UFC hits the New York market and primetime on Fox tomorrow night. From the Izod Center in East Rutherford, NJ, UFC has a card of four fights including the headliner, lightweights Nate Diaz against Jim Miller for a title shot. This marks the first time for UFC in East Rutherford since 2001.
Curt Menefee will be the host on Fox. He’ll be joined by Randy Couture and Brian Stann for pre and postfight analysis. Calling the fights as usual will be Mike Goldberg and ultimate conspiracy theorist Joe Rogan (have you ever heard an interview with Joe Rogan? The man is insane with his theories).
Anyway, Fuel has the prelims tomorrow at 5 p.m. ET, then Fox hits the air at 8 p.m. ET and will devote its entire primetime schedule to UFC.
Here’s the Fox press release.
UFC ON FOX DELIVERS KNOCKOUT PUNCH SATURDAY NIGHT IN PRIMETIME
Lightweight Contenders Diaz & Miller Headline Impressive Quadruple Header
UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture and UFC Middleweight Fighter Brian Stann Join Curt Menefee for Pre and Postfight Coverage on FOX Sports
Action Kicks Off on FUEL TV with Live Coverage on Saturday with Prelims & Postfight Shows
FOX Deportes, FOXSports.com on MSN & FOX Sports Radio Provide Additional Coverage & AnalysisNew York, NY – Once again, UFC ON FOX invades primetime with a two-hour quadruple-header this Saturday, May 5 (8:00-10:00 PM ET) live from Izod Center in East Rutherford, NJ.
The night’s main event features two of the most exciting 155-pounders in the world as lightweight contenders Nate Diaz (15-7-0) and Jim Miller (21-3-0) go five rounds to get one step closer to a coveted title shot. The remaining main card bouts include welterweight contenders Josh Koscheck (19-5-0) vs. Johny Hendricks (12-1-0), middleweights Rousimar Palhares (23-3-0) vs. Alan Belcher (16-5-0) and heavyweights Pat Barry (7-4-0) vs. Lavar Johnson (16-5-0). Koscheck and Hendricks are both dominant wrestlers with one-punch KO power. Palhares is the middleweight division’s most-feared submission ace, while Belcher is considered a rising star at 185-pounds. Barry and Johnson are two of the most lethal strikers setting up an explosive heavyweight fight. This is the UFC’s first trip to East Rutherford, NJ since 2001 when Tito Ortiz defeated Elvin Sinosic to become the UFC light heavyweight champion.
FOX Sports’ Curt Menefee kicks off the night, hosting pre- and postfight coverage alongside UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture and UFC middleweight fighter Brian Stann. Couture is the only UFC fighter to ever win the UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight titles. He proved age was not an issue when he became the oldest man ever to win a UFC title at the age of 43. Stann is coming off a knockout win over Alessio Sakara earlier this month in Sweden. The former Marine is quickly becoming a fan favorite for both his work inside and out of the Octagon. An impressive performance as a guest analyst on FUEL TV in February led to an outpouring of fan support and a spot on the UFC on FOX desk Saturday night. Once the battles begin, UFC announcers Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg have the call.
Action kicks off Friday, May 4 (4:00 PM ET) with the live UFC Weigh-In on FUEL TV. Karyn Bryant hosts the show from FUEL TV’s Los Angeles studios, while UFC veteran Kenny Florian and current UFC Lightweight Champion Benson Henderson offer analysis. Saturday, May 5 (5:00 PM ET), FUEL TV begins live coverage of the night’s undercards, live from East Rutherford, New Jersey. UFC Prelims on FUEL TV are hosted by Rogan and Goldberg. FUEL TV wraps coverage of the main event with the live UFC Postfight Show on FUEL TV immediately following UFC on FOX Saturday, May 5 (10:00 PM ET). Jay Glazer leads the one-hour recap from FUEL TV’s Los Angeles studios, with Florian and Henderson’s analysis. Ariel Helwani interviews fighters backstage after the bout.
FOX Deportes simulcasts the prelims and main card fights on Saturday, May 5 beginning at 5:00 PM ET.
FOX Sports Radio also simulcasts the main card fights beginning at 8:00 PM ET. Following the fights, mixed martial arts expert Larry Pepe hosts a FOX Sports Radio wrap-up show with interviews and call-ins from 10:00 PM-1:00 AM ET. Fans can tune into their local FOX Sports Radio affiliate or listen live at www.FOXSportsRadio.com.
In addition to providing editorial content leading up to and following the fights, FOXSports.com plans to live stream the press conference on Thursday, May 3 (2:00 PM ET) and the weigh-ins on Friday, May 4 (4:00 PM ET).
This will be the third UFC on FOX event. History was made in November when the UFC made its broadcast television debut on FOX and a record audience tuned in as challenger Junior dos Santos defeated defending champion Cain Velasquez in a first round knockout to claim the coveted heavyweight crown. More than 5.7 million viewers tuned in to make it the most-watched UFC event ever and the most-watched professional fight of any kind on any network since 2003. January’s UFC on FOX event from the United Center in Chicago dominated the night on the important younger demographics, with FOX’s 2.4 among Adults 18-49 nearly beating the combined ratings of ABC, CBS, and NBC (2.5 combined) and FOX’s 2.5 among Adults 18-34 easily beating those three network competitors combined (1.4). The three-bout broadcast on FOX averaged 4.7 million viewers from 8:00 PM – 10:19 PM ET.
DATE TIME EVENT NET Saturday, May 5 5:00 PM ET UFC Prelims on FUEL TV FUEL TV/FOX Deportes Saturday, May 5 8:00 PM ET UFC ON FOX: DIAZ VS. MILLER FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX Sports Radio Saturday, May 5 10:00 PM ET UFC Postfight Show on FUEL TV FUEL TV Saturday, May 5 10:00 PM ET UFC Postfight Show with MMA Expert Larry Pepe FOX Sports Radio
That will do it.
