UFC 116

Lore & Background

Shane Carwin, who won the Interim Heavyweight Championship by defeating Frank Mir at UFC 111, faced current heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. The two were originally set to face each other at UFC 106, then UFC 108, before Carwin won the interim heavyweight championship, but Lesnar pulled out of the fight both times due to an illness (diverticulitis) that kept him from training. Cheick Kongo was scheduled to face Roy Nelson, but a back injury sidelined Kongo. Nelson fought Junior dos Santos at UFC 117. Alessio Sakara was set to fight Nate Marquardt, but Sakara pulled out after the death of his father. Jacob Volkmann was scheduled to fight Paul Kelly, but Kelly reportedly had to pull out due to visa issues; the bout was rescheduled for UFC Live: Jones vs. Matyushenko. Ricardo Romero was scheduled to fight Steve Cantwell, but the fight was cancelled for unknown reasons and Cantwell was replaced by Seth Petruzelli. On June 17, 2010, Julio Paulino withdrew from his fight against Daniel Roberts; Forrest Petz returned and replaced Paulino. On June 22, 2010, Wanderlei Silva withdrew from his co-main event fight against Yoshihiro Akiyama due to three broken ribs and an injured right knee; Akiyama was then matched against Chris Leben. The bout between Kendall Grove and Goran Reljic was originally slated for the live prelims on Spike TV but was later demoted and replaced by Petruzelli vs. Romero because of Grove's criticism of Spike TV and The Ultimate Fighter. UFC President Dana White confirmed that the winner of the heavyweight title fight would defend the title against the undefeated Cain Velasquez.

In Their Own Story

The O2 Arena hummed like a living thing. Ten thousand voices pressed against the steel ribs of the dome, and the air tasted of sweat and spilled lager. In the corner, a wiry Brazilian in a white robe tapped his shin guard rhythmically, eyes half-closed, as if listening to a frequency no one else could hear. Across the cage, the American champion rolled his shoulders and barked at his corner, the sound swallowed by the roar. The referee's voice cut through: "Touch gloves."

They met in the centre. The American came forward, heavy, inevitable. The Brazilian slipped, pivoted, and the first kick landed flush on the temple. The crowd inhaled as one. Then another kick. Then a flurry so fast the cameras couldn't keep up. By the time the referee's arms came up, the American was on his knees, and the Brazilian was still moving, still striking, as if the fight had only just begun. In section 114, a woman in a red scarf simply sat down on the plastic seat and laughed, tears cutting tracks through her mascara. Beside her, a man in a pinstripe suit was already on his phone, shouting into it. The night was over. The night was not over. The night was never over.

Reader's Guide

The event featured a heavyweight championship unification bout between Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin. The co-main event was originally Wanderlei Silva vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama, but Silva withdrew and Chris Leben stepped in. Other notable fights included Chris Lytle vs. Matt Brown, Stephan Bonnar vs. Krzysztof Soszynski, and George Sotiropoulos vs. Kurt Pellegrino. Bonus awards: Fight of the Night ($75,000 each) went to Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Stephan Bonnar and Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Chris Leben; Knockout of the Night ($75,000) to Gerald Harris; Submission of the Night ($75,000) to Brock Lesnar.

Did You Know?

• UFC 116 was the first and only MMA/UFC show to win the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Award for Best Major Show.
• Brock Lesnar won Submission of the Night with a triangle choke/armbar combination against Shane Carwin.
• Chris Leben replaced Wanderlei Silva on less than two weeks' notice and won by submission.
• The event had a reported payout of $400,000 to Brock Lesnar, with no win bonus.