Despite the parity UFC 304’s main and co-main event gave the community Saturday night, the promotion again underwent a less-than-ideal viewing experience for those who had purchased the fight on ESPN+.
Several tweets surfaced from those watching the fights Saturday night when on-screen messages popped up about “channel 1 and 2,” robots talking to the television and a fuzzy graphic of ex-Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
UFC 304 News: Paddy Pimblett Stuns King Green With First-Round Submission
Below is an example of just one of the screens fans captured while watching from home, causing an interruption in the Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Gregory Rodrigues fight, which was the second bout on the pay-per-view main card from Manchester, England.
How old is this ESPN Big Ben Roethlisberger graphic and how did they put it on the UFC 304 card? pic.twitter.com/AhkmZmObzl
— Colin (@PackersPlaybook) July 28, 2024
The feed eventually returned for Tom Aspinall vs. Curtis Blaydes and Leon Edwards vs. Belal Muhammad, as Aspinall and Muhammad both won, respectively. Some even got to see Paddy Pimblett’s submission win against King Green. Nevertheless, the UFC’s outage issues have become routine in the last few months for U.S. audiences. This is so much so that “Morning Kombat” co-host Luke Thomas made a video in the aftermath of UFC 301 discussing his non-viewable encounter with the service.
UFC CEO Dana White Snuffs Edwards-Muhammad Trilogy: ‘Let Him Rest’
Already in a less-than-ideal mood, UFC CEO Dana White spoke on the ESPN+ interruptions at the UFC 304 post-fight presser, clarifying that it was a direct ESPN issue and not the UFC’s responsibility.
““How nutty is that?” White told reporters. “I guess ESPN was having all kinds of problems tonight, technically, with audio and graphics and NFL graphics were popping up, and I heard about it, but I don’t know why.”
Another ‘X’ user chimed in during the event to verify this perspective, saying his UFC Fight Pass broadcast had no issues.
For the people who are complaining about the stream glitches it’s literally just ESPN messing things up, not the UFC. Fight pass PPV is working just fine and have had 0 glitches so far. #ufc304
— Don Kusal MMA (@DonKusal_MMA) July 28, 2024
It remains to be seen whether or not the UFC will address these issues further as the promotion is already potentially seeking a new media rights holder when the ESPN+/ESPN contract expires in 2025
For now, the UFC will attempt to move forward with UFC 305 on Aug. 17 in a smooth sailing manner, although nothing is a guarantee.
UFC Champ Tom Aspinall Confirmed As Backup Fighter For Jones-Miocic
• UFC 304 News: Paddy Pimblett Signs New Contract – ‘I’m Not Going Nowhere’
• UFC 306 News: Full 10-Fight Card Revealed For Sept. 14 PPV Event at MSG Sphere
Stick with MMA Knockout for more daily coverage of the UFC, MMA, WWE, and AEW
