UFC Headlines: UFC 40 Tops Fight Attendance in NV, sets records; UFC 41: Onslaught will feature Tank, Rodriguez, Uno vs. Penn, and more.ÿ These two releases are viewable by clicking on Read More, most interesting is the success of UFC 40 in revenue, attendance, and buys, which may mean that the promotion should start getting a second look by mainstream cynics in the media world. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ RODRIGUEZ TO MEET SYLVIA FOR HEAVYWEIGHT BELT AT UFC 41: ONSLAUGHT ON PAY-PER-VIEW, FEB. 28, IN ATLANTIC CITY

8-FIGHT CARD TO FEATURE RETURN OF LEGEND TANK ABBOTT, LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT BETWEEN BJ PENN, CAOL UNO

Live Event Tickets Now On Sale!

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ LAS VEGAS, NEV., January 8, 2003…The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s (UFC) new Heavyweight Champion Ricco Rodriguez will defend his title for the first time against undefeated contender Tim Sylvia at UFC 41: Onslaught live on pay-per-viewÿ Friday, Feb. 28, at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.ÿ An eight-fight, all-star card also will feature the return to the UFC of legendary Heavyweight Tank Abbott, who will meet jiu jitsu submission specialist Frank Mir.ÿ In the co-main event, lightweight top contenders BJ Penn and Caol Uno will meet for the lightweight title.

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ Live event tickets, $300, $200, $100, $60 and $30, are now on sale at the Boardwalk Hall box office in Atlantic City, at all Ticketmaster locations and at www.ticketmaster.com.ÿÿ Tickets also may be ordered by telephone at 1-800-736-1420.ÿ Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino, Trump Marina and Trump Taj Mahal are the hosts of the event.

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ UFC 41: Onslaught will be available live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, Dish Network, Bell ExpressVu and Viewers Choice Canada.ÿ The suggested retail price is $29.95.

Rodriguez (10-1-0 in mixed martial arts) is a native of Staten Island, New York, and a former resident of Patterson, N.J., who now fights out of Las Vegas.ÿ He has won 10 consecutive fights and captured the heavyweight crown September 27 with a fifth-round, technical knockout submission of former two-time champion Randy Couture at UFC 39: Warriors Return at The Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.ÿ Rodriguez has combined an always-improving standup game with a relentless ground and pound attack to win his last five fights by TKO over top heavyweights including Andre Arlovski, Pete Williams, Jeff Monson, Tsuyoshi Kosaka and Couture.

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ Sylvia (16-0-0), a native of Ellsworth, ME, who fights out of Davenport, Iowa, is a strong striker and grappler who won a second round TKO September 27 over “Cabbage” Correira at The Mohegan Sun.ÿ Previously, he won an eight-man tournament and earlier this year, won the Superbrawl “Return of the Heavyweights” 16-man tournament with four victories by either knockout or TKO.ÿ At 6’8,” 260 lbs., Sylvia is one of the biggest heavyweights in the UFC and trains with one of the top teams in mixed martial arts, Miletich Fighting Systems.

“Tim is a phenomenal athlete who is undefeated.ÿ So, his record speaks for itself.ÿ He will be tough and will come after me because Miletich fighters always prepare very well for fights,” Rodriguez said.ÿ

“This is a big opportunity for Tim and I’m comparing this fight to the first “Rocky” movie where Apollo Creed gave Rocky a title shot, except there won’t be any split decision.ÿ I’m gonna take him out.ÿ Personally, it’s really exciting for me to defend my title for the first time in Atlantic City, which is close to Staten Island, New York, and Patterson, N.J., where I grew up.ÿ I will definitely have a lot of fans and family members in my corner,” Rodriguez added.

ÿTank (8-7-0), from Huntington Beach, Calif., is returning from World Championship Wrestling (WCW) to re-claim a top spot in the heavyweight division.ÿ He is renown for his knockout power and during his UFC career has recorded some of its most memorable KOs, including John Matua and Paul Varelans at UFC 6: Clash of the Titans; Steve Nelmark at Ultimate Ultimate ’96 and Hugo Duarte at UFC 17: Redemption.ÿ In Mir (4-1) of Las Vegas, he will be facing one of the UFC’s most promising young heavyweights.ÿ A Brazilian jiu jitsu specialist, Mir exploded on the scene at UFC 34: High Voltage with an armbar submission of veteran Roberto Traven in 1:05.ÿ He followed that with another armbar submission of Pete Williams in just 46 seconds at UFC 36: Worlds Collide.ÿ

“From what I’ve seen, he’s a tough fighter.ÿ He is really skilled. Right now, I may be the only fighter who can beat him.ÿ His techniques all look real solid and I look forward to going to war with him,” Tank said.

