On August 6th I attended UFC 133 in my hometown of Philadelphia. This was the second event the UFC has held here and while the card was not as exciting as the card from 2 years ago, it was still a great time. Here are 5 things to keep in mind if you ever decide to go see a UFC event in any location.

Tickets

The UFC has the ability to sell out shows real fast. When this happens it becomes near impossible to find and afford good tickets. Prices can range from $50 to $2000+ so you have to act fast or get real lucky.

Pros – Luckily for us fans the UFC has one of the greatest Presidents in the history of any company and they give out plenty of them for free. #Hunt4UFC on Twitter was the reason I even went to this event because I could not afford the tickets this year. I was able to secure 3 tickets only 3 hours before the event because my roommate and I decided to spend 4 hours of our day taking turns staring at Dana White’s twitter page. IT WORKED! The seats were good too.

Cons – As mentioned earlier, ticket prices can be very high for a UFC event. The $50 tickets are a good price but you will be located in the nose bleed section with the chance of being behind one of the enormous UFC screens. 2 years ago when the UFC came to town, my friends and I spent $1500 each for cage side seats. Well worth it if you have the money but it definitely comes at a cost.

Food/Drink/Restrooms

What are the 2 most annoying things to deal with at any major sporting event? That’s right, lines and prices of food and drink. No matter if it is for the bathroom or food, long lines are common nuisance for fans of any sport and for some reason it is almost always $7 beer night at the stadium. At a UFC event, it was a little bit different though.

Pros – I have been to a lot of Flyers games at the Wells Fargo Center and it’s difficult to get a small drink sometimes because of the lines. During the UFC events, everyone is in their seats during each fight so it is easy to sneak out. Between fights the lines build but it is comparable to leaving between innings at a baseball game.

Cons – Well you do not have to deal with long lines if you play it smart but if you do sneak out to purchase a beer it is going to cost you. Now I am not sure who makes the decision on the price of beer during events but it was $10 for a single beer at any concession stand. Luckily I do not drink but my poor roommate spent a fortune that night. In Philly, it usually costs around $7.25-$7.50 at any Flyer or Phillies game. Which I believe is not too far off from the standard price across the country, but $10 is really asking a lot.

Location and Competing Events

Here in Philly all of our sporting stadiums/arenas are located in one convenient location. I know not every city is set up this way but when a Taylor Swift concert is going on at the same time. It can make the commute and parking a disaster.

Pros – The UFC’s fighters are actually some of the nicest people in any sport and will be glad to hang out with you after the events. After fights they sometimes host parties at clubs and will invite their fans to join. These locations are usually not too far from most of the stadiums/arenas.

Cons – We were not so smart this year and had a nice time sitting in Taylor Swift traffic. She was playing in the Eagles stadium which is directly across the street from where we were going. I have never seen so many cowboy hats in my city before and it was scary when there was a river of humans coming towards you. So please, save yourself some insanity by checking and making sure there is nothing competing with the UFC the night you go.

Why You Should See It Live!

Any fight fan knows how exciting it is to watch MMA and you should at least go see it once live.

Pros – Like any playground school fight who doesn’t want to see two people go at it. The UFC is the best combat sport in the world and everyone should experience it at least one time in their life. There are tons of opportunities to meet the fighters and the UFC really tries to create an experience for you, rather than just showing up and going home.

Cons – Your seats only give you one angle to watch the fight live. If the fighters move to a difficult to see position you will find yourself looking up at the big screen to see the PPV feed. This can become a little frustrating if you spent a lot of money to see the event live.

Why You Should Just Buy the PPV

As a child I never went to any Eagles games with my father. We went to see the Flyers, the Phillies, hell we even went to a Sixers game once. We watched the Eagles each weekend but I never went to a game. So one day I asked him why. He turned and said to me, “I’d rather watch the game in the warmth of my house, rather than go sit and the cold and get a bunch of beer spilled on me.” I always thought this was a funny line and still do to this day.

Pros – Easy access to bathroom and it will save you a lot of money. Once you go to a UFC event live you will see that you spend a lot of cash on tickets, parking, food and drinks. It will also make you realize that shelling out $60 for a PPV is not such a bad deal.

Cons – It is just not the same experience. You can always see the PPV later on and unless you live in Las Vegas, the UFC does not come around all that often. It is worth the money if you can afford it.

*Disclaimer* Philadelphia ranks in the top 10 in terms of population within the United States right now. All of our major sports stadiums are located in one area in South Philadelphia. At the current time all teams, expect for the Sixers, sell out most of their games.