UFC 82: Pride of a Champion
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Background
UFC 82: Pride of a Champion was a 10-bout fight card that was held on March 1, 2008 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
The card aired live on pay-per-view and was headlined by a UFC and PRIDE middleweight/welterweight championship unification bout between UFC middleweight (185 lbs.) champion, Anderson Silva and PRIDE welterweight (183 lbs.) champion, Dan Henderson.
The UFC also inducted Mark Coleman into the UFC Hall of Fame at the event.
Fight Card
Preliminary Card
- Lightweight Bout: Jorge Gurgel vs. John Halverson
- Welterweight Bout: Diego Sanchez vs. David Bielkheden
- Welterweight Bout: Josh Koscheck vs. Dustin Hazelett
- Welterweight Bout: Luke Cummo vs. Luigi Fioravanti
- Heavyweight Bout: Andrei Arlovski vs. Jake O'Brien
Main Card
- Welterweight Bout: Chris Wilson vs. Jon Fitch
- Middleweight Bout: Evan Tanner vs. Yushin Okami
- Middleweight Bout: Chris Leben vs. Alessio Sakara
- Heavyweight Bout: Heath Herring vs. Cheick Kongo
- Middleweight Championship Bout: Anderson Silva vs. Dan Henderson
Pre-Event Notes
For the second time in UFC history, a UFC and PRIDE title were unified with the first having taken place at UFC 75 between UFC light heavyweight champion, Quinton Jackson and PRIDE middleweight champion, Dan Henderson.
Jon Fitch was originally meant to face "The Japanese Sensation" Akihiro Gono at UFC 82 but a hand injury forced Gono out of the fight. IFL veteran, Chris Wilson was brought in as Gono's replacement.
UFC 82 marked the return of former UFC middleweight champion, Evan Tanner who had been on a hiatus from MMA competition for almost two years, with his last fight dating back to UFC 59 against Justin Levens.
Results
Preliminary Card
- Lightweight Bout: Jorge Gurgel defs. John Halverson via unanimous decision.
- Welterweight Bout: Diego Sanchez defs. David Bielkheden via submission (strikes) at 4:43 of round 1.
- Welterweight Bout: Josh Koscheck defs. Dustin Hazelett via TKO (head kick and punches) at 1:24 of round 1.
- Welterweight Bout: Luigi Fioravanti defs. Luke Cummo via unanimous decision.
- Heavyweight Bout: Andrei Arlovski defs. Jake O'Brien via TKO (punches) at 4:17 of round 2.
Main Card
- Welterweight Bout: Jon Fitch defs. Chris Wilson via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27).
- Middleweight Bout: Yushin Okami defs. Evan Tanner via KO (knee) at 3:00 of round 2.
- Middleweight Bout: Chris Leben defs. Alessio Sakara via TKO (punches) at 3:16 of round 1.
- Heavyweight Bout: Heath Herring defs. Cheick Kongo via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).
- Middleweight Championship Bout: Anderson Silva defs. Dan Henderson via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:52 of round 2.
Henderson scored a takedown in the first round and smothered Silva for the full five minutes. When the fighters came out for the second round, a more motivated Silva began to pour it on with the wide array of strikes that he is known for. A hurt Henderson seemed to pull guard. Shortly thereafter, Silva secured his back and worked the choke, finally getting the tap just before the finish of round 2. With the victory, Silva defended his own UFC title and earned the PRIDE welterweight title which immediately became defunct from then on.
Bonus Awards
Fight Of The Night: Anderson Silva and Dan Henderson
Submission Of The Night: Anderson Silva
Knockout Of The Night: Chris Leben
- Each bonus was worth $60,000
UFC Event Chronology
Preceded by: UFC 81: Breaking Point
Followed by: UFC Fight Night 13
External Links
http://82.ufc.com - Official UFC 82 Website
--Sam Cupitt 07:25, 28 February 2009 (UTC)
