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Mixed Martial Arts Continues to Gain Mainstream Attention
Written by Zach Letts   
Saturday, 21 March 2009 18:13
Canada's UFC Welterweight Champion Shoots Commercial for Gatorade


In 1993, the sport we know today as Mixed Martial Arts was not recognized as an athletic affair by many people, specifically due to the absence of a sanctioning body and more importantly rules. As a result of these major criticisms, MMA received nothing but negative mainstream media attention, which deterred potential sponsors for getting involved with the violent spectacle’s combatant—causing many to enlist in full and part-time jobs, just to scrape by financially.


Now, 16 years later, MMA has really cleaned up its act with the implementation of rules and structure, it is now recognized as a sport, and as such, is finally receiving attention from world renowned brands. The emergence of mixed martial arts as a part of mainstream culture is especially evident now with two-time defending UFC Welterweight Champion, Georges "Rush" St. Pierre, being the first MMA fighter to ever star in a Gatorade commercial.


With an elite MMA fighter in St. Pierre now being aligned with icons such as Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, and Peyton Manning, it is becoming quite clear that the sport has not only asserted itself as a legitimate athletic competition, but that the UFC brand has transcended the negative connotations it was once restrained by and has emerged as an attractive affiliate for tapping into North American consumers. Ultimately, with this latest development in the sport’s growth, one question comes to mind; “how much bigger can it get?”