
I like the IFL, it's a different approach to MMA and I believe it's good for the Sport. As far as IFL Battleground goes, other than the very first episode, I've been happy with it. After all It's free MMA on television.
"The fights were average kickboxing then a takedown, crappy ground and pound and then stood up"
This is what drives me crazy about the IFL (and MMA in general recently). No knees OR elbows on the ground really kills the ground striking too.
Other then that, it's nice to see MMA on free TV, and I agree with you, if they are sticking with the team concept they need to focus more on the region. People will want to root for NY, CA, etc.
The whole thing is evolving nicely. Really think fan base is starting to grow. How about the teams, are the local areas starting to respond? Are fighters getting noticed in public more? Hopefully this is all signs of positive growth.
I'm trying to analize the promotion of their event. Is it possible for them,
in the team concept, to ever have an event as anticipated as say Chuck
and Rampage, Vanderlai vs Co Crop. They need to buid the teams in such
a way, and this can only be done through a TV show, so that when you
see Renzo's Pitbulls are going up against the Pat's Silverbacks you give a
fuck.
It can be done but I think it needs way more thought and understanding
of their fans than they are giving it.
mandingo vs. whoever last night was like watching paint dry. dear god please do not show another one of mandigo's fights. besides that i have been pretty pleased with the ifl. its exposed to me to some pretty good fighter i probably wouldnt have known about.
Its nice to have another avenue for mma, but I dont see IFL getting any bigger than it is now, which is marginal.
The team concept has failed to grab me from the start. I just dont care. The fights are pretty lukewarm for the most part. Talent levelwise, I think if you stacked, say, IFL's lightweights against the UFC/Pride top ten LW's, it would be a bloodbath with the IFL guys looking like amatuers.