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UFC rides Lesnar to record year

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09:19 AM ET 12.14 | The three biggest pay-per-views in mixed martial arts were headlined by someone who had never even fought for the UFC before 2007, Brock Lesnar, and gained most of his fame as a pro wrestler, although he never pro wrestled during the year. The biggest pay-per-view event in pro wrestling was headlined by one of the biggest names in boxing, Floyd Mayweather Jr., who never boxed during the year. And the biggest event in boxing was headlined by what most were calling a mismatch, Oscar De La Hoya vs. Manny Pacquiao, with one fighter, Pacquiao having to jump up several weight classes for a bout heavily criticized beforehand. It turned out to be a mismatch, but not in the way most had predicted going in. But when the dust settled on an unusual year, the biggest news of 2008 was the emergence of Lesnar as the year's pay-per-view king. Lesnar's 2.2 million buys over three fights made him the most-watched PPV fighter in 2008. His total was the second highest total in UFC history, trailing only Tito Ortiz, who did 2.25 million in headlining three events in 2006. Lesnar's fights brought a new audience to UFC broadcasts, with company officials estimating close to half of the audience for his debut fight had never purchased a UFC event before. The new heavyweight champion's impact also gives the UFC a shot at having the biggest business year in the history of pay-per-view sports. With one event left on the calendar, the Dec. 27 UFC 92 event from Las Vegas, the company is estimated at selling 5,315,000 pay-per-view orders totaling $237.9 million, already handily beating their marks in the $220-225 million range of 2006 and 2007.

Yahoo! Sports

Brock Lesnar, Peter Kramer/Getty Images Brock Lesnar, Peter Kramer/Getty Images

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