SoftBank presents Dynamite!! USA was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event co-promoted by Fighting and Entertainment Group (FEG), the promoters of K-1 kickboxing events and Hero's MMA events, and EliteXC. The event was held on Saturday, June 2, 2007 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. Mauro Ranallo, Bill Goldberg, and Jay Glazer did commentary.
Background The event featured the MMA debut of former professional wrestler Brock Lesnar and the anticipated rematch between Royce Gracie and Kazushi Sakuraba. The show also featured the MMA debut of NFL wide receiver Johnnie Morton.
The event was aired in two parts in the United States, with three preliminary bouts airing for free on Showtime and a main fight card shown on pay-per-view. In Japan, the card was aired as a two-hour edited broadcast on TBS on June 4, 2007. A condensed one-hour version of the entire event was broadcast on Showtime June 9, 2007. The Pay Per View cost viewers $29.95
Controversy Pre-fight problems The event encountered numerous problems and controversies even before it began. FEGPress Release, GRACIE-SAKURABA REMATCH AMONG KEY BOUTS ON STAR-STUDDED DYNAMITE!! USA FIGHT CARD, FEG, INC. [Last retrieved May 27, 2007] had difficulties obtaining a promoter's license, and was only granted a temporary one by the California State Athletic Commission eight days before the event.Article, CSAC Grants FEG License, Saku Status Uncertain, Sherdog.com [Last retrieved May 27, 2007]
Popular South Korean fighter Hong-Man Choi, initially scheduled to fight Brock Lesnar, was denied a license to fight in the state roughly a week and a half before the event for medical reasons (later reported to be a tumor on his pituitary gland).Article, Report: CSAC Denies Hong Man Choi, Sherdog.com [Last retrieved May 27, 2007] K-1 continued to advertise a Lesnar vs. Choi bout up until the day of the fight, despite knowing that it would not occur.Choi's license denial jeopardizes MMA card – Boxing – Yahoo! Sports
An originally announced women's bout featuring Jan Finney vs. Gina Carano was canceled on May 16, 2007, when Carano withdrew due to illness.
Antônio Silva was also removed from the card due to an undisclosed medical condition, and was replaced by Tim Persey.
An announced match between Ray Sefo and Marvin Eastman was dropped from the card with no explanation given.
Attendance and live gate On June 7, 2007, the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) announced that 42,757 tickets were distributed for the event – something promoters say validated the claim of having the largest attendance for a Mixed Martial Arts event in North America (a record previously held by UFC 68).Article, Lance Pugmire [Last retrieved June 9, 2007] The paid gate for the event was $2,545,590. However, the promoters of the event paid $2,342,500 of that to buy 39,083 tickets to its own event. The final verified paid attendance number for K-1 Dynamite stands at 3,674 which generated $203,090 in revenue.
Post-fight Fighter Tim Percy tested positive for methamphetamines after his fight, and was suspended by the CSAC. In addition, Johnnie Morton tested positive for anabolic steroidsMorton Tests Positive for Steroids and Royce Gracie tested positive for Nandrolone, a commonly used anabolic steroid.Gracie Fails Drug Test, Suspended
Results
Purses
The overall disclosed fighter payroll for the event was $1,057,500.
Fighter Fight Earnings Notes Brock Lesnar $170,000 No win bonus Royce Gracie $300,000 No win bonus Johnnie Morton $100,000 Purse withheld Melvin Manhoef $50,000 Jonathan Wiezorek $40,000 Includes $25K win bonus Gesias Calvancanti $36,000 Fined $9K for weight Min Soo Kim $30,000 Kazushi Sakuraba $130,000 "Mighty" Mo Siliga $30,000 Ruben Villareal $30,000 Nam Phan $29,500 Additional $4.5K due to opponent's weight Jake Shields $24,000 Dong Sik Yoon $20,000 Tim Persey $20,000 Hideo Tokoro $15,000 No win bonus Katsuhiko Nagata $15,000 No win bonus Brad Pickett $8,000 Bernard Ackah $5,000 No win bonus Ido Pariente $2,500 Isaiah Hill $2,500
See also Elite Xtreme Combat K-1 Premium Dynamite!! List of K-1 Events List of EliteXC events
References
External links Dynamite!! USA Official Website Official Discussion K-1 Official Website Official EliteXC Website