Inspired by vale tudo tournaments in Brazil, the UFC held its first competition in Denver, Colorado in 1993. Showcasing fighters of different disciplines—including boxing, Brazilian jiu jitsu, wrestling and Muay Thai, among others—the UFC sought to identify the most effective martial art in a real fight. After a period of political backlash, the UFC gradually underwent reform, embracing stricter rules and achieving sanctioning with State Athletic Commissions.
With a cable-television deal and expansion into Canada, Europe and new markets within the United States, the UFC as of 2010 has gained in popularity, along with greater mainstream-media coverage. As of 2010 viewers can access UFC programming on pay-per-view television, Versus in the United States, on ESPN in the United Kingdom and Ireland as well as in 33 other countries
History of the UFC
Early competition
Royce Gracie utilized Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in the UFC's formative years to defeat opponents of greater size and strength.
Businessman Art Davie met Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu pioneer Rorion Gracie in 1991, while researching martial arts for a marketing client. Gracie operated a Brazilian jiu-jitsu school in Torrance, California and the Gracie family had a long history of vale tudo matches - a precursor of modern mixed martial arts - in Brazil. Davie became Gracie's student.
In 1992, inspired by the Gracies in Action video-series produced by the Gracies and featuring Gracie jiu-jitsu defeating various martial-arts masters, Davie proposed to Rorion Gracie and John Milius an eight-man, single-elimination tournament with a title of War of the Worlds. The tournament would feature martial artists from different disciplines facing each other in no-holds-barred combat to determine the best martial art. it woluld aim to replicate the excitement of the matches Davie had seen on the videos. Milius, a noted film director and screenwriter, as well as a Gracie student, agreed to be the event's creative director. Davie drafted the business plan and twenty-eight investors contributed the initial capital to start WOW Promotions with the intent to develop the tournament into a television franchise.
In 1993 WOW Promotions sought a television partner and approached pay-per-view producers TVKO (HBO), SET (Showtime) and the Semaphore Entertainment Group (SEG). Both TVKO and SET declined, but SEG – a pioneer in pay-per-view television which had produced such off-beat events as a mixed-gender tennis match between Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova – became WOW's partner in May 1993.SEG contacted video and film art-director Jason Cusson to design the trademarked "Octagon", a signature piece for the event. Cusson remained the Production Designer through UFC 27.SEG devised the name for the show as The Ultimate Fighting Championship.
VHS box art for the first Ultimate Fighting Championship
WOW Promotions and SEG produced the first event, later called UFC 1, at McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado on November 12, 1993. Art Davie functioned as the show's booker and matchmaker. The television broadcast featured kickboxers Patrick Smith and Kevin Rosier, savate fighter Gerard Gordeau, karate expert Zane Frazier, shootfighter Ken Shamrock, sumo wrestler Teila Tuli, boxer Art Jimmerson and 175 lb. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Royce Gracie—younger brother of UFC co-founder Rorion Gracie who was hand-picked by Rorion himself to represent his family in the competition. The show became an instant success, drawing 86,592 television subscribers on pay-per-view.
The show proposed to find an answer for sports fans to questions such as: "Can a wrestler beat a boxer?" As with most martial arts at the time, fighters typically had skills in just one discipline and had little experience against opponents with different skills. Royce Gracie's submission skills proved the most effective in the inaugural tournament, earning him the first ever UFC tournament championship.
However, the promoters did not intend for the event to become a precursor to a series. "That show was only supposed to be a one-off," eventual UFC President Dana White said. "It did so well on pay-per-view they decided to do another, and another. Never in a million years did these guys think they were creating a sport."
With no weight classes, fighters often faced significantly larger or taller opponents. For example, Keith "The Giant Killer" Hackney faced Emmanuel Yarborough at UFC 3 with a 9 in (23 cm) height and 400 pounds (180 kg) weight disadvantage. Many martial artists believed that technique could overcome these size disadvantages, and that a skilled fighter could use an opponent's size and strength against him. With the 175 lb (79 kg) Royce Gracie winning three of the first four events, the UFC quickly proved that size does not always determine the outcome of the fight.
During this early stage of the organization, the UFC would showcase a bevy of different styles and fighters. Aside from the aforementioned Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock and Patrick Smith, the competitions also featured competitors such as Kimo Leopoldo, Hall-of-Famer Dan Severn, Marco Ruas, Oleg Taktarov, Tank Abbott, Don Frye and Gary Goodridge.
In April 1995, following UFC 5 in Charlotte, North Carolina, Davie and Gracie sold their interest in the franchise to SEG and disbanded WOW Promotions. Davie continued with SEG as the show's booker and matchmaker, as well as the commissioner of Ultimate Fighting, until December 1997.
[edit]Emergence of stricter rules
Although UFC used the "There are no rules!" tagline in the early 1990s, the UFC did in fact operate with limited rules. There was no biting, no eye gouging, and the system frowned on (but allowed) techniques such as hair pulling, headbutting, groin strikes and fish-hooking.
