Liddell wins title as UFC reaches apex of popularity

Monday, April 18, 2005 | 9:15 a.m.

Fresh off a hit with its recently concluded Spike TV reality series, the Ultimate Fighting Championship scored big again Saturday as "UFC 52" attracted 14,562 fans to the MGM Grand Garden Arena, making it the most highly attended mixed martial arts event in North America in the sport's history.

The arena shook with the crowd's intensity during crucial moments of the card, on which Chuck Liddell upended Randy Couture for the UFC light heavyweight title in the main event.

Dana White, the president of UFC, which is based in Las Vegas, was filled with emotion late Saturday night as he looked back on what he called an extraordinary year for his business.

"It wasn't too long ago I was at this same hotel talking about how we signed on to do a new reality show," White said. "Little did I dream that we'd become the flagship for Spike TV. Since the reality show started rolling ... it's like the planets aligned for us."

The final episode of "The Ultimate Fighter" on Spike drew 2.6 million viewers April 9, the largest audience to watch a live UFC fight. The episode was also the most-watched show on television among men ages 18-34, a desirable demographic for programmers, including the broadcast networks.

It was also the second-most-watched original series ever to air on Spike. (The finale of "The Joe Schmo Show" drew 3.4 million viewers.)

The second season of "The Ultimate Fighter" is scheduled to begin shooting in June, and is scheduled to begin airing on Spike on Aug. 22, White said Saturday.

White gave credit for much of the show's success to the personalities of the combatants in Saturday night's main event. Couture and Liddell starred as coaches of opposing teams of ultimate fighters.

"I honestly believe if we had not cast the series the way we did, it wouldn't have turned out the way it did," White said. In Couture and Liddell, "we had two of the best light heavyweights of all time, and two of the best human beings you would ever hope to meet."

Liddell (15-3 in mixed martial arts) used a short, hard overhand right to knock Couture (13-7) to the floor of the octagon, stopping the reigning champ at 2:06 of the first round to avenge a 2003 defeat and take the title Saturday.

"He came out the same, and I thought he was striking even better," Liddell said. "But I was able to catch him. I caught him on the chin, and I throw pretty hard. There aren't too many people who are able to stand after that.

"I've been waiting for this my whole life."

Couture, 41, of Gresham, Ore., entered the fight as a minus-170 favorite against 35-year-old Liddell, of San Luis Obispo, Calif., according to odds in the MGM Grand sports book. The bout generated spirited two-way betting action, as the odds on Couture were as high as minus-250 earlier Saturday.

"You stay in here long enough, sooner or later that's bound to happen," Couture said of the knockout. "I'll be back, I guarantee it."

In other featured bouts Saturday:

UFC 53, featuring interim heavyweight champ Andrei Arlovski against an opponent to be announced, is scheduled for June 4 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.