KINGS OF THE CAGE

A cultural and business history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, tracing the unlikely rise of mixed martial arts from what was derided in the ‘90s as “human cockfighting”—more violence than sport—to a global pop culture phenomenon.

The New York Times once despaired that mixed martial arts offered a “pay-per-view prism” onto the decline of western civilization. But the violent spectacle of cage fighting no longer feels nearly as scandalous as it did when the sport debuted in 1993. Today, it's spoken of reverentially as a kind of “human chess” played out in real-time between two bodies and the UFC is one of the most valuable franchises in the world, equal to what Disney paid to acquire Marvel Comics. Once banned in thirty-six states and hovering on the edge of bankruptcy, the UFC has evolved into a $10 billion industry and introduced the world to celebrity fighters like Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor. How did cage fighting go so mainstream?

A rollicking behind-the-scenes account of one of the most spectacular upsets in sports history, KINGS OF THE CAGE follows the desperate fighters, audacious promoters, fanboy bloggers, fatherly trainers, philosophical announcers, hustling sponsors, and three improbable twentysomething corporate titans on a darkly comic odyssey to normalize a new level of brutality in pop culture—and make a fortune doing so. Stylishly written and poignantly observed, the book offers a provocative look at how the violence endemic to modern capitalism left us ready to embrace a sport like cage fighting.

Michael Thomsen writes about sports, video games, technology, and political culture for The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, Forbes, Wired, The New Republic, and other outlets.