Ken Shamrock, shown training U.S. Marines, was the first reigning UFC Champion to win the title in a non-tournament format.
In fact, in a UFC 4 qualifying match, competitors Jason Fairn and Guy Mezger agreed not to pull hair—as they both wore pony tails tied back for the match. Additionally, that same event saw a matchup between Keith Hackney and Joe Son in which Hackney unleashed a series of groin shots against Son while on the ground.
The UFC had a reputation, especially in the early days, as an extremely violent event, as evidenced by a disclaimer[citation needed] in the beginning of the UFC 5 broadcast which warned audiences of the violent nature of the sport.
UFC 5 also introduced the first singles match, called "The Superfight." This was an important development because singles matches would feature fighters who suffered no prior damage from a previous fight in the same event, unlike tournament matches. Singles matches would also become a staple in the UFC for years to come.
"The Superfight" began as a non-tournament match that would determine the first reigning UFC Champion for tournament winners to face; it later evolved into a match that could feature either title matches or non-title matches. The "Superfight" would eventually completely phase out tournament matches; by UFC Brazil, the UFC abandoned the tournament format for an entire card of singles matches (aside from a one time UFC Japan tournament featuring Japanese fighters). UFC 6 was the first event to feature the crowning of the first non-tournament UFC Champion, Ken Shamrock.
[edit]Controversy and reform
The violent nature of the burgeoning sport quickly drew the attention of the U.S. authorities.
Before reform, Senator John McCain prominently opposed the UFC.
Senator John McCain (R-AZ) saw a tape of the first UFC events and immediately found it abhorrent. McCain himself led a campaign to ban UFC, calling it "human cockfighting," and sending letters to the governors of all fifty U.S. states asking them to ban the event.
As a result, the UFC was dropped from the major cable pay-per-view distributor Viewer's Choice, and from individual cable carriers such as TCI Cable.
Thirty-six states enacted laws that banned "no-holds-barred" fighting, including New York, which enacted the ban on the eve of UFC 12, forcing a relocation of the event to Dothan, Alabama. The UFC continued to air on DirecTV PPV, though its audience remained minuscule compared to the larger cable pay-per-view platforms of the era.
UFC Hall of Famer Randy "The Natural" Couture debuted in 1997 as the UFC underwent reform.
In response to the criticism, the UFC increased its cooperation with state athletic commissions and redesigned its rules to remove the less palatable elements of fights—while retaining the core elements of striking and grappling. UFC 12 saw the introduction of weight-classes. From UFC 14 gloves became mandatory and kicks to the head of a downed opponent, hair pulling, fish-hooking, headbutting, and groin strikes were banned. UFC 15 saw more limitations on permissible striking areas: strikes to the back of the neck and head, and small joint manipulations were banned. With five-minute rounds introduced at UFC 21, the UFC gradually re-branded itself as a sport, rather than a spectacle.
As the UFC continued to work with state athletic commissions, events took place in smaller U.S. markets, including Iowa, Mississippi, Louisiana, Wyoming and Alabama. SEG could not secure home-video releases for UFC 23 through UFC 29. With other mixed martial arts promotions working towards U.S. sanctioning, the International Fighting Championships secured the first U.S. sanctioned mixed-martial-arts event, which occurred in New Jersey on September 30, 2000. Just two months later, the UFC held its first sanctioned event, UFC 28, under the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board's "Unified Rules".
McCain's opinion of the sport has changed since reform. He stated, "The sport has grown up. The rules have been adopted to give its athletes better protections and to ensure fairer competition."
As the UFC's rules started to evolve, so too did its field of competitors. Notable UFC fighters to emerge in this era include Mark Coleman, Vitor Belfort, Tito Ortiz, Frank Shamrock, Randy Couture, Mikey Burnett, Pat Miletich, Chuck Liddell, Pedro Rizzo, Jeremy Horn, Pete Williams, Jens Pulver, Evan Tanner, Matt Hughes and Andrei Arlovski, among others.
Zuffa Purchase
Current UFC President Dana White
After the long battle to secure sanctioning, SEG stood on the brink of bankruptcy when Station Casinos executives Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, and aerobics instructor Dana White approached them in 2001, with an offer to purchase the UFC. A month later, in January 2001, the Fertittas bought the UFC for $2 million and created Zuffa, LLC as the parent entity controlling the UFC.
With ties to the Nevada State Athletic Commission (Lorenzo Fertitta was a former member of the NSAC), Zuffa secured sanctioning in Nevada in 2001. Shortly thereafter, the UFC returned to pay-per-view cable television with UFC 33: Victory in Vegas featuring three championship bouts.
Turn-around and struggle for survival
The UFC slowly, but steadily, rose in popularity after the Zuffa purchase, due partly to greater advertising, corporate sponsorship, the return to cable pay-per-view and subsequent home video and DVD releases.
