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Despite a main event that lacked in promotional power, UFC 96 drew 17,033 spectators to Nationwide Arena on Saturday night for a gate of $1.8 million, UFC president Dana White said.
For the third consecutive year, the UFC's Columbus show coincided with the Arnold Sports Festival, a three-day sports and fitness exhibition held in downtown Columbus.
"I heard on the radio today that between [the Artnold] and the UFC, we brought $41 million into Columbus this weekend," White said in the post-UFC 96 press conference. "So obviously in these hard economic times, coming in here and doing huge numbers like that (is impressive)."
White had already announced that Columbus would see another UFC event because of the support. Late this past week, White said there were fewer than 1,000 tickets remaining for UFC 96, which featured Quinton Jackson's decision victory over Keith Jardine in the night's main event.
Ohio hosted the UFC's first move to the Midwest in 2007 with UFC 68 in Columbus. In that event, Randy Couture upset Tim Sylvia for the UFC heavyweight title. The event drew 19,049 in attendance and tallied a $3 million gate. Last year, UFC returned to Columbus for UFC 82. Headlined by UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva vs. PRIDE title-holder Dan Henderson, the event scored an attendance of 16,043 for a $2.2 million gate.
"We love Columbus," White said earlier in the week. "Every year we've been here we've been successful. We plan to keep going back every year and making this a regular thing."
Ohio has responded in kind, as Ohio Athletic Commission Executive Director Bernie Profato presented White with a lifetime matchmaker's license in the state this past week.
For the third consecutive year, the UFC's Columbus show coincided with the Arnold Sports Festival, a three-day sports and fitness exhibition held in downtown Columbus.
"I heard on the radio today that between [the Artnold] and the UFC, we brought $41 million into Columbus this weekend," White said in the post-UFC 96 press conference. "So obviously in these hard economic times, coming in here and doing huge numbers like that (is impressive)."
White had already announced that Columbus would see another UFC event because of the support. Late this past week, White said there were fewer than 1,000 tickets remaining for UFC 96, which featured Quinton Jackson's decision victory over Keith Jardine in the night's main event.
Ohio hosted the UFC's first move to the Midwest in 2007 with UFC 68 in Columbus. In that event, Randy Couture upset Tim Sylvia for the UFC heavyweight title. The event drew 19,049 in attendance and tallied a $3 million gate. Last year, UFC returned to Columbus for UFC 82. Headlined by UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva vs. PRIDE title-holder Dan Henderson, the event scored an attendance of 16,043 for a $2.2 million gate.
"We love Columbus," White said earlier in the week. "Every year we've been here we've been successful. We plan to keep going back every year and making this a regular thing."
Ohio has responded in kind, as Ohio Athletic Commission Executive Director Bernie Profato presented White with a lifetime matchmaker's license in the state this past week.
