Sources close to the promotion that was recently brought back from the verge of death by Stratus Media Group, who acquired a 95 percent ownership stake of the company in June, have informed CagePotato.com that ProElite is in the final stages of negotiations for a multi-year television deal with Viacom that will see its events broadcast on both Showtime and CBS starting in the first quarter of 2012.
Showtime’s current deals with Strikeforce and M-1 will soon be over, effectively clearing the way for ProElite’s shows to be broadcast on its networks, which will in turn mean bigger name fighters signing with the promotion whose roster includes former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski, The Ultimate Fighter season 3 winner Kendall Grove and UFC veteran Joe Riggs.
M-1 has two events remaining on its current deal and it is rumored that it will feature recently released Strikeforce heavyweight and former PRIDE champion Fedor Emelianenko on at least one of them. Strikeforce’s three-year contract expires in February 2012, but according to a source we spoke to, it could end sooner if Showtime deems the quality of events the UFC sister promotion is putting on is less than expected.
Showtime’s current deals with Strikeforce and M-1 will soon be over, effectively clearing the way for ProElite’s shows to be broadcast on its networks, which will in turn mean bigger name fighters signing with the promotion whose roster includes former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski, The Ultimate Fighter season 3 winner Kendall Grove and UFC veteran Joe Riggs.
M-1 has two events remaining on its current deal and it is rumored that it will feature recently released Strikeforce heavyweight and former PRIDE champion Fedor Emelianenko on at least one of them. Strikeforce’s three-year contract expires in February 2012, but according to a source we spoke to, it could end sooner if Showtime deems the quality of events the UFC sister promotion is putting on is less than expected.
The UFC is the MMA market, everyone else is only going to be a glorified minor league. Just take pride in building an organization with a history for finding young prospects and turning them into future stars with exciting fights. There's a place for a well run company like that, and maybe greater things will come with time.
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