Spike TV Counter-Programs UFC On FX With Melvin Guillard Marathon

The war between Viacom and Fox continues.

Announced Friday, Spike TV plans to counter-program the UFC's January 20th debut on FX, UFC on FX 1, with a five-hour UFC Unleashed marathon featuring Melvin Guillard.

Of course, Guillard headlines UFC on FX 1 along with lightweight contemporary Jim Miller.

The Spike TV marathon will kick off at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT and run until 12:00 a.m. ET/9:00 p.m. PT. Guillard's bouts with Josh Neer, Rick Davis, Shane Roller, Waylon Lowe and Rich Clementi are expected to highlight the broadcast.

Notably, Neer also fights Duane Ludwig in UFC on FX 1's co-main event.

Spike TV has made several similar decisions to counter-program in the past, most notably counter-programming UFC on Fox 1: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos with a special UFC Unleashed marathon titled Dos Santos vs. Velasquez: Unleashed for the Heavyweight Title on November 12th. The broadcast earned 800,000 viewers.

In addition, the spurned network is planning to debut "The Ultimate Fighter Fridays" in March to counter FX's new crown jewel, "The Ultimate Fighter." The program will function as a "best of" for the seven-year, fourteen-season series.

UFC on FX 1 takes place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee and will air live on FX.