Canadian fighter Georges St-Pierre (a.k.a. GSP) - as of 2010 Welterweight Champion
With larger live gates at casino venues like the Trump Taj Mahal and the MGM Grand Garden Arena, and pay-per-view buys beginning to return to levels enjoyed by the UFC prior to the political backlash in 1997, the UFC secured its first television deal with Fox Sports Net. The Best Damn Sports Show Period aired the first mixed martial arts match on American cable television in June 2002, as well as the main event showcasing Chuck Liddell vs. Vitor Belfort at UFC 37.5.Later, FSN would air highlight shows from the UFC, featuring one hour blocks of the UFC's greatest bouts.
At UFC 40, pay-per-view buys hit 150,000 for a card headlined by a grudge match between Tito Ortiz and UFC veteran Ken Shamrock, who had previously defected to professional wrestling in the WWF before returning to MMA. It was the first time the UFC hit such a high mark since being forced "underground" in 1997.
Despite the success, the UFC was still experiencing financial deficits. By 2004, Zuffa had $34 million of losses since they purchased the UFC. Fighters who came into prominence after Zuffa's takeover include B.J. Penn, Sean Sherk, Matt Serra, Ricco Rodriguez, Robbie Lawler, Frank Mir, Rich Franklin, Karo Parisyan, Georges St-Pierre and Nick Diaz.
The Ultimate Fighter and mainstream emergence
Joe Rogan, comedian and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner under Eddie Bravo, broadcasts as color commentator at Fight Night 7
Faced with the prospect of folding, the UFC stepped outside the bounds of pay-per-view and made a foray into television. After being featured in a reality television series, American Casino, and seeing how well the series worked as a promotion vehicle, the Fertitta brothers developed the idea of the UFC having its own reality series.
Their idea, The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) – a reality television show featuring up-and-coming MMA fighters in competition for a six-figure UFC contract, with fighters eliminated from competition via exhibition mixed martial arts matches – was pitched to several networks, each one rejecting the idea outright. Not until they approached Spike TV, with an offer to pay the $10 million production costs themselves, did they find an outlet.
TUF alum Shonie Carter weighs-in for his fight with "The Irish Hand Grenade" Marcus Davis.
In January 2005, Spike TV launched TUF in the timeslot following WWE Raw. The show became an instant success, culminating with a notable season finale brawl featuring finalists Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar going toe-to-toe for the right to earn the six-figure contract, an event that Dana White credits for saving the UFC.
On the heels of the Griffin/Bonnar finale, a second season of The Ultimate Fighter launched in August 2005, and two more seasons appeared in 2006. Spike and the UFC continue to create and air new seasons.
Following the success of The Ultimate Fighter, Spike also picked up UFC Unleashed, an hour-long weekly show featuring select fights from previous events. Spike also signed on to broadcast live UFC Fight Night, a series of fight events debuting in August 2005; Countdown specials to promote upcoming UFC pay-per-view cards, and several other series and specials featuring and promoting the UFC and its fighters.
Surging popularity and growth
New York City Times Square ad for UFC 88: Breakthrough featuring Chuck Liddell vs. "Sugar" Rashad Evans
With increased visibility, the UFC's pay-per-view buy numbers exploded. UFC 52, the first event after the first season of The Ultimate Fighter which featured eventual-UFC Hall of Famer Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell avenging his defeat to fellow future Hall of Famer Randy Couture, drew a pay-per-view audience of 300,000,[33] doubling its previous benchmark of 150,000 set at UFC 40. Following the second season of The Ultimate Fighter, the UFC's much-hyped rubber match between Liddell and Couture drew an estimated 410,000 pay-per-view buys at UFC 57.
For the rest of 2006, pay-per-view buy rates continued to skyrocket, with 620,000 buys for UFC 60: Hughes vs. Gracie—featuring Royce Gracie's first UFC fight in 11 years—and 775,000 buys for UFC 61 featuring the rematch between Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz, the coaches of The Ultimate Fighter 3. The organization hit a milestone with UFC 66, pitting Ortiz against Liddell with over 1 million buys.
The surge in popularity prompted the UFC to beef up its executive team. In March 2006, the UFC announced that it had hired Marc Ratner, former Executive Director of the Nevada Athletic Commission,as Vice President of Regulatory Affairs. Ratner, once an ally of Senator McCain's campaign against no holds barred fighting, became a catalyst for the emergence of sanctioned mixed martial arts in the United States. Ratner continues to educate numerous athletic commissions to help raise the UFC's media profile in an attempt to legalize mixed martial arts in jurisdictions inside and outside the United States that have yet to sanction the sport.
In December 2006, Zuffa acquired the northern California-based promotion World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC). The WEC showcases lighter weight classes in MMA, whereas the UFC features heavier weight classes. Notable fighters included Urijah Faber, Miguel Angel Torres, Mike Thomas Brown, Brian Bowles and Jose Aldo.
UFC's global expansion has taken it to the UK, as demonstrated in this billboard featuring Spencer Fisher and Sam Stout
The sport's popularity was also noticed by the sports betting community as BodogLife.com, an online gambling site, stated in July 2007 that in 2007 UFC would surpass boxing for the first time in terms of betting revenues. In fact, the UFC had already broken the pay-per-view industry's all-time records for a single year of business, generating over $222,766,000 in revenue in 2006, surpassing both WWE and boxing.
