The UFC is now selling its pay-per-view events online for the first time, and as part of Saturday's UFC 100 event, anyone who makes a purchase on UFC.com will also receive access to the otherwise-un-aired six-fight preliminary card.UFC 100 takes place this Saturday, July 11, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
To gain access to the preliminary fights, purchases ($44.95 per event) must be made by 10 PM ET (7 PM PT) this Friday, July 10.
UFC 100 is one of the deepest cards in UFC history with three main-event-worthy bouts, including UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar vs. interim title-holder Frank Mir, UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre vs. top contender Thiago Alves, and Michael Bisping vs. fellow coach on "The Ultimate Fighter 9" Dan Henderson.
Prior to UFC 100, Yahoo! Sports was the sole provider of UFC pay-per-view events online.
The UFC didn't clarify whether buyers who qualify for the special will get live access to the preliminary card or whether they'll be able to watch the events after the live main-card portion of the card.
The UFC 100 preliminary card features Mark Coleman vs. Stephan Bonnar, Mac Danzig vs. Jim Miller, Jon Jones vs. Jake O'Brien and other matchups.
One longtime complaint about the UFC's hefty PPV price tags (both online and through traditional cable platforms) is that preliminary-card fights aren't part of the purchase. But for at least one night, it seems, fans will get what they want.
