Polaris Pro is a promotion in the competitive grappling industry and the spotlight just got larger for their next event, Polaris 5. The organization announced last week that the event will be featured on UFC Fight Pass; a platform that’s been used to promote the sport in the past. With this announcement, Polaris has an opportunity to capture the interest of fans that may have been out of reach in the past.
When looking at the planned card, Polaris 5 seems to be the perfect event for the promotion to make its debut on UFC Fight Pass. While fans may identify some of these names from their time in mixed martial arts, this event features some of the best grapplers to ever compete. Men such as Jake Shields, Caol Uno and Brad Pickett may be the most recognizable, but Phil Harris, Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro, Masakazu Imanari come with a wealth of experience in both worlds as well. When mixing in stud names like Garry Tonon, Dillon Danis and Daniel Strauss, this is a prime opportunity to present some of the best matchups in a skill and marketability standpoint in the sport today.
The UFC has already shown an interest in competitive grappling. The Eddie Bravo Invitational is a submission-only tournament with a full library of events available for on-demand viewing on Fight Pass. EBI is widely considered one of the top promotions in competitive grappling and the stage where names such as Tonon, Strauss, and others added to their growing legacies. Adding Polaris to the mix builds in another layer with a promotion that’s a leader in the industry. Past Polaris events feature such spectacles as Tonon’s 2016 matches against UFC veterans Rousimar Palhares and Gilbert Burns; the high-intensity match between Strauss and AJ Agazarm, and a host of other well-known grappling matchups.
If Polaris 5 is deemed a success and furthers the partnership between the two organizations there’s potential for positive ramifications throughout the sport. Subscriber approximations for UFC Fight Pass hover around 100K; viewers who may develop an appetite for competitive grappling in the future. As these athletes build their fan base on UFC Fight Pass, those views may travel to other promotions and tournaments where they compete. Leveraging that cross pollination allows promotions such as Fight to Win Pro or Grappling Pro to tap into audiences unaware of their existence.
The athletes also stand to gain as the UFC brings another promotion to the Fight Pass network. Take Dillon Danis for example, his connections to Conor McGregor helped him get signed to Bellator without any professional MMA experience under his belt. If these athletes excel in EBI and Polaris, many more eyes will be exposed to their talents than with previous events. Not only will this exposure put them in front of new fans, but other fighters looking for training partners and coaches – creating an opportunity for additional revenue streams.
Polaris 5 is an event that has grappling fans waiting in anticipation. The move to bring the showcase over to UFC Fight Pass has the potential to help the growth for the sport and these athletes at the same time. If these athletes deliver with the exciting bouts that everyone expects, the moment will benefit not only the UFC, but Polaris, other promotions and the athletes at the same time.