What is the difference between Bellator and UFC?

When it comes to the world of MMA, there are two big names on the block. The first is the UFC, and the second is Bellator. UFC was founded by Dana White in 1993, whilst Bellator began in 2009 under Scott Coker who previously owned Strikeforce before selling it to White. Since their respected creations, both organizations have gone on to gain global, mainstream acclaim and have grown into part of a billion dollar industry as a result. However, although they’re both similar in many ways – there are also a number of key differences that cannot be ignored either. Below, we have outlined the major differences.

Ring shape and size

In the UFC, the shape of the cage is an octagon, whereas in Bellator it is circular. Overall, most MMA promotions either use an octagon or circle, depending on personal preference. Really, there is little difference when it comes to fighting and other than design and style, the differences are minimal.

However, the main difference isn’t the shape of the cage, it’s the size. Apparently, the size of the Bellator mat space is roughly 25% larger than the size of the ring in UFC. Therefore, this will have an impact on fights and literally shapes how they take place. In short, with more square feet at play, this lessens the likelihood of takedowns, cage wrestling, and grappling. As a result, you can expect to see slightly more striking in Bellator, however these observations are fairly minimal.

Origins of each promotion

As mentioned previously, the UFC is a few years older than Bellator and was made by Dana White in the early 90s. During its creation, times were different and it was viewed as a barbaric bloodsport with more in common with savagery rather than a technical sport like boxing. There were some reasons for this too, as it allowed headbutts, soccer kicks and other techniques that are now banned.

Going forward to 2009, the rules for Bellator almost wrote themselves and the previous ruleset from Strikeforce was mostly borrowed from. Back then, Bellator used more of a grand prix system that gave winning fighters a $100,000 cash prize. Since then, they have ditched this system and are very similar to UFC in this sense of having a traditional rankings system based on fights throughout the year.

As a result, both promotions are actually fairly similar by today’s standards. Nonetheless, looking back over the years – quite a lot has changed for either organization since their inception.

Business model

The UFC has a certain type of business model that it does well from, whereas Bellator’s business model is quite different. In some ways, the UFC model is quite similar to the one used in WWE. This means they have a number of regular shows that people can watch on certain TV stations. However, a lot of their money comes from PPV events. In other words, they can rake in a lot of money with big events that fans will have to pay a one-off fee to view.

This differs from Bellator, who have only ever done one PPV in their history. Instead, Bellator is more reliant on TV ratings and appealing to their TV stations. Because of this, they get the bulk of their money from networks that pay to host Bellator on their channels, whereas UFC does this but also relies on PPV money. Ultimately, there are pros and cons for each business model.

Arguably, the UFC is safer as it isn’t reliant on one form of income and since its creation, also has stuff like the UFC Fight Pass that brings in millions per year. Having said this, Bellator is also confident that as MMA grows globally, it will still be able to grow with it and as long as there are TV networks on board, then it should be sustainable.

Fighters

The UFC is known for having the best fighters in the world, and it always has. Even if Bellator builds up a champion, there’s always a good chance they will end up in the UFC if they’re deemed good enough. The likes of Ben Askren and Michael Chandler are good examples of this who dominated Bellator, but weren’t as successful in the UFC. This shows that the UFC is still the best when it comes to its talent pool, and most fighters still see it as the pinnacle of their career.

Nonetheless, the caliber of fighters on Bellator is still solid and is no joke. Perhaps the main difference between the two promotions is the lack of star quality in Bellator. In the UFC, they took the likes of Conor McGregor and Jorge Masvidal and turned them into superstars who became known around the world. On the contrary, outside of MMA circles, many of the Bellator champions of past and present just aren’t as known, which is probably because Bellator gets less mainstream attention.

Lastly, Bellator is also known for having fights with older veterans who are arguably past their prime. Fighters like Frank Mir, Chael Sonnen and Fedor Emelianenko have all turned to Bellator in the later years of their career. There’s no shame in this, but the UFC doesn’t put on these kinds of fights and will often look towards younger talent instead.

What pays more, Bellator or UFC?

This is a detailed question that deserves a detailed answer. Typically, Bellator have been very proud of their payment structure when it comes to their roster of fighters. Often, the figure of $25,000 is paid per fight. In other words, if a typical Bellator fighter does two fights per year on average, they earn $50,000. This isn’t bad money in comparison to the typical pay that a UFC fighter will get who is on a similar level.

Usually in the UFC, fighters can get paid around $10,000 per fight or even less in some cases. When you also factor in running costs such as daily training, travel and training camps, this money doesn’t last very long. As a result, it’s safe to say that for the average fighter, Bellator is superior and offers more of a stable income.

Having said this, the UFC is beneficial in some areas such as the very top tier level of fighters. For instance, some UFC fighters and champions are literally paid millions per fight. This isn’t as common in Bellator and so their pay structure is more equally distributed. This means, if you’re happy to be a mid-tier fighter, then Bellator may offer more financial security. However, if you have dreams of the very top and want to make millions and become a star, then the UFC will probably pay better in the long run. Ultimately, it’s up to your own ambitions and desires.

Drugs testing

The UFC was originally like many other MMA promotions until it decided to introduce USADA. This acronym is short for United States Anti-Doping Agency and introduced a number of ways of testing which wasn’t as consistent as before. The result was that a number of big name fighters begun getting caught with drugs in their system and this could range from anything from the likes of marijuana to turinabol.

However, Bellator’s drugs policy is more old school and less rigid. Instead, Bellator have a system that tests fighters 24 hours before their fight. As you can imagine, fighters can go on a steroid cycle for weeks or months before their fight in Bellator, and as long as the drugs are out of their system before fighting then they are deemed as clean. This differs from UFC where you can get randomly drugs tested which makes it harder to game the system.

Overall, you could claim that UFC uses a more watertight system when countering drug use, whereas Bellators system is less efficient. Because of this, there are allegations that Bellators fighters are more likely to be on steroids when compared to those fighting in the UFC.

Conclusion

Overall, it’s fair to say that there’s a few key differences between the UFC and Bellator. From fighters pay, to business models and fan bases, although these are both MMA organizations, they’re also quite different. In the big scheme of things, time will tell as to what is the more successful promotion. However, for the time being at least, the UFC has performed better out of the two.

Saying this, throughout the years many fans and pundits have unsuccessfully predicted the downfalls of either organization which has still not happened just yet. With this in mind…whether you love or hate them it seems that the UFC and Bellator are here to stay with the UFC being the top dog for the time being at least.