In case you missed it, CNBC ran a one-hour special entitled "Ultimate Fighting: From Blood Sport To Big Time." It covered solely the rise of the UFC and didn't focus on other leagues like EliteXC, the IFL or others. Quite simply, it's a show you should see.

Surprisingly enough, there was no hatchet job but it merely told the story of how MMA became big time, even talking to the initial UFC owners and their decision/reasons for selling. There's a lot of Dana White on the show and as you'd expect, he speaks honestly and freely on all of the issues brought up to him. From brutality to the immense dollars being brought in to the challenges of bringing on major sponsors, White is everything you'd expect; a man who is meant to be in front of a camera selling a product. He also is 'broad shouldered' and a 'chiseled, 210 pounds' according to the reporter. Chiseled?

Other segments featured Rich Franklin, a fantastic choice to show the civility of guys that are seen in some circles as animals. There is also discussion on Randy Couture and the recent falling out he had with White and the organization. "Captain America" doesn't come off well, however, and barely acknowledged the interviewer. I was surprised by this as Couture is normally well-prepared and straight-forward. He seemingly never wanted to talk and in seeing this now, probably wishes he came across as more professional.

Another set of interesting personalities were shown: the Tapout crew. I can't imagine what those that aren't familiar with MMA thought of these guys. The focus was merely on the business and how they've grown so much in the past 10 years. They could have been treated as misfits who got lucky, but to me, they were treated with shocking respect for the current standing and potential of the business.

Finally, how boxing and UFC interact was discussed and, not surprisingly, the boxing community continued to put their collective heads in the sand. HBO's Jim Lampley came across incredible cocky, pining about how the death of boxing has been talked about for years. He also came off as incredibly antiquated, referring to boxing as "prizefighting." Dude, it's 2007. Stop waxing poetic about the 'sweet science.' (Is Bert Sugar around?) Equally hilarious was Wrestling Observer newsletter poet Dave Meltzer who appeared for all of 60 seconds and showed off some David Duval-style sunglasses while being interviewed. Again, another person who needs to realize what era they're in.

Overall, this was a pretty entertaining show that I would recommend. It was nice to see that CNBC didn't go with the obvious and just bash it because the court of public opinion might say so. Maybe the sport has finally turned the corner after all.