UFC 193 In Melbourne Set To Shatter Attendance Records; 12 Sponsors On Board

A dozen sponsors have signed on for UFC 193 in Australia as the event is expected to shatter attendance records. UFC 193, scheduled to take place at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne on Saturday, will be the first UFC pay-per-view event in which two women’s world title fights are the headliners. In the main event, bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey will defend her title against No. 8 Holly Holm. Additionally, strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk will take on No. 8 alerie Letourneau to defend her crown. UFC 193 will also be the first UFC event in Melbourne after seven previous fights have taken place in Adelaide, Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sydney since ‘10. The event will air on Fox Sports Australia and UFC’s pay-per-view provider Main Event, as well as 157 additional countries. The fight will also be available online at UFC.tv for $59.99. UFC declined to provide ticket sales numbers ahead of the event. However, Etihad Stadium CEO Paul Sergeant last week said that the event is on target to break the all-time attendance record. “The record attendance is 55,000 and we’re well on track to beat that,” he said. “I do expect us to surpass that number.” The record was set at Toronto’s Rogers Centre during UFC 129. Saturday’s event is poised to fill the 53,359 seats at the venue along with another 15,000 on the field.

UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE: Twelve UFC partners will be featured during the broadcast or in the Octagon, according to fight promoters. Those include brands such as MetroPCS, Reebok, Bud Light and Draft Kings. MetroPCS, together with Periscope, will provide fans with an opportunity to watch Rousey walk from her locker room to the Octagon on fight night. Users will get a live, over-the-shoulder view. Other partners such as Unibet and Monster Energy have been running activations throughout the week leading up to fight night. Monster Energy, along with EA Sports, Reebok and UFC Gym, will also be present at this weekend’s UFC Fan Village at Etihad Stadium. UFC Gym, which is operating a location in Sydney -- its only one in Australia, will have a striking challenge at the fan event. Other activations at the Fan Village include athlete meet and greets, live music and fan weigh-ins. UFC declined to provide any financial figures regarding its sponsorship deals. The main fight card, which in addition to the two headline bouts, includes three male fights, will kick off at 10pm EST. Prelims and early prelims are set to start at 8pm and 6:15pm, respectively.