UFC 52: Couture vs. Liddell 2 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on June 4, 2005, at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event was broadcasted live on pay-per-view in the United States and Canada, and later released on DVD. Headlining the card were the coaches of The Ultimate Fighter, Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell. At the time, it was the highest-grossing UFC event ever at the live gate, with $2,575,450 in ticket sales. Dan "The Beast" Severn was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame at this event. The total fighter payroll for UFC 52 was $519,500.
Preliminary Card
Heavyweight Bout
Mike Van Arsdale vs. John Marsh
Van Arsdale defeats Marsh by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the bout 29-28 for Van Arsdale.
Middleweight Bout
Patrick Côté vs. Joe Doerksen
Doerksen defeats Côté by submission (rear naked choke) at 2:35 of round three. Doerksen entered the card as a late replacement for English fighter Lee Murray, who pulled out due to travel complications.
Middleweight Bout
Ivan Salaverry vs. Joe Riggs
Salaverry defeats Riggs by submission (triangle choke) at 2:42 of round one.
Main Card
Welterweight Bout
Georges St. Pierre vs. Jason Miller
St. Pierre defeats Miller by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the bout 30-27 for St. Pierre. This fight was originally scheduled for UFC 48, but Miller was tending to legal problems at the time.
Middleweight Bout
Matt Lindland vs. Travis Lutter
Lindland defeats Lutter by submission (guillotine choke) at 3:32 of round two.
UFC Welterweight Championship
Matt Hughes (C) vs. Frank Trigg
Welterweight champion, Matt Hughes, successfully defends his title and defeats Frank Trigg by submission (rear naked choke) at 4:05 of round one. Hughes suffered a knee to the groin early in the fight that went unseen by the referee. Trigg attempted to take advantage of the non-call by punching Hughes on the ground and attempting a submission. Trigg nearly had Hughes in a rear naked choke, but in one of the more remarkable comebacks in UFC history, Hughes escaped the hold, pinned Trigg against the fence and slammed him to the mat. After some more scuffling on the ground, Hughes eventually trapped Trigg in a rear naked choke - the same hold he had used to win their first fight.
Light Heavyweight Bout
Renato Sobral vs. Travis Wiuff
In the evening's swing bout, Sobral defeats Wiuff by submission (armbar) at :24 of round two. This bout marked Sobral's first fight in the UFC since losing to Chuck Liddell at UFC 40 in 2002.
UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
Randy Couture (C) vs. Chuck Liddell
In the main event of the evening, Chuck Liddell defeats Randy Couture by knockout (punches) at 2:06 of round one. Early in the fight, Couture suffered an unintentional eye poke and was given time to rest. Soon after this, Liddell landed a right cross on the left side of Couture's head, knocking him out and ending his title reign. Liddell becomes the UFC Light Heavyweight champion.
