Who needs Brock Lesnar?

Will UFC's barbaric bloodlust work in Houston? Dana White's mild-mannered BayouCity guarantee

The UFC featherweight title comes down to Brazilian Jose Aldo, left, andMassachusetts native Kenny Florian, right.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
Fans stood behind a partition and behind the press while UFC president DanaWhite and the four main contenders fielded questions.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
There's some serious bling-bling up for grabs when UFC returns to the ToyotaCenter in Houston.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
It's the UFC lightweight and featherweight match-ups of the year, and they'recoming to the Toyota Center in October.
Charismatic (and blunt) UFC president Dana White delivered the good UFC news toHouston in a press conference on Tuesday afternoon.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
Defending UFC champions Jose Aldo (left, featherweight) and Frankie Edgar(right, lightweight) answer questions about hanging onto their titles in Houstonon Sat., Oct. 8.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
Does it almost look civil to you? That's because it actually was.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
"Being at 145 pounds, I feel like I'm one of the better, stronger athletes inthe division," said Kenny Florian.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
Sparks finally flew between the two lightweight contenders, Frankie Edgar, left,and Gray Maynard, right.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi
"This time, there won't be any doubt in the judges' minds or the rest of theworld that I'm the UFC lightweight champion," said Gray Maynard.
Photo by Fayza A. Elmostehi

For a sport typified by bloodshed, brutality, and barbarism, you'd think the Houston return of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) would be equally as bombastic.

But in a subdued room in the Toyota Center, amidst timid journalists and a muted throng of fans, UFC president Dana White peacefully announced that our city will play host to both the lightweight and featherweight championship fights on Oct. 8.

While UFC's acts of man destruction were last witnessed in Houston in 2007, White is counting on the ultimate fight's morbid mass appeal to carry the sport to new heights in the Bayou City. "This thing works everywhere," White declared. "People get it, and people like it."

And get it we'd better. The fate of two UFC titles — featherweight and lightweight — will be decided on that Saturday in October.

Reigning UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and unbeaten top contender Gray Maynard will face off in the evening's main event, following the showdown between defending UFC featherweight title holder José Aldo and Kenny Florian. The two championship events will be buttressed by both a middleweight and heavyweight match.

"This thing works everywhere," Dana White declared. "People get it, and people like it."

Even if lighter fighters don't satiate the Brock Lesnar bloodlust in you, White believes mixed martial arts are innate to your being.

"Fighting is the oldest sport. Somebody somewhere threw a punch, and somebody came to watch," he said. "Fighting is in our DNA, and we like it."

But fans at Tuesday's press conference didn't even get so much as a whiff of the kill. The most that the uncharacteristically silent bunch experienced was a tense exchange of steely glances between a fearless Edgar and intimidating Maynard.

Come October, these two pairs of brutes will be mercilessly tearing at each other's exposed flesh, gleefully cutting off respiration and throttling unprotected heads like punching bags.

But in the meantime, you'll have to settle for perfecting your flying armbar on your unwitting friends while shelling out big bucks for pay-per-view. Or watching highlights from the press conference below.

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Texas sports team unite to support legalized online gambling

Photo by Michelle Watson/CultureMapSnap

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The movement to legalize online sports gambling in Texas gained some additional momentum thanks to a new report showing it could add billions to the Texas economy.

The report comes from Eilers & Krejcik, a boutique research firm that specializes in the gaming industry. According to the report, the state could see $2.6 billion in additional annual economic activity, with another $24.3 million in tax revenue. It could also add up to 8,000 jobs.

Orlando Sanchez, former Harris County Treasurer and Houston City Council Member, has gone on record saying legalizing online sports gambling would benefit Texas.

“By legalizing sports betting in the Lone Star State, we could generate additional tax revenue – that doesn’t include taxing Texans more, which could be used to fund a variety of public projects while keeping Texans safe and giving us the chance to choose whether or not we want to legalize sports betting by putting it on the ballot,” he told Texas Insider.

Nearly all the major sports teams in the state back the move toward legalized sports gambling. Members of the Sports Betting Alliance, which is advocating for legislation to allow online sports betting, includes the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Houston Astros, Texas Rangers, and the Houston Dash. Former governor Rick Perry serves as one spokesperson for the organization.

Texans owner Cal McNair and Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta issued a joint statement in February 2023 supporting sports gambling.

”The Houston Texans support giving Texans the opportunity to choose for themselves if they want a regulated and taxed sports betting industry in Texas,” said McNair. “We think a legal and regulated betting industry is best for our fans and partners and would protect the integrity of competition.”

“Sports betting is a very popular form of entertainment,” said Fertitta. “Sports fans enjoy placing bets on their favorite sports because it brings them closer to the team and puts them in the game. No one wins with an illegal market as robust as the one in Texas.”

Houston soccer teams Dash and Dynamo also issued a brief statement following the release of the study.

“As the popularity of sports betting grows across the US, the Houston Dash and Dynamo align with efforts to bring this unique opportunity to soccer fans in Houston.”

Sports betting legislation has faced an uphill battle thanks to Governor Greg Abbott. The governor has been very against expanding gambling in Texas throughout his administration, blocking attempts of native tribes to expand electronic bingo halls, additional casino construction being pushed by Miriam Adelson, and even research trips by Texas officials to study expanded gambling. Though Abbott has seemingly softened on his stance, he remains wary of gambling fostering economic hardship in the state.

Texas is one of only 11 states in the union that has not legalized sports gambling. The American Gaming Association estimates sports gambling has contributed to $40.8 billion in tax revenue and created 1.8 million jobs across the country.

However, there has also been a marked spike in gambling addiction since 2018 when the app-based sports gambling boom started. Heads of several problem gambling centers report increased hotline calls and more severe problems such as bankruptcies and foreclosures related to sports gambling.

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