Living the MMA lifestyle- Tattoos, TapouT, and Twitter

MMA is exploding. The UFC has a Fox network television deal, is hosting events in at least 5 different countries in 2012, and isn't losing steam anytime soon. Bellator has new TV deals in place for 2012, 2013, and beyond. The same can be said for the culture, style, and wants of MMA's vast fanbase- they are absolutely blowing up. Look no further than this blog, of which I'm one of many....I personally have 6 tattoos, have a pair of Twitter accounts for MMA, and an MMA clothing and training gear line on the way. TapouT, too, is one of many. But they are large, well known, and have been around. I have actually seen a lot of TapouT tattoos. I'm not saying I approve, but here's a picture of one.

It's not just in the USA, either. UFC on Fox 1, with Junior Dos Santos defeating Cain Velasquez for Cain's UFC Heavyweight belt peaked in the USA at about 9 million viewers. While that was great, and a record for MMA, many don't realize what's happening outside of the USA. In Brazil, UFC on Fox 1 drew a peak of 22 million viewers. And in Rio, the fight wasn't on until 12:30am, their time. Vitor Belfort is one of the biggest stars in all of Brazil, not just for MMA, but also because he's married to Joana Prado, a huge star herself in Brazil.

I'm unsure of the numbers, but I'm very sure they were also huge in Mexico, where Cain Velazquez hails from.
I believe the UFC is the largest company in the world that actually promotes Twitter usage, to the point that the UFC offers quarterly bonuses to their fighters who gain the most followers. They also give a bonus for "most creative tweet". On the UFC website page showing the fighters, there's a link to follow every fighter's Twitter page. MMA fans in general are quite active on Twitter, and mandates like the UFC's to it's employees are great things for everyone. It gets the fans "closer" to the personalities of their favorite (and least favorite! I follow Brock Lensar, after all) fighters. Often I hear news directly from a fighter on Twitter before I get the news anywhere else. It's great for bloggers like myself, as we have a chance to get the first articles written based on this information stream. That said, I'd be selling myself short if I didn't put a link to my Twitter account here: Or Text 'follow AdamantMMA' to 40404 (in the USA)
Tweet With MMA on it's meteoric rise in nearly the entire world, expect to see a lot more of TapouT, tattoos, and Twitter. And AdamantMMA.