Change was the name of the game inside and outside of the ring in 2006, making for an extremely busy year in mixed martial arts. Just quickly scanning over all that has happened, it is very difficult to believe that it all occurred in the space of just 12 months.
Carlson Gracie Snr, who had trained Brazilian greats such as Murilo Bustamante and Mario Sperry, sadly passed away in February. He died of heart failure after several days in a Chicago hospital, aged 72. Carlson will be remembered as a master of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, having earned a ninth degree blackbelt. He held a fantastic fight record too, losing just once in 18 matches. Carlson was highly respected and his death is a great loss to the MMA community.
In the UFC we saw three hall-of-famers, Ken Shamrock, Randy Couture and Royce Gracie in action for possibly the last time. These men - who paved the way for the sport we have today- were all beat decisively.
The losses came at the hands of younger and (debatably) more skilled opponents in Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell and Matt Hughes respectively. Excuse the use of a thoroughly clichéd phrase, but these results announced ‘the passing of the guard’ – something we suspected for years - loudly and clearly. We may never see these greats in the Octagon again. But we should not forget their hard work and bravery that made them a joy to watch.
The welterweight division now has a champion for the future in Georges St Pierre, who will spend 2007 being pursued by some of the best in the world. The likes of the former champion, BJ Penn and Diego Sanchez will all be snapping at his heels. The Ultimate Fighter winner Matt Serra will be the first to try to snatch the title away.
Anderson Silva thoroughly destroyed Rich Franklin to take the middleweight title. The division is begging for some new talent, or next year could be very quiet one for Silva indeed.
The heavyweight division is another that needs spicing up. Tim Sylvia is the rightful champion, but his fight with Monson gave a worrying hint of things to come. A decision won through cautious, defensive tactics is still a victory, but it’s not one that many people would like to watch.
Newcomer Brandon Vera looks good, but a fighter like Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic would really make things interesting. And there seems to be a real chance Cro Cop could be interested in joining the UFC.
As for rival organisation Pride FC, there has rarely been a dull moment. What about when Mark Coleman broke Mauricio "Shogun" Rua’s arm? The ensuing brawl between Chute Boxe and Hammer House is certainly something we will remember for a long time.
We have had some classic middleweight and lightweight battles, with both of those divisions bolstered by some exciting talent.
Lightweight Shinya Aoki wore bright-yellow spandex shorts on his debut, but it was his incredible guard work that got your attention rather than his interesting fashion sense.
Denis Kang - who took Middleweight GP winner Kazuo Misaki to a split decision despite a serious arm injury - did not disappoint the fans who supported him while he made his way through the smaller organisations. And Paulo Filho looks almost guaranteed to take the belt at some point after some dominating displays.
The Open Weight Grand Prix went down well, with the Josh Barnett vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira match standing out a particularly memorable fight. Cro Cop laid waste to all who dared step in his way on the path to victory. It is quite clear all he can think about is landing a left high kick to the head of current champ, Fedor Emelianenko.
There were some major disappointments too, especially with Pride’s policy on champions defending their title. Wanderlei Silva did not defend the Middleweight title once this year. Lightweight Takanori Gomi lost to Marcus Aurelio while champion, but for some reason the fight was deemed a non-title match. Gomi won the rematch but to some it was all very confusing. To others, it was unfair.
To Pride’s credit, they produced some entertaining shows despite missing their main man. The seemingly invincible Fedor was out for most of the year with a hand injury. From the look of the performances of top contenders like Mirko “CroCop” and Barnett, Fedor could have a tough 2007.
MMA has been increasing in popularity year by year and 2006 was no exception. As with any fledgling market, there has been a mix of great success and failure on the business side of things.
On the positive side, upstart organisation the International Fight League was starting to turn the heads of fighters and fans alike. It had a unique team-based system, and emphasis on paying the fighters well and treating them with respect. They have managed to get some huge names on board to act as coaches, including Pat Miletitch, Renzo Gracie and Bas Rutten. Time will tell whether their format can compete with the more established brands of the UFC and Pride.
