UFC 81: Breaking Point was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held on February 2, 2008, by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on the Las Vegas Strip.
| UFC 81: Breaking Point | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The poster for UFC 81: Breaking Point | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | February 2, 2008 | |||
| Venue | Mandalay Bay Events Center | |||
| City | Las Vegas, Nevada | |||
| Attendance | 10,583 (7,167 paid) | |||
| Total gate | $2,437,890 | |||
| Buyrate | 650,000[1] | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
editThe main event featured Tim Sylvia and Antônio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira for the UFC Interim World Heavyweight Championship. UFC Heavyweight champion Randy Couture declined a championship fight with Nogueira,[2] which resulted in the creation of the interim title.
This event also saw the UFC debut of WWE wrestler Brock Lesnar in a bout against former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir.[3]
Results
edit| Main card (PPV) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Heavyweight | Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira | def. | Tim Sylvia | Submission (guillotine choke) | 3 | 1:28 | [a] |
| Heavyweight | Frank Mir | def. | Brock Lesnar | Submission (kneebar) | 1 | 1:30 | [b] |
| Middleweight | Nate Marquardt | def. | Jeremy Horn | Submission (guillotine choke) | 2 | 1:37 | |
| Middleweight | Ricardo Almeida | def. | Rob Yundt | Submission (guillotine choke) | 1 | 1:08 | |
| Lightweight | Tyson Griffin | def. | Gleison Tibau | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Preliminary card | |||||||
| Welterweight | Chris Lytle | def. | Kyle Bradley | TKO (punches) | 1 | 0:33 | |
| Middleweight | Marvin Eastman | def. | Terry Martin | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 30–27, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Light Heavyweight | Tim Boetsch | def. | David Heath | TKO (slam and punches) | 1 | 4:52 | |
| Lightweight | Rob Emerson | def. | Keita Nakamura | Decision (split) (30–27, 28–29, 30–27) | 3 | 5:00 | |
- ^ For the interim UFC Heavyweight Championship.
- ^ Lesnar had 1 point deducted in round 1 for strikes to the back of the head.
Bonus awards
editAt the end of this event, $60,000 was awarded to each of the fighters who received one of these three awards.[4]
- Fight of the Night: Tim Sylvia vs. Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira
- Knockout of the Night: Chris Lytle
- Submission of the Night: Frank Mir
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Report: UFC 81 Registers 650,000 PPV "Buys"". 18 February 2008.
- ^ Morgan, Adam (December 4, 2007). "Randy Couture Turns Down Title Defense Against Minotauro Nogueira". Five Ounces of Pain. Archived from the original on February 24, 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-03.
- ^ "Super Bowl Showdown set between Lesnar and Mir". ufc.com. Retrieved 2007-11-06.
- ^ Stupp, Dan (February 3, 2008). "Nogueira, Sylvia, Lytle and Mir Earn $60,000 UFC 81 "Fight Night" Bonuses". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2008-02-02.