The UFC continued its rapid rise from near obscurity with Roger Huerta gracing the cover of Sports Illustrated and Chuck Liddell on the front of ESPN The Magazine in May 2007.
UFC programming is now shown in 36 countries worldwide, and the UFC plans to continue expanding internationally, running shows regularly in Canada and the U.K., with an office established in the U.K. aimed to expand the European audience. UFC has also held events in Germany, Australia and the United Arab Emirates, while Afghanistan, China, Mexico and the Philippines are candidates for future events.
Pride acquisition and beyond
Pride Fighting Championships logo
Pride showcased elaborate event presentation to accompany a fighter roster that arguably surpassed the UFC's.
On March 27, 2007, the UFC and their Japan-based rival the Pride Fighting Championships announced an agreement in which the majority owners of the UFC, Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, would purchase the Pride brand.
The acquisition of Pride was perceived by UFC officials as a watershed moment for mixed martial arts. "This is really going to change the face of MMA," Lorenzo Fertitta declared. "Literally creating a sport that could be as big around the world as football. I liken it somewhat to when the NFC and AFC came together to create the NFL."
Initial intentions were for both organizations to be run separately but aligned together with plans to co-promote cards featuring the champions and top contenders from both organizations. However, Dana White felt that the Pride model wasn't sustainable and the organization would likely fold with many former Pride fighters such as Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva and others already being realigned under the UFC brand. On October 4, 2007, Pride Worldwide closed its Japanese office, laying off 20 people who were working there since the closing of its parent company Dream Stage Entertainment (DSE).
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, one of many stars to emerge after the UFC's acquisition of Pride, seen slamming Ricardo Arona for a knockout from a triangle choke at Pride Critical Countdown 2004
In 2008, the UFC announced two major exclusive sponsorship deals with Harley-Davidson and Anheuser-Busch InBev,[52] making the brewer's Bud Light the official and exclusive beer sponsor of the UFC.
On June 18, 2008, Lorenzo Fertitta accommodated the UFC's growth by announcing his resignation from Station Casinos in order to devote his energies to the international business development of Zuffa, particularly the UFC. The move proved to be pivotal, as Fertitta helped strike TV deals in China, France, Mexico and Germany as well as open alternative revenue streams with a new UFC video game and UFC action figures, among other projects.
Anderson "The Spider" Silva emerged as one of the most dominant fighters in UFC history.
Popularity took another major surge in 2009 with UFC 100 and the 10 events preceding it including UFC 90, 91, 92, 94 and 98. UFC 100 was a massive success garnering 1.7 million buys [54] under the drawing power of former NCAA wrestling champion and WWE star Brock Lesnar and his rematch with former Heavyweight champion Frank Mir, Canadian superstar Georges St-Pierre going head-to-head with Brazilian knockout artist Thiago Alves, and Pride legend Dan Henderson going against British middleweight Michael Bisping; rival coaches on The Ultimate Fighter: U.S.A. vs U.K..
Fighters exposed to the UFC audience—or who became prominent—in the post-Pride era include Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida, Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera, Quinton Jackson, Forrest Griffin, Rashad Evans, Dan Henderson, Mauricio Rua, Thiago Silva, Josh Koscheck, Nate Marquardt, Shane Carwin, Cain Velasquez, Kenny Florian, Diego Sanchez, Junior dos Santos, Dan Hardy, Clay Guida, Sam Stout and Frank Edgar, among others.
Rules
Referee "Big" John McCarthy (left) is known for his use of the phrase "Let's Get It On!"
The current rules for the Ultimate Fighting Championship were originally established by the New Jersey Athletic Control Board.The "Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts" that New Jersey established has been adopted in other states that regulate mixed martial arts, including Nevada, Louisiana, and California. These rules are also used by many other promotions within the United States, becoming mandatory for those states that have adopted the rules, and so have become the standard de facto set of rules for professional mixed martial arts across the country.
Rounds
UFC Octagon girl Arianny
The UFC matches are varied in length, depending if the match is for a championship title. Regardless if a championship is on the line or not, a round will last for five minutes. Non-Championship bouts are for three rounds; Championship bouts are for five rounds. There is a one-minute rest period between rounds.
Weight divisions
See also: Mixed martial arts weight classes
The UFC currently uses five weight classes:
Lightweight: 146 to 155 lb (66 to 70 kg)
Welterweight: 156 to 170 lb (71 to 77 kg)
Middleweight: 171 to 185 lb (78 to 84 kg)
Light Heavyweight: 186 to 205 lb (84 to 93 kg)
Heavyweight: 206 to 265 lb (93 to 120 kg).
Non-title fights have a one pound leniency. In addition, there are four other weight classes specified in the Unified Rules which the UFC does not currently use:
Flyweight: under 126 lb (57 kg)
Bantamweight: 126 to 135 lb (57 to 61 kg)
Featherweight: 136 to 145 lb (62 to 66 kg)
Super Heavyweight: above 265 lb (120 kg).
