· Marcello Foran ~ Passionate About His Work
If there is one word that best describes Marcello Foran, CEO and founder of the Ultimate Warrior Challenge, it would be ”Passionate”. His love of MMA and sheer dedication to the sport are infectious to anyone talking to him.
Foran started Ultimate Warrior Challenge (UWC) in 2006; his brother, a two-time All-Met wrestler and Special Forces Marine, had begun training and competing in MMA. Foran, already owning and operated a VIP luxury lifestyle management company, knew about event production and decided to get into the business. "I saw it as a challenge to myself as an entrepreneur and a chance to be a part of the history of it. You don't often get a chance to be a part of the history, even if you are really good at what you do."
From there the UWC has grown by leaps and bounds; in Foran's own words, "We have come as far and as fast as anyone. We are always looking to grow." Not only are they growing they are doing it the right way. "We aren't doing the EXC or the Affliction model. Everyone told me when we were starting to do it right and build from the ground up." That strategy has worked "We have been able to build to where we are on 1%, maybe half of 1% of what some of other organizations have spent, and some of them put 40 or 50 million dollars in and still aren't around anymore."
When asked about the UWC highlighting many of the smaller divisions in MMA. Foran explained that this was strategic as well; "You aren't going to see many light heavyweight or heavyweight bouts. Those are saturated markets and you have to create divisions." He went on to explain that by building divisions of fighters they have options for future match ups for the winners. An especially important weight class to Foran and the UWC is the 125lb flyweight division, the benefits of which, are twofold. "We are aiming to be a leader for the flyweight division in the United States. If I see that there are not many flyweight divisions out there, then I benefit by showcasing them and it helps the division and the sport. I want to do what is the most successful and the best for the sport."
Foran’s driven focus for the sport and his organization comes to the forefront when he discusses dealing with the obstacles of running a mixed martial arts promotion; "You have to have a true love about making an impact. Whether it is running a promotion, playing the guitar, or being a good father you have to have the passion, determination and the desire to make it successful. The best, worst and most frustrating things are the level of commitment that you and others are willing to put in." Along with commitment, he also cited chemistry as being crucial to success, "The biggest asset and limitation is the chemistry of those people. That has been the biggest cause of our growth and has been the cause for things that have held us back the most."
Foran also stated, "This is the biggest undertaking that I have undergone. There are a million working parts to these shows: production, web site, press releases, match making, contracts, advertising... that all have to culminate into one night of great MMA action." That does not stop Foran though, and he has a hand in all of it. He literally does the fighter interviews for their website, participates with the video editing of them, looks over every airplane reservation to make sure that the person's name is spelled correctly to prevent issues at the airport, and so many other things that it would be futile to try and list them all. He's not looking for special accolades for this work either, it is just part of the job. He then reiterated "It comes down to the people you surround yourself with and their chemistry."
Even when asked about his favorite fighters, Foran expresses his desire to see what is best for the sport: "What I look for in a fighters is more someone with the warrior spirit or someone who is a true martial artist. Those that give it the highest level of respect."
Saturday’s event, will feature a night of top quality fights from the UWC at the George Mason University Partiot Center in Fairfax, VA. The event includes two title fights: a Bantamweight title bout between two-time UWC champion Mike “The Hulk” Easton (8-1) and two-time WEC Champion Chase "The Rage" Beebe (12-4) and a flyweight title bout between Pat Runez (6-0) and John “The Magician” Dodson (12-4). For fans within 100 miles of the Patriot, the fights will only be available live at the Patriot Center. Fans further away will be able to watch the main card bouts via online pay-per-view through uwcmma.com for $14.95. This is the first time that a UWC event will be available on PPV, Foran commented that "We wouldn't ask people to support the show through pay-per-view if we didn't think that we made it worth the money." He also mentioned that they have brought in special top level directors to make sure that the production quality goes as smoothly as possible.
The new pay-per-view offering is just a taste of the growth that is coming as the UWC transforms from regional show into a national competitor. First in line is more shows, "We are planning to schedule 5-6 shows for next year. This is a move away from how we did it before where we would wait until after each show to plan the next one." He said "We have a potential offer for live TV" and "We have million dollar brands wanting to work with us and partner with us." Also, after this event fighter contracts will work differently "After this event, we will be going to multi-fight, exclusive contracts and we will be able to provide the money and exposure for those fighters to do so."
When asked for final thoughts for the interview, Foran asked that the fans in the mid-Atlantic/D.C. area to come out and show their support "I hope people come out and support the show, a lot of cities don't get an opportunity for this high level of MMA action. People need to support the sport for it to grow. Even if you don't know the names of all of the fighters on the card, they have all been carefully selected and these are match ups between talented fighters. These fights can be just as good as Strikeforce or the UFC and even if you don't know these fighters now, some of them are going to be the future stars of the sport." He also recommended that those who have never attended a live event come out and try it "There is a difference between watching it on SpikeTV and being there live. The tickets aren't much more than some of the very small regional shows but are providing the best MMA on the east coast. If you are MMA fans, we are offering something that no one else can offer within driving distance"
UWC 7 - Redemption
October 3, 2009
GMU Patriot Center - Fairfax, VA
Tickets: Ticketmaster
Mike “The Hulk” Easton vs. Chase "The Rage" Beebe - 135lb Title Fight
Pat Runez vs. John “The Magician” Dodson - 125lb Title Fight
Tommy "Gun" Truex vs. Kyle "The Alleycat" Baker
Timothy "Reshad" Woods vs. Ryan "The Rhino" Sturdy
Beau “Blackjack” Baker vs. Jacob “Tick-Tock” McClintock
Kris "Savage" McCray vs. Igor “The Legend” Almeida
Sumie Sakai vs. Iman Achhal
Jesse "Mountain Man" Riggleman vs. Josh "Taz" Ferguson
Felipe “Sertanejo” Arantes vs. Freddy Assuncao
