UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Masvidal
| Company type | Mixed martial arts event |
|---|---|
| Industry | Sports entertainment |
| Founded | 2015-11-28 |
| Headquarters | Seoul , South Korea |
Area served | South Korea |
UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Masvidal, also referred to as UFC Fight Night 79, was a mixed martial arts event that took place on November 28, 2015, at the Olympic Gymnastics Arena located in Seoul, South Korea.
Background
This occasion represented the UFC's inaugural event within the South Korean market.
The headline bout featured a welterweight contest between former WEC and UFC Lightweight Champion Benson Henderson and Jorge Masvidal, who stepped in for Thiago Alves after Alves withdrew due to a rib injury. Initially, Masvidal was slated to compete against Dong Hyun Kim, who instead faced Dominic Waters.
A featherweight matchup between Doo Ho Choi and Sam Sicilia was rescheduled for this card following previous cancellations caused by injuries sustained by Choi.
The expected co-main heavyweight fight involving Mirko Filipović, a former Pride and K-1 Grand Prix titleholder, and Anthony Hamilton was called off after Filipović announced his retirement citing injury and age concerns. Subsequently, Filipović failed a USADA test for HGH, resulting in Hamilton being removed from the lineup and the bout postponed to a later event.
Dominique Steele was set to face Hyun Gyu Lim; however, Lim withdrew and was replaced by promotional debutant Dong Hyun Kim.
Bonus awards
Monetary bonuses of $50,000 were awarded as follows:
- Fight of the Night: Seo Hee Ham vs. Cortney Casey
- Performance of the Night: Doo Ho Choi and Dominique Steele
Aftermath
On November 24, 2017, at Seoul Central District Court, Tae Hyun Bang received a 10-month prison sentence for accepting bribes totaling US$92,160 to deliberately lose his fight against Leo Kuntz. Bang wagered half of the bribe amount on Kuntz but ultimately abandoned the plan and secured victory after UFC officials detected irregular betting activity. The three intermediaries involved were also convicted. Members of organized crime who had placed US$1.7 million bets on Kuntz issued death threats against Bang.