UFC pursues expansion onto HBO following Paramount-Warner merger

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HBO logo displayed on a tv screen and a remote control are seen in this illustration photo taken in Poland on August 7, 2024. (Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images) | NurPhoto via Getty Images You might catch a UFC special on HBO sooner rather than later. Paramount-Skydance recently closed a massive $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. and all of the company’s assets, including networks like HBO, TBS, TNT, and many others. While the UFC’s broadcast deal with Paramount that kicked off at the start of 2026 landed the majority of the organization’s programming on the Paramount+ streaming service, this merger opens the door to all sorts of possibilities. TKO Group Holdings president and COO Mark Shapiro revealed on Wednesday that talks are already ongoing about the merger and the UFC’s potential expansion to different networks. “We’re in conversation as we speak with Skydance about the best way to maximize audience across the Skydance platform,” Shapiro said during a TKO financial call. “We have a great partnership with the entire team there. I used to work with David Berson, who’s the head of Skydance Sports, from our days at ESPN. He’s super creative. “We will be maximizing HBO, TNT, Paramount+, CBS, all in the name of expanding eyeballs, expanding viewership, growing audience, and increasing engagement. Fully aligned strategically with Skydance and, frankly, they made a huge investment in UFC, and we want to see that we help them maximize their returns.” The UFC inked a huge seven-year, $7.7 billion deal to move from ESPN to Paramount at the start of 2026 while simultaneously eliminating pay-per-view broadcasts, with every event now airing exclusively on the Paramount+ streaming service. While the merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. is complete, the full integration for all the various properties is still underway. Eventually, Paramount+ is expected to merge with HBO Max, and that immediately increases overall subscriptions and viewership. There’s no telling how much Paramount plans to feature the UFC on the different platforms, but obviously it sounds like that kind of programming could be happening in the near future.