UFC 1
| UFC 1: The Beginning | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | November 12, 1993 | |||
| Venue | McNichols Sports Arena | |||
| City | Denver, Colorado | |||
| Attendance | 7,800[1] | |||
| Buyrate | 86,000 [2] | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (later renamed UFC 1: The Beginning) was the first mixed martial arts event by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), held at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado, on November 12, 1993. The event was broadcast live on pay-per-view and later released on home video.[3]
History
UFC 1 used an eight-man tournament format, with the winner receiving $50,000.[4] The tournament featured fights with no weight classes or judges. The two rules, no biting or eye gouging, were to be enforced only by a $1,500 fine. The match only ended by submission, knockout, or the fighter's corner throwing in the towel. Gloves were allowed, as Art Jimmerson showed in his Quarterfinal bout against Royce Gracie, which he fought with one boxing glove. Fights consisted of unlimited 5 minute rounds until a winner was decided.
Royce Gracie won the tournament by defeating Gerard Gordeau via submission due to a rear naked choke. The referees for UFC 1 were João Alberto Barreto and Hélio Vigio, two veteran vale tudo referees from Brazil.
The commentary team for the pay-per-view was Bill Wallace, Jim Brown, and Kathy Long, with additional analysis from Rod Machado and post-fight interviews by Brian Kilmeade. Jason DeLucia was an alternate for the event, having defeated Trent Jenkins in the alternate bout. However, as no fighter pulled out during the tournament, he was not called upon.
Results
| Final | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| N/A | Royce Gracie | def. | Gerard Gordeau | Submission (choke) | 1:44 | ||
| Semi-finals | |||||||
| N/A | Royce Gracie | def. | Ken Shamrock | Submission (rear-naked choke) | 0:57 | ||
| N/A | Gerard Gordeau | def. | Kevin Rosier | TKO (corner stoppage) | 0:59 | ||
| Quarter-finals | |||||||
| N/A | Ken Shamrock | def. | Patrick Smith | Submission (heel hook) | 1:49 | ||
| N/A | Royce Gracie | def. | Art Jimmerson | Submission (mount) | 2:18 | ||
| N/A | Kevin Rosier | def. | Zane Frazier | TKO (corner stoppage) | 4:20 | ||
| N/A | Gerard Gordeau | def. | Teila Tuli | TKO (head kick) | 0:26 | ||
| Alternate bout | |||||||
| N/A | Jason DeLucia | def. | Trent Jenkins | Submission (rear-naked choke) | 0:52 | ||
UFC 1 bracket
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| Gerard Gordeau (Savate) | TKO | |||||||||
| Teila Tuli (Sumo) | 0:26 | |||||||||
| Gerard Gordeau | TKO | |||||||||
| Kevin Rosier | 0:59 | |||||||||
| Kevin Rosier (Kickboxing) | TKO | |||||||||
| Zane Frazier (American Kenpo) | 4:20 | |||||||||
| Gerard Gordeau | 1:40 | |||||||||
| Royce Gracie | SUB | |||||||||
| Royce Gracie (BJJ) | SUB | |||||||||
| Art Jimmerson (Boxing) | 2:18 | |||||||||
| Royce Gracie | SUB | |||||||||
| Ken Shamrock | 0:57 | |||||||||
| Ken Shamrock (Shootfighting) | SUB | |||||||||
| Patrick Smith (Taekwondo) | 1:49 | |||||||||
See also
References
- ↑ "UFC 1: The Beginning". tapology.com. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
- ↑ Walter, Donald F. , Jr. Mixed Martial Arts: Ultimate Sport, or Ultimately Illegal? Grapplearts.com. December 8, 2003. Retrieved June 2, 2006.
- ↑ Rosenberg, Howard (November 15, 1993). "Television: Pay-Per-View Battle, Instead of Being Merely Gory and Funny, Gets Interesting After the First Two Bouts". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
- ↑ Rossen, Jake (2009-07-14). "Lesnar, GSP Lead UFC 100 Bounty". Sherdog. Retrieved 2011-02-08.
External links
- UFC 1 results at Sherdog.com
- UFC 1 fights reviews
- Official UFC website
- First UFC forever altered combat sports
- MMA Mental History UFC 1
- MMA Origins: UFC 1
- The Brutal Beginnings of the UFC
