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"UFC 112: Invincible" available for free to German fans on UFCLive.com
by John Morgan on Apr 09, 2010 at 3:05 pm ET
While German mixed-martial-arts fans were dealt a stern blow with March's order from the Bavarian state office for new media (BLM) banning UFC programming on German airwaves, the world's biggest fight promotion has stepped in to assure that Saturday's UFC 112 event will still be available to all.
German fans will be able to watch "UFC 112: Invincible" for free on the UFCLive.com.
The stream will be geo-blocked and offered free only to German fans.
In March, UFC president Dana White told MMAjunkie.com (
http://www.mmajunkie.com) that he's disappointed by the German government's decision to take UFC programming off the air, but he also insisted the promotion eventually will find its way back to German airwaves.
"We're working on it," White said. "It's one of those things that it is what it is. There's some political [expletive] going on there, and we don't really have our arms around what it is yet, but we're going to get in there, and we're going to figure it out.
"It's obviously the first time we've been told that we might be taken off television, but it's not the first time we've battled this type of adversity. We'll get over this."
Today, UFC U.K. president Marshall Zelaznik declined to comment on any update in the legal process, but he did say it was important to him for German fans to have access to the event.
"We want to ensure that our fans will be able to see the one of the most historic events in UFC history," Zalaznik said.
UFC 112 marks the UFC's Middle East debut. The show takes place at Concert Arena (at the Ferrari World theme park on Yas Island) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The pay-per-view main card (live at 1 p.m. ET and delay at 10 p.m. ET) features two title fights: UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva vs. Demian Maia and lightweight title-holder B.J. Penn vs. Frankie Edgar.
Cologne, Germany, hosted UFC 99 in June 2009. Although the event proved a hit with 12,854 attendees and a $1.3 million gate, local authorities banned minors from attending the show, and many local media members took a negative stance against the UFC's arrival. Regardless, White said that – even with the television problems – the organization hasn't ruled a return to the country.
For the latest on UFC 112, check out the UFC Rumors section of MMAjunkie.com.
