With host Jon Anik, 'UFC: Ultimate Insider' to lead FOX Sports 1 debut

When FOX Sports 1 blinks to life on Aug. 17, UFC programming will be front and center. 

That evening, the promotion will hold UFC Fight Night 26 on the new cable network from TD Garden in Boston. But earlier that day, a cornerstone of UFC shoulder programming will beam to an estimated 90 million homes across the country. 

UFC commentator Jon Anik told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that “UFC: Ultimate Insider” is likely to lead a block of UFC programming that culminates with the live fight card. 

“I believe it will begin with ‘Ultimate Insider’ at 4:30 p.m. (ET), so it’s going to be a huge day of UFC programming and ‘UFC: Ultimate Insider,’ hopefully, will be the show that kicks it all off,” Anik said.

The show, which profiles UFC athletes and goes behind the scenes at live events, debuted in 2010 as a web-only series before being moved to FUEL TV with the UFC’s broadcast deal with FOX. 

In the past three years, host Anik has interviewed some of the biggest names in the sport and given fans an inside look into the lives of UFC fighters. 

“I enjoy the opportunity to interview fighters, and to introduce the features, but it’s all about the fighters and the producers, who just get us such great content on location,” he said.

Anik, who previously worked as a commentator at ESPN before joining the UFC’s ranks in 2011, said the switch to FOX Sports 1 could prompt a move from the show’s usual Tuesday evening time slot to Sunday, though he said nothing had been decided. 

“I think that’s still to be decided,” he said. “We’re hoping to get picked up for a third season.”

If it is, Anik said, he’ll still be an integral part of the show beyond his work in front of the camera. 

“I think for any TV personality, you really want to write your own stuff as much as possible,” he said. “We certainly have producers that will create a shell, but you always want it to be in your own words.

“Even for the weigh-in shows, I get a script from FOX that has been written, but I rewrite the majority of it because you want to be delivering this stuff in your own words. When you’re reading a teleprompter, when it’s in your own words, it’s a lot easier to make it look like you’re not reading a teleprompter. 

“I’m involved in the writing and editorial process, and that’s the way I was trained at ESPN, and really couldn’t imagine doing it any other way.”

For the latest on UFC Fight Night 26, as well as the rest of the UFC’s upcoming cards on FOX Sports 1, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Jon Anik)