FIRST UFC® GYM OPENS DOORS IN CONCORD, CALIFORNIA

Las Vegas, NV (USA) – Take one step inside the brand-new, 38,000-square-foot UFC® GYM™ in Concord, Calif. and you’ll quickly learn that this is no ordinary fitness facility. As music pumps through the gym, an enthusiastic teenager swings heavy ropes, visions of Randy Couture dancing in his head. In another corner of the sprawling exercise center, a forty-something businessman channels his inner-Machida during karate class. And inside the UFC Gym’s renowned Octagon™, a mother of three fresh off the treadmill eagerly kicks Thai pads held by a dedicated instructor.

This is a normal day inside the state-of-the-art UFC Gym, which opened its doors to much fanfare last month in Concord. The gym, the first of many planned by the Ultimate Fighting Championship® in alliance with New Evolution Fitness Company (NEFC), is revolutionizing the exercise world by combining mixed martial arts and fitness.

With cutting-edge training techniques including MMA programming such as Muay Thai kickboxing, jiu jitsu, and self-defense classes, as well as one-of-a-kind offerings such as UFC Kid’s Gym Fitness, Octagon Training Disciplines, and High-Octane Conditioning, UFC gyms are allowing fitness seekers to train like their favorite UFC stars. In turn, UFC Gyms are motivating consumers and encouraging them to tackle fitness in a whole new way.

“UFC Gyms will raise the bar of what’s expected from a fitness center,” UFC President Dana White said. “We shook up the sports industry with the UFC and we plan to do the same to the fitness industry with UFC Gyms. Our gyms are more than just treadmills and free weights. We want people to step foot inside a UFC Gym and be a part of an awesome experience.”

“We share a passion to make UFC Gyms one of the most successful brands in the fitness industry,” NEFC founder Mark Mastrov, who oversees UFC Gyms with NEFC CEO/co-founder Jim Rowley, said. “With our innovative approach to fitness, we plan to create an atmosphere in which our members see immediate results. What’s more, they can do so in a facility that is second-to-none.”

That experience is already underway in Concord. With plans for an official grand opening of the first UFC Gym forthcoming, as well as designs to build UFC Gyms globally, White believes the first major brand extension of the Ultimate Fighting Championship is poised for major success worldwide. By invigorating the fitness industry with the raging success of the UFC, White is confident that UFC Gyms will build a strong following and become the ultimate fitness destination.

“The opening of the UFC Gym in Concord marks the beginning of a new era in fitness,” White said, adding that UFC Gyms featuring BJ Penn and Georges St-Pierre are planned in the fighter’s native cities of Hawaii and Montreal, respectively. “We’ve teamed with NEFC owners Mark Mastrov and Jim Rowley to create a brand that will get people excited about working out again. This is going to shape up the way we all approach fitness.”

For more information on UFC Gyms, please visit UFCgyms.com. For current UFC fight news, visit UFC.com, UK.UFC.com, GERMANY.UFC.com, UFCJapan.jp or UFCEspanol.com.

About The Ultimate Fighting Championship®

UFC is the largest live pay-per-view event content provider in the world and the fastest growing main stream sports organization in history. Owned and operated by Zuffa™, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., UFC® produces over twelve live pay-per-view events annually that are distributed residentially through North American cable and satellite providers including iNDEMAND Networks, DIRECTV, DISH Network, Avail-TVN Entertainment, BellTV, SaskTel Max™, Shaw Pay-Per-View, and Viewers Choice. International distributors include WOWOW in Japan, Rede TV and Globosat’s Combate Channel and SporTV in Brazil, ESPN in United Kingdom, Televisa in Mexico and throughout Central America, with worldwide distribution via the Internet on UFC.com and Yahoo! Sports. UFC content is distributed commercially through Joe Hand Promotions in the U.S. and Canadastar in Canada. UFC programming is distributed in 132 countries, territories and jurisdictions, reaching 430 million homes worldwide, in 20 different languages.

Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa® , The Octagon™ and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered trademarks, registered service marks, trademarks, trade dress and/or service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC and licensed to its affiliated entities and other licensees in the United States and other jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of Zuffa, LLC, its affiliates or other respective owners.

About New Evolution Fitness Company (NEFC)

Based in Northern California, New Evolution Fitness Company (NEFC) has a two decade plus record of success delivering superior returns on investment in the acquisition, development, management and operation within the fitness industry both domestically and internationally. Founded in 2008 by Mark Mastrov and Jim Rowley, the current team of NEFC professionals represents over a century of experience working in a broad sector of health, wellness and fitness.