Issue 155
June 2017
The PPVs that were so boring, you wanted to get your money back.
UFC 61
Spoilsports
When a then-record 775,000 people bought this PPV, Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski could have become huge stars. Instead, they killed their popularity with dull, 25-minute bore-fest. Worse still, the fight everyone actually tuned in for, Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock, was spoiled by Herb Dean’s early stoppage.
UFC 9
Circle jerks
This one is all about the main event. The rest of the fight card wasn’t the best, but the Dan Severn vs. Ken Shamrock headliner sucked all the life out of the evening. A full 30 minutes of two fighters circling, staring and doing almost nothing else. Brutal to watch.
UFC 149
Calgary curse
Michael Bisping, Thiago Alves, ‘Shogun’ Rua, ‘Minotauro’ Nogueira, José Aldo: all fighters scheduled to compete at the Scotiabank Saddledome, but withdrew. The card was cursed. Great fights would have saved the day, but the main card was uninspiring. After the main card limped to a lackluster conclusion, Dana White said he was embarrassed and promised to make it up to the Alberta fans. They’re still waiting.
UFC 122
Lame duck
Some cards promise a lot but don’t deliver. Others look weak but are action- packed. This looked bad on paper and played out even worse. Somehow, 2.2 million people still tuned in for the Nate Marquardt vs. Yushin Okami main event. Joe Rogan tried his best to sound interested.
UFC 33
Worst. Event. Ever.
The go-to card to fall back on when an even disapoints. Nothing can be as bad as ‘Victory in Vegas’. To quote Dana White: “Every fight sucked.” Three title matches meant 15 rounds of championship fighting, but barely any action in any of them. The broadcast even ran over time and many viewers missed the end of the Ortiz-Matyushenko main event. Maybe that wasn’t the worst outcome for them.
UFC 55
Sour taste
Something just didn’t feel right about this one. Alessio Sakara vs. Ron Faircloth ended because of a groin kick. A cut stopped the Joe Riggs vs. Chris Lytle action early. Few people even realized Paul Buentello was knocked out when he collapsed on Andrei Arlovski. Most of all, why was a street fighter – Boston cop Sean Gannon – in a UFC co-main event?
