The Blog

UFC Fight Night 38: Shogun vs. Henderson 2 — March 23, 2014, Ginásio Nélio Dias, Natal, Brazil. Dan Henderson KO’d Mauricio Rua with an H-bomb in round three after Shogun nearly finished him twice. A dramatic rematch of their FOTY 2011 epic at UFC 139. Henderson earned both Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night bonuses. Thiago Santos’ early career. TV: 936,000 viewers.

UFC Fight Night 37: Gustafsson vs. Manuwa — March 8, 2014, The O2 Arena, London, UK. Alexander Gustafsson TKO’d the unbeaten Jimi Manuwa (14-0 entering) in round three. Gunnar Nelson earned Performance of the Night. Broadcast exclusively on UFC Fight Pass. The card demonstrated the strength of the UK MMA fanbase.

UFC Fight Night 36: Machida vs. Mousasi — February 15, 2014, Arena Jaraguá, Jaraguá do Sul, Brazil. Lyoto Machida defeated Gegard Mousasi by unanimous decision in a middleweight clash between two former world champions. The event set a UFC record for longest total fight time (2:53:32) and equaled the record for most decisions on one card (10). Charles Oliveira and Erick Silva earned Performance of the Night bonuses. TV: 1.4M viewers.

Women's Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is rapidly transforming the sport, driven by pioneers like Ronda Rousey and champions such as Amanda Nunes.

UFC Fight Night 35: Rockhold vs. Philippou — January 15, 2014, Gwinnett Center, Duluth, Georgia. Luke Rockhold’s UFC debut: TKO of Costas Philippou via body kick in round one. Yoel Romero’s UFC debut: TKO of Derek Brunson in round three. TJ Dillashaw continued his title run. Live lead-in to TUF Nations pilot. Attendance: 5,822. Gate: $231,951.

UFC Fight Night 34: Saffiedine vs. Lim — January 4, 2014, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore. The first UFC event ever held in Singapore and the first UFC Fight Night broadcast exclusively on UFC Fight Pass. Tarec Saffiedine defeated Hyun Gyu Lim by unanimous decision. Max Holloway earned a Performance of the Night bonus. 15 of 20 fighters made their UFC debut. Attendance: 5,216.

UFC Fight Night 33: Hunt vs. Bigfoot — December 6, 2013, Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Brisbane, Australia. Mark Hunt and Antônio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva fought 5 rounds of all-out heavyweight warfare and the result was a majority draw — one of the greatest fights in UFC history. Bigfoot later failed a drug test; result changed to NC for him. Mauricio Rua KO’d James Te Huna. Attendance: 11,393. Gate: $1.785 million.

UFC Fight Night 32: Belfort vs. Henderson 2 — November 9, 2013, Goiânia Arena, Goiânia, Brazil. Vitor Belfort KO’d Dan Henderson with a head kick in round one — the first person ever to stop Henderson by strikes. Both fighters were on TRT exemptions. Santiago Ponzinibbio’s UFC debut. Attendance: 10,565. TV: 722,000 viewers.

UFC Fight Night 31: Fight for the Troops 3 — November 6, 2013, Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Tim Kennedy, a 10-year US Army Ranger, KO’d Rafael Natal in round one in an emotional win in front of active-duty troops. Yoel Romero’s early UFC career. Amanda Nunes defeated Germaine de Randamie — both future champions. Jorge Masvidal earned Fight of the Night in a loss to Rustam Khabilov. TV: 641,000 viewers.

UFC Fight Night 30: Machida vs. Muñoz — October 26, 2013, Phones 4u Arena, Manchester, UK. Lyoto Machida KO’d Mark Muñoz with a head kick in round one and showed outstanding sportsmanship by holding back his follow-up. Originally booked as Bisping vs. Muñoz before Bisping withdrew with an eye injury. Jéssica Andrade’s UFC debut. Attendance: 10,355. Gate: $1.5 million.

UFC Fight Night 29: Maia vs. Shields — October 9, 2013, Ginásio José Corrêa, Barueri, Brazil. Jake Shields defeated Demian Maia by split decision. Rousimar Palhares submitted Mike Pierce in 31 seconds but held the submission past the tap — the UFC fired him the next day. TJ Dillashaw suffered an early career loss to Raphael Assunção. Submission of the Night bonus withheld for unsportsmanlike conduct.

UFC Fight Night 28: Teixeira vs. Bader — September 4, 2013, Mineirinho Arena, Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Glover Teixeira KO’d Ryan Bader to register his 20th consecutive win and earn a UFC light heavyweight title shot against Jon Jones. Ronaldo ‘Jacaré’ Souza submitted Yushin Okami. Joseph Benavidez defeated Jussier Formiga. Attendance: 5,126.