“In the beginning, the Ultimate Fighting Championship was like a brawl at a carnival, the mismatched combatants entering an octagonal cage to go at it until there was a “knockout, surrender, doctor’s intervention or death.” The very first match p…
“In the beginning, the Ultimate Fighting Championship was like a brawl at a carnival, the mismatched combatants entering an octagonal cage to go at it until there was a “knockout, surrender, doctor’s intervention or death.” The very first match pitted a 415-pound sumo wrestler against a Dutch kickboxer who zestfully launched his foot into the bigger man’s face. The blow left two teeth embedded in the attacker’s foot, with a third flying into the crowd.”
“Dan Rasher is a sports economist at the University of San Francisco. He says mixed martial arts was all about the blood in the 1990s — a raw, fringe sport that Sen. John McCain called ‘human cockfighting.’ Now it’s been consolidated into a profession…
“Dan Rasher is a sports economist at the University of San Francisco. He says mixed martial arts was all about the blood in the 1990s — a raw, fringe sport that Sen. John McCain called ‘human cockfighting.’ Now it’s been consolidated into a professional league: the Ultimate Fighting Championship, or UFC. Rasher says his students, mostly guys in the their 20s, pushed him to study the business model.”
Las Vegas, Nevada (USA) – Former UFC® heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar’s mission to reclaim the title resumes on FRIDAY, Dec. 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas when he meets one of the best strikers of all-time – international super…
Las Vegas, Nevada (USA) – Former UFC® heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar’s mission to reclaim the title resumes on FRIDAY, Dec. 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas when he meets one of the best strikers of all-time – international superstar Alistair Overeem. The Ultimate Fighting Championship® announced today that the top heavyweight powerhouses will collide in the five-round main event of the organization’s final card of 2011. What’s more, the winner will be crowned the number one contender and earn a title shot in the New Year.
Lesnar, Overeem and UFC President Dana White will take part in an official press conference TOMORROW, Nov. 11 at 2 p.m. PT, from the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, Calif. The press conference takes place prior to the weigh-ins for UFC® on FOX: VELASQUEZ vs. DOS SANTOS.
“Brock Lesnar is 110 percent healthy and ready to get the world title back,” White said. “He asked for the toughest test we could find for him and there’s no doubt that Alistair Overeem fits the bill. He’s been a champion in other organizations and came to UFC to fight the best guys in the world. He wants to show everyone that he’s the number one heavyweight in the sport. This fight is the perfect fight to close out 2011.”
If that wasn’t enough, the night’s co-main event pits rising lightweight contender Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone against Nate Diaz in what could be one of the most dynamic 155-pound clashes in the sport’s history.
Tickets for UFC®141: LESNAR vs. OVEREEM go on sale Friday, Nov. 11 at 10 a.m. PT and are priced at $800, $600, $400, $250, $125 and $75. Tickets will be available at all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (select Smith’s Food and Drug Centers and Ritmo Latino). Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.mandalaybay.com or www.ticketmaster.com. Ticket prices do not include applicable service charges.
A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers TODAY, Thursday, Nov. 10, starting at 10 a.m. PT. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter.
Official UFC VIP packages are also available at http://vip.ufc.com. These packages include tickets to UFC 141, official event merchandise, as well as special VIP experiences with backstage tours and meet and greets with top UFC stars. Get closer to the action than ever before with this unique UFC VIP opportunity.
UFC®141: LESNAR vs. OVEREEM will be available live on Pay-Per-View at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on UFC.TV, iN DEMAND, DirecTV, DISH Network, Avail-TVN, BellTV, ShawTV, SaskTel,Viewer’s Choice Canada and Canal Indigo for a suggested retail price of $44.99 US/$54.99 CAN for Standard Definition and $54.99 US/$59.99 CAN for High Definition.
One of the most captivating figures in sports, Brock Lesnar (fighting out of Alexandria, Minn.) returns to the Octagon® for the first time in over a year after a career-threatening bout with diverticulitis. Healthy, motivated and inspired to regain the heavyweight title that he held for nearly two years, the 34-year-old former NCAA Division I national wrestling champion wants nothing more than a dominant victory on Dec. 30.
“I’m not in this just to be a contender,” Lesnar, who owns a 5-2 professional record, said. “I’m in it to be the champion. To get my belt back, it’s real simple: beat Overeem and beat whoever walks out with the title on November 12. And, that’s exactly what I’ll do.”
