'Ultimate Fighting C'ship' on 'TPI'

JAKARTA: After RCTI with its Smack Down, TPI is now set to provide Indonesian martial arts enthusiasts with something to talk about when it airs UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) starting on Sunday.

UFC is a fight show where the action takes place inside an eight-sided ring, and features world champions from various martial arts, including Indonesia's pencak silat.

Unlike RCTI's theatrical Smack Down, UFC, which was first contested in Denver, Colorado, back in 1993, shows real body contact.

During a media conference here on Friday, a video demo on a big screen showed a number of fights, with the losing fighters apparently ending up submitting physically.

UFC will be screened at 11 p.m. every Sunday for one-and-a- half hours. Sunday, this time at 10:00 a.m., will also mark the inaugural screening of the 52-episode HBO Boxing, eight episodes of which will be broadcast live. --JP