It was easy to pick the biggest MAGA moment of UFC 316, which took place Saturday night into Sunday morning at the Prudential Center in Newark.
It wasn’t when seemingly the entire arena appeared to be singing along to Lee Greenwood’s ‘God Bless the USA’ before the main event featuring Sean O’Malley of Montana and Merab Dvalishvili of Georgia (the country, not the state).
Or when Kayla Harrison, after winning a world title belt in the co-main event, celebrated with the entire Trump family — even putting the belt on the president’s shoulders.
No, it was when President Trump walked in with UFC CEO Dana White with American Bad Ass, by Kid Rock, blasting throughout the arena – creating a deafening roar that likely was the loudest at N.J. sporting event since Lionel Messi subbed into a match at Red Bull Stadium in the summer of 2023.
To be sure, the raucous crowd was a bit stunned and dismayed when O’Malley was overwhelmed by Dvalishvili, who easily won their rematch in a third-round submission. But everyone went home happy.
The biggest winners on the night were the Prudential Center, the city of Newark and the state of New Jersey.
An all-but-sold-out crowd of 17,343 keyed an event that generated a gate of just over $6.5 million – making it one of the top five revenue nights at the arena. (Because you’re wondering, three of top five are UFC events; the other two are Rolling Stones concerts in December of 2012).
This isn’t surprising. The event’s weekend impact on Newark is well documented. Last year, it was worth $28 million, a study released last week showed.
The impact, however, goes deeper.
Dylan Wanagiel, the VP of sports properties and special events (including ‘combat’ sports) said the impact the event has on the arena’s stature around the world – which increases its ability to book more top events – cannot be overstated.
“When you get the UFC seal of approval, it means a lot,” he said.
Saturday marked the 11th time UFC has come to the Prudential Center. Wanagiel doesn’t take the scheduling for granted.
“The competition for this event is fierce,” he said. “This is a global organization. We’re competing against arenas and markets all over the world.”
Gov. Phil Murphy recognizes the importance.
Murphy, who loves to put New Jersey on the global map, said his administration does whatever it can to help – because he knows how much the event helps the state.
Murphy told BINJE at the event that having UFC here every year counts on the world stage.
“It shows that New Jersey is a place you need to be,” he said.
It also “shows” New Jersey to the world.
When fighters were introduced to the worldwide audience, they did so with “New Jersey” on top of the red side of the octagon and “Prudential Center” on the blue side.
“We know a thing or two about marketing,” Wanagiel joked.
The event ended around 1 a.m. on Sunday morning. You can be sure Wanagiel and his team already are working on the next big thing. It’s a 365-day effort.
There’s hope of landing the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships when the next bids are released. Wanagiel was in Philly earlier this year at the 2025 event, pitching Newark.
There’s hope that New Jersey will again be a staple for men’s basketball and March Madness, after a successful return this spring.
There’s even talk about bringing Sumo wrestling — and unexpectedly fun and well-received event in February of 2024 — back again.
“Everybody loved Sumo,” Wanagiel said.
Then there are the events that already are on the schedule.
On Saturday, the Pru Center will host the USA Wrestling world team trials. On June 21, pro boxing will return in a card featuring Belleville’s Vito Mielnicki, ranked in the top five of the junior welterweight division.
All of these events in all of these sports add up, Wanagiel said. It’s all about marketing the arena as the place to be.
“It shows that the Prudential Center is the town hall for entertainment, as we call it,” he said.
And there’s nothing better than the UFC.
“Tonight shows the world that we are in the big-event business,” he said. “UFC is only going to big markets, where they know they can draw big crowds. They know they have that here at the Prudential Center.”
