- Saturday 06.04.2005
- U.S. Broadcast: Pay Per View
- Promotion: Ultimate Fighting Championship
- Ownership: Zuffa, LLC
- Venue: Boardwalk Hall
- Location: Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
- Enclosure: Octagon
- TV Announcers: Mike Goldberg, Joe Rogan
- Ring Announcer: Bruce Buffer
- Post-Fight Interviews: Joe Rogan
- Ticket Revenue (live gate): $1,100,000
- Attendance: 12,000
- PPV Buys / Buyrate: 90,000 | TV Ratings:
- MMA Bouts: 8
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Promotion Links:
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Event Links:
Fight Card
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UFC Middleweight Championship
KO/TKO, Doctor Stoppage
3:25 Round 4 of 5, 18:25 Total6Co-Main Event
185
5 x 5 | Pro
Referees
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John McCarthy
Arlovski vs. Eilers (8), Buentello vs. Jordan (4), Loiseau vs. McCarthy (2) -
Mario Yamasaki
Parisyan vs. Serra (7), Quarry vs. Carter (3), Diaz vs. Oishi (1) -
Herb Dean
Franklin vs. Tanner II (6), Griffin vs. Mahood (5)
Wiki
UFC 53 Wiki
Featuring one of the weakest main events in UFC history, UFC 53 featured an Interim Heavyweight Championship bout between Andrei Arlovski and Justin Eilers. Not only was Eilers coming off of a knockout loss to Paul Buentello prior to being awarded the title shot, but the fight itself failed to live up to its own low expectations. Eilers was stopped after injuring his knee, leaving him unable to defend himself in the first round.
Also on the card was a UFC Middleweight Championship bout between Evan Tanner and Rich Franklin which resulted in one of the worst beatings in recent MMA history. After continuously punishing Tanner en route to the win, Franklin took the title and the coaching responsibilities for Season Two of the hit Spike TV reality show The Ultimate Fighter, opposite Matt Hughes.