TKO Eyes UFC Expansion Across HBO, TNT and CBS

UFC programming could eventually spread beyond Paramount+ and onto HBO, TNT or CBS after a major shakeup in the promotion's media orbit.

TKO Group Holdings president and COO Mark Shapiro said Wednesday that the company is already discussing how to use the wider group of platforms now available through Skydance. His comments came during TKO's third-quarter earnings call, one day before the company reported a sharp year-over-year jump in UFC revenue.

What TKO said

Asked about opportunities created by the expanded Skydance portfolio, Shapiro said TKO is in active talks about reaching more viewers across the company's services.

"We will be maximizing HBO, TNT, Paramount+, CBS, all in the name of expanding eyeballs, expanding viewership, growing audience, and increasing engagement," Shapiro said on the call, according to the published transcript.

MMA Fighting first reported the UFC-specific implications of the comments Wednesday night.

The wording is broad, and that distinction matters. Shapiro did not announce a show, assign a live event to a network or give a launch date. Paramount+ remains the UFC's primary U.S. home. For now, TKO is talking about how it might use a much larger collection of channels around its existing media partner.

Why HBO and TNT are interesting options

HBO carries decades of combat-sports history, even though the network left live boxing in 2018. TNT already has a sports identity and the infrastructure to promote major live events to a broad cable audience. CBS offers something different: reach outside the streaming paywall.

That leaves several plausible uses, but they are still only possibilities. A UFC special on HBO, selected live cards on TNT, shoulder programming on CBS or documentary projects across the group would all fit Shapiro's audience-growth pitch. None of those formats was confirmed on the call.

The larger question is whether TKO wants to keep every UFC event concentrated on one streaming service or use occasional network windows to pull casual viewers back toward the sport. A one-off card on CBS would have a different purpose from a weekly series on TNT. Until TKO releases actual programming details, those scenarios should not be treated as bookings.

The business behind the discussion

TKO's official third-quarter release helps explain why the company is pushing for more distribution. UFC revenue reached $519.2 million for the quarter, up $194 million from the same period a year earlier. UFC adjusted EBITDA rose by $119.7 million to $285.3 million.

Across the full company, TKO reported $1.36 billion in quarterly revenue, a 21 percent increase, and raised its full-year guidance. The company said part of the UFC increase came from the new Skydance distribution agreement that began in January.

Those figures do not tell fans where the next card will air. They do show that UFC media rights are already a major growth driver, which gives TKO a clear incentive to test how far the sport can travel across its partner's television and streaming outlets.

What remains unannounced

There is no confirmed HBO date, no TNT fight card and no CBS broadcast on the UFC calendar because of these comments. The next meaningful update would be a named program, an event assignment or a clarification of whether any wider distribution changes the current Paramount+ arrangement.

Until then, Shapiro's remarks are a statement of intent. TKO wants more places to put UFC content. The programming decisions have not caught up with that ambition yet.