We recently asked people which event they were looking forward to more, Strikeforce or the WEC. Many people seemed more interested in Strikeforce, which is interesting.
While Strikeforce certainly has the potential to do big things in the future, its track record up to this point is nothing remarkable. The same however cannot be said for the WEC, who in 2008 put on the best shows only second to UFC’s numbered events.
Specifically, in 2008, Strikeforce’s 5 best events had an average rating of 2.79 stars (out of 5), while WEC’s 6 shows had an average rating of 3.7 stars. Considering that the UFC’s numbered events only had an average rating of 3.77 stars (with 13 events) and Sengoku came in last with an average rating of 2.65 stars (with 6 events), this is a pretty wide margin between WEC and Strikeforce.
There’s no reason to think that WEC won’t continue to get better as they solidify their divisions and increase their resources. But Strikeforce’s potential for growth at this time is second to none with their recently acquired television deals and post EliteXC demise acquisitions.
Another interesting footnote on the topic of promotional performance is Affliction, who had a very respectable average rating of 3.65 stars in 2008. But when you consider that they only put on one event, you have to take that for what it is. Every promotion put on at least one event in 2008 with at least as a high a rating, except for Sengoku who’s highest rated event in 2008 was Sengoku 6, which rated 3.63 stars. Regardless of how much you like Affliction, one has to think that if they were to close shop, their fighters would quickly be acquired by Zuffa, Strikeforce, Fight Entertainment Group or World Victory Road, which all put on many more times the events than Affliction. Affliction puts together some great matches, but we would all like to see their fighters fight more frequently.
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