On a recent edition of his “The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy” podcast, Matt Hardy discussed the WWE-UFC merger, the potential outcome and developments in the immediate future, and the possibility of audience overlap for WWE and UFC.
The UFC and WWE merger became official this past Tuesday with the launch of TKO Group Holdings.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On the transition for WWE as a member of a larger entity: “Dude, VKM, Vince McMahon had a hell of a run. You can’t deny that. It’s so appropriate, knowing and working as closely as I did with Vince in the past over so many years, the fact that he ended up selling the company and leaving on top, where no one will ever get the opportunity to make World Wrestling Federation, as far as an individual sole owner, better than him was just appropro for him. It really is. Very fitting. So the Endeavor thing is official, the merger has gone through. It’s gonna be so interesting, and I’m so curious of how it’s gonna work in conjunction working hand-in-hand with UFC and what they’re gonna do and what the changes are gonna be that come to the forefront. It’s gonna be a really interesting time in WWE.”
On if the brands will share audiences: “I don’t think you’re gonna have a lot of UFC mixed martial arts, shoot fighting fans really just jump other to wrestling because it’s also owned by the same company that owns UFC. I think people that enjoy the pageantry and the fantastical world of pro wrestling aren’t necessarily gonna jump to UFC, although I do think they’re both such unique, extreme sports and entertainment. I think there will be some great promotion you can do with them both together. I don’t know if fans of specifically pro wrestling or fans specifically of mixed martial arts are going to cross over and love the other brand just because now they’re under the same roof.”
