Talk about killing two birds with one stone.
Spike TV is hosting a special two-and-a-half hour presentation of "UFC's Ultimate Fights" to air opposite the Showtime and pay-per-view efforts of rival promotions Strikeforce and Shine Fights this Saturday (May 15) at 10 p.m. ET.
And while Strikeforce might be bringing the "Heavy Artillery," Zuffa is counter-programming with some pretty big guns of their own, including the recent heavyweight slugfest between Shane Carwin and Frank Mir from UFC 111: "St. Pierre vs. Hardy" back in March.
In addition, the much-ballyhooed featherweight fisticuffs between Leonard "Bad Boy" Garcia and "The Korean Zombie" Chang Sung Jung will also be on display. Good thing all those WEC logos were missing in action at "Aldo vs. Faber."
But that's not all. Here is a list of the featured bouts for Saturday's Spike TV presentation:
265 lbs.: Shane Carwin vs. Frank Mir (UFC 111)
145 lbs.: Leonard Garcia vs. Chan Sung Jung (WEC 48)
185 lbs.: Mark Munoz vs. Kendall Grove (UFC 112)
155 lbs.: Terry Etim vs. Rafael Dos Anjos (UFC 112)
170 lbs.: Matt Serra vs Frank Trigg (UFC 109)
170 lbs.: Nate Diaz vs Rory Markham (UFC 111)
170 lbs.: Paulo Thiago vs Mike Swick (UFC 109)
This latest counter-programming effort should come as no surprise.
The UFC held a special encore presentation of UFC 110: "Nogueira vs. Velasquez" to run opposite the Strikeforce and CBS "Saturday Night Fights" event from Nashville back on April 17.
Now Shine Fights is unfortunately caught in the middle.
Expect more of these televised specials in the near future, especially with the Strikeforce "Los Angeles" and Fedor vs. Werdum" events just around the corner. What will the UFC do to up the ante the next time around?
Stay tuned.
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