UFC 61: Bitter Rivals

UFC 61 was the first Professional sports event I have ordered by way of Pay Per View since the long lamented Tyson Holyfield fight (49.95 ouch!). Since then I have not been too eager to throw my hard earned money at a PPV sporting event.

This summer I have become hooked on the reality series "The Ultimate Fighter 3", I think as a former wrestler and a fan of UFC as a teen, the show seemed to rekindle a forgotten love for the sport of mixed martial arts, that and the fact that UF3 was a well produced show. I started watching the show alone and soon my wife (not a sports fan) who originally would only watch bits and pieces of the show was eventually sitting right next to me watching the final episodes in of the season and the big finale.

It was during the finale that we learned UF3 coaches, Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock who often displayed a common dislike/hate for each other during the filming of the show would be fighting at UFC 61. Maria my wife, didnt hesitate she said "we should order that"! And so when July 8 came around we did just that.

Overall I am pleased to say I was completely happy with the purchase, the UFC really knows how to put on a show. While the top billed matches "Ortiz vs Shamrock" and "Silva vs Arlovski" were not exactly what I was hoping for, most of the under card matches were still excellent fights and there were plenty of them, Adding value to the event. It almost seems as if the UFC is given a time slot and they literally tried to squeeze as many fights into that time frame as possible. Very unlike boxing where if there are 3 fights scheduled and if they all end quickly it feels like you've gambled and lost.

I am really looking forward to the Ultimate Fighter season 4, and I expect there will be little hesitation about ordering other UFC events in the future.