Las Vegas has always been known as a fight town, but the type of fights that has captured Sin City and the country over the past few years has switched from boxing to mixed martial arts. Just look at the numbers from a few recent events.

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Boxing and MMA went head-to-head on the Fourth of July holiday weekend, with the Ultimate Fighting Championship scoring the equivalent of a devastating knockout victory. UFC 86: Jackson vs. Griffin pitted Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson against Forrest Griffin for the UFC light heavyweight title, while Kendall Holt battled Ricardo Torres for the World Boxing Organization super lightweight title.

Las Vegas Sports Consultants, the company that dispenses odds to 90 percent of Nevada casinos, has seen interest in MMA grow dramatically over the past few years.

“MMA is much bigger than boxing right now,” stated LVSC Chief Operating Officer Kenny White. “We have only been doing MMA odds for the past six months, but I know sportsbooks across the state are doing way more business concerning MMA than in the past.”

UFC 86: Jackson vs. Griffin had a paid crowd of 9,630 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center and a live gate of $3.35 million. The Holt-Torres rematch occurred at The Theatre for the Performing Arts at Planet Hollywood in front of 3,130 fans for a live gate of $351,892.

A better comparison between the two sports involves a pair of recently completed high-profile events. Boxing took center stage at the Mandalay Bay Events Center Saturday, June 28 to see history between Manny Pacquiao and David Diaz.

Pacquiao ascended to one of the greats in boxing history with a ninth-round knockout victory to secure his record fourth championship in four weight classes. However in a highly anticipated matchup between two of today’s premier fighters drawing in both Filipino and Latino fans, only 7,445 fans were in attendance for a live gate of $1.84 million. UFC 86: Jackson vs. Griffin in the same arena just two weeks later almost doubled those live gate numbers.

“Wagering on MMA has really come to the forefront, and it’s starting to establish footholds,” noted Mirage Race and Sportsbook Director Jay Rood. “It’s the younger crowd that is really driving it.

“The UFC knows its core audience, and boxing is starting to take a backseat. MMA will surpass our major boxing numbers in the near future.”

By looking at the gross sales from live gates, you can see the trends shifting to MMA. The top-10 live gates in Nevada concerning the UFC have all occurred the past two years, with UFC 66: Liddell vs. Ortiz II leading the way. There was a paid attendance of 12,191 for that event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on December 30, 2006, with the gross sales exceeding $5.39 million.

“Chuck is definitely a draw, all the fights he’s been involved in has seen more activity on those fights,” said Rood. “Forrest will probably go down that road, a lot of people backed him during the Jackson fight.

“From a ticket standpoint, people backed Forrest by a 3/1 ratio but the larger wagers were on Jackson.”

While MMA popularity ascends, boxing appears to be on its way to a standing eight count. Outside of the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Oscar De La Hoya super matchup May 5, 2007 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, the next five top-grossing boxing matches in Nevada all occurred in the 1990’s. Three of those fights involved Mike Tyson, while the fourth pitted a rematch between Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield.

In boxing’s defense, the Mayweather-De La Hoya matchup had a paid attendance of 17,078 with a live gate of $18.4 million. The UFC’s highest grossing fight would only rank 33rd on the boxing list, but the recent trends favor MMA.

“Boxing plays out like it does, it’s a test of attrition on who can take the most punishment,” stated Rood. “In MMA, the best-trained guy doesn’t always win.

“A guy can be dominating the fight and still lose. It’s more exciting than boxing, and we are seeing that here in the sportsbook.”

Brad Young can be reached at byoung@vegasinsider.com.