UFC 91 Couture vs. Lesnar Replay Saturday Night on Spike

In line with its usual counter programming tactics, the Ultimate Fighting Championship is scheduled to air a replay of the UFC 91 Couture vs. Lesnar pay-per-view on Saturday night on Spike TV.

Source: UFC 91 PPV Buys 800,000+

A source MMAInsider spoke to with intimate knowledge of UFC 91 pay per view buyrates said the industry leading promotion scored more than 800,000 orders of the Nov. 15 event and stands to produce a minimum of $35,960,000 in revenue.

The source said the final number of buys would likely be higher, but even at the 800,000 level, the event splashes a lot of black ink across the UFC's balance sheets.

A final tally for UFC91 will not be available for months, as pay per view figures come in slowly due to late ordering of the event.

Combined with over $4.8 million in live gate revenue, the event was one of the most profitable events in the organization's history. It was also one of the most expensive, with over a million dollars paid out in fighter salaries and a huge advertising push on television.

To give a small, superficial example of the extravagance present at UFC 91, look at the pre-fight press luncheon. Usually, they are modestly catered, with a buffett style lunch for the handful of journalists who attend them. Not so at UFC 91. A multi-course steak dinner awaited scribes at the MGM Grand's Craftsteak, in a feast that certainly would have run up a $500 tab if paid for by itself. UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva and co. "crashed" the festivities, no doubt looking to pack on some weight for an upcoming fight at light heavyweight.

Next up is UFC 92 on Dec. 27, an event typically promoted as the year's best. Without a Couture, Liddell, Ortiz, or Lesnar even, it remains to be seen whether revenue will match the Nov. 15 card, and whether it will be steak, or pizza, for lunch.

Official Gate For UFC 91

Nevada State Athletic Commission Executive Director Keith Kizer has released the final gate numbers for last weekend's UFC 91 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

The final tallies are in line with UFC President Dana White's post-event quote of $4.8 million, making it the third biggest earner in Nevada's list of top MMA gates. Chuck Liddell's second encounter with Tito Ortiz at UFC 66 remains at the top of the list with $5,397,300 in revenue, trailed by Georges St. Pierre's rubber match with Matt Hughes at UFC 79 with $4,994,050.

Here are the final numbers for UFC 91:

Live Gate: $4, 815, 675

Tickets Sold: 10,845

"Comp" Tickets: 3, 427

Early pay per view numbers have not been released on the show, but speculation has indicated the UFC may miss its anticipated figure of 1.2 million buys.

Still, $4.8 million is nothing to sneeze at, especially in this wintry economy.

Preview of Friday Night's Inside MMA

The latest episode of Inside MMA (Episode #245) on HDNet features WEC featherweight champion Mike Brown, rising heavyweight Dave Herman, and MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas, as well as the breakdown of UFC 91 Couture vs. Lesnar.

MMA Live Breaks Down UFC 91 and Previews Strikeforce

The latest edition of ESPN's MMA Live breaks down the post-fight coverage of UFC 91 and previews Friday night's Strikeforce event.

ESPN's MMA Live Breaks Down UFC 91 Live at the Event

Guests include Brock Lesnar, Kenny Florian, and UFC president Dana White.

WWE Commentator Jim Ross Talks Brock Lesnar's UFC Title Win

Longtime WWE commentator and noted mixed martial arts fan, Jim Ross, posted commentary on his personal blog about the win last Saturday night by former professional wrestler turned MMA fighter, Brock Lesnar and his win over Randy Couture to become the new UFC heavyweight champion.

Brock Lesnar was "The Next Big Thing" at one time in the WWE and he is definitely "The Next Big Thing" today in the UFC. I expect Lesnar to continue to improve his MMA skills with his burning desire to be the best in his field. The self proclaimed purists of the MMA world can like it or not but for sure they will keep buying tickets and pay per views to see one of their own destroy Lesnar.

Ross has been a supporter of MMA for many years, and has always provided great insight into both the world of professional wrestling, and his love of the sport of MMA.

Ross' employers at the WWE took the opportunity to promote Lesnar as the first man to hold both the WWE and UFC belts, while also taking a shot at the UFC and it's decision to show the entire preliminary card on PPV, something most MMA fans have been ecstatic about:

Critics have noted that many of the fights on the UFC pay-per-view ended in the first round, leaving UFC producers scrambling to fill the three-hour event with content. The dearth of hearty competition left many viewers to watch less prestigious under-card fights and only served to bolster claims that UFC pay-per-view events can often be a "crap shoot" in regards to filling the full three hours.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog (Ep 7)

UFC President Dana White presents the 7th edition of his video blog for UFC 91.

In this episode, B.J. Penn and Georges St. Pierre join Dana just moments before they officially announce their UFC 94 bout, we get a behind the scenes visit to the locker rooms of UFC 91, live at the event, and behind the scenes after the event including Dana's impromptu interview of Junie Browning... and the ESPN sports desk at UFC 91.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog (Ep 6)

UFC President Dana White presents the 6th edition of his video blog for UFC 91.

