Brazilian site UOL Esporte has an interesting projection for the UFC’s third trip back to Rio at UFC 147, headlined by UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva defending his title once again against challenger Chael Sonnen.
Sonnen famously dubbed the bout ‘the biggest rematch in the history of the business‘ in his post-fight interview at UFC 136, but the South American event in June may only just beat the UFC attendance record that was set by Toronto, Canada for UFC 129.
UFC President Dana White has been floating around a number of 80,000 for potential capacity at the event, but realistically it would seem the capacity tops out at 60,000 based on the initial research done by UOL Esporte. That would put the UFC at only 5,000 ahead of the Toronto show, should the Rio event sell out when tickets are expected to go on sale in May.
Related:
UFC 147: Silva Vs. Sonnen II Officially Set For June 23rd | Anderson Silva And Chael Sonnen To Rematch In Rio Soccer Stadium In Front Of 80,000 Fans | Dan Henderson Won’t Fight Chael Sonnen, Only Wants Anderson Silva At 185 | UFC 147: Anderson Silva Says Chael Sonnen Shouldn’t Have Received A Rematch
According to the official website of the Botafogo Soccer Team, who use the Engenhao stadium as their home ground, the maximum seating capacity is 46,831 fans, while UOL Esporte projects a further 10,000 to 15,000 seats could be added to the field.
Originally intended for a stadium show in Sao Paulo, UFC 147’s location had to be reconsidered due to possible noise ordinance issues which we reported on back in January.
After the jump, a mock up of how the Octagon will look when placed in the center field at Engenhao stadium.
See more photo mock ups of the Octagon on the Botafogo pitch at the UOL Esporte Wesbite
KJ Gould