ESPN Transforms ESPNU To ESPN8: "The Ocho" August 8
Drawing inspiration from the 2004 hit movie "Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story" featuring Vince Vaughn, Christine Taylor and Ben Stiller, ESPNU will become ESPN8: "The Ocho" on Tuesday, Aug. 8, or more appropriately, 8/8. For one day only, the faux network will feature a line-up of unconventional sporting events ranging from Disc Golf to Ultimate Trampoline Dodgeball and Firefighters World Challenge playing off the mantra highlighted in the movie: "Bringing you the Finest in Seldom Seen Sports".
Beginning at midnight, Monday into Tuesday, the network will air offbeat, alternative events, including:
2016 American Disc Golf Championship: A sport that involves players throwing a disc at a target while adhering to rules similar to golf.
2016 WFTDA Roller Derby Championships: A game involving two teams of five women each, in which each team is on offense and defense simultaneously as they assist the designated "jammer" around the track. The jammer scores points for her team by lapping members of the opposing team.
2016 Sky Zone Ultimate Trampoline Dodgeball: Traditional dodgeball with the added element of players using trampolines during play.
Firefighters World Challenge XXV: Firefighters from around the world compete in teams to complete a series of five tasks including climbing a five-story tower, dragging hoses and rescuing a life-sized, 175 lb. "victim", all while wearing full bunker gear.
2016 Kabaddi World Cup Final: A contact team sport that originated in India involving two teams and unique rule. The goal is for each team's "raider" to tag as many of the opposing team's players as possible and return to his/her home half all while taking just a single breath.
2017 Championship of Bags: A cornhole tournament for a variety of skill levels.
Moxie Games: An uncanny, new and amazing event which combines a variety of sports into one, such as dodgeball and juggling, martial arts and volleyball, and table tennis and soccer
U.S. Open Ultimate Championship: A self-officiating competition with two teams on a field similar to a football field, but the object used is a disc. The objective of the game is to catch a pass in the opponent's end zone.
A vast majority of these events will be available On Demand on both TV and streaming devices; however, unfortunately, Cotton McKnight and Pepper Brooks will not be on-hand to provide colorful commentary of all these great events.
Full Schedule
Date Time (ET) Title Network
Tues, Aug 8 Midnight 2016 American Disc Golf Championship ESPN8: "The Ocho"
2 a.m. 2016 WFTDA Roller Derby Championships ESPN8: "The Ocho"
4 a.m. 2016 Sky Zone Ultimate Trampoline Dodgeball ESPN8: "The Ocho"
5:30 a.m. Firefighters World Challenge XXV ESPN8: "The Ocho"
8 a.m. 2016 Kabaddi World Cup Final ESPN8: "The Ocho"
9 a.m. World Darts Championship ESPN8: "The Ocho"
11:30 a.m. Arm Wrestling: Best of WAL 2016 Championship ESPN8: "The Ocho"
12:30 p.m. 2017 Championship of Bags ESPN8: "The Ocho"
2:30 p.m. EVO 2017 World Championship – Street Fighter ESPN8: "The Ocho"
5:00 p.m. Moxie Games ESPN8: "The Ocho"
7 p.m. U.S. Open Ultimate Championship ESPN8: "The Ocho"
All of these events have previously aired across ESPN networks with the exception of the Moxie Games.