The rematch between Frankie Edgar and Ben Henderson could headline UFC 150 in Denver on Aug. 11. (James Law/HeavyMMA)
Pepsi Center hosts pay-per-view on Aug. 11
The UFC will return to the place it all got started for an anniversary show this summer.
UFC 150 will take place at the Pepsi Center on Aug. 11 in Denver – the city where UFC 1 took place in November 1993. The Denver Post reported the news Friday afternoon, and it was subsequently confirmed by the UFC. Earlier Friday, MMA Junkie reported that a lightweight title rematch between new champion Ben Henderson and former titleholder Frankie Edgar was being planned for the main event of the card.
The UFC last visited Denver in September for UFC 135. That pay-per-view featured a light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, which Jones won with a fourth-round submission.
This will be the UFC’s fifth trip to Denver, but seventh to the Denver metro area. The first two UFC events took place in Denver, as did UFC: The Ultimate Ultimate in 1995. But the promotion then stayed away until a Fight Night card in April 2008 in the north Denver suburb of Broomfield. The UFC returned to Broomfield in 2010 for a UFC on Versus show before going back to Denver proper for UFC 135.
The UFC has several notable fighters who hail from or train in Colorado. Henderson is a native of Colorado Springs, about an hour south of Denver. Others include Shane Carwin, Duane Ludwig, Brendan Schaub and Donald Cerrone.
The Pepsi Center is home to the NBA’s Denver Nuggets and NHL’s Colorado Avalanche. UFC 135 in September did a gate of nearly $2.1 million with more than 16,000 fans.
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UFC 150 Heads to Denver, Site of UFC 1, for Anniversary Show in August