In this episode, Dana attends the UFC weigh-ins, talks to ESPN.com's MMA Live crew, follows an unfortunate trip by a UFC owner, and talks to Everlast and DJ Lethal from House of Pain.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5

UFC 91 Winner to Score Half-a-Mil

Wow! According to Lance Pugmire of the L.A. Times, the Nevada State Athletic Commission already released the salary figures for UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture and challenger Brock Lesnar.

Both fighters are guaranteed a base of $250,000. If Couture wins, he gets an additional $250,000 in win money. For Lesnar, he would earn an extra $200,000.

Remember, this is the salary information that is required to be filed with state athletic commissions. There are often other types of performance and/or pay-per-view bonuses and other forms of compensation that are not required to be reported. Plus, with a fight of this magnitude, both are likely scoring big with sponsors.

Video: UFC 91 - Tonight!

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog (Ep 5)

UFC President Dana White presents the 5th edition of his video blog for UFC 91.

In this episode, Dana holds court at the UFC 91 pre-fight press conference, takes viewers behind the scenes with the production crew, continues his media onslaught, checks a cut on Rich Franklin's right eye, harasses Kenny Florian, and breaks from his hard boiled egg diet.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4

MMA Live and ESPN All Over UFC 91

ESPN's MMA Live was live at the UFC 91 weigh-ins on Friday, broadcasting with the Octagon as the backdrop for the show. They discussed the Randy Couture vs. Brock Lesnar and Kenny Florian vs. Joe Stevenson bouts with UFC president Dana White.

ESPN has been all over UFC 91, providing an unprecedented amount of coverage for the event. We'll see if this an anomoly or if the venerable sports network is committed to now cover MMA.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog (Ep 4)

UFC President Dana White presents the 4th edition of his video blog for UFC 91.

In this episode, Dana does an episode of "Jim Rome Is Burning" on ESPN, a few more media interviews getting ready for UFC 91, and presents a very special tombstone littered with the promotions that have gone head to head with the UFC.

Dana proclaims "I'm the grim reaper mother (expletive)."

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3

50 Cent New Song Featured In UFC 91

New song from rapper, 50 Cent, entitled "Get Up" used for UFC 91 featuring clips of Randy Couture and Brock Lesnar

MMA Live Breaks Down Couture vs. Lesnar

ESPN's MMA Live is at UFC 91 and host Jim Anik and guest host Frank Mir are on the scene to break down the main event between UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture and challenger Brock Lesnar.

Dana White Talks To Jim Rome on "Rome Is Burning"

UFC President Dana White talks to famed sports talk show host, Jim Rome, about the upcoming UFC 91 event, as well as Kimbo Slice, and the sport of MMA in comparison to the sport of boxing.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog (Ep 3)

UFC President Dana White presents the third episode of his UFC 91 video blog.

In this edition, Dana visits the ESPN studios to film a few interviews and talks Urijah Faber, Rashad Evans, Randy Couture and Brock Lesnar.

Dana also travels to Minnesota to do some press and talks to Brock Lesnar and his wife just days away from possibly the biggest fight in UFC history.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog: Episode 1, Episode 2

Amir Sadollah Issues Open Letter About UFC 91 Fight

"Ultimate Fighter" season 7 winner, Amir Sadollah, issued a letter through his management website at Suckerpunchent.com, about his recent withdraw from his UFC 91 fight against Nick Catone.

Sadollah continues to spend time in the hospital for his injury and fans are encouraged to leave comments here and on the Suckerpunch Entertainment website that Amir will be reading while in his recovery.

Here is the letter:

To all my fans,
I really appreciate all the support you have sent my way and I am so sorry I am not able to fight this weekend. I trained harder for this than any other fight in my life and I was looking forward to this more than you know.

It started on friday with a small mark on my leg. I immediately went to the doctor and he gave me medication and told me if it got worse to go to the hospital. Well, it got worse and on Sunday I went in and have been here ever since. I am hoping they will discharge me by Thursday.

I am very sorry if I disappointed anyone. A lot of work by a lot of people went into this. For it to end with something totally out of my control makes it difficult to swallow. I will be back in the gym as soon as possible and will be ready to fight as soon as Joe Silva can get me back in.

I’d like to thank my coaches, trainers, SuckerPunch, fans and sponsors (TapouT, Sprawl, THQ/UFC Undisputed 2009 and HelpingHealthClubs.com) for their support. Nobody is more disappointed than me. I appreciate everything everyone put into this and can only look forward to getting back in the octagon as soon as possible.

Sincerely,
Amir

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog (Ep 2)

UFC President Dana White presents his second video blog for UFC 91 weekend.

In this edition, Dana visits THQ, the makers of the new UFC video game, and gives an inside look as some of the graphics involved with the new game. Also catch Dana giving his breakdown of Couture vs. Lesnar in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

Dana White's UFC 91 Video Blog: Episode 1