“Fighting Tank will be good for me and my career.ÿ He is truly one of the legends of our sport and is still recognized as one of the top heavyweights.ÿ I don’t know if there are any fighters in the heavyweight division who punch harder and I know he has an excellent take down defense.ÿ But, I’ll be ready,” Mir said.

ÿPenn (6-1-0) from Hilo, Hawaii, and Uno (13-4-2) of Kanagawa, Japan, earned the right to meet for the lightweight title with unanimous decision victories over Matt Serra and Din Thomas respectively September 27 at The Mohegan Sun.ÿ They fought each other once previously at UFC 34: High Voltage at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.ÿ Penn won that match by knockout, so Uno will be seeking some payback.

Penn, known as “The Prodigy,” is a powerful striker and grappler who was the first non-Brazilian black belt world champion in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.ÿ Uno is a highly technical grappler and striker who also utilizes his extensive wrestling experience to submit opponents.

Rodriguez/Sylvia at UFC 41 – add three

The Ultimate Fighting Championship, headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., is the world’s leading mixed martial arts sports association.ÿ Owned and operated by Zuffa LLC, the UFC programs six live pay-per-view events yearly through cable and satellite providers.ÿ In addition to its U.S. distribution on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV and TVN, UFC events are distributed internationally through British Sky Broadcasting, WOWOW, Inc., in Japan, Globosat in Brazil and Modern Sports and Entertainment in Scandinavia.

UFC licenses video games for all major playing platforms through Crave Entertainment.

The UFC’s next pay-per-view event is Ultimate Knockouts 2, which premieres at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m PST, Friday, January 17 on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, TVN and Bell ExpressVu.ÿ It will re-capture the UFC’s most memorable knockouts.ÿ The suggested retail price is $9.95.ÿ Its next live PPV event is UFC 41: Onslaught at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST Friday, February 28, from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.ÿ Locate Ultimate Fighting Championship on the internet at www.ufc.tv.

UFC 40: VENDETTA TOPS NEVADA FIGHT

ATTENDANCE; RANKS THIRD FOR ALL U.S. FIGHTS IN 2002

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Ultimate Fighting Championship Drew Two of Nevada’s Top Four

Fight Crowds; Also Ranks Fourth, Seventh In Gate Receipts For Year

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ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ LAS VEGAS, January 6, 2002…The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) drew Nevada’s largest fight crowd of 2002 when it had a total in the MGM Grand Garden Arena of 13,770 on November 22 for UFC 40: Vendetta.ÿ That sell-out crowd also ranks as the third largest total-in-arena attendance for a fighting event in the U.S. for the year.ÿ The July 20 welterweight boxing match between Vernon Forrest and “Sugar” Shane Moseley at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind., ranked first nationally with 15,775; the June 7 heavyweight boxing title fight between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson at The Pyramid in Memphis, Tenn., was second with 15,327.

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ UFC 40: Vendetta also ranked as the fourth largest fight event in gate receipts in Nevada, $1,540,340.00.ÿ A second UFC event, UFC 36: Worlds Collide, held March 22 at the MGM Grand, ranked fourth for total-in-arena attendance, 8,327, and seventh in gate receipts, $898,850.00 in Nevada for the year.ÿ UFC 40: Vendetta featured the return of legend Ken Shamrock in a light heavyweight title fight against champion Tito Ortiz.ÿ Ortiz retained his title with a third-round technical knockout.

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ “To be number one in fight attendance in Nevada for the year makes a major statement about the increasing popularity of our brand of fight entertainment with mainstream sports fans.ÿ We certainly thank all our fans for their support and look forward to the day when we are number one in every category,” said Dana White, UFC president.

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UFC Number One in Nevada Fight Attendance – add one

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ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., is the world’s leading mixed martial arts association.ÿ Owned and operated by Zuffa LLC, the UFC programs six live pay-per-view events yearly through cable and satellite providers.ÿ In addition to its U.S. distribution on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, TVN and Dish Network, UFC events are distributed internationally through British Sky Broadcasting, WOWOW, Inc., in Japan, Globosat in Brazil and Modern Sports and Entertainment in Scandinavia.ÿ UFC licenses video games for all major playing platforms through Crave Entertainment.

ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ The UFC’s next live PPV event will be at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on Friday, February 28, 2003, from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.ÿ Locate Ultimate Fighting Championship on the internet at www.ufc.tv.

Editors Note:ÿ Information in this news release was provided by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, the Indiana Boxing Commission, the Tennessee Boxing Commission and published news reports.