“I had a camera on me one time,” Michael Chandler reveals ‘re-investment’ remains the reason why Bellator failed compared to the UFC

Michael Chandler was one of the biggest names in the MMA sphere. He competed in Bellator for almost a decade and made his move to the UFC later. So, ‘Iron’ knew about the ins and outs of the promotions operations and now revealed the major reason for Bellator’s failure. As such, he applauded the UFC for one particular aspect.

Recently, Michael Chandler had a long conversation with Steve-O on his podcast. He analyzed the fighter’s pay in the UFC in a particular segment and compared it with other organizations. As such, he exposed Bellator’s inability to reinvest in the sport and stated it as the cause of its failure. Further, he compared the marketing of the two promotions and shared his experience with the UFC and the Bellator.

If you look at other organizations, just because they're not as profitable, it's just because they're not as good of a product. They don't reinvest in the sport...I was the biggest name in Bellator for the last five years I was there. My last five fights I had a camera on me one time.

Michael Chandler (via Steve-O’s Wild Ride!)

Further, Michael Chandler spoke about the amount the UFC put back into the sport to grow the promotion. As such, he mentioned how the UFC marketed its commodity (fighters) by having a camera crew follow them, which Bellator failed to do. Also, he looked back at the argument of the promotion’s revenue percentage that the fighters receive and cleared the lingering questions about low-fighter pay in the UFC. Logically, he stated Bellator and other promotions had little to no revenue, so the metrics were skewed.

Michael Chandler was a former Bellator Champion and a UFC title challenger. He rose to the top of the mountain in the UFC in just two years. However, in an attempt to fight UFC superstar Conor McGregor, he has waited out a year. Still, the UFC remained silent about the fight announcement. However, ‘Iron’ continued to train and stay fit so he could jump in on the opportunity whenever it presented itself.

Michael Chandler advises on the number one thing the PFL-Bellator should do

PFL acquired ‘Bellator’ last month. The deal was negotiated for about a year and finally, after Bellator 301, it was acquired by PFL. Now, former Bellator champion and current UFC fighter Michael Chandler voiced his opinion on the number one thing they should do to succeed.

After 10 years of the journey alongside Bellator, Michael Chandler analyzed the mistake that Bellator committed. He said not reinvesting in the sport and not marketing enough were the two big mistakes. So, ‘Iron’ advised the PFL-Bellator to spend money on marketing to get the attention of the public. As such, he applauded their move to contract Francis Ngannou and Jake Paul.

People are talking about PFL and Bellator, now the new conglomerate, and Imma say well there's only one thing that they need to do in order to continue to gain this profile, and that's spend more money on marketing. And they're doing a good job. They got Francis Ngannou. They got Jake Paul who can be a big platform type of person to be able to help grow the entire brand.

Michael Chandler (via Steve-O’s Wild Ride!)

Michael Chandler currently sat out for over a year chasing a fight with Conor McGregor. Before this, he was one of the most active fighters in the UFC with five fights in just 2 years. As such, he hasn’t fought since his last fight against Dustin Poirier in UFC 281. He hoped to return next year and face ‘The Notorious’ in a lucrative fight.

In case you missed it:

• Sean O’Malley taking shots at Islam Makhachev and Umar Nurmagomedov gets a daring reply from undefeated bantamweight star
• “It’s in our DNA,” Dricus Du Plessis SURPRISINGLY praises ‘real man’ Sean Strickland despite starting a brawl at UFC 296

Stay Updated!

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW