The UFC is seeking a new TV deal to start in 2019, but their current partner just sold off most of its assets.

News that Disney was purchasing the majority of the assets owned by 21st Century FOX sent shockwaves through the entertainment industry.

The $50 billion-plus sale will see Disney take over FOX's movie and television studio as well as all existing franchises, international properties like SKY TV in England, as well as a huge network of regional sports outlets that reportedly made up a huge chunk of the selling price.

What's left at FOX will be the news and business channel, the FOX broadcast network as well as FOX Sports 1 and 2. The remaining company will then be formed into one conglomerate, according to several reports, with FOX deciding to focus more on news and sports going forward. 

In a memo to employees yesterday, CEO Rupert Murdoch addressed the future of FOX Sports specifically after working for years to create an empire that could go head to head with ESPN.  Now that dream is all but dead. 

ESPN will be revitalized with the regional sports networks, while FOX is left with two sports channels that have never pulled in monstrous ratings consistently since being created and one broadcast network that is still vital for leagues such as the NFL and Major League Baseball.

"Fans look to FOX and Fox Sports as the long-term home of important sports leagues like the NFL, MLB and NASCAR and college conferences like the Big 10," Murdoch wrote.

Conspicuously absent from that memo from Murdoch was a mention of the UFC, another entity that has been part of the FOX family since 2011, when the two companies signed a seven-year broadcast deal reportedly worth an average of $120 million per year with the deal running until the close of 2018. 

The UFC is currently embroiled in negotiations for a new television contract with FOX, who has already offered $200 million per year to retain the mixed martial arts promotion. Several other suitors have shown interest, including Turner Sports and NBC, but this sale between Disney and FOX could dramatically alter the course of the UFC's future.

On the surface, FOX retains its broadcast network and the two main sports channels with FS1 and FS2, so it seems like business as usual for the UFC. But a deeper dive into the ramifications of this deal starts to show why this could be quite volatile for the promotion while trying to ink a new long-term television contract.

On one hand, FOX Sports would seemingly be crazy to let the UFC go because the company still needs to produce quality programming for advertising dollars so the network will continue to turn a profit. Of course, FOX has lucrative television deals already in place with the NFL, Major League Baseball, the BIG 10 and several other organizations, but the UFC makes up a huge percentage of programming on FS1 and FS2. Losing that could level whatever's left over at FOX Sports.

Murdoch has noted he still plans to be a player for scripted material and original programming on the main FOX broadcast channel, with the NFL still dominating Sundays and important programming like the World Series still airing on the network. Of course, that would mean the UFC would still have a home on FOX, but losing several other networks could hurt them.

Part of the sale from FOX to Disney included the FX branded networks — FX, FXX and FX Movies — and those stations served as a secondary home to the UFC when programming space wasn't available on FS1. Oftentimes the UFC would have a show airing at the same time as a college football game or an important baseball matchup, and FOX would shift the mixed martial arts event over to FX or, more recently, FXX.

While those stations weren't dedicated to sports, both had a much bigger subscriber base than FS2, which is still only in about 50 million households — less than 44 percent of total households — in the United States. That means if the UFC sticks with FOX and a similar programming problem exists, it's likely they would be shifted to FS2, which could be disastrous for ratings and availability for viewers.

There's also the perception that whatever is left over at FOX won't be as major of a player when it comes to these big broadcast deals going forward, which could force the UFC to seek out a new television partner. 

As much as Murdoch and company have attempted to calm the waters at FOX since news of the sale first broke, there are still a ton of unanswered questions about executives who may be leaving the company to work at Disney or who could be terminated altogether if they don't fit into the structure of this new business. The deal between Disney and FOX will also not be finalized for about 12 to 18 months, most likely due to regulatory issues that will be raised by the Justice Department. Unfortunately, that falls right into the sweet spot where the UFC is trying to hammer out a new television deal.

Now if you take FOX out of the equation, is it possible the UFC could then look to ESPN as a viable partner, especially now with Disney gobbling up a bigger piece of the sports pie?

That's a toss-up.

The fact is, numerous sources had said ESPN really had no intention of making a significant bid to land the UFC television rights unless there was a far lesser cost attached to landing the promotion. The new UFC owners were seeking around $450 million per year for the new television deal, and ESPN has been in cost-cutting mode for quite some time as their subscriber base continues to shrink on a yearly basis. 

Prior to the FOX sale, Disney was reportedly tying the purse strings on ESPN after the sports giant transformed from a cash cow into a sinking ship. The addition of the regional sports networks purchased in the FOX deal will undoubtedly revitalize ESPN because those networks — such as FOX Sports West, FOX Sports Ohio and the YES Network — have dozens of lucrative contracts in place with local sports teams where fans have grown accustomed to watching them compete. Unfortunately, that doesn't help the UFC much because, like NASCAR, they aren't an organization with built-in loyalty from specific regional fan bases. 

So while the addition of those regional networks will be a huge boost to ESPN's bottom line, possibly putting them back on solid ground for the time being, it's unknown if Disney is willing to fork out another major broadcast contract in the next year. 

Part of ESPN's problem beyond a shrinking subscriber lies within those lucrative broadcast deals where they are paying billions to air the NFL, the NBA and other organizations. Disney may see this FOX sale as a chance to give ESPN a shot in the arm, but adding another $450 million bill by taking on the UFC could be beyond what they planned on spending. 

The positive side to this deal is that other networks, such as NBC, Turner Sports and even online powerhouses like Apple, Amazon, and Facebook could see this as the perfect time to swoop in and steal a product like the UFC away from either ESPN or FOX.

Most industry insiders say a big part of Disney's purchase of FOX was to help beef up a planned streaming service that they plan to launch in 2019 with hopes of competing with the likes of Netflix and Amazon, who are already ahead of the curve. Netflix has stayed out of live streaming sports, but Amazon already has a broadcast deal in place with the NFL and has made bids on other programming deals as well. 

Landing an organization like the UFC could be a sign that these networks aren't going to roll over and play dead now that the Mouse House is buying a bigger market share by taking over the majority of FOX. 

Considering this sale just went through and won't even be finalized for at least a year, the UFC television broadcast rights deal just took an interesting turn, and there's no telling what will happen next as the promotion looks to finalize a new contract in 2018. 

By Damon Martin