Last week, VegasSlotsOnline News reported that UFC owner Dana White planned to put on a spectacle in Las Vegas’ newest entertainment venue. He said that UFC 306 would be “badass,” featuring visual effects that would transform live sports.
That event, branded Riyadh Season Noche UFC, took place on Saturday night and those in attendance certainly weren’t disappointed. White invested $20m to produce the show, which featured ‘six chapters’ of short films shown on the venue’s iconic internal wraparound screen, which utilizes 268 million video pixels.
It wasn’t just the films that immersed fans. Seats in the venue would vibrate when there were big punches and knockdowns in the exciting fights. The main fight resulted in an upset win for Georgian Merab Dvalishvili against American Sean O’Malley.
Don’t worry if you missed the groundbreaking event, VSO News is here to make sure you can see all the best bit.
The show begins
Since the event was held on Mexican Independence Day, the short films told the history of the Central American country and its rich combat sports history.
UFC 306 began by seemingly building the setting from the ground up, as scaffolding on the big screen gradually became a stunning wall adorned with Aztec-style decoration:
Eternal warriors
In one particularly poignant moment, images from Mexico’s rich history spanned the screen while the commentary stated that Mexico’s “eternal warriors” will “never stop fighting” for their “people and the faith” of the nation:
Touching Mexican hearts
On social media, many Mexicans have commended UFC and Dana White for the touching tribute. One called @mclisoft said the fight league had touched the hearts of “thousands of Mexicans around the world:”
Intense fighting
O’Malley’s bantamweight title reign came to an end at the hands of Dvalishvili during the night, despite the American’s -140 odds to Dvalishvili’s +110 pre-fight. That wasn’t the only upset of the night either.
In the co-main event, Alexa Grasso (-140) lost after a dominant display by Valentina Shevchenko (+115). The former lost her Flyweight belt as a result, meaning Shevchenko is 125-pound champion once more:
Although not the underdog, Mexican Diego Lopes (-188) certainly didn’t disappoint fans from his nation. The featherweight dominated the No.3 ranked Brian Ortega (+146), securing a win by decision. Lopes is one step closer to a title fight after securing his fifth straight win.
And the stats
It truly was a first-of-its-kind event thanks to the $20m price tag. This meant that floor seats weren’t cheap either, ranging between $12,000 to $17,000. Non-floor seats went for a minimum of $1,000 up to $12,000.
Riyadh Season Noche shattered the previous gate record set by UFC 205, with $22m. That dwarfs the $17.7m previous record set in November 2016.
Media personality Collin Rugg shared some other stats on X: