Mark Shapiro, the president and COO of TKO Group Holdings, has hailed UFC Freedom 250 as a massive success. He’s also emphatic about the likelihood of a sequel event on the White House lawn: “We’re never doing that again.”
Shapiro, speaking onstage at a Wall Street Journal event Thursday, praised the UFC card as a “total spectacle.” Though UFC leadership has tried to distance the event from the Trump administration, Shapiro admitted that WME, the representation firm he serves as president and managing partner of, failed to convince some high-profile celebrities to attend due to fears it would be overly politicized.
But political concerns were not among the reasons why UFC won’t pursue a repeat event.
“At the end of the day, it’s still one massive event. We did it just like The Sphere [for UFC 306]. We’ve done it. We made our mark. I don’t think there’s going up from there,” Shapiro said. “We were the first mover. It was super innovative. [It had a] massive global audience, by the way. And news outlets were covering it. ... So kind of been there, done that, and it takes a lot to do to pull off. We got lucky with the weather. Let’s not try and press our luck. And it’s expensive.”
UFC boss Dana White echoed the sentiment at a CNBC event on Thursday while pointing to the Freedom 250’s exorbitant expense: “It cost us $60M. It was a one of one.” Shapiro previously shared that the UFC anticipated a $30M loss from organizing the White House event.
As for the UFC in space?
“Oh, that we’ll do,” Shapiro cracked. “[Jeff] Bezos has our number.”
Shapiro also chimed in on some other hot-button topics throughout a wide-ranging conversation:
- On World Cup ticket pricing complaints: “If you don’t like it, don’t go. If you can’t afford it, don’t go. Watch it on your TV. It’s for free, and it will be a very good experience. ... [But] if you want to be the one that doesn’t have FOMO, you’re going to pay. And you’re going to pay a premium.”
- On investing in the Raiders: “First of all, if you can get in the most exclusive club [NFL team ownership], I’ll take it. ... If you’re lucky enough to be able to do it, you’re looking at it like, ‘Wait a minute, Las Vegas is a great stage.’ It sells out every week. ... Sponsorship is strong. Fernando Mendoza is the No. 1 pick. He’s going to be the quarterback. Tom Brady’s part of the ownership group; can he do it on that side of the fence? There are so many good stories that you just want to jump in.”
- On the continued rise of team valuations: “We can’t prognosticate forever, but there is no ceiling. And just up and down the line, name your sport. It’s for all the reasons we’ve talked about: viewership, sponsorship, marketing, countries that are looking for economic impact, so they’re willing to give financial incentive packages to bring your circus to town. There’s just no stopping it.”
