Just when you thought it was safe to get back into the water, the big boys of MMA are descending upon our country once again for what proved to be another record-breaking ticket sale for the UFC.
I know some were sceptical whether they could sell it so fast a second time around after the new gloss had worn off, but just 30 minutes after the green light for the public sale went on, the tickets were all but gone.
Obviously, the UFC are pretty smart in their sales tactics and the truth is, only 1000 tickets were left by the time the public sale day came around, and they were only left due to obligations to Ticketek.
But to me, that is just all the more positive, as it shows that not only are people hungry to see top-class MMA here, but they are dedicated fans too — doing whatever they could to secure seats.
It was great to catch up with Jon Fitch and BJ Penn as they visited Australia to test the waters late last year. I was proud that everywhere they went, they said people treated them extremely well and more than 500 fans lined up around the block to get their autographs in Sydney.
Aside from the international main events, UFC 127 is going above and beyond to include as many Australian fighters as they can possibly stack on the card.
Australian golden boy George Sotiropoulos will be heading the Aussie contingency, in what should hopefully be his last battle before a title shot.
Kyle Noke will also be bringing the hometown heat in the main card, going up against fellow Ultimate Fighter alumni Chris Camozzi.
Sydney veteran Anthony Perosh will get another chance at a home victory after last year’s scramble match-up against Cro-Cop.
And New Zealand/Australian pros Jamie Te-Huna and K-1 legend Mark Hunt will also be heading up the undercard.
While the UFC was here, they also took the time to talk to the new local Victorian government and the word is that a Melbourne UFC is all but in the bag, so it won’t be too long before you Victorians will be saving on those air tickets to Sydney.
