Way back in April of 2009, Bellator MMA made its debut on ESPN Deportes – the only TV outlet for the promotion’s first season. Since then, Bellator branched out to Fox Sports Net, MTV2, and its current home, Spike. And six years after that debut on ESPN Deportes, Bellator is heading back to that network after inking a new Spanish language contract that begins with the September 19th event.
Saturday’s event, which is main evented by long-time UFC star Tito Ortiz and Bellator Light Heavywight Champion Liam McGeary, will feature both MMA and kickboxing bouts, with the latter promoted by Glory, also airing in English on Spike.
“ESPN Deportes has a long history of carrying premier sporting events, relevant to our Hispanic sports fans,” said Lino Garcia, general manager of ESPN Deportes. “We recognized the changes and growth of Bellator over the past year and, we are thrilled to see the world-class mixed martial arts organization return to its original television home.”
The new ESPN Deportes deal for Bellator also provides live streaming of the event on ESPN3 for both the prelims and main card. A total of six events are planned to air on ESPN Deportes before the end of 2015, with additional cards announced for September 25th, October 23rd, November 6th, and November 20th.
Since Bellator’s initial run on ESPN Deportes, the Worldwide Leader has lacked MMA live rights, though they do feature MMA (particularly UFC) highlights, analysis, and news from time to time when major pay-per-view events are on the schedule. Could the new Bellator deal, even if it’s only for the Spanish language broadcast, result in Bellator highlights showing up on SportsCenter? Is Chael Sonnen going to end up making more appearances for the network?
To progress to the next level, Bellator needed to at least get a toe in the door with ESPN. And while English broadcasts aren’t likely for the network because of Viacom’s ownership of Bellator, this could end up leading to some sort of expanded partnership between the two entities – even though Bellator’s overall reach pales in comparison to the monolithic UFC.
[Bellator]
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About Joe Lucia
I hate your favorite team. I also sort of hate most of my favorite teams.