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 |  Subject: Spike Inks Randy Couture to Overall Deal, Sets Two MMA-Themed Series Tue Feb 05, 2013 12:44 pm | |
| - Quote :
- The network has picked up 10 episodes of competition series "Fight
Master: Bellator MMA" and three of "MMA Rescue," both featuring the
Hall of Famer.
Randy Couture
Spike TV is getting back into the ring with Randy "The Natural" Couture.
The male-skewing cable network has inked the Mixed Martial Arts and
Ultimate Fighting Championship Hall of Famer to a two-year development
deal and green-lighted two unscripted entries to series, The Hollywood Reporter has learned exclusively.
Under the pact, Couture -- a multiple UFC Heavyweight (and Lightweight) champion and The Expendables actor -- will serve as one of four coaches on a Voice-like series for the network called Fight Master: Bellator MMA and a Kitchen Nightmares-style series dubbed MMA Rescue.
"He has an adventurous spirit and is a well-intentioned human being
that when we thought of what else we were going to do on Spike, his name
was the only thing that came to my mind as someone we had to be in business with," Spike executive vp original programming Sharon Levy tells THR. "At Spike, all our talent are experts in their field, and Randy is at the top of his game."
Fight Master will see Couture join fellow coaches Greg Jackson, Frank Shamrock and Joe Warren
as they oversee 32 up-and-coming fighters looking to fight their way
through a win-or-go-home format into the Bellator tournament and a
six-figure cash prize.
The Amazing Race creators Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri,
via their Profiles Television Productions banner, are on board to
executive produce the series. Spike has ordered 10 hour-long episodes of
Fight Master, which will likely bow in the summer.
MMA Rescue, meanwhile, will see Couture use his years of
experience in the business of MMA to help turn failing gyms into
successful businesses. The three-episode series is in the same vein as
Spike's Bar Rescue and Tattoo Rescue and will be produced by Couture, his manager (Samuel Spira) and Chris Coelen's Kinetic Content (Betty White's Off Their Rockers, Hardcore Pawn). Production on MMA Rescue will likely begin after Fight Master wraps.
Couture's deal also includes a first-look at new projects in a number
of content categories, with Spike open to non-sports efforts and Levy
not ruling out a scripted venture. "We're looking at everything we can
do with him, some will be sports related and some won't -- because Randy
is a movie star," she said.
The news continues Spike's relationship with Couture, who did an episode of the network's reality competition series Pros vs. Joes, pitting pro athletes against amateur athletes, and served as a co-host early on the network's The Ultimate Fighter.
"I'm excited to be back at Spike. I had an amazing experience on Ultimate Fighter when it started, and Spike is a tremendous platform for MMA," Couture tells THR. "It feels like I'm coming home."
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