UFC announces sport supplement sponsorship with Mark Wahlberg’s ‘Performance Inspired’

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is getting into bed with Performance Inspired, the sports supplement company backed by Hollywood big shot Mark Wahlberg, who just so happens to have a minority stake in the world’s largest mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion.

Thanks to this.

“Inspiring people to be active and healthy is rewarding for me personally and the charity element of our business is an added benefit,” Performance Inspired Co-Founder Mark Wahlberg said in today’s release. “It’s one of the reasons we created Performance Inspired, as it’s all about giving back and helping athletes on any level maximize their true potential. UFC athletes need nutritional support and we’re glad we can fill this necessity.”

So not only will Performance Inspired become the official sports supplement of UFC, it will also set up fueling stations inside the promotion’s new training facility in Las Vegas, Nevada (see it here).

“The UFC has the most comprehensive anti-doping program in sports, and we just opened a state-of-the-art performance institute at our new offices, so the health and performance of our athletes is essential to everything we do,” UFC President Dana White said. “That’s why we’re partnering with Mark (Wahlberg). The reason he’s been incredibly successful is because he does things the right way, so our fighters know his Performance Inspired products are top quality, natural ingredients, that are safe to use and will help them maximize their own performance.”

Think of football players drinking Gatorade on the sidelines and you get the idea.

Much like the existing deal with Reebok — minus the fighter payouts — you can expect to see the Performance Inspired logo splattered across the Octagon on fight night and no doubt it will show up in various social media campaigns.

Out with the old and in with the new.