A Letter to Dana White: A Main Event In Philly Like No Other; An Important Message on Gun Violence in America
Dana,
Us Philly faithful… we’re on edge.
If the Eagles and Sixers implode (again) like the Phillies just did (again), this city might actually burn the fuck down. I’m not even kidding. As a frustrated fanbase with a built up rabid passion like we have, this energy will have to be taken out on someone or something It’s better we do it vicariously through gladiators than amongst one another.
On a much more serious note, fighting amongst one another is something Philadelphians do entirely too often. Unfortunately, the weapon of choice is a gun. Not a fist.
Anyone who’s lived in some of the more troubled areas of the city for an extended period of time knows somebody who was shot, killed, or jailed due to gun violence… or at the very least, knows somebody who knows somebody.
Gun violence has affected me personally. In 2022 a man was shot in killed in front of my house. That same year, another was shot 13 times a few houses down, and in 2023 a gun fight erupted in broad daylight in my go-to corner store.
Philadelphia has become a very dangerous town. It has been for decades.
As has Chicago, New York, LA, Memphis, St. Louis, New Orleans, Birmingham, Cleveland, Orlando, Baltimore, Detroit, Camden… they’re all in the same boat, as are many other cities in America.
It’s a dangerous country we live in.
It shouldn’t be.
It’s time the word got out…
We need to spread this message in an entertaining and attention-grabbing fashion that guns are not the answer. The gangsters doing the shooting don’t attend the town halls pleading to city council to make a change, but they watch sports.
We need to fight fire with fire, meet them where they are.
In the words of Space Jam’s Swackhammer:
“WE . NEED . NEW …. ATTRACTIONS !!!”
As does the UFC.
As it always will.
No matter how great the fights are, sports entertainment will always benefit from a worthy story and a larger message.
Like UFC Noche, you can continue the trend of UFC events with a bigger picture. This time a bit less literal — without the thousand-foot tall stone warriors soaring through The Sphere, but also without the massive budget that came with it.
Just one of the many young Philadelphians who would benefit from some jiu jitsu in their life.
Less gun violence is a message the entire country can get behind, especially black America, which is arguably more in tune with boxing than MMA.
Guns down.
Gloves up.
It’s far and away the most important message for A number of cities in the United States to hear right now.
I think there’s a way to share this message, put on an incredible main event, make a ton of money, draw in a new crowd, and be lauded for the effort across news and media organizations that previously wouldn’t have really touched the UFC.
This is the kind of event that could make an impact.
You’ve got a lot of feathers in your cap, but this would be one like no other.
It’s a concept you can do anywhere, but it would be felt strongly here in Philly.
So let’s talk about some potential matchups here in Philly.
The Potential MaTCHUPS
via @mmatheory
via @mmatheory
via @mmatheory
Joe Pyfer and Sean Brady are both legit title contenders. Pyfer is one of the most exciting fighters in the game and Brady continues to showcase that he’s one of the best in the world.
With a rabid and ultra supportive fanbase ready to show out for their guys, Patrick Sabatini, Jeremiah Wells, Andre Petroski, Bill Algeo will be ready to put on for the hometown crowd.
A homecoming for Bassil “The Habbibi” Hafez would be massive. He looks the part of a man on a mission.
Add in Nursulton Ruziboev and the entire country of Uzbekistan will be there to fill out the rest of the Wells Fargo Center.
Randy “Rudeboy” Brown is an exceptionally talented fighter with local ties and let’s not forget the Jersey cats: Erin Blanchfield, Vincente Luque, Phil Hawes. I may be missing a few others.
You can bring in local Heavyweight, Pat “The Brick” Brady or bring back former top 10 contender, Chris Daukaus to open the card if you want a big man slugfest, and if Chris’s brother, Kyle “The D’Arce” Knight Daukaus, keeps winning CFFC title fights, you might want to get him back in the big leagues as well.
You could stack the card with Philly and Philly-affiliated fighters alone for it to be a PPV quality card, but all you need to do is add on a title fight or two and you’ve got a can’t miss lineup.
How’s 2/15 Look?
How does February 15, 2025 sound for all of this? It’s the date that MMA Theory proposed. It’s also strangely, numerically accurate, as 215 is Philly’s area code.
It’s also my birthday, so that’d be cool.
The Ring reported that the card headlined by Jaron "Boots" Ennis vs. David Avanesyan produced a live gate of $1,188,430 on Saturday night at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. Total attendance: 14,365. Solid turnout for a hometown fight without a big name opponent for Ennis.
A primetime UFC card littered with Philly fighters and a stacked main card would sellout in a heartbeat.
Wrinkles are good
Noche was the coolest “wrinkle” to a UFC card we’d seen yet.
Celebrating the history of the fight game and the spirit of a nation in a one-of-a-kind event at the world’s most spectacular new venue in Vegas was surreal.
Another wrinkle here and there certainly wouldn’t hurt.
The UFC is still far and away the king of combat sports, but it’s no longer in a league of its own. Some of the sport’s biggest draws are nowhere to be found and without McGregor the UFC’s pay-per-view buys are much less prevalent.
At this point, I’m more likely to have a drink with McGregor on a random Tuesday then catch him in the octagon.
The hype and buzz built up during the pandemic when the UFC was the only thing going and brought in a swarm of new fans has dwindled, and beyond Noche, it’s been a while since the UFC had a monster PPV and gate.
Without McGregor the last 10 years are quiet for the UFC amongst the absolute top events.
Philly is A Staple of the Fight Game Today and instrumental to its history
All-Time Philly Boxing Greats
The CFFC is officially/unofficially headquartered in Philadelphia and has made a home at 2300 Arena in South Philly.
The Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is founded by Philly-area native David Feldman. According to one of BKFC’s most recent instagram posts, they are gearing up for their biggest event yet right here in the city.
For the first time in a long while, an arena combat sports event was held at the Wells Fargo Center with Jaron “Boots” Ennis, the reigning and consistently ducked IBF Welterweight champion, who made his first title defense there and will do the same in November.
As already mentioned, the UFC itself has a handful of fighters that grew up or train here as part of a very tight knit team via Marquez MMA, Webb MMA, and Team Taino.
Historically speaking…
Philadelphia is one of the most infamous fighting cities in the world. The town, the people themselves are synonymous for being tough. Smokin’ Joe Fraizer and Bernard Hopkins are two of the best boxers to ever do it. Eddie Alvarez was the first fighter to win belts in both the UFC and Bellator. We’ve even got the most popular fictional fighter of all-time in Rocky, and arguably the most popular present day fictional fighter in Michael B. Jordan’s Creed.
We’re well overdue for an epic combat sports event. Boots Ennis will likely bring a big name in soon, but that single title fight boxing event wouldn’t compare to a UFC event with a backstory and a slew of hometown fighters.
The Big Idea
Let's keep the momentum rolling here.
Put an intentional focus on the PR surrounding the event to put the GUNS DOWN and pick the FISTS UP.
There is an unprecedented amount of gun violence in Philadelphia.
An inordinate number of shootings and killings in our country as a whole. I’m not even going to do the research but besides war-torn countries, we’ve got to have more than any other.
WAIT, I DID THE RESEARCH.
Guess who’s number 1 and 2 in gun violence… Brazil and USA.
The two countries where MMA is most popular. This can be an international message.
Long story short,
let’s fucking do this, Dana.
Sincerely,
someone who gives a shit
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