Some of UFC’s greatest fights in Las Vegas history

Image

Brock Lesnar mashes his thumb into Frank Mir’s throat during their heavyweight title fight at UFC 100 on Saturday, July 11, 2009. Lesnar won via stoppage in the second round.

Sun, May 17, 2015 (2 a.m.)

Four of the eight men’s division championships in the UFC will be at risk over the next six weeks locally, starting with two of the historic glamour classes Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Daniel Cormier and Anthony Johnson will battle in the main event of UFC 187 for the light heavyweight belt stripped from Jon Jones after a felony hit-and-run arrest last month. Middleweight champion Chris Weidman will defend his title against Vitor Belfort in the co-feature.

On July 11, Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor will square off for the featherweight belt, along with Robbie Lawler and Rory MacDonald, who will meet in a middleweight championship bout at UFC 189.

Both events have the potential to go down among the biggest in the history of Las Vegas, no small task considering the hometown company has promoted 91 cards here since 2001.

These are the events UFC 187 and UFC 189 must measure up against.



UFC 52: Couture vs. Liddell | April 16, 2005 | MGM Grand Garden Arena

Before UFC 52, the UFC had staged 13 events in the Fighting Capital of the World over four years, but virtually all of them lost money. It wasn’t until Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture stepped into the octagon after coaching stints on the first season of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality show that the promotion started to live up to its potential. Fans created a then-record $2.57 million gate to watch Liddell knock out Couture and avenge a loss from two years earlier.



UFC 66: Liddell vs. Ortiz | Dec. 30, 2006 | MGM Grand Garden Arena

Chuck Liddell’s most ballyhooed defense of the light heavyweight title he took from Randy Couture came a year and a half later against rival Tito Ortiz. The grudge match that saw Liddell knock out Ortiz in the third round became the first UFC event to envelop the sports world. It also was the first mixed martial arts card, and one of only an estimated seven in UFC history to sell more than 1 million pay-per-views. The gate of $5.4 million stands as the fourth-largest in state history for the sport.



UFC 92: Ultimate 2008 | Dec. 27, 2008 | MGM Grand Garden Arena

Rashad Evans defeats Forrest Griffin for the Light Heavyweight title.

Rashad Evans defeats Forrest Griffin for the Light Heavyweight title.

There’s nothing bigger than putting both a heavyweight and a light heavyweight title fight on the same card.

During Ultimate 2008, Rashad Evans and Frank Mir became new champions, dethroning Forrest Griffin and Minotauro Nogueira, respectively. Former light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson also knocked out Wanderlei Silva on the main card, giving the event the star power it needed to cross the 1 million pay-per-view threshold. Mir’s belt was only temporary, but it set up what stands as the most successful night in UFC history.



UFC 100: Lesnar vs. Mir | July 11, 2009 | Mandalay Bay Events Center

Frank Mir skims Brock Lessner with a left punch during their heavyweight title fight at UFC 100 at Mandalay Bay Saturday night. Lesnar won with stoppage in the second round.

Frank Mir skims Brock Lessner with a left punch during their heavyweight title fight at UFC 100 at Mandalay Bay Saturday night. Lesnar won with stoppage in the second round.

The UFC celebrated its centennial milestone in grandiose fashion with arguably the two biggest draws in the history of the promotion capping off a week of events with title fights. Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar punched Frank Mir into oblivion, winning via second-round TKO, after blossoming superstar welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre didn’t allow Thiago Alves as much as a round in a unanimous-decision victory. The event sold a reported 1.6 million pay-per-views, which stands as the most in company history.



UFC 116: Lesnar vs. Carwin | July 3, 2010 | MGM Grand Garden Arena

Shane Carwin catches Brock Lesnar with a knee during their heavyweight title fight Saturday at UFC 116. Lesnar won with a second-round submission.

Shane Carwin catches Brock Lesnar with a knee during their heavyweight title fight Saturday at UFC 116. Lesnar won with a second-round submission.

In terms of action, the card headlined by Brock Lesnar’s final UFC victory stands as the greatest Las Vegas has ever seen. Not only did Lesnar complete one of the greatest comebacks ever by surviving a Shane Carwin onslaught in the first round to get a knockout in second, there was hardly a dull moment in the evening’s other 10 bouts. UFC President Dana White was so blown away, he made the rare move of awarding two Fight of the Night bonuses — for Chris Leben’s third-round submission over Yoshihiro Akiyama and for Stephan Bonnar’s second-round TKO against Krzysztof Soszynski.



UFC 148: Silva vs. Sonnen II | July 7, 2012 | MGM Grand Garden Arena

Chael Sonnen lands an elbow to the head of Anderson Silva during their bout at UFC 148 Saturday, July 7, 2012 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Chael Sonnen lands an elbow to the head of Anderson Silva during their bout at UFC 148 Saturday, July 7, 2012 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Widely regarded at the time as the most anticipated rematch in history, it was no wonder the UFC decided to launch its now annual International Fight Week around the rivalry between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen. Silva dispatched Sonnen with relative ease, via second-round TKO, in front of 13,600 fans and helped bring in a mixed martial arts record $6.9 million gate. A second title fight grudge match — Dominick Cruz vs. Urijah Faber for the bantamweight title — was scrapped due to injury, but former champions Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz finished their octagon careers in the co-main event. Griffin edged Ortiz via unanimous decision.

UFC 168: Weidman vs. Silva II | Dec. 28, 2013 | MGM Grand Garden Arena

Chris Weidman hits Anderson Silva with an elbow during their middleweight title fight at UFC 168 Saturday, Dec. 28, 2013 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Weidman won by TKO after he checked a Silva kick which broke Silva's leg.

Chris Weidman hits Anderson Silva with an elbow during their middleweight title fight at UFC 168 Saturday, Dec. 28, 2013 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Weidman won by TKO after he checked a Silva kick which broke Silva's leg.

The latest event to captivate enough interest to sell more than 1 million pay-per-views featured the promotion’s biggest star — and she wasn’t even the headliner. Women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey defeated Miesha Tate with a third-round arm bar in the co-main event. That set the stage for Chris Weidman to beat Anderson Silva, then considered the greatest fighter of all time, for the second time in five months. Silva shattered his leg when Weidman checked one of his leg kicks, producing a collective shriek from the record crowd of 14,574 fans.



Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.

Back to top

SHARE

Join the Discussion:

Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.

Full comments policy