The Blog

 Introduction UFC 62: Liddell vs. Sobral. August 26, 2006. Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas. Chuck Liddell retained the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship with a first-round KO of Renato Sobral at 1:35 — his third consecutive title defence. Liddell knocked Sobral down twice and finished with unanswered punches. KO of the Night. In the co-main, Forrest Griffin defeated Stephan Bonnar by unanimous decision — 30-27 on all three scorecards — in the TUF Season 1 rematch. The result was the rever

 Introduction UFC Fight Night 6: Sanchez vs. Parisyan. August 17, 2006. Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa, Las Vegas, Nevada. Free on Spike TV — broadcast as a lead-in to the TUF Season 4 premiere. Diego Sanchez defeated Karo Parisyan by unanimous decision over three rounds (29-28, 29-28, 30-26) in a fight that was later named UFC Fight of the Year for 2006. The event drew a 1.5 overall Spike TV rating with 9 fights. Chris Leben stopped Jorge Santiago by KO in round two at 0:35. Martin Kampmann made

 Introduction UFC 61: Bitter Rivals. July 8, 2006. Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas. Tim Sylvia retained the UFC Heavyweight Championship against Andrei Arlovski by unanimous decision over five rounds — 48-47, 49-46, 48-47 — ending their trilogy 2-1 in Sylvia's favour. In the co-main, Tito Ortiz stopped Ken Shamrock at 1:18 of round one with elbows after early head clashes dazed Shamrock. Shamrock announced his MMA retirement afterward. The event surpassed UFC 60's record, exceeding $30 mil

 Introduction UFC Fight Night 5. June 28, 2006. The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas. Free on Spike TV — lead-in for the Blade: The Series premiere. In 49 seconds, Anderson Silva knocked out Chris Leben with a knee and announced himself as the future of the middleweight division. It was his UFC debut. Leben had been unbeaten inside the Octagon and had promised before the fight to remain so. Silva threw two jabs, tossed Leben to the mat, followed him down, and when Leben returned to

 Introduction UFC 60: Hughes vs. Gracie. May 27, 2006. Memorial Day weekend. Staples Center, Los Angeles, California. Matt Hughes, the UFC Welterweight Champion, faced Royce Gracie in a non-title catchweight bout at 175 pounds. Hughes was 32. Gracie was 39. The fight lasted 4:39 of round one. The event drew 620,000 PPV buys — the highest in UFC history and the first to break $20 million in gross PPV sales. Hughes controlled and dominated throughout. The California State Athletic Commission later

 Introduction UFC 59: Reality Check. April 15, 2006. Arrowhead Pond (Honda Center), Anaheim, California. The first UFC event held in California following the state's legalisation of MMA. A sold-out crowd of over 17,000 — the largest US arena audience in UFC history at the time. Tim Sylvia reclaimed the UFC Heavyweight Championship from Andrei Arlovski in one of the most dramatic round-one swings in title fight history. Arlovski dropped Sylvia with an overhand right and moved in to finish. Sylvia

 Introduction UFC 58: USA vs. Canada. March 4, 2006. Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas. Every fight on the card featured an American vs. a Canadian. The final score: USA 5, Canada 3. Rich Franklin retained the Middleweight Championship by dominating David Loiseau over five rounds, scoring 50-42, 50-42, and 50-43 on the judges' cards. Georges St-Pierre defeated B.J. Penn by split decision in the co-main, extending the win streak that had made him the leading welterweight contender. The card a

 Introduction UFC Fight Night 3. January 16, 2006. The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. Free on Spike TV. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Eight fights. One lasted six seconds. Duane Ludwig knocked out Jonathan Goulet at 0:06 of the first round — the fastest knockout in UFC history at the time. In the main event, Tim Sylvia defeated Assuerio Silva by unanimous decision over three rounds. Stephan Bonnar submitted James Irvin with a kimura at 4:30 of round one in the co-main. Chr

 Introduction UFC 57: Liddell vs. Couture 3. February 4, 2006. Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas. MMA's first major trilogy. Chuck Liddell knocked out Randy Couture at 1:28 of round two to retain the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship and win the series 2-1. Couture announced his retirement after the loss. The event generated a $3.3 million gate — a UFC record — and approximately 400,000 PPV buys, also a record. In 2003, their first fight had been an interim title bout in a mid-sized arena.

 Introduction UFC 56: Full Force. November 19, 2005. MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas. The TUF Season 2 coaches — Rich Franklin and Matt Hughes — headlined the card defending their titles. Franklin knocked out Nate Quarry in 2:34 of round one. Hughes won a non-title catchweight bout against Joe Riggs, who had missed weight. Georges St-Pierre stopped Sean Sherk by TKO in round two to establish himself as the leading welterweight contender. UFC 56 was the first UFC PPV to feature a TUF alumnus (N

 Introduction TUF 2 Finale. November 5, 2005. The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. Free on Spike TV. The second TUF season finale drew a 2.0 overall Spike TV rating — the highest UFC cable television audience at that point. Joe Stevenson won the welterweight final over Luke Cummo by unanimous decision. Rashad Evans won the heavyweight final over Brad Imes by split decision — Evans became UFC LHW Champion at UFC 87 in 2008. Diego Sanchez defeated Nick Diaz by unanimous deci

 Introduction UFC 55: Fury. October 7, 2005. Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut. Andrei Arlovski knocked out Paul Buentello in 15 seconds to make his first defence of the undisputed UFC Heavyweight Championship. On August 12, 2005, the UFC had upgraded Arlovski’s interim title to undisputed after Frank Mir — still recovering from his September 2004 motorcycle accident — was stripped due to inactivity. Arlovski’s defence was the fastest heavyweight title finish of the Zuffa era. The card