5 Things We Learned From UFC 181

4. Bellator Forces UFC€™s Hand

Three weeks ago, everyone went in talking about UFC 180 and left talking about Bellator 131. While UFC put on better fights, Bellator put on a better show with a stylish presentation, well produced videos, and flashy fighter entrances derived from PRIDE days. The changes were subtle but they augmented their presentation that most feel has become stale. A video hyping the return of Anderson Silva was influenced by the horror film The Ring with a child€™s melody of itsy bitsy spider which harkens to the €œNo Strings on Me€ track used in the Avengers Age of Ultron trailer. Bellator announced the signing of blue-chip amateur wrestling prospect Aaron Pico on their show. UFC announced the signing of professional wrestling superstar CM Punk during their broadcast. The in-cage scuffle between Tito Ortiz and Stephan Bonnar was used to promote their bout that evening. Not to be outdone, the UFC press conference brawl between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier was aired on the pay-per-view telecast to promote their fight early next year. The UFC even took a page out of Boxing€™s playbook and implemented a split-screen corner camera. This allowed fans to watch both fighters during the entire one minute rest period instead of seeing each corner for thirty seconds and added drama to the combative atmosphere. Bellator dimmed the lights in the arena with a single spotlight shining down in the center of the cage for the ring introductions during the main event. UFC used this production esthetic for the first time ever during their two title bouts which amplified that big fight feel.