The Bantamweight and Featherweight classes are used in another promotion owned by Zuffa, LLC, World Extreme Cagefighting.
Cage
Shot of The Octagon from UFC 74 ; Clay Guida vs. Marcus Aurelio
Inside the cage
The UFC stages bouts in an eight-sided enclosure; "The Octagon." Originally, SEG trademarked The Octagon and prevented other mixed martial arts promotions from using the same type of cage, but in 2001, Zuffa gave its permission for other promotions to use octagonal cages (while reserving use of the name "Octagon"), reasoning that the young sport needed uniformity to continue to win official sanctioning.
The cage is an octagonal structure with walls of metal chain-link fence coated with black vinyl and a diameter of 32 ft (9.8 m), allowing 30 ft (9.1 m) of space from point to point. The fence is 5'6" to 5'8" high. The cage sits atop a platform, raising it 4 ft (1.2 m) from the ground. It has foam padding around the top of the fence and between each of the eight sections. It also has two entry-exit gates opposite each other.The mat, painted with sponsorship logos and art, is replaced for each event.
Attire
All competitors must fight in approved shorts, without shoes. Shirts, gis or long pants (including gi pants) are not allowed. Fighters must use approved light-weight open-fingered gloves, that include at least 1" of padding around the knuckles, (110 to 170 g / 4 to 6 ounces) that allow fingers to grab. These gloves enable fighters to punch with less risk of an injured or broken hand, while retaining the ability to grab and grapple.
Originally the attire for UFC was very open if controlled at all. Many fighters still chose to wear tight-fitting shorts or boxing-type trunks, while others wore long pants or singlets. Multi-time tournament champion Royce Gracie wore a jiujitsu gi in all his early appearances in UFC.
Match outcome
Matches usually end via:
Submission: a fighter clearly taps on the mat or his opponent or verbally submits.
Knockout:a fighter is put into a state of unconsciousness resulting from any legal strike.
Technical Knockout (TKO): If the referee decides a fighter cannot continue, the fight is ruled as a technical knockout. Technical knockouts can be classified into three categories:
referee stoppage (the referee ends the fight because one fighter is unable to intelligently defend themselves)
doctor stoppage (a ring side doctor decides that it is unsafe for the fighter to continue the bout due to excessive bleeding or physical injuries)
corner stoppage (a fighter's own cornerman signals defeat for their own fighter)
Judges' Decision: Depending on scoring, a match may end as:
unanimous decision (all three judges score a win for fighter A)
majority decision (two judges score a win for fighter A, one judge scores a draw)
split decision (two judges score a win for fighter A, one judge scores a win for fighter B)
unanimous draw (all three judges score a draw)
majority draw (two judges score a draw, one judge scoring a win)
split draw (one judge scores a win for fighter A, one judge scores a win for fighter B, and one judge scores a draw)
Note: In the event of a draw, it is not necessary that the fighters' total points be equal (see, e.g., UFC 41 Penn vs. Uno, or UFC 43 Freeman vs. White). However, in a unanimous or split draw, each fighter does score an equal number of win judgments from the three judges (0 or 1, respectively).
A fight can also end in a technical decision, disqualification, forfeit, technical draw, or no contest. The latter two outcomes have no winners.
Judging criteria
The ten-point must system is in effect for all UFC fights; three judges score each round and the winner of each receives ten points, the loser nine points or fewer. If the round is even, both fighters receive ten points. In New Jersey, the fewest points a fighter can receive is 7, and in other states by custom no fighter receives fewer than 8.
Fouls
The Nevada State Athletic Commission currently lists the following as fouls:
Butting with the head
Eye gouging of any kind
Biting
Hair pulling
Fish hooking
Groin attacks of any kind
Putting a finger into any orifice or into any cut or laceration on an opponent. (see Gouging)
Small joint manipulation
Striking to the spine or the back of the head (see Rabbit punch)
Striking downward using the point of the elbow (see Elbow (strike))
Throat strikes of any kind, including, without limitation, grabbing the trachea
Clawing, pinching or twisting the flesh
Grabbing the clavicle
Kicking the head of a grounded opponent
Kneeing the head of a grounded opponent
Stomping a grounded opponent
Kicking to the kidney with the heel
Spiking an opponent to the canvas on his head or neck. (see piledriver)
Throwing an opponent out of the ring or fenced area
Holding the shorts or gloves of an opponent
Spitting at an opponent
Engaging in unsportsmanlike conduct that causes an injury to an opponent
Holding the ropes or the fence
Using abusive language in the ring or fenced area
Attacking an opponent on or during the break
Attacking an opponent who is under the care of the referee
Attacking an opponent after the bell (horn) has sounded the end of a round
Flagrantly disregarding the instructions of the referee
Timidity, including, without limitation, avoiding contact with an opponent, intentionally or consistently dropping the mouthpiece or faking an injury
Interference by the corner
Throwing in the towel during competition
When a foul is charged, the referee in their discretion may deduct one or more points as a penalty. If a foul incapacitates a fighter, then the match may end in a disqualification if the foul was intentional, or a no contest if unintentional. If a foul causes a fighter to be unable to continue later in the bout, it ends with a technical decision win to the injured fighter if the injured fighter is ahead on points, otherwise it is a technical draw.
