For as long as I can remember people always refer to the UFC as the sport of mixed martial arts. Even though mixed martial arts is a sport, and the UFC is a promotion that presents said sport, some people still don’t get it!
At the end of the year, there are numerous media outlets that present their “End of the Year” awards. Recognizing the accomplishments of the athletes we all tune in to watch the fight. From “Fight of the Year” (FOTY), to “Performance of the Year” (POTY), submission of the year, knockout of the year and so on and so forth. The end of the year gives the fans, media and those in the industry the opportunity to shower accolades on the athletes we love so much.
The athletes of the UFC usually dominate all the awards no matter the outlet. Understandably so, as they are the most recognized mixed martial arts promotion on the planet Earth. So naturally, their athletes are going to garner the most recognition. Today the UFC announced that it’s taking it a step further when it comes to recognizing their athletes at the end of the year.
Introducing The “UFC HONORS”. The end of the year awards program, which I am sure will be aired on UFC Fight Pass or ESPN and their family of networks will be implemented to honor exclusively the UFC athlete.
UFC President Dana White will personally choose the winners for FOTY and POTY via ” “The UFC Honors President’s Choice”.
Fret not my fellow MMA enthusiasts, your voices will be heard as well via ” The UFC Honors Fan Choice” where you will get to decide via voting awards such as Knockout, Submission, Event, and Come back of the Year!
With so many End of Year awards programs out there trying to honor everybody in this sport of mixed martial arts, and some of those voting harboring a disdain or clear and present favoritism for the UFC, the promotion decided to take all the outside noise out of the equation and present their athletes with awards from them, and their fans!
I for one love it! The UFC is going above and beyond to honor their athletes. And why shouldn’t they, without the athlete, there is no UFC.
I am curious about the award itself. I’m guessing it will be a trophy of some sort, I would venture to say it will be in the shape of an octagon. I am also wondering if there will be a financial award given to the winners.
No date has been announced as of yet as to when the inaugural UFC Honors will take place.
Christopher James has been in the MMA industry for 15 years, Working as a ring announcer for promotions like the XFC, Island Fights, Combat Night and Fight Nights Global during his career. Chris’ love for the sport and the athletes that partake in it led him to writing and doing face to face interviews with the athletes he admired and respected. Chris isn’t conventional by any stretch of the imagination, he has his own style, and takes pride in not being a “cookie-cutter” member of the media. Unique and sometimes controversial takes are what he brings to the table, forcing folks to think a little differently about the world of MMA. He also has a love for music as he has been a dj for 25 years and his love for music gets brought to the MMA world when he gets his guests to sing on his weekly show Cage Side with Christopher James which can be seen Wednesday nights on FACEBOOK LIVE, and soon via podcast.