UFC Fight Night Manila: By the numbers

MANILA, Philippines – If you still have not gotten over the biggest mixed martial arts (MMA) event in the Philippines this 2015, then here are the must-know numbers and facts that you ought to remember.

13,446 strong UFC fans

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s first trip to the country on Saturday, May 16 at Pasay City’s SM Mall of Asia Arena turned out to be successful as the maiden Philippine fight card drew an attendance of 13,446 people.

However, UFC officials did not disclose the exact figures of the income that was generated in the live gate-reception.

The first Philippine event is currently ranked No.4 in most attendance for a UFC event in 2015, which can still change since there are 29 more fight cards scheduled for the rest of the year.

UFC Fight Night Manila is the ninth MMA event to be held at MOA Arena

UFC Fight Night 66 went down in history as the ninth MMA event that was held at the 20,000-seater SM Mall of Asia Arena. 

Businessman Henry Sy’s SM Group formed a groundbreaking partnership with the UFC last January to stage the MMA organization’s first venture on Philippine shores at the state-of-the-art venue.

Universal Reality Combat Championship, the first MMA league based in the Philippines, hosted the first card at the Mall of Asia Arena in December 2012 when it celebrated its tenth anniversary.

2:24:57

UFC Fight Night 66, which catered 12 action-packed bouts, ran for nearly two hours and 25 minutes.

With the solid debut at the box office and an energetic crowd once the event kicked off, the world’s premier MMA promotion is likely to make a return to the Philippines.

Mark Muñoz’s 28 takedowns

Even though he retired from the sport of MMA without winning any major belt, Mark Muñoz’s 28 career takedowns landed him into the top six all-time in middleweight history.

Muñoz ended his MMA career with a dominant unanimous decision victory over Luke Barnatt at UFC Fight Night 66, where he converted nine of his 16 takedown attempts.

Frankie Edgar’s total time inside UFC’s Octagon

Frankie Edgar’s 25-minute featherweight encounter against Urijah Faber pushed his total fight time inside the Octagon to 5:35:21, the longest of any fighter in UFC history.

With the dominant win over Faber, Edgar becomes the rightful challenger to face the winner of the featherweight championship clash between current titleholder Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor on July 11 (July 12 in PH).

Philippines’ 2-3 record campaign at UFC Fight Night Manila

Only two Filipino fighters came out on top of their respective fights as Mark Muñoz and Phillipe Nover hoisted the Philippine flag aloft inside the Octagon.

Muñoz overwhelmed English middleweight Luke Barnatt to earn a unanimous decision, while Nover edged out Korean featherweight Yui Chul Nam via split decision.

On the other hand, Team Lakay’s Roldan Sangcha-an succumbed to Jon delos Santos’ second-round rear-naked choke.

Sangcha-an’s colleague Mark Eddiva bowed down to Levan Makashvili by split decision, while Nolan Ticman also dropped a split decision to Yao Zhikui.

Four fighters take home $50,000 bonus

Neil Magny, Jon Tuck, Jon delos Reyes, Roldan Sangcha-an each earned $50,000 bonuses for their performances at Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 66 event.

Magny picked up his seventh-consecutive win by scoring a second-round technical knockout of former Pacific Xtreme Combat welterweight champion Hyun Gyu Lim, while Tuck floored Tae Hyun Bang with a follow-up right hook and worked his way in position for a rear-naked choke in round two.

Meanwhile, Delos Reyes and Sangcha-an received the “Fight of the Night” award as the two flyweights went back and forth in round one before the Guamanian turned the tide in the second period.

Six favorites win at UFC Fight Night 66

Six of the 12 betting favorites were able to walk out of the Mall of Asia Arena with their hands raised in triumph.

The six fighters who handed defeats to their respective underdog counterparts are Frankie Edgar, Gegard Mousasi, Mark Muñoz, Phillipe Nover, Li Jingliang and Ning Guangyou.

7-3-2

Seven fights at UFC Fight Night 66 went to the cageside judges’ scorecards.

Three bouts ended via knockout, while two matches concluded by way of submission.

– Rappler.com