The British MMA scene looks healthier than ever, with premier promotion Cage Rage moving to the prestigious London venues of Wembley Arena and Earls Court.
Michael Bisping competed with some of the sports best young talent in reality TV show The Ultimate Fighter, and after coming out victorious in the shows final, left no doubt in fans’ minds he has some serious talent.
Fellow Brit Lee Murray managed to get himself in the papers more than any other fighter this year, but for all the wrong reasons. He fled to Morocco after police linked him to the largest cash robbery in British history. They are now seeking his extradition back to the UK, but he will face drugs charges first. "Lightning" Lee, who had a successful MMA career ahead of him, was not short of media attention in 2006. Last year he was stabbed after leaving a glamour model's birthday party. Doctors had to resuscitate him four times to save his life.
The World Fighting Alliance gained new ownership this year and with it came the signing of some great fighters, including Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Matt Lindland But in the last few days the WFA had ceased operations because the UFC purchased its major assets, including the fighters’ contracts. Dana White, co-owner of the UFC’s parent company, said: “Bringing the WFA fighters into the Zuffa family is the best thing that could happen for the fighters – and for the fans.”
The UFC also announced the acquisition of World Extreme Cage Fighting, which will continue with a separate roster of fighters.
The acquisition is likely a response to Pride’s recent attempts to move into the American market.
Pride held the Real Deal event in October, the first event they have ever organised in the U.S. Although it was more of an exhibition of the Pride format - and perhaps an attempt to show superiority over other promotions - it was received well.
The event did not sell out but Pride officials were happy to book a return date in February 2007.
Pride’s parent company Dream Stage Entertainment had a tumultuous time to say the least. Fuji TV, which carried the Pride and Bushido events, decided to cancel their contract. The reasons for this were unclear but there was speculation of Yakuza involvement. Whatever the reasons, the contract was worth hundreds of millions of Yen and DSE has yet to find a replacement for that income. Depending on who you chose to listen to, the organisation is currently either in serious trouble and sustaining massive losses, or sitting pretty.
One thing for certain is they are in trouble if they cannot tie their top fighters to exclusive contracts. Both Fedor and Cro-Cop have just one fight left on their current deal, and Fedor had already signed to fight with another organisation next March. He was to fight Jeff Monson as part of the Bodogfight event.
According to a recent update on his website, CroCop may only stay if he can guarantee a rematch with Fedor. The post said: “There are some other interesting challenges waiting for him in MMA, it's not all about PRIDE's HW belt.” Despite Pride’s wealth of talent at the lower weights, the loss of these fighters would effectively decapitate the organisation.
It is not all over yet and we have some potentially spectacular events coming up at the end of the year. UFC 66 sees the rematch between Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz.
Liddell has competed for less than ten minutes this year, making quick work of Randy Couture and Renato Sobral.
Ortiz fought Forrest Griffin early in the year and took an extremely controversial decision. He also easily defeated an aging Ken Shamrock twice. It is very difficult to predict how Ortiz will approach the fight but if he is in the right shape and frame of mind - it could be very interesting.
Pride’s Shockwave event is headlined by the Fedor Emelianenko vs. Mark Hunt match-up. This match could easily be as short and one sided as when Hunt fought Josh Barnett, and was quickly dispatched with a submission. But I wouldn’t be surprised if Fedor chooses the more entertaining option and trades with Hunt for at least part of the match. Knocking that monster down would be an incredible achievement.
This year has had so much going on it was difficult to pick out a highlight. Perhaps it was Fedor’s awe-inspiring entrance to his first fight on U.S soil. Georges St Pierre’s rise to the title was particularly memorable. Or maybe it was Aoki’s day-glo stockings after all.
The best thing about this year was that it had set up so much momentum for 2007. We have got some great potential match ups and we may well see a few belts swapping hands. With the big organisations aggressively pursuing the stars of the sport we could even see a few new faces where we never expected to see them…
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