One of my favorite quotes when the UFC was on its rise was from Dana White, saying how he and Lorenzo Fertitta studied boxing to make sure they don’t repeat their mistakes.
Yet, in many ways, the UFC has become far more like boxing in recent years, particularly by removing the perceived value of championships. The short-term thinking of having to create a championship for almost every pay-per-view show has led to the public seeing through it and no longer caring about champions and title matches. In doing so, it has ripped at the foundation of the sport, creating a situation like we have now, where a few larger-than-life personalities draw huge and nothing else draws much at all.