• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, November 25, 2009

Even as Bud Light appears on the mat during some Ultimate Fighting Championship broadcasts, a slew of blue-chip marketers have shied away from sponsoring mixed martial arts events that can involve brutal combat.

But new research shows that some advertisers may be missing out on an opportunity to reach a group with notable household incomes, where many of whom are in the market for luxury vehicles.

Data from Scarborough Sports Marketing shows that 8% of U.S. adults are mixed martial arts (MMA) fans -- those who watched the sport on broadcast or cable in the past year.

That group is 15% more likely than the average adult to have a household income of $75,000-plus, and 10% more likely to own a second home.

Furthermore, MMA fans account for 15% of adults planning to buy a luxury vehicle within the next year, and represent 10% of the potential market for new SUV purchases.

Less surprising are figures in the technology arena, where fans are 158% more likely to buy a video game system in the next year, 129% more likely to add a DVR to their TV set-up, 68% more likely to buy an HDTV and 52% more likely to purchase a digital camera.

The Scarborough survey that led to the data took place from February 2008 to March 2009.

Scarborough is a joint venture of Arbitron and Nielsen.