MMA Weekly reports gate, attendance and bonuses for Tuesday’s UFC on Fuel 3. The event took place at the Patriot Center on the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. event took place at the Patriot Center on the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.
The 10,000-seat arena at the Patriot Center was half full with the official attendance at 4,592 with a gate of $343,175.
Bonuses for the night were $40,000 each:
Fight of the Night: Korean Zombie/Dustin Poirer
Submission of the Night: Korean Zombie
Knockout of the Night: Tom Lawlor
Obviously, it was the Korean Zombie’s night. Both KZ and Poirer put on a great fight for the fans. Apparently, it was fortunate that Tom Lawlor received the bonus and fight earnings. According to Cagewriter, Lawlor has borrowed money from friends and family the past year and a half to get by while waiting for a fight.
Payout Perspective:
It’s hard to compare UFC on Fuel 3 with the prior 2 when it comes to gate and attendance. The first UFC on Fuel scored 7,120 fans for a gate of $406,000. But that card was headlined by Diego Sanchez and Jake Ellenberger. For Ellenberger, he was fighting in his hometown so there was more a draw from the local fans. The second Fuel card was held in Sweden and received big numbers (15,428/$2.23 million) since it was the first time the UFC came to the country. Also, it featured local product Alex Gustafsson in the main event.
Despite the attendance on Tuesday, I think the smaller setting and college campus atmosphere is a good idea for the UFC. It attracts its targeted demo and the young fans will sure to be excited about the fights. It could potentially attract sponsors to do on campus promotions in hyping the events.
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