UFC 304 went until 6AM in Manchester, leading to some violent and dangerous behavior from the crowd after hometown fighter Leon Edwards lost his title.
On paper, UFC 304 was arguably the best card ever put on by UFC in England. The event featured two title fights in Manchester’s brand new Co-Op Live venue. Over 17,000 fans attended to see home country champions Leon Edwards and Tom Aspinall defend their belts.
Unfortunately, the event didn’t generate the level of fireworks in the cage that UFC CEO Dana White had hoped for. Even after increasing performance bonus money from $50,000 to $100,000, the card ended with nine of fourteen fights going to decision, many of them plodding. To make matters worse, the card was held in the wee hours of the morning to allow UFC to keep the standard pay-per-view start time in North America.
That means 10pm EST, or 3am local time.
Half the crowd were taking naps through the night, based off videos we’re seeing on social media. The other half got drunk, got rowdy, and got into a massive brawl after Belal Muhammad defeated Leon Edwards in the main event. Video of the incident shows a big surge of crowd movement on the floor, and things go from a simple punch up to serious business when chairs start being swung around.
Fight erupts after Belal Muhammad is named the NEW UFC welterweight Champion! #ufc #ufc304 @ufc pic.twitter.com/1ifpEYXZo0
— Nina-Marie Daniele (@ninamdrama) July 28, 2024
As if the prospect of random UFC fans braining each other with steel chairs wasn’t worrisome enough, you can see former featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and welterweight contender Michael “Venom” Page in the midst of the chaos trying to restore order.
It was a volatile situation but order was eventually restored and no serious injuries reported. But based on the tired energy of the fights and angry energy of the drunks, maybe the UFC should reconsider putting on pay-per-view overnighters in the future.