Alistair Overeem (fighting out of Amsterdam, The Netherlands) has held world titles all over the globe, but he believes his resume is incomplete without the most coveted championship in combat sports – UFC heavyweight gold. On Dec. 30, the 31-year-old kickboxer extraordinaire, who is 10-0 with one no contest in his last eleven bouts, will battle Lesnar for the right to fight for the UFC title. With wins over the likes of Fabricio Werdum, Vitor Belfort, Mark Hunt and Sergei Kharitonov in his 12-year career, “The Reem” seeks the biggest victory of his career in the final UFC event of 2011.
“This fight is going to be the most important fight of my career,” Overeem (35-11-1) said. “I have one important mission left in my career and that is to get the UFC gold around my waist. The winner of this fight gets a title shot, so beating Brock brings me one step closer to having the UFC belt. Our fight on Dec. 30 will be bigger than Godzilla versus King Kong!”
Since coming to UFC in February, perhaps no lightweight has garnered as much buzz as Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.). With four straight wins inside the Octagon® and six consecutive victories overall, including his most recent submission win over Dennis Siver at UFC 137, the 28-year-old is knocking on the door of a title shot. First, he must defeat Nate Diaz (fighting out of Stockton, Calif.), who returned to the lightweight division in Sept. and submitted Takanori Gomi to improve his record to 14-7. Now, the younger brother of top welterweight contender Nick Diaz has his sights set on ending the impressive winning streak of Cerrone (17-3, 1 NC).
Brazilian bantamweight prospect Johnny Eduardo has been sidelined due to injury, UFC president Dana White announced today. Stepping up to fight Michael McDonald at UFC 139 will be promotional newcomer Alex Soto, looking to keep his undefeated streak in…
Brazilian bantamweight prospect Johnny Eduardo has been sidelined due to injury, UFC president Dana White announced today. Stepping up to fight Michael McDonald at UFC 139 will be promotional newcomer Alex Soto, looking to keep his undefeated streak intact.
McDonald is UFC’s youngest fighter and one of its most exciting bantamweights; Soto is a Mexican immigrant who served in the US Army and currently works as a dolphin trainer for the US Navy.
Bailey vs. Castillo Set for San Jose updated October 18 “Two powerful wrestlers hungry for a win have verbally agreed to fight November 19 at UFC 139 as Danny ‘Last Call’ Castillo will take on Shamar Bailey,” confirmed UFC president Dana White late last night.
Matt Brown Gets New Opponent, San Jose Date updated October 18 The UFC 139 fight card has received a new welterweight scrap due to an unwell Englishman across the pond.
Rising Brit welterweight John Hathaway has been forced to withdraw from November 5th’s UFC 138 event, confirmed UFC president Dana White today. Hathaway’s original opponent, Matt Brown, has verbally agreed to face “The Polish Pistola” Seth Baczynski instead in a bout now slated to take place at UFC 139 on November 19 in San Jose, CA.
Two Bantamweight Bouts Slated for San Jose updated September 27 San Jose fans got another surefire barnburner on their fight card today, as Dana White confirmed that Nick Pace and Miguel Torres have verbally agreed to a bantamweight bout.
In his last outing, Pace proved he could compete with longtime, experienced veterans in his three-round war against Ivan Menjivar. Now he faces another by taking on former bantamweight kingpin Torres, who long held the WEC title in that division.
A second bantamweight bout has also been confirmed for UFC 139. Michael McDonald, the UFC’s youngest fighter, and veteran Muay Thai specialist Johnny Eduardo have verbally agreed to meet in San Jose.
Wandy vs. Le, Shogun vs. Hendo at UFC 139 updated September 27 Don’t expect too much groundfighting on November 19th when “The Axe Murderer,” Wanderlei Silva welcomes former Strikeforce champion and renowned Sanshou fighter Cung Le to the Octagon in UFC 139 action. Silva replaces his countryman, Vitor Belfort (who was forced out of the bout due to injury) in what promises to be a slugfest to remember.
In the UFC 139 main event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California, a light heavyweight dream fight finally becomes a reality when former UFC champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua takes on the returning Strikeforce and former PRIDE champion Dan Henderson.
