Spike TV may have lost the rights to the UFC, but they are definitely committed to the mixed martial arts business. Viacom, the parent company of Spike TV and other entities like MTV, BET and Comedy central, has purchased a controlling interest in Bellator Fighting Championships and will move the fight promotion to Spike TV in 2013. The news was first reported by USA Today late Tuesday night. According to the report, Viacom opted to not only remain in the MMA business after losing out on the bidding to retain the UFC beyond 2011, but to become players by owning a promotion and investing in its future. Bjorn Rebney, the current CEO of Bellator, will remain in his role as the head of the promotion, but Viacom will now own the majority stake in the promotion moving forward. Read more: http://mmaweekly.com/report-viacom-purchases-bellator-fighting-championships
Probably not great that a television company will be the majority stake holder in a professional sport... could lead to some conflicts.
Also makes me wonder why the company would sell... were they broke? Did they need bailing-out? I hope that BFC comes in and becomes a viable alternative to the UFC but a year is a long way out still.
