Over the past few weeks there have been a number of MMA events on television with varying degrees of quality. But there is one thing they’ve had in common, in a good way: high definition.
Yes, the latest necessity when it comes to watching sports has reached mixed martial arts, and it is bringing a level of detail to the fights that you didn’t use to get unless you were within a stone’s throw from the cage. (And you don’t have to worry about getting sprayed with sweat.)
Last weekend’s EliteXC show has taken its fair share of criticism for being weak in terms of its fights. But, hey at least the production was pretty good. And you got to see it in crystal clear picture on CBS HD, if you happened to have it.
Mark Cuban jumped on the MMA bandwagon late last year with the launching of HDNet Fights on his fully high-definition cable network. And there was even more good news for Canadian MMA fans when a deal with the Maximum Fighting Championship was launched to air its shows on HDNet.
For those who didn’t catch any of the past two MFC events, you’ve missed some good ones. Rising welterweight Ryan Ford has been fun to watch, but more importantly watching MMA in high definition, like all sports, is definitely the way it should be.
Having the wider angles allows you to get better shots of the action and obviously more detail. (I’m not sure we need to see all the bloody gashes in 1080p, mind you. But I guess they don’t call it plasma for nothing.)
Most importantly, it was great to finally see the UFC in HD. The premier MMA organization has been producing its events in high definition for over a year now. However, UFC 83 in Montreal was the first time Viewers Choice Canada made the UFC available across the board. (Apparently, it felt it was more important to have an extra HD pay-per-view channel dedicated to continuous showings of hit movies like Hairspray.)
But kudos to VCC for finally making it available (and at the totally reasonable extra cost of $10.) For those inclined, Saturday’s UFC 85 in London, England, will be available in HD, live in the afternoon, and purchasing it then will also allow you to watch the re-broadcast in the evening.
And UFC 86 is already being advertised as available in high def so we can expect them all from here on in to be in a form that is, as the UFC’s tagline states, As Real As It Gets. (Copyright Zuffa, LLC)
Same thing for Affliction: Banned, the inaugural card for the upstart promotion on July 19, featuring Fedor Emelianenko vs. Tim Sylvia (which is even $5 cheaper than the UFC events!)
For all the reasons to invest in a shiny new LCD, or something equally expensive and/or extravagant, being an MMA fan just gives you yet another excuse.
And if the fights you paid $50-and-change to watch end up sucking, look on the “bright” side. At least the picture was good.