One hundred and counting

By Andy Samuelson

Monday, July 13, 2009 | 2 a.m.

Those in the sellout crowd at Mandalay Bay can’t say they didn’t see enough action Saturday night during the UFC’s 100th show. There were plenty of fireworks — it depended only on whether you prefer physical or verbal barbs.

Moments after unifying his heavyweight title with a victory against interim champ Frank Mir of Las Vegas, former WWE star Brock Lesnar reverted to his pro wrestling days when he taunted Mir inside the Octagon.

The 265-pound Lesnar then turned his attention to the rowdy crowd, which booed his every move.

“I love it! Keep booing! Keep booing!” Lesnar yelled.

Not all the antics were of the circus variety. Always the professional, Georges St-Pierre defended his welterweight title for the third time with a dominating performance against top contender Thiago Alves, despite suffering a severe groin injury midway through the match.>

Here’s a look at the night by the numbers:

2

The number of fingers with which Lesnar saluted the crowd. UFC President Dana White said Lesnar offered him a sincere apology afterward and was just caught up in the moment. It will be interesting to see whether the company, which has tried to legitimize itself and distance itself from professional wrestling, can control its cash cow.

16

The number of years it’s taken the premier mixed martial arts organization to turn into the world’s fastest-growing sport. In honor of the significance of the show, UFC staffers put together a tribute video that took fans through a visual journey from Royce Gracie winning UFC 1 in Denver to Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffin’s “The Ultimate Fighter” finale.

44

“The Godfather of Ground and Pound” didn’t want to be called an old man, so 44-year-old Mark Coleman came out to prove he wasn’t the same gassed fighter everyone saw in his last bout — against Mauricio Rua at UFC 93 in January. The UFC’s first heavyweight champ used a barrage of elbows and wrestling to score the unanimous-decision win against Bonnar — his first win in the Octagon in 12 years.

“I didn’t prepare like a champion before, but I have a great group of trainers, so everybody watch out because the Hammer is back.”

$100,000

The UFC rewarded its fighters with the largest bonus awards in company history. Dan Henderson’s knockout of Michael Bisping earned him a cool $100K, Yoshihiro Akiyama and Alan Belcher earned “Fight of the Night” honors, and Tom Lawlor’s first-minute choke-out of C.B. Dollaway secured the submission bonus.

$5.1 million

The UFC’s estimated gate amount, which would be the company’s second-largest ever. UFC 66, featuring Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz’s rematch on Dec. 30, 2006, at the MGM Grand took in $5.4 million. Let’s just hope whoever bought that $45,000 ticket on StubHub caught Lesnar’s souvenir mouthpiece.

Andy Samuelson can be reached at andy.samuelson@lasvegassun.com or 702-948-7837.