Match conduct
After a verbal warning the referee can stop the fighters and stand them up if they reach a stalemate on the ground (where neither are in a dominant position or working towards one). This rule is codified in Nevada as the stand-up rule.
If the referee pauses the match, it is resumed with the fighters in their prior positions.
Grabbing the cage brings a verbal warning, followed by an attempt by the referee to release the grab by pulling on the grabbing hand. If that attempt fails or if the fighter continues to hold the cage, the referee may charge a foul.
Early UFC events disregarded verbal sparring / "trash-talking" during matches. Under unified rules, antics are permitted before events to add to excitement and allow fighters to express themselves, but abusive language during combat is prohibited.
Evolution of the rules
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UFC 1 – Although the advertising said there are no rules, there were in fact some rules: no biting, no eye-gouging, and no small joint manipulation. Fights ended only in the event of a knockout, a submission, usually signaled by tapping the hand three times on the mat or opponent, or by the corner throwing in the towel. Despite this, the first match in UFC 1 was won by referee stoppage, even though it was not officially recognized as such at the time.
UFC 2 – Time limits were dropped. Groin strikes were unbanned, though it was still illegal to attempt to grab the genitals. Modifications to the cage were added (higher fences and less floor padding.)
UFC 3 – The referee was officially given the authority to stop a fight in case of a fighter being unable to defend himself. A fighter could not kick if he was wearing shoes. This rule would be discarded in later competitions.
UFC 4 – After tournament alternate Steve Jennum won UFC 3 by winning only one bout, alternates (replacements) were required to win a pre-tournament bout to qualify for the role of an alternate.
UFC 5 – The organizers introduced a 30-minute time limit. UFC 5 also saw the first Superfight, a one-off bout between two competitors selected by the organizers with the winner being crowned 'Superfight champion' and having the duty of defending his title at the next UFC.
UFC 6 – The referee was given the authority to restart the fight. If two fighters were entangled in a position where there was a lack of action, the referee could stop the fight and restart the competitors on their feet, in their own corner. In UFC 6 they officially adopted the 5 minute extension to the 30 minute rule which had been used in UFC 5.
UFC 8 – Time limit changed to 10 minutes in the first two rounds of the tournament, 15 minutes in the tournament final and Superfight. Fights could now be decided by a judges decision if the fight reached the end of the time limit. The panel was made up of three judges who simply raised a card with the name of the fighter they considered to be the winner. In this fashion, a draw was not possible since the only two possible outcomes of a decision were 3 to 0 or 2 to 1 in favor of the winner.
UFC 9 – To appease local authorities, closed fisted strikes to the head were banned for this event only. The commentators were not aware of this last minute rule that was made to prevent the cancellation of the event due to local political pressures. Referee "Big John" McCarthy made repeated warnings to the fighters to "open the hand" when this rule was violated. However, not one fighter was reprimanded.
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 This event was the first to introduce the "no grabbing of the fence" rule.
UFC 12 – The main tournament split into a heavyweight and lightweight division; and the eight-man tournament ceased. Fighters now needed to win only two fights to win the competition. The Heavyweight Champion title (and title bouts) was introduced, replacing the Superfight title (albeit matches were still for a time branded as "Superfights").
UFC 14 – The wearing of padded gloves, weighing 110 to 170 g (4 to 6 ounces), becomes mandatory. Gloves were to be approved by the UFC.
UFC 15 – Limits on permissible striking areas were introduced. Headbutts, groin strikes, elbow strikes to the back of the neck and head, kicks to a downed opponent, small joint manipulation, pressure point strikes, and hair-pulling became illegal.
UFC 21 – Five minute rounds were introduced, with preliminary bouts consisting of two rounds, regular non-title bouts at three rounds, and title bouts at five rounds. The "ten point must system" was introduced for scoring fights (identical to the system widely used in boxing).
UFC 28 – The New Jersey Athletic Control Board sanctions its first UFC event, using the newly developed Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Major changes to the UFC's rules included barring knee strikes to the head of a downed opponent, elbow strikes to the spine and neck and punches to the back of the neck and head. Limits on permissible ring attire, stringent medical requirements, and regulatory oversight were also introduced. A new weight class system was also introduced. This new set of rules is currently the de facto standard for MMA events held in the USA and is still in use by the UFC.
UFC 31 Weight classes are re-aligned to the current standard. Bantamweight moves from 150 to 155 and becomes known as Lightweight. Lightweight becomes known as Welterweight, Middleweight becomes Light Heavyweight, and a new Middleweight class is introduced at 185.
UFC 43 – In the event of a stoppage fights restart in the position the fight was stopped.
The Ultimate Fighter
Fights that occur on The Ultimate Fighter are classified as exhibition matches under NSAC sanctioning, and thus do not count toward the professional record of a fighter. Match outcomes also do not need to be immediately posted publicly, which allows for fight results to be unveiled as the series progresses.
