UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson

UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson (also known as UFC Fight Night 68) was a mixed martial arts event held on June 6, 2015, at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.[2]

UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson
The poster for UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson
PromotionUltimate Fighting Championship
DateJune 6, 2015 (2015-06-06)
VenueSmoothie King Center
CityNew Orleans, Louisiana
Attendance6,231[1]
Total gate$621,523[1]
Event chronology
UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Alves UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson UFC 188: Velasquez vs. Werdum

Background

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The event was expected to be headlined by a light heavyweight bout between top contenders Daniel Cormier and Ryan Bader.[2] However on April 28, due to Jon Jones' hit-and-run incident leading up to his fight at UFC 187 against Anthony Johnson, the UFC decided to strip him of the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship and suspend him indefinitely. Jones was replaced by Cormier.[3] In turn, a middleweight bout between Tim Boetsch and mixed martial arts legend Dan Henderson was promoted to the main event. Subsequently, Bader was pulled from the event entirely.[4]

A bantamweight bout between Joe Soto and Anthony Birchak was originally expected to take place at UFC 177. However, on the day of weigh ins, Soto was pulled from the fight to replace Renan Barão in a UFC Bantamweight Championship bout against champion T.J. Dillashaw, as Barão had to be admitted to the hospital as a result of his attempts to cut weight. Birchak was removed from the card entirely.[5] The fight was later rescheduled for this event.[6]

Alan Jouban was expected to face Brian Ebersole at the event. However, Jouban pulled out of the fight in late March citing injury and was replaced by Omari Akhmedov.[7]

Zubaira Tukhugov was expected to face Thiago Tavares at the event. However on April 25, it was announced that Tukhugov had to pull out of the fight due to an undisclosed injury.[8] Brian Ortega was announced as his replacement on May 6.[9]

Daniel Sarafian was expected to face Ricardo Abreu at this event. However on May 4, Sarafian was forced to withdraw from the event due to injury and was replaced by Jake Collier.[10]

Both Yancy Medeiros and Leonardo Morales missed weight on their first attempts at the weigh-ins, coming in at 159.5 lb and 140 lb respectively. They were both given additional time to make the weight limits for their respective weight classes, but Medeiros made no attempts to cut further. Morales would miss weight again on his second attempt, coming in at 137 lb. As a result, they were both fined 20 percent of their fight purses, which went to Dustin Poirier and José Alberto Quiñónez respectively.[11]

With seven first-round finishes, this event ties the record for most first-round finishes in a single UFC event.[12]

Results

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Main Card (Fox Sports 1)
Weight class Method Round Time Notes
Middleweight Dan Henderson def. Tim Boetsch KO (punches) 1 0:28
Heavyweight Ben Rothwell def. Matt Mitrione Submission (guillotine choke) 1 1:54
Catchweight (159.5 lb) Dustin Poirier def. Yancy Medeiros TKO (body kick and punches) 1 2:38
Featherweight Brian Ortega def. Thiago Tavares TKO (punches) 3 4:10
Bantamweight Anthony Birchak def. Joe Soto KO (punches) 1 1:37
Bantamweight Francisco Rivera def. Alex Caceres KO (punches) 1 0:21
Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1)
Heavyweight Shawn Jordan def. Derrick Lewis TKO (hook kick and punches) 2 0:48
Welterweight Omari Akhmedov def. Brian Ebersole TKO (knee injury) 1 5:00
Lightweight Chris Wade def. Christos Giagos Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 30–27) 3 5:00
Lightweight Joe Proctor def. Justin Edwards Technical Submission (guillotine choke) 3 4:58
Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)
Middleweight Jake Collier def. Ricardo Abreu Decision (split) (29–28, 28–29, 29–28) 3 5:00
Catchweight (137 lb) José Alberto Quiñónez def. Leonardo Morales Submission (rear-naked choke) 1 2:34

[13]

Bonus awards

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The following fighters were awarded $50,000 bonuses:[14]

  • Fight of the Night: Brian Ortega vs. Thiago Tavares
  • Performance of the Night: Dustin Poirier and Shawn Jordan

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "UFC Fight Night 68 draws announced 6,231 attendance for $621,523 live gate". MMAjunkie.com. June 7, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Thomas Gerbasi (2015-02-11). "Cormier gets Louisiana homecoming against Bader in June". ufc.co.nz. Retrieved 2015-02-11.
  3. ^ Marc Raimondi (2015-04-28). "Jon Jones stripped of title, Daniel Cormier vs. Anthony Johnson for belt headlines UFC 187". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2015-04-28.
  4. ^ Thomas Gerbasi (2015-05-04). "Boetsch-Henderson New NOLA Main Event". ufc.com. Retrieved 2015-05-04.
  5. ^ Matt Erickson and John Morgan (2014-08-29). "Renan Barao out of UFC 177, Joe Soto meets T.J. Dillashaw for title". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-05-07.
  6. ^ Matt Erickson (2015-03-19). "Joe Soto vs. Anthony Birchak rebooked for UFC Fight Night 68 in New Orleans". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-05-07.
  7. ^ Staff (2015-03-26). "Alan Jouban injured, Omari Akhmedov meets Brian Ebersole at UFC Fight Night 68". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
  8. ^ Guilherme Cruz (2015-04-25). "Zubaira Tukhugov injured, out of UFC Fight Night 68 bout with Thiago Tavares". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2015-04-25.
  9. ^ Staff (2015-05-06). "Thiago Tavares set to meet Brian Ortega at UFC Fight Night 68 in New Orleans". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-05-06.
  10. ^ Thomas Gerbasi (2015-05-04). "Collier in for injured Sarafian in NOLA". ufc.com. Retrieved 2015-05-04.
  11. ^ Staff (2015-05-05). "UFC Fight Night 68 weigh-in results: Henderson (186), Boetsch (185.5) official". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-05-06.
  12. ^ "UFC in 2015: A ridiculously robust look at stats, streaks, skids and record-setters". MMA Junkie. 2015-12-27. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  13. ^ "UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson". Ultimate Fighting Championship. Retrieved 2015-02-11.
  14. ^ Matt Erickson (2015-06-07). "UFC Fight Night 68 bonuses: Dustin Poirier gets $50,000 in front of home fans". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-06-07.