*Please buy the Cubs, we just got Fukedome!

Mixed Martial Arts – awesome!

HDNet programming – awesome!

MMA on HDNet – snooze fest.

How is this possible?

Inside MMA is definitely an awesome concept, but to me, it does not come off well. Kenny Rice comes off as a used car salesman. He\’s marginally better as a play-by-play guy on HDNet Fights, but he seems out of his league as a host of a talk/information show.

Bas is OK. His fight knowledge is excellent and he brings a lot to the table, but some of his jokes are just horrible and make him look like an amateur.

The weekly panel varies dramatically from week to week. Sometimes they are excellent, sometimes they make me change the channel. Most of the time, they seem unprepared and have no idea what topics will be discussed on the show. Some pre-interviews can go a LONG way.

And PLEASE, get everyone out from behind those desks. I\’m not sure if the intent is to have something similar to NFL Countdown with Chris Berman, but it comes off as dated and boring. Put them in a \”round table\” or \”living room\” scenario. Think \”Sports Reporters\” or \”Rome is Burning\” (ugh, I hate Jim Rome, I can\’t believe I suggested a similar format).

If it were up to me, HDNet would get Max Kellerman from HBO and make him the center of all MMA programming. He would host Inside MMA and would be part of the live event team. He is younger, cooler, and has great credibility as a fighting historian. Mark, if you are serious about competing in MMA, I think you want a guy like Max!!

As for the fights themselves, I honestly put my TV on mute.

See my comments above on Kenny Rice. Jeff Blatnick? Seriously? He has to be there ONLY because of his early days with the UFC, but listening to him is the ultimate cure for insomnia. And Ron Kruck is an unpaid intern, right?

Imagine how much fun a fight would be, called by Max Kellerman and Bas. Do you need a \”sideline reporter\” that appears to be Kruck\’s role? I don\’t know. I much prefer a nicely produced segment with the fighters over a live pre-fight interview. The interviews remind me of the old WWF days. But if such production isn\’t available, then I think it would be better to have someone from the MMA community conduct them – a current or recently-retired fighter or coach. Many have shown great ability in front of the camera – Mayhem Miller, Frank Trigg, Stephan Bonnar, just to name a few.

OK, I think I\’ve blathered on enough. I only make these comments because I would like HDNet to become a serious competitor to the UFC. I\’m not a UFC-hater, but if they don\’t have any serious competition, then the whole sport will suffer. So, please Mark, please do for your MMA organization what you did for your basketball team. Make it fun, exciting, and fan-focussed.

Peace!

I happen to be Deaf and I read closed captioning (CC) on TV all the times.

I cannot find a way to contact people (email addreess?) that I need to report that MMA on HDNET channel with captioning is not working properly.

Please advise. Email me.

gwlj