UFC 144 Fight Card: By the Numbers

With every day that passes, mixed martial arts moves closer and closer to the mainstream. Like other mainstream sports, following statistics in MMA can help us feel closer to the fighters themselves, and make us more emotionally invested in the events.

Do you remember how the world watched George Foreman shock the world by becoming the oldest man to win the world heavyweight championship at the age of 45? Or how Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa spent the summer of 1998 chasing down Roger Maris' single season home run record?

This Saturday could go down in history as the day that Benson Henderson wins his first UFC Lightweight Championship. It could go down as the night where Joe Lauzon wins his record-breaking sixth submission of the night award. Here is a look at some of the numbers that matter this Saturday night at UFC 144.

2: Locals Only

TWO – The number of fights that feature neither a Japanese nor PRIDE fighter

It’s definitely a card for the hometown crowd. Not only do they get to see Japanese favorites like KID Yamamoto and Takanori Gomi, but they also get former PRIDE champion Quinton Rampage Jackson and Mark Hunt, a man who defeated both Mirko Cro Cop and Wanderlei Silva inside of the PRIDE ring.

The two fights - Frankie Edgar vs Benson Henderson and Anthony Pettis vs Joe Lauzon

4 Losses

FOUR – The number of consecutive losses for Steve Cantwell going into this weekend

The former WEC champion has put on entertaining bouts since entering the Octagon, but remains winless since using an armbar to dislocate the elbow of Razak Al-Hassan back in 2008. This is his second bout as a middleweight, but there is nothing that can save Cantwell’s job if he accumulates a fifth straight loss in the UFC.

He takes on former DEEP champion Riki Fukuda, who returns to the Octagon for the first time since UFC 127.

10: Career Wins

10 – The number of career UFC wins held by Yushin Okami and Cheick Kong

This number is higher than the number of UFC wins than any other fighter on the card. While Okami is looking to rebound from his loss to Anderson Silva, Kongo is hoping to continue building his momentum.

The Frenchman hasn’t suffered a defeat since a December 2009 bout against Frank Mir. A victory over Mark Hunt on Saturday night will make Kongo 4-0-1 in his last 5 bouts.

12 (out of 14)

12 – The number of takedowns that Mark Hunt stuffed in his last bout against Ben Rothwell

Hunt has been a one-dimensional kickboxer for the majority of his career. He's commonly written off due to the fact that he, at one point, lost six straight bouts - five of them by submission.

If the Super Samoan can continue to shut down his opponents attempts to get the fight to the ground, he may hold a significant striking advantage.

45

45 – The total number of minutes that Benson Henderson has fought in the UFC

Up against top competition since day one, Benson Henderson has earned hard fought decision victories over Mark Bocek, Jim Miller and Clay Guida to earn his shot at lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. Bendo will look to not only defeat Frankie Edgar, but to earn his first UFC stoppage victory in the process.

In comparison, Frankie Edgar has spent nearly 69 minutes (68:54) defending his title inside the Octagon.

77

77 – The number of seconds that it took Ryan Bader to knock out his last opponent

When Rampage expressed a desire to compete in Japan, Bader was one of few top light heavyweights without an opponent. Currently at 6-2 in the UFC, Bader hopes to secure a signature win this weekend when he takes on Quinton Rampage Jackson.

Fun Fact: The only two losses on Bader's record have come via submission. His opponent on Saturday has not won a fight via submission in more than a decade.

170

170 – The new weight of Yoshihiro Akiyama

Akiyama is on a career-worst three-fight skid. Dropping down in weight appears to be the only thing that saved his job. The renowned judoka must come well prepared in his welterweight debut if he plans to get past fellow dual-division fighter Jake Shields.

Shields is also amidst a two-fight skid. A third loss could potentially result in a pink slip.

1,156

1,156 – The number of days between UFC 144 and UFC 92

Despite being known as a knockout artist, December 27, 2008 at UFC 92 is the last time that former light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson won a fight via KO. He will need to stay on his feet in order to defeat the tenacious wrestler Ryan Bader, who will undoubtedly try to stay away from the heavy, but oftentimes predictable, hands of Rampage.

The last KO victory that Rampage earned was against none other than fellow KO master Wanderlei Silva.

4,089

4,089 - The number of days between UFC 144 and UFC 29 – the last time that the UFC came to Japan

The UFC has had a hard time getting back to the Land of the Rising Sun. Their last event in the country occurred on December 16, 2000. In the main event, Japanese fighter Yuki Kondo challenged Tito Ortiz for the light heavyweight championship. Unfortunately for Japanese fans, Tito would win the bout via submission only 1:51 into the first round.

$431,000

$431,000 – The amount of bonus money that Joe Lauzon has earned

After winning eight fight night bonuses, included five submissions and three fight of the nights. He will look for his ninth award against Antony Pettis, a fighter who has previously scored the fight night trifecta while in the WEC, but is still searching for his first UFC bonus.

Despite the lesser credentials of his opponent, Lauzon comes in as a big underdog here. (+195.) Lauzon is no joke, as illustrated by his 47-second victory over title contender Melvin Guillard.