UFC 141

''UFC 141: Lesnar vs. Overeem'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Friday December 30, 2011, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Background

The UFC returned to a 10 p.m. ET start with this event.

''UFC 141'' was the last event to feature preliminary fights live on Spike TV.

This event marked Brock Lesnar's return to MMA action after being out for over a year due to diverticulitis. The lead up to the fight was rife with controversy regarding his opponent, Alistair Overeem. In November 2011, both competitors were required by the NSAC to comply with out-of-competition drug testing. Lesnar delivered his sample screen on November 21, while Overeem delivered his on November 23. The screen, however, did not meet the standards of the commission. Overeem submitted a second test through his personal physician – which was also deemed unacceptable – before flying out of the country. Overeem was ultimately given a conditional license for the fight by the committee during a meeting held on December 12, 2011.

The winner of the main event was expected to face Junior dos Santos in a bout for the UFC Heavyweight Championship. After being defeated by Overeem, Lesnar announced his immediate retirement from the UFC.

T. J. Grant was originally scheduled to face Jacob Volkmann at this event but was forced to pull out due to an undisclosed injury, and was replaced by returning veteran Efrain Escudero.

Matthew Riddle was scheduled to face Luis Ramos, but the bout was cancelled only moments before the fight due to Riddle being ill.

Ramsey Nijem was scheduled to face Anthony Njokuani at the event but was forced to pull out due to an undisclosed injury, and replaced by Danny Castillo.

Results

Bonus awards

The following fighters received $75,000 bonuses.

*Fight of the Night: Nate Diaz vs. Donald Cerrone
*Knockout of the Night: Johny Hendricks
*Submission of the Night: Not awarded as no matches ended by submission.

Reported payout

The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to the Nevada State Athletic Commission. It does not include sponsor money and also does not include the UFC's traditional "fight night" bonuses.

*Alistair Overeem: $380,000 (includes $190,000 win bonus) def. Brock Lesnar: $400,000
*Nate Diaz: $74,000 (includes $37,000 win bonus) def. Donald Cerrone: $30,000
*Johny Hendricks: $52,000 (includes $26,000 win bonus) def. Jon Fitch: $60,000
*Alexander Gustafsson: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus) def. Vladimir Matyushenko: $40,000
*Jim Hettes: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus) def. Nam Phan: $8,000
*Ross Pearson: $40,000 (includes $20,000 win bonus) def. Junior Assuncao: $8,000
*Danny Castillo: $38,000 (includes $19,000 win bonus) def. Anthony Njokuani: $12,000
*Dong Hyun Kim: $82,000 (includes $41,000 win bonus) def. Sean Pierson: $8,000
*Jacob Volkmann: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus) def. Efrain Escudero: $10,000
*Diego Nunes: $24,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus) def. Manny Gamburyan: $18,000

References

{{UFC Events

Ultimate Fighting Championship flagship events
2011 in mixed martial arts
2011 in sports in Nevada
Ultimate Fighting Championship events at MGM Grand Garden Arena
December 2011 sports events in the United States