Has the UFC become too boring?

UFC commentator Jon Anik shares some of the fan frustration regarding the quality of recent UFC fight nights. Last Saturday at London's O2 Arena, Movsar Evloev defeated Lerone Murphy by majority decision in the main event of UFC Fight Night 270. While the fight itself generated considerable discussion, the rest of the card suffered from a lack of star power.

Ray Longo admitted he didn't watch Evloev vs. Murphy live and has been increasingly skipping UFC events lately.

“Ten, twelve years ago, I never left the house on a Saturday night,” Longo said on the “Anik & Florian” podcast. “If there was a wedding, we were all on our phones watching the fights. Now, I don’t even know who’s fighting. I don’t know a lot of the names. Even that Netflix card with Carano and Rousey – there are recognizable names there.”

“Nate Diaz, Mike Perry, Carano, Ngannou. Whether the fights are good or not, they’ll draw people in. I have no doubt about that, especially now that some of the UFC cards are a bit weaker. It’s just not as captivating.”

Anik concurred with Longo's assessment.

“I think a lot of people feel that way,” Anik said. “Even when you think about this UFC podcast – and I’m largely in a producer role here – we’re not talking about the co-main event. We’re not talking about Christian Leroy Duncan’s win over Roman Dolidze, even though he probably deserves a minute or two of attention, because it’s just not engaging enough. Forty-one live UFC events with 13 fights each – that’s 533 UFC bouts a year, not counting Contender Series and everything else. It’s a lot to expect constant 'triples' and 'home runs.'”

“Sometimes there are dips and peaks, and I can’t wait to be screaming my head off at UFC 327 in a few weeks. I can have an honest conversation like this and tell you that in a few weeks, we’re going to give it our all from a promotional standpoint. We have a great card, and we’re going to fully unleash it – I can’t wait. But yes, the last few weeks certainly haven’t been particularly good.”