More than 21,000 people were in Rupp Arena Friday night to see the UK basketball team, but The Main Event was downstairs.

Over two nights, more than 30 amateur boxers from UK fraternities, the UK boxing club and nearby boxing clubs competed in a boxing tournament organized by Sigma Chi and Alpha Delta Pi at the Lexington Center.

About $45,000 was raised, according to an e-mail from Jason Wulfeck, Sigma Chi philanthropy chair. The two Greek organizations will donate the proceeds to The Ronald McDonald House and The Huntsman Cancer Institute. Each charity will receive about $15,000.

“The event was a huge success and we believe that the sky is the limit for future Main Events,” Wulfeck said in the e-mail.

About 1,200 people attended the event over two nights. Kappa Alpha Theta won the sorority dance competition, and Pi Kappa Alpha was the fraternity champion.

The Main Event, previously called Fight Night, was canceled last year after Sigma Chi and Alpha Delta Pi couldn’t secure approval from USA boxing. This year, participants spent more time training with the UK boxing club. It was also the first year members of the UK boxing club fought in the tournament.

“We try and make this as safe as we can make it, and we try and make it safer than some of the other activities these kids participate in,” said Larry Herman, a coach with the UK boxing club.

Tony Curtis, president of Kentucky Amateur Boxing, said the event was a way to generate interest in boxing. He also served as a referee and a judge, and was satisfied with the measures organizers put in place to ensure boxer safety.

“We had one goal in mind … to reestablish it and earn back the trust of the student body and I think we definitely did that,” Wulfeck said.