UFC 61
| UFC 61: Bitter Rivals | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | July 8, 2006 | |||
| Venue | Mandalay Bay Events Center | |||
| City | Las Vegas, Nevada | |||
| Attendance | 11,167 (9,999 paid) | |||
| Total gate | $3,350,775.15 | |||
| Buyrate | 775,000 | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
UFC 61: Bitter Rivals was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday, July 8, 2006. The event took place at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, in Las Vegas, Nevada and was broadcast live on pay-per-view in the United States.
Background
The main event was a Heavyweight Championship match between champion Tim Sylvia and former champion Andrei Arlovski. This was the third time these fighters had met, they had split the first two meetings. The co-main event was the highly anticipated rematch of TUF 3 coaches Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock.
It was announced during the event that Chuck Liddell would fight PRIDE star Wanderlei Silva in November if Liddell won his upcoming match against Renato "Babalu" Sobral at UFC 62. Negotiations between the UFC and PRIDE failed however and the Liddell-Silva fight never occurred in November 2006. The two would eventually meet in December 2007 at UFC 79.
The number of pay-per-view buys for UFC 61 in the United States was approximately 775,000, which set a new UFC buyrate record and generated gross PPV revenue of approximately $30,960,000. [1] The disclosed fighter payroll for the event was $676,000. [2] With a live gate at $3,350,775, it nearly eclipsed the all-time mark for UFC events set at UFC 57.
Results
Preliminary card
- Welterweight bout: Drew Fickett vs. Kurt Pellegrino
- Fickett wins by submission (rear naked choke) at 1:20 of round three. This bout was not aired on the broadcast.
- Heavyweight bout: Gilbert Aldana vs. Cheick Kongo
- Kongo wins by technical knockout (doctor stoppage) at 4:13 of round one. This was a preliminary bout, and was not aired on the broadcast.
- Heavyweight bout: Jeff Monson vs. Anthony Perosh
- Monson defeated Perosh by technical knockout (strikes) at 2:43 of round one. This bout was not aired on the broadcast, although highlights were shown at the end.
- Catchweight (165 lb) bout: Hermes Franca vs. Joe Jordan
- Franca wins by submission (triangle choke) at :47 of round three. Franca was originally matched with Roger Huerta. However, Huerta withdrew from the card due to injury and was replaced by Joe Jordan. The fight took place at a catchweight of 165 lb, instead of lightweight, as allowances were made for Jordan as a late replacement. This bout was not aired on the broadcast, but it was highlighted as the submission of the night
Main card
- Lightweight bout: Yves Edwards vs. Joe Stevenson
- Stevenson wins by technical knockout (doctor stoppage due to cuts) at the end of round two.
- Welterweight bout: Josh Burkman vs. Josh Neer
- Burkman wins by unanimous decision. The judges scored the bout 29–28, 30–27 and 29–28.
- Heavyweight bout: Frank Mir vs. Dan Christison
- Mir wins by unanimous decision. The judges each scored the bout 29–28.
- Light Heavyweight bout: Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock
- Ortiz wins by technical knockout (referee stoppage, due to strikes) at 1:18 of round one.
- Heavyweight Championship bout: Tim Sylvia (c) vs. Andrei Arlovski
- Sylvia wins by unanimous decision to retain his title. The judges scored the bout 48–47, 49–46 and 48–47.
Bonus awards
- Fight of the Night: Joe Stevenson vs. Yves Edwards
- Knockout of the Night: Jeff Monson
- Submission of the Night: Hermes Franca
Purses
Tito Ortiz: $210,000
Tim Sylvia: $120,000
Ken Shamrock: $100,000
Andrei Arlovski: $90,000
Frank Mir: $56,000
Joe Stevenson: $24,000
Jeff Monson: $20,000
Drew Fickett: $12,000
Josh Burkman: $10,000
Hermes Franca: $8,000
Yves Edwards: $8,000
Josh Neer: $6,000
Cheick Kongo: $6,000
Dan Christison: $5,000
Joe Jordan: $4,000
Anthony Perosh: $3,000
Gilbert Aldana: $2,000
Kurt Pellegrino: $2,000
Total Fighter Payouts: $676,000
References
Sources
- Mixed martial arts show results, Mandalay Bay, July 8, 2006 (PDF), Nevada State Athletic Commission. Retrieved July 13, 2006.
- UFC Fighter Salaries for 2006 (includes fighter salaries for UFC 61)
- UFC 61 Surpasses $30 Million in Pay-Per-View Sales