Light Heavyweight Wars Scheduled for November updated August 23 “Verbal agreements are in for a fight that promises non-stop action as Kyle Kingsbury will take on the ‘American Psycho’ Stephan Bonnar at UFC 139,” said UFC president Dana White today.
Both light-heavyweight sluggers are coming off decision wins earned in three-rounds wars — Bonnar against Igor Pokrajac at the TUF 12 Finale in December and Kingsbury over Fabio Maldonado at the TUF 13 Finale in June.
Story-Kampmann on Tap for UFC 139 updated August 17 Welterweight contenders Rick Story and Martin Kampmann will return to the Octagon this November in a bout guaranteed to produce fireworks.
“A potential fight of the night has been verbally agreed to as Rick ‘The Horror’ Story will face Martin ‘The Hitman’ Kampmann at UFC 139,” said UFC President Dana White. Tibau vs. Dos Anjos in Battle of Brazilians “Two of the best Brazilian lightweights in the UFC have verbally agreed to fight as Rafael Dos Anjos takes on Gleison Tibau at UFC 139,” confirmed UFC president Dana White. The two black belts will war in San Jose this November.
Faber vs. Bowles Agreed to for UFC 139 in Nov. updated July 21 Two of the top bantamweights in the world will meet in one of the most intriguing bouts of 2011, as Urijah Faber takes on Brian Bowles. This verbally agreed to clash of former WEC champions will take place at UFC 139 in November.
“Before a possible trilogy can be considered between Urijah Faber and his rival, Champion Dominick Cruz, he will take on one of the division’s truly elite fighters, former Bantamweight Champion Brian Bowles,” said UFC President Dana White. “A win over Faber would be massive for Bowles’ bid to challenge for the belt that was once his. The stakes are high and the fight will be intense.”
Weidman vs. Lawlor Agreed to for UFC 139
This November’s UFC 139 card has begun to take shape, as middleweight phenom Chris Weidman has verbally agreed to face Ultimate Fighter veteran “Filthy” Tom Lawlor in what promises to be a fast-paced battle in one of the sport’s most competitive divisions.
The UFC Twitter incentive campaign, launched in May at the UFC Fighter Summit, awards 12 bonuses per quarter rewarding creative and successful uses of Twitter. Fighters are placed into one of four categories based on number of followers as of June 1, t…
The UFC Twitter incentive campaign, launched in May at the UFC Fighter Summit, awards 12 bonuses per quarter rewarding creative and successful uses of Twitter. Fighters are placed into one of four categories based on number of followers as of June 1, the beginning of the quarter. Three prizes are given out within each: most total followers at the end of the quarter, biggest percent increase in followers over the quarter, and most creative use of Twitter.
Twelve bonuses of $5,000 each will go to the following nine fighters:
Most creative: Forrest Griffin From the dawn of TUF through his best-selling books, Griffin has been revered for his unique and comic voice. On Twitter, his messages are sporadic but unmistakeably Forrest. Notified of his win, he wrote: “Irony: found put on twitter I won a prize for tweeting” and “When the @ufc says most creative what they obviously mean is incoherent ramblings.”
Joe Lauzon Lauzon used a multi-platform approach to scoop the MMA media and break the news of his UFC 136 fight against Melvin Guillard… with the blessing of the UFC, of course (no leaks!). He wrote a post on his own site with his reasons for taking the fight and his (ultimately correct) prediction for how it would play out, then tweeted a link.
Benson Henderson Henderson live-tweeted during the UFC 133 pre-fight conference call, giving fans access to what is usually a media-only affair. He also took questions from fans during the call, fully incorporating them into the event.
Joseph Benavidez Benavidez held a Twitter contest asking fans to suggest and then vote on a new nickname, which was to be announced by Bruce Buffer inside the Octagon at Benavidez’ August fight. The contest received over 1,000 mentions and 250 nominations.
Brazilian fighters in particular benefited from a surge in popularity due to August’s UFC Rio event. All of the fighters who nabbed “Most followers” and “Largest percentage growth” are Brazilian.
UFC President Dana White and the UFC have long been proponents of fighters taking advantage of the social media platform. White famously instructed his athletes to “Tweet your asses off,” believing the platform is ideal for engaging fans and building fighters’ presences.
Statistics on number of followers are tracked by Digital Royalty, a social media brand management company. Nominees in the “most creative” category were submitted by fighters, fans, UFC staff and Digital Royalty; winners were selected by White.
