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Michael Bisping has signed a two-year deal to remain an analyst with FUEL TV, the fighter revealed to BloodyElbow.com recently.

Bisping served alongside Chael Sonnen recently, and the two were widely-panned as perfect for the pre- and post-fight coverage.

“There’s a lot of down time in between fights, so this allows me to be productive,” Bisping said. “I think the next time I’m due back is in three-or-four weeks. I’m not sure how often I’ll be on.”

The English native lives in Los Angeles, so he doesn’t have to travel much to make the FOX studio.

As for his fighting career – both on the horizon and down the road – Bisping will face Alan Belcher in April at UFC 159. He also stated that he feels as though he can fight another eight years, and that working with FUEL TV “does not mean any interference with my fighting career.”

Personally, among those that have worked on the FUEL TV shows, the combination of Sonnen and Bisping seemed perfect.

Former UFC champion Randy Couture wants to make one thing clear to UFC president Dana White: he has not signed any sort of deal with Bellator MMA.

Couture, while appearing on Knockout Radio (thanks to MMAWeekly.com for the quotes) recently, stated that his new contract is with Spike TV, not Bellator.

“I have to clarify that because my deal is with Spike. It’s for TV shows, both scripted and unscripted potential shows,” Couture stated. “I’ve never been to Bellator. That was the first time I’ve ever met (Bellator CEO) Bjorn (Rebney), was at the press conference (held Tuesday), so I’m not involved in any way, shape or form with Bellator – just to clarify that.”

Couture will be working with Bellator, though, in terms of an upcoming reality series. He will be one of four coaches leading fighters as they pursue a spot in a future Bellator tournament.

Couture made sure to point out that maybe White misunderstood the situation when he blasted “The Natural” last week.

“My deal is to train athletes for this reality show that will get the opportunity to fight in the tournament for Bellator, and that’s about the extend of my commitment, at least at this stage,” Couture said. “I think that is a distinction that is largely misunderstood and maybe lost on Dana. He’s not one for details. But at the end of the day, that’s the reality of it.”

Photo credit: Scott Peterson/MMAWeekly

UFC president Dana White recently granted UFC Tonight a special interview where he sounded off on a number of subjects that are in the news today.

One of them concerned Eddie Alvarez and the ongoing legal battle between the UFC and Bellator.

To sum it all up, the UFC offered Alvarez a contract following the expiration of his deal with Bellator. With the support of Spike TV, Bellator agreed to match each number presented to Alvarez by the UFC.

However, it appears that Alvarez and his legal team do not believe that Bellator can fulfill their obligations and is challenging the decision in court.

Here’s what White had to say in regards to the entire ordeal:

The right to match deal works out for the fighters. That’s where a fighter finds out what he’s truly worth. The lawyer for Bellator? He’s either the biggest moron in the history of the world, or a liar. For this guy to go out there and say that Spike and Fox are exactly the same is the most ridiculous statement ever made in the history of the world.

What kind of numbers does Spike TV pull every week? Our prelims on FX pull better numbers than their live main events do. On FX! Let’s not even talk about Fox. Fox shouldn’t be in the discussion. Eddie Alvarez is getting screwed big time.

The judge? He’s not educated on television, television networks or pay-per-view. The thing is, that drives me crazy. It’s not Spike TV, it’s Viacom. The pompous, arrogant clown that runs Viacom, his name is Philippe Dauman. This guy has claimed that he built the UFC. Comparing Spike TV to Fox is a joke and it’s horrible what’s happening to Eddie Alvarez.

As we all remember, the UFC had a falling out with Viacom and Spike TV after they agreed to sign a contract with Fox. White spoke out at that time against the network, as well.

The Sports Business Journal is reporting that major changes are coming to the Fox networks this year.

According to the report, Speed and Fuel TV will be re-branded as Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2, with hopes of Fox Sports 1 competing with ESPN in the future.

All sport programming will be removed from FX, which currently broadcasts several UFC cards and The Ultimate Fighter. TUF, though, could remain, as it is considered entertainment programming.

The changes are expected to happen in August. There has yet to be any type of formal announcement made by Fox or even the UFC concerning the changes.

Photo credit: Esther Lin/MMA Fighting

The 17h season of The Ultimate Fighter begins this evening on FX, with UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen serving as coaches.

The show got a lot of attention last year during its debut on FX for negative reasons. First, there was the attempt to do live fights on Friday nights, which did not go over well with fans at all.

Then the powers that be decided to go back to the taped format, but there were still problems.

Now, TUF heads to Tuesday evenings and both the UFC and FX have made a strong strategic effort to bring fans of the show back with the inclusion of Jones and Sonnen. Having a champion – and an outspoken, well-known fighter like Sonnen – as coaches should help with the casual fan and the hard-core ones alike.

Let’s take a look at five more things that could be changed, tweaked or flat-out avoided to make the Ultimate Fighter back into a hit show:

1. Continue with the inclusion of champions and top contenders only

UFC president Dana White stated last year that the plan going forward was to use only contenders that are very-near title shots as coaches on TUF. While that might keep the promotion from elevating mid-card stars into main events, it’s the best idea going forward.

You are already throwing a bunch of “no name” fighters onto the program each and every week. Why would the uneducated MMA fan tune in if they have no idea who is on the show?

Bringing in Jones and Sonnen was an easy choice, as the two had a deep and much-talked-about beef last year. Add in the fact that Sonnen is of the outspoken kind, and there are sure to be fireworks aplenty this season.

