SPX
10-20-2010, 12:16 PM
For now, UFC Gym officials are not targeting the tanned, Bluetoothed gym rat wearing $200 apparel.
Mark Mastrov, the founder of 24 Hour Fitness and the fight promotion's new partner in fitness, is aiming at the blue-collar crowd.
"We're about taking the experience of a fighter's training regime and bringing it to the general public," Mastrov told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com (http://www.mmajunkie.com)) during a recent gym opening in Rosemead, Calif.
Mastrov, who sold his company in 2005 for $1.6 billion, hopes to turn mixed martial arts into the next big fitness craze. A huge UFC fan, Mastrov and partner Jim Rowley partnered with the UFC in 2008. The first UFC Gym opened to the public in January in Concord, Calif.
The idea is taking the neighborhood dojo and merging it with a state-of-the-art gym. But that doesn't come with a high price tag, according to Mastrov.
"If you look at Rosemead and Concord, they're both blue-collar markets with a little bit less average household income," he said. "So we're not in that $90,000 to $120,000 income range. We're in the ($50,000 to $60,000) range. We're targeted there now."
UFC Gym representative Adam Sedlack said a basic membership at the gym costs around $35 per month while a membership that includes MMA training costs about $90 per month.
"We definitely have our share of UFC enthusiasts, Sedlack said of the gym's current membership base. "We're also getting a lot of the soccer moms and kids."
A fitness industry veteran, Sedlack said the UFC Gym enrollment numbers are "well above expectations" compared with many large fitness chains.
On Monday the UFC announced the opening of a 45,000-square-foot facility located in Corona, Calif., which is its third location. It recently a opened the facility in nearby Rosemead, as well.
"We have very aggressive expectations of being in Hawaii soon," Sedlack added.
UFC president Dana White said there are also international expansion plans for UFC Gym locations.
"The reality is that mixed martial arts is the new martial art," White told MMAjunkie.com. "When we were growing up, we would take karate or kung fu or taekwondo, (but) this is the new martial art. It's going to educate a lot of people about this sport and the athletes."
UFC fighters will be regular guests of the gym and conduct seminars on a variety of topics pertinent to MMA, according to Mastrov.
"We're going to take the best of that world and put it inside the general fitness club," he said. "This is all about a unique training experience that's supplemented with cardio and some strength training.
"Ninety-nine percent of the people aren't going to fight. They're just inspired by these guys who are amazing athletes."
Mark Mastrov, the founder of 24 Hour Fitness and the fight promotion's new partner in fitness, is aiming at the blue-collar crowd.
"We're about taking the experience of a fighter's training regime and bringing it to the general public," Mastrov told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com (http://www.mmajunkie.com)) during a recent gym opening in Rosemead, Calif.
Mastrov, who sold his company in 2005 for $1.6 billion, hopes to turn mixed martial arts into the next big fitness craze. A huge UFC fan, Mastrov and partner Jim Rowley partnered with the UFC in 2008. The first UFC Gym opened to the public in January in Concord, Calif.
The idea is taking the neighborhood dojo and merging it with a state-of-the-art gym. But that doesn't come with a high price tag, according to Mastrov.
"If you look at Rosemead and Concord, they're both blue-collar markets with a little bit less average household income," he said. "So we're not in that $90,000 to $120,000 income range. We're in the ($50,000 to $60,000) range. We're targeted there now."
UFC Gym representative Adam Sedlack said a basic membership at the gym costs around $35 per month while a membership that includes MMA training costs about $90 per month.
"We definitely have our share of UFC enthusiasts, Sedlack said of the gym's current membership base. "We're also getting a lot of the soccer moms and kids."
A fitness industry veteran, Sedlack said the UFC Gym enrollment numbers are "well above expectations" compared with many large fitness chains.
On Monday the UFC announced the opening of a 45,000-square-foot facility located in Corona, Calif., which is its third location. It recently a opened the facility in nearby Rosemead, as well.
"We have very aggressive expectations of being in Hawaii soon," Sedlack added.
UFC president Dana White said there are also international expansion plans for UFC Gym locations.
"The reality is that mixed martial arts is the new martial art," White told MMAjunkie.com. "When we were growing up, we would take karate or kung fu or taekwondo, (but) this is the new martial art. It's going to educate a lot of people about this sport and the athletes."
UFC fighters will be regular guests of the gym and conduct seminars on a variety of topics pertinent to MMA, according to Mastrov.
"We're going to take the best of that world and put it inside the general fitness club," he said. "This is all about a unique training experience that's supplemented with cardio and some strength training.
"Ninety-nine percent of the people aren't going to fight. They're just inspired by these guys who are amazing athletes."