ESPN.com Launches First-Ever Mixed-Martial Arts Section

In what could be a major step in the evolution of mixed-martial arts as a mainstream sport, ESPN.com, America's most popular sports Web site (as well as sports TV network) has launched an MMA section for the first time in the site's history.

The section is the result of a "cross-promotional and content integration" agreement with Sherdog.com, the world's most popular mixed-martial arts Web site which receives than 2 million visitors a month and features fighter profiles, records, videos, live and archived audio, live unofficial fight updates, and an MMA merchandise shop.

Much of the content on the site is directly linked to Sherdog.com stories but is presented in the typical streamlined ESPN.com sports format that is so familiar to its thousands of visitors. The official title of the section is "Mixed-Martial Arts in Association with Sherdog."

The official address for the section is http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/index, but the site can also be found by click on the small "More +" icon on the right side of the small toolbar at the top of the screen listing the various sports that ESPN provides coverage for.

ESPN.com had published more articles in the previous two weeks about mixed-martial arts, especially considering the hoopla surrounding boxer Floyd Mayweather's disparaging comments about the sport and the plethora of comparisons made by the media about the popularity of boxing compared to the rise of mixed martial arts.

Another ESPN property, the ESPN News television network, has also stepped up its coverage of the sport with interviews of top Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters as well as live coverage of the weigh-in for the UFC 71 event in Las Vegas, which is one of the biggest MMA fights of the year and features Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell in a main event match for the light heavyweight title against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

Liddell was also on the cover of ESPN the magazine as well as Sports Illustrated.