Undisputed is a highly rated and widely viewed sports talk show and arguably Fox Sports 1’s best-known program. It’s been on air since Sep. 2016 and has starred some prominent hosts and contributors in its near-eight-year run.
The show’s most recent roster includes talent like Skip Bayless, Keyshawn Johnson, Paul Pierce, Michael Irvin, Rachel Nichols, Richard Sherman, Josina Anderson, and rapper Lil Wayne (who also performs the show’s opening theme, “No Mercy”). The likes of Shannon Sharpe, Joy Taylor, Jenny Taft, Jen Hale, and Alex Curry have come and gone. Expert analysts on the NFL, college football, the NBA, and MLB also regularly appear, including Rob Parker, Reggie Bush, and Ric Bucher. It’s the kind of lineup that practically guarantees success and longevity.
On June 13, 2023, Sharpe — a former tight end for the Denver Broncos — co-hosted his final episode of the show (he fell out with Bayless after his fellow host compared his football career to Tom Brady’s), and a two-month hiatus soon followed, per Complex. The show returned, but the viewership deteriorated, according to Awful Announcing. With the popular pairing separated, an aging Bayless (he’s 72), and the near-completion of Bayless’ contract, the announcement that he was leaving the show in the summer of 2024 came in July, as per The Source.
Bayless hosted his final episode on Aug. 2, 2024, and announced his departure from Fox. On Aug. 5, Fox Sports 1 began showing reruns of The Herd with Colin Cowherd and First Things First in Undisputed’s time slot. At that point, the show’s fate was uncertain. But will it return?
Is Undisputed coming back?
As per Barrett Media, Fox Sport 1’s post-Skip Bayless era will not include Undisputed. The show’s cancellation is confirmed.
The network’s schedule of future programming is already beginning to take shape, with Danny Parkins of 670 The Score (also known as WSCR on 670 AM) in place to join a new show in the station’s new-look morning lineup this fall, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
The former host of Speak — an afternoon program on Fox Sports — Emmanuel Acho, an ex-linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles, is also joining the network’s fresh morning lineup.
Undisputed’s viewership will undoubtedly be upset by its departure from their screens, as the show had become a pre-noon for many. However, they should also be excited because Fox Sports 1 is entering a new and revamped era.