These exhibition matches variably have two or three rounds, depending on the rules used for each season. In most seasons, preliminary matches (before the semi-final bouts) were two rounds; in season two, all matches had three rounds. For two-round matches, if there is a draw after two rounds, an extra five-minute round ("sudden victory") is contested. If the extra round concludes without a stoppage, the judges' decision will be based on that final round. All matches past the first round use three rounds as per standard UFC bouts. During the finales for each series, the division finals have the standard three rounds, plus a fourth round if the judges score a tie.
Notable Fighters
UFC championship belt
Current Champions
Main article: List of UFC champions
Division Upper weight limit Champion Since Title Defenses
Heavyweight 265 lb (120 kg; 18.9 st) Brock Lesnar November 15, 2008 (UFC 91) 1
Shane Carwin March 27, 2010 (UFC 111) 0
Light Heavyweight 205 lb (93 kg; 14.6 st) Mauricio Rua May 08, 2010 (UFC 113) 0
Middleweight 185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st) Anderson Silva October 14, 2006 (UFC 64) 6
Welterweight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st) Georges St-Pierre April 19, 2008 (UFC 83) 4
Lightweight 155 lb (70 kg; 11.1 st) Frankie Edgar April 10, 2010 (UFC 112) 0
[edit]UFC Hall of Fame inductees
(In the order inducted)
Royce Gracie (Inducted on November 21, 2003, at UFC 45)
Ken Shamrock (Inducted on November 21, 2003, at UFC 45)
Dan Severn (Inducted on April 16, 2005, at UFC 52)
Randy Couture (Inducted on June 24, 2006, at The Ultimate Fighter Season 3 Finale)
Mark Coleman (Inducted on March 1, 2008, at UFC 82)
Chuck Liddell (Inducted on July 10, 2009, at UFC 100 Fan Expo)[61]
Charles "Mask" Lewis, Jr. (Posthumously inducted on July 10, 2009, at UFC 100 Fan Expo)
Accomplished fighters
The following fighters have won a UFC tournament, championship title, or an Ultimate Fighter tournament. Some have won championships in different weight classes.
[edit]Heavyweights
206 to 265 pounds (93 to 120 kg)
Brock Lesnar (Current UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Shane Carwin (Current Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Frank Mir (Former UFC Heavyweight Champion & Former Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (Former Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Roy Nelson (The Ultimate Fighter 10 winner)
Randy Couture (UFC 13 Heavyweight Tournament Champion, former 3-time UFC Heavyweight Champion & former 2-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Tim Sylvia (Former 2 time UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Andrei Arlovski (Former UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Josh Barnett (Former UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Kevin Randleman (Former UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Ricco Rodriguez (Former UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Ken Shamrock (2-time UFC Superfight Champion, First non-tournament UFC champion)
Bas Rutten (Former UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Maurice Smith (Former UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Dan Severn (UFC 5, Ultimate Ultimate 1995 Open Weight Tournament Champion & 2nd UFC Open Weight Superfight Champion)
Oleg Taktarov (UFC 6 Open Weight Tournament Champion)
Marco Ruas (UFC 7 Open Weight Tournament Champion)
Don Frye (UFC 8 & Ultimate Ultimate #2 1996 Open Weight Tournament Champion)
Mark Kerr (UFC 14 and 15 Heavyweight Tournament Champion)
Steve Jennum (UFC 3 Open Weight Tournament Champion)
Light Heavyweights
186 to 205 pounds (84 to 93 kg)
Lyoto Machida (Former UFC Light Heavywight Champion)
Randy Couture (UFC 13 Heavyweight Tournament Champion, former 3-time UFC Heavyweight Champion & former 2-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Quinton Jackson (First UFC Unified Light Heavyweight Champion, unified the Pride FC and UFC 205 lb titles)
Mauricio Rua (Current UFC Light Heavywight Champion, Pride 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix Champion)
Chuck Liddell (Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Rashad Evans (The Ultimate Fighter 2 Heavyweight winner & Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Forrest Griffin (The Ultimate Fighter 1 light heavyweight winner & Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Wanderlei Silva (Pride FC Middleweight Champion & Pride FC 2003 Middleweight Grand Prix Champion)
Ryan Bader (The Ultimate Fighter 8 Light Heavyweight Winner)
Tito Ortiz (Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Vitor Belfort (UFC 12 Heavyweight Tournament Champion & former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Kevin Jackson (UFC 14 Middleweight Tournament Champion)
Guy Mezger (UFC 13 Lightweight Tournament Champion)
Jerry Bohlander (UFC 12 Lightweight Tournament Champion)
