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UFC – In the Beginning

The UFC – no holds-barred, shootfighting or mixed martial arts found its beginnings in 1993 as a single pay-per view event that challenged different types of martial arts and combined them together in an octagon ring. Since then it has grown from spectacle to sport, bringing together some of the best of martial arts.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship, the vision of Art Davie, Rorion Gracie and Robert Meyrowitz - to find the best ultimate fighter no matter what his discipline, revolutionized martial arts. As was the case with most martial arts fighters at the time, fighters were typically skilled in one discipline with little or no experience against any other disciplines. Based on Brazilian vale tudo fighting, the first ultimate fighting championship event was a quest to allow fighters to prove which martial arts style would rule in a real street fight setting and proposed to answer the nagging question of: Who was the ultimate fighter?

UFC 1: The Beginning

Violent and brutal, the first UFC event featured eight martial artists of different styles in a winner take all tournament. With minimal rules, no biting or eye-gouging, no weight classes and no weight limits, fighters and fighting styles were pitted against each other in the octagon in an attempt to find the world’s ultimate fighter irrespective of his style.

Shootfighter Ken Shamrock and kickboxer Pat Smith were the favorites to win, however it was a relative unknown from Brazil, Royce Gracie, representing Gracie Jiu-Jitsu – a new style of martial arts largely based on groundfighting techniques – who stole the show and claimed the first title. The outcome of the event could not have been better had it been scripted by its sponsors and organizers. Not only did Gracie’s win serve to introduce a sensational new style of fighting to North America, but it served the underlying principle and appeal of the initial UFC event – that size does not always determine the outcome and a skilled fighter can overcome larger opponents. Without a doubt it was a huge success and despite the shroud of controversy surrounding its lack of rules the UFC extravaganza demonstrated to the world what martial arts was really all about.

UFC 2: No Way Out

The second UFC event departed from its original format in introducing 16 fighters of different styles into the Octagon.

With more fighters the second event again featured no weight classes, no weight limits and minimal rules. Interestingly enough though, despite the overwhelming mismatched fighters and the brutal yet quick fights, most fights ended by submission rather than strikes. And as Royce Gracie claimed his second title through submission, it was clear that, as in the original event, Gracie’s groundfighting technique was crucial to survival in the octagon.

UFC 3: The American Dream

Despite returning to its original eight man format UFC 3 was most memorable for bringing about the end of the beginning so to speak. UFC 3 brought about the end of an era for the then considered unstoppable two-time champion Royce Gracie and the end of the domination of the groundfighting technique.

In a match that would later make UFC history Gracie faced his ultimate challenger to date - Tae Kwon Do artisit Kimo Leopoldo. While he managed to defeat Kimo by submission via an armbar at 4:40, Gracie, defeated by fatigue and dehydration found himself unable to continue in the tournament and a new champion, Steve Jennum, would go on to claim the title that year.

In the early days of the UFC, fights were decided by locks, chokes, stomps and hosts of other groundfighting techniques. Strikes, brawn and power played very little part in determining the outcome on the battleground as smaller lightweight fighters easily defeated larger opponents with skill and technique.

But much has changed since the early days, and while Royce Gracie would go on to win UFC 4, fighters eventually learned how to defend against the ‘Gracie Guard’, and with a combination of martial arts skills, power kicks, and striking power groundfighting was relegated to the past as strikers went on to conquer the Octagon.