2. Improve the camera work and quality of the series

It sounds as though this is a step that has already been taken, as many who have already viewed the first episode have stated it was filmed much like the “Road to the Octagon” or “UFC Countdown” programs.

Great job by the crew if this is true, as TUF has always seemed to lack the same quality as other programs. Just because it is based solely around a fight at the end doesn’t mean you can just fail to use good cinematography if you have it.

An addition to the film-work would be a possible picture-in-picture during the fight for each coach. It would allow us to directly see how much emotion the coaches are putting into the fight – or how much they are not, as has happened in the past.

Photo credit: Twitter

3. Leave the “drama” out of it

Unless it directly effects how a match-up between contestants is made, just leave all the in-house drama for the DVD release.

The Junie Brownings of the world do not need any more attention than they already receive. Of course, if you place 14 fighters into one house for an extended period of time, things are going to get interesting. We know that, we don’t need to see it anymore.

As I said, the one exception would be if Fighter A calls out Fighter B. They have a little verbal discussion, maybe some shoves are tossed in, and the rest of the cast is forced to separate. Fighter A says “I want you next”, Fighter B agrees, and they tell their coaches to let them compete. That’s fine. Otherwise, leave it out.

4. Bring back former UFC fighters and other well-known athletes

Remember when it was announced that Kimbo Slice would be entering the TUF house? The ratings improved and people tuned in just to see Slice in action.

You cannot tell me that if the UFC decided to do another season featuring former fighters looking to get back in the UFC that people would ignore it.

After all of the releases given over the past several years, there are many well-known fighters that would likely jump at the chance to earn another shot with the promotion. Maybe even use Hall of Famers like Randy Couture or Dan Severn as coaches to train the fighters.

5. Have more double-fight episodes

There is too much reality television on right now (at least in my opinion), and I know many viewers who just fast-forward through the non-fight portions of TUF to see the action.

Why not do more double-fight episodes? Yes, the season will not play out as long, but maybe that is a good thing, as well.

Several TV series get stretched too thin as it is, so cutting it short by a week or two could help keep fans interested longer. Plus, two highlight-reel knockouts a week would definitely make me tune in the following Tuesday.

Chael is keeping himself in the spot light; he’ll now co-host “UFC Tonight” on January 29th.

Chael Sonnen made an immediate impact on the executives at Fox Sports with his guest appearances on Fuel TV’s UFC Tonight and other programming over the past year.

Now, starting January 29, Sonnen will be a full-time host on the news-style show alongside Kenny Florian. Sonnen takes the place of Todd Harris who previously handled hosting duties, and offered up the following in making his formal announcement on the show recently:

I was offered 60 Minutes, The Today Show, The Tonight Show; the even said they would change the name to The Chael Sonnen Show if I signed on to any of those sinking ships. The X Factor said I could judge and compete at the same time, but I signed on the dotted line that is important. I am going to join you in two weeks on January 29 on Fuel TV for UFC Tonight. I am going to bring the wisdom and the wits and we are going to sit side-by-side. You are going to be with the often-imitated, never-duplicated, the C to the H, to the A to the E to the L on UFC Tonight.

Sonnen is currently scheduled to face Jon Jones for the UFC light heavyweight title later this year. He will also be on FX throughout the first few months of the year weekly as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter, which begins January 22.

Showtime executive vice president Stephen Espinoza has become a name very familiar with MMA fans as he worked closely with Strikeforce.

Now, as Strikeforce prepares for one last event Saturday night, Espinoza is confirming that his network plans to get back in the world of mixed martial arts.

“We had the option of moving forward (with Strikeforce). We decided not to exercise that option,” Espinoza said, during a recent interview with MMAjunkie.com. “We are actively looking for other opportunities. We are definitely looking for the next relationship in the MMA space.”

Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine will end a three-year run between the promotion and the network. Espinoza declined to mention any other combat sports leagues currently being evaluated by Showtime, but one would have to think Invicta FC, Legacy Fighting Championships and Shark Fights are all in the running.

Also, Espinoza confirmed that Showtime would hold on to the Strikeforce library, airing replays of events throughout the year. An agreement with Zuffa for the broadcast rights ends in March.

Inside MMA, which has helped provide insight into the world of mixed martial arts since 2007, will shift back to Friday nights later this month.

The hour-long show with hosts Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten will move from Mondays to Fridays starting January 11. The program will begin at 9 p.m. ET.

Rice and Rutten have used their unique styles to offer in-depth reporting from any and all MMA promotions.

Inside MMA airs on AXS TV, which also hosts several smaller MMA shows throughout the year.

Strikeforce founder and CEO Scott Coker didn’t really say anything new on Thursday. Instead, Coker confirmed what everyone already knew.

Following a January 12 card entitled Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine, the promotion will no longer be show on Showtime.

“Since 2009, Showtime has been a great partner and we appreciate its support of Strikeforce and our athletes,” Coker said. “For our final event, we’ve loaded the card with some outstanding fights. This is going to be a memorable night for the sport of mixed martial arts.”

Most have felt it was only a matter of time before Strikeforce closed up shop. And, while Coker did not confirm that, all signs point to the end for the promotion.

Strikeforce has had two events cancelled by Showtime in the past few months after injuries ruined the main events. The January card has also two championship matches, as well, since being announced.

Showtime officials have stated they plan to remain in the MMA business, though nothing has been confirmed or a promotion announced.