UFC 121

Lore & Background

The event was the fourth time the UFC hosted at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California following UFC 59, UFC 63, and UFC 76, and the sixth event held in the Greater Los Angeles Area, including UFC 60 and UFC 104. Just like UFC 111, UFC 115, and UFC 118, UFC 121 was shown in movie theaters around the United States by NCM Fathom. UFC 121 featured the return of preliminary fights live on Spike TV. UFC Primetime also returned to promote the Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez title fight. Jon Madsen was expected to face Todd Duffee, but Duffee was forced off the card due to a lingering knee injury and was replaced by Gilbert Yvel. The event was notable for the post-fight confrontation between professional wrestler The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar following Lesnar's loss to Cain Velasquez.

In Their Own Story

The O2 Arena hummed with a different kind of electricity than any American venue. The crowd was louder, more partisan, more theatrical. When the bell rang for the second round, the noise swelled into a wall of sound that rattled the cage posts. Sonnen came forward, gloves snapping, the London crowd roaring for their underdog's champion. Silva danced, tilted, let the punches slide off his guard. Then—two, three, four shots, each one landing with the quiet precision of a surgeon's scalpel. Sonnen's legs buckled. He hit the canvas, and the arena detonated. Silva rolled onto his back, arms spread wide, staring up at the lights as if seeing them for the first time. In the corner, his team erupted. Across the cage, Sonnen sat up slowly, dazed, the London crowd giving him a standing ovation for the fight he'd lost. The night belonged to both men, and to the city that had finally claimed its place in the octagon's story.

Reader's Guide

The following fighters received $70,000 bonuses: Fight of the Night: Diego Sanchez vs. Paulo Thiago; Knockout of the Night: Cain Velasquez; Submission of the Night: Daniel Roberts. Reported payouts (as reported to the California State Athletic Commission, not including sponsor money or locker room or fight night bonuses): Cain Velasquez: $200,000 ($100,000 win bonus) def. Brock Lesnar: $400,000; Jake Shields: $150,000 ($75,000 win bonus) def. Martin Kampmann: $27,000; Diego Sanchez: $100,000 ($50,000 win bonus) def. Paulo Thiago: $18,000; Matt Hamill: $58,000 ($29,000 win bonus) def. Tito Ortiz: $250,000; Brendan Schaub: $20,000 ($10,000 win bonus) def. Gabriel Gonzaga: $67,000; Court McGee: $30,000 ($15,000 win bonus) def. Ryan Jensen: $10,000; Tom Lawlor: $20,000 ($10,000 win bonus) def. Patrick Cote: $21,000; Daniel Roberts: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus) def. Mike Guymon: $8,000; Sam Stout: $32,000 ($16,000 win bonus) def. Paul Taylor: $16,000; Chris Camozzi: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus) def. Dong Yi Yang: $8,000; Jon Madsen: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus) def. Gilbert Yvel: $30,000.

Did You Know?

• After his loss to Velasquez, Lesnar was confronted in the crowd by professional wrestler Mark Calaway, better known as the Undertaker, who was being interviewed by journalist Ariel Helwani. Calaway seemingly challenged h
• The two would eventually face each other in WWE at WrestleMania XXX where Lesnar defeated Undertaker to end his undefeated WrestleMania Streak.
• On October 4, 2019, Velasquez made his WWE debut confronting Lesnar on the first episode of Friday Night SmackDown on Fox, thus setting up the match at Crown Jewel for the WWE Championship where Lesnar defeated Velasquez