UFC is the main promotion in mixed martial arts. His main rivals (PFL, Bellator, ONE) are still far from being able to compete with the hegemon.
But recently a new sport has been developing that has challenged official MMA. The UFC is monitoring the situation and even threatened to sue the new promotion PFC, where fights are held on pillows.
Why is the UFC unhappy with the new promotion?
The UFC formally objected to Pillow FC’s application to register the trademark and logo with the US Patent Office, citing that such branding would cause confusion.
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PFC CEO Steve Williams called the UFC’s claims ridiculous, but in order to avoid escalation of relations with the fight league, Pillow FC decided to change its logo.
Williams expressed disappointment, calling the situation “ridiculous” and highlighting the absence of such objections among the millions of comments on social media. He challenged Dana White to a pillow fight, expressing confidence in victory. But I never received an answer.
How does the new sport work?
In PFC, opponents fight with specially designed pillows with handles. The fight according to the regulations lasts three rounds of one minute, without pushing, wrestling or hitting with anything other than a pillow. Judges also award extra points for knockdowns, roundhouse kicks and showmanship.
Pillow fighting does not lead to serious injuries, unlike classical martial arts. This attracted new viewers — for example, women, who became a large part of the audience.
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“We give the viewer the drama of hand-to-hand combat, but without the bloodshed that is found in MMA or boxing. But it’s not the same as if you’re fighting at home, laughing, and feathers are flying around. Everything is serious here, these are hard blows with special pillows. The only difference between our fights and MMA fights is that no one gets injured,” say the PFC organizers.
Among the participants in the tournament were professional MMA fighters — for example, Conor McGregor’s first opponent in the UFC, Marcus Brimage, and ex-fighter of the promotion, Marcus Perez.