UFC 79
| UFC 79: Nemesis | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Information | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | December 29, 2007 | |||
| Venue | Mandalay Bay Events Center | |||
| City |  Las Vegas, Nevada, USA |
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| Attendance | 11,075 (10,968 paid) | |||
| Total gate | $4,994,000 | |||
| Buyrate | 750,000+ | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
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UFC 79: Nemesis was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), that took place on December 29, 2007 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Background
The main events featured the long anticipated fight between Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva,[2] as well as the highly anticipated rubber match between former UFC Welterweight Champions Georges St-Pierre and Matt Hughes for the interim Welterweight championship.[3]
Additionally, PRIDE light heavyweight sensation Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou made his UFC debut against undefeated Lyoto Machida.[4]
The main event was originally to pit The Ultimate Fighter 6 coaches Matt Serra and Matt Hughes for Serra's UFC Welterweight Championship, which Serra won at UFC 69: Shootout on April 7, 2007 in an upset victory over Georges St-Pierre.[1] Serra, however, withdrew from the fight due to a back injury,[5] and was replaced by St-Pierre, though the fight would now be contested for the Interim Welterweight Championship, with the winner facing Serra afterwards.
[edit] Results
[edit] Preliminary card
- Lightweight bout:
Mark Bocek vs. 
Doug Evans
- Bocek defeated Evans via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 29–28).
- Welterweight bout:
Roan Carneiro vs. 
Tony DeSouza
- Carneiro defeated DeSouza via TKO (strikes) at 3:30 of round 2.
- Middleweight bout: Dean Lister vs.
Jordan Radev
- Lister defeated Radev via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–27).
- Lightweight bout:
Manvel Gamburyan vs. Nate Mohr
- Gamburyan defeated Mohr via submission (achillies lock) at 1:31 of round 1. This bout was aired at the end of the broadcast.
- Light Heavyweight bout: James Irvin vs. Luiz Cane
- Irvin defeated Cane via disqualification (illegal knee) at 1:51 of round 1.
[edit] Main card
- Lightweight bout: Rich Clementi vs. Melvin Guillard
- Clementi defeated Guillard via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:40 of round 1.
- Light heavyweight bout : Lyoto Machida vs.
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou
- Machida defeated Sokoudjou via submission (arm triangle) at 4:20 of round 2.
- Heavyweight bout: Eddie Sanchez vs.
Soa Palelei
- Sanchez defeated Palelei via TKO (strikes) at 3:24 of round 3.
- Light heavyweight bout: Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva
- Liddell defeated Silva via unanimous decision (29–28, 30–27, 30–27).
- St-Pierre defeated Hughes via submission (armbar) at 4:54 of round 2 to become the Interim UFC Welterweight Champion.
[edit] Fighter payouts
The disclosed fighter payroll for UFC 79 was $1,199,000. The figures do not include sponsor payments, fees, taxes, or special award bonuses[6]
Georges St-Pierre def. Matt Hughes
- St-Pierre – $160,000 (includes $80,000 win bonus)
- Hughes – $100,000
Chuck Liddell def. Wanderlei Silva
- Liddell – $500,000 (no win bonus)
- Silva – $150,000
Eddie Sanchez def. Soa Palelei
- Sanchez – $46,000 (includes $23,000 win bonus)
- Palelei – $5,000
Lyoto Machida def. Sokoudjou
- Machida – $60,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus)
- Sokoudjou – $40,000
Rich Clementi def. Melvin Guillard
- Clementi – $28,000 (includes $14,000 win bonus)
- Guillard – $10,000
James Irvin def. Luiz Arthur Cane
- Irvin – $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
- Cane – $5,000
Manny Gamburyan def. Nate Mohr
- Gamburyan – $20,000 (includes $10,000 win bonus)
- Mohr – $6,000
Dean Lister def. Jordan Radev
- Lister – $22,000 (includes $11,000 win bonus)
- Radev – $5,000
Roan Carneiro def. Tony DeSouza
- Carneiro – $10,000 (includes $5,000 win bonus)
- DeSouza – $7,000
Mark Bocek def. Doug Evans
- Bocek – $6,000 (includes $3,000 win bonus)
- Evans – $3,000
[edit] Bonus awards
At the end of this event, $50,000 was awarded to each of the fighters who received one of these three awards.[7]
- Fight of the Night: Wanderlei Silva vs Chuck Liddell
- Submission of the Night: Georges St-Pierre
- Knockout of the Night: Eddie Sanchez
[edit] References
- ^ a b "UFC 79: Nemesis features Serra vs Hughes on December 29th". UFC.com. October 17, 2007. http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=news.detail&gid=8275. Retrieved 2007-10-17.
- ^ "Finally, Two Legends Meet". ufc.com. October 24, 2007. http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=news.detail&gid=8385. Retrieved 2007-10-24.
- ^ "BREAKING NEWS: Matt Fighting Georges St. Pierre at UFC 79!". ufc.com. November 24, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-11-26. http://web.archive.org/web/20071126070650/http://www.matt-hughes.com/blog/2007/11/24/breaking-news/. Retrieved 2007-11-24.
- ^ Gerbasi, Thomas (November 15, 2007). "UFC Inks Sokoudjou; “The African Assassin” to Debut vs Machida at UFC 79". ufc.com. http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=news.detail&gid=8674. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
- ^ "Serra Injured, Withdraws From UFC 79 Card". ufc.com. November 22, 2007. http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=news.detail&gid=8808. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
- ^ "FIGHTER SALARY BREAKDOWN FOR UFC 79". ufcdaily.com. 2008-01-01. http://www.ufcdaily.com/2008/01/01/official-ufc-79-fighter-salaries/. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
- ^ Stupp, Dan (December 30, 2007). "UFC Issues $200,000 in UFC 79 Bonuses". mmajunkie.com. http://mmajunkie.com/2007/12/30/ufc-issues-200000-in-ufc-79-bonuses/. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