Frank Shamrock (First UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)
Mark Coleman (UFC 10, UFC 11 Open Weight Tournament Champion & first UFC Heavyweight Champion)
Middleweights
171 to 185 pounds (78 to 84 kg)
Anderson Silva (Current UFC Middleweight Champion and Unified Champion, unified the Pride FC and UFC 185 lb titles)
Rich Franklin (Former UFC Middleweight Champion)
Michael Bisping (The Ultimate Fighter 3 Light Heavyweight Winner)
Kendall Grove (The Ultimate Fighter 3 Middleweight Winner)
Travis Lutter (The Ultimate Fighter 4 Middleweight Winner)
Dan Henderson (UFC 17 Middleweight Tournament Winner)
Kazushi Sakuraba (UFC Ultimate Japan 1 Heavyweight Tournament Champion)
Dave Menne (First UFC Middleweight Champion)
Murilo Bustamante (Former UFC Middleweight Champion)
Royce Gracie (UFC 1, 2 & 4 Open Weight Tournament Champion)
Evan Tanner (Former UFC Middleweight Champion)
[edit]Welterweights
156 to 170 pounds (71 to 77 kg)
Georges St-Pierre (Current 2-time UFC Welterweight Champion & Former UFC Interim Welterweight Champion)
Matt Hughes (Former 2 time UFC Welterweight Champion)
Matt Serra (The Ultimate Fighter 4 Welterweight Winner & Former UFC Welterweight Champion)
Amir Sadollah (The Ultimate Fighter 7 Middleweight Winner)
James Wilks (The Ultimate Fighter 9 Welterweight Winner)
Carlos Newton (Former UFC Welterweight Champion)
Pat Miletich (First UFC Welterweight Champion & UFC Ultimate Brazil's Lightweight Tournament Champion)
Kenichi Yamamoto (UFC 23 'Ultimate Japan 2' Tournament Winner)
Lightweights
146 to 155 pounds (66 to 70 kg)
Frankie Edgar (Current UFC Lightweight Champion)
B.J. Penn (Former UFC Welterweight Champion & Former UFC Lightweight Champion)
Sean Sherk (Former UFC Lightweight Champion)
Diego Sanchez (The Ultimate Fighter 1 Middleweight Winner)
Joe Stevenson (The Ultimate Fighter 2 Welterweight Winner)
Nate Diaz (The Ultimate Fighter 5 Lightweight Winner)
Mac Danzig (The Ultimate Fighter 6 Welterweight Winner)
Efrain Escudero (The Ultimate Fighter 8 Lightweight Winner)
Ross Pearson (The Ultimate Fighter 9 Lightweight Winner)
Jens Pulver (First UFC Lightweight Champion)
Salaries
A UFC fighter generally doesn't have a salary. They are paid per fight, anywhere from $10,000 to $250,000 (without win bonuses) depending on how well known the fighters are and how well sponsored the event is. The player's coach generally makes 15%-20% of the winnings, as do the managers.
In other media
Music
UFC: Ultimate Beat Downs, Vol. 1, an album of music featured in and inspired by the UFC.
Video games
Two UFC 2009 Undisputed covers, featuring Forrest Griffin (left) and Georges St-Pierre.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (Dreamcast and PS1)
UFC: Tapout (Xbox 1)
UFC: Throwdown (PS2)
UFC: Tapout 2 (Xbox 1)
UFC: Sudden Impact (PS2)
UFC 2009 Undisputed (PS3 and Xbox 360)
UFC Undisputed 2010 (PS3 and Xbox 360)
In January 2007, Zuffa and videogame developer/publisher THQ announced a license agreement giving THQ worldwide rights to develop titles under the UFC brand. The agreement gives THQ exclusive rights to current and next-generation consoles as well as to PC and handheld titles. Also included are "certain wireless rights" which were not detailed. The licensing agreement is to expire in 2011. UFC 2009 Undisputed became the first game released under this agreement on May 19, 2009.
Action figures
On June 10, 2008 it was announced that UFC had signed an exclusive 4 year contract with Jakks Pacific to create action figures for UFC.[citation needed] As of 2009 the schedule envisages the release of these figures in November 2009. Series include the "UFC Deluxe Series Zero", which includes Royce Gracie, Brock Lesnar, Frank Mir, Rashad Evans, Keith Jardine, Houston Alexander, Kendall Grove and Miguel Torres., and the "UFC Deluxe Series 1" which includes Chuck Liddell, Anderson Silva, Forrest Griffin, Michael Bisping, Evan Tanner, Kevin Randleman, Cheick Kongo and Mike Swick. They will also release an "Official Scale Octagon Playset".
Figures are also available from the company Round 5. Series one of their figures includes Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, Matt Hughes, Tito Ortiz, and Randy Couture. Series two (released on November 10, 2008) includes Wanderlei Silva, Sean Sherk, Rich Franklin, and Anderson Silva. An exclusive version of the Randy Couture figure was released at the 2008 San Diego Comic Convention in which he has different colored shorts that are adorned with the Comic Con's Logo.
DVD
Every UFC event has been released onto DVD and DVD boxsets. UFC 23 through UFC 29 were not released in the US on home video or DVD by SEG, and many consider this period to be the "Dark Ages" of the UFC. Although they have since been released onto boxsets which feature around 10 events each set, in chronological order.
Source:wikipedia
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