MMA’s Full 38’ 10.10.07: Ten MMA Events It Is A Shame You May Have Missed

Posted by Sid Needelman on 10.10.2007

There is a world outside of the UFC, and to have a well-rounded background in MMA, you will have to look for DVDs in places besides Best Buy. If you refuse to, you will miss Cyborg” Santos taking on ”Shogun” Rua, "Big Nog" being thrown around like a toy, and Frykland screaming like a freak. 10 MMA events you should go watch that are not named Pride or UFC...

Part 1 of 2

I know that even the most "diehard" of fans that have jumped aboard after watching The Ultimate Fighter Finale can find UFC classics at Best Buy, but that does not mean a complete collection. Far from it, as not even Best Buy has all of the classic UFC battles. Try finding an authorized version of Chuck's fight with Belfort at any local retailer. While some great moments are not out there because DSE or Zuffa has reasons, there are many you have not seen because maybe you have not heard of them, or because you do not know exactly what you are missing. By the way, have you seen the first time Matt Hughes got knocked out?

By never seeing Tony Fryklund screaming while covered in blood, you are missing out on a well rounded background in the sport. Not that a bloody Fryklund is a pleasant picture to have in your mind, but it's a piece of history. Maybe it's a picture you have seen, but never knew who the guy in it was, and why he was bloody and screaming. You should see before you can "call it a day" on watching old "tape," be sure to go see: Shogun fighting in Brazil, and then in a cage on American soil long before his UFC debut. Also you should try to get a copy of Melvin Manhoef's slugfest which make some of the "so called" wars of Forrest Griffen, look like a heated discussion.

Without further wait, the list of 10 MMA events not under the UFC and PRIDE DVD distribution channels, that is worth tracking down and watching…. And of course, there are even more beyond this list.

1. Cage rage 15: Adrenalin Rush from London, England 2/4/2006

This is one of the DVD's that made me think this column was so important. I think people talk about the slugfest between Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffen as this amazing battle. I think that is half correct, in that most people had not seen a battle like that. But imagine a war like that one, that actually ended in a knockout? What if instead of reality show contestants, they were seasoned veterans fighting with commentating from excited British hoodlums? If you have not seen an MMA event from England, and I am not talking about a UFC announced event, it is about time. And this event is a great way to start. They are proud of what they can pull off and this fight between Melvin Manhoef's and "Cyborg" Santos was an amazing main event. It was worth the entire cost of the dvd.

There was also a Cage rage UK title fight between two big monsters and also an appearance by one of my favorite small English guys, Brad Pickett. It was surely not my favorite of his fights, that award goes to his fight at AFC 19, but I do always love his entrances, like this one reading a newspaper.

Paul Daley vs. Jean Silva was also a crazy war where blood and dislocated body parts decorated the fighters. And while it was hard for me to remember exactly who he was, a little research on Jason Delucia reminded me he was in the first two UFC events, has been in the ring with Bas Rutten, has wins over Yuki Kondo, Ikuhisa Minowa and makes one of his last appearances on this DVD.

Also on CR 15, you get to see Daijiro Matsui vs. Curtis Stout, Minowa, "Pele" Landi-Jons and even, Chris Lytle.


2. Shidokan Jitsu - Warriors War 1 from Kuwait, 2/8/2001

Matt Serra explained it better than I ever could, especially because of his accent to compliment what he said, but sometimes Matt Hughes has a smile on him you just want to be removed. In Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons's first fight of the night he helps remove that smile in a way we had not seen for years after. Matt Hughes gets knocked out. And this was his fight coming off a second humiliating quick submission by Superman Dennis Hallman at UFC 29. While Hughes kept Pele on his back and controlled him for much of the bout, it was a quick escape to the feet that got Pele in the position to deliver a perfectly timed knee to Hughes head when the wrestler shot in. Also, you get to see how much the Hughes brothers look alike if you watch this event.

Also on this event that is one of the few MMA events from the Middle East that have the star power needed to get mentioned, is one of Hughe's foes, Carlos Newton. Carlos fought hard against another UFC star, Dave Menne. Dave would go on to win that bout and one later that evening in one of the last tournament style events in a cage.


3. Rumble On the Rock 4 From Hawaii, 10/10/2003

Hawaii has held many great events in the history of MMA. ROTC has been able to put together cards, and in particularly main events. Some of those main events have put the UFC and Pride FC to shame, like the upcoming one in New Jersey, between two reality show midlevel fighters. The main event for ROTC 4 was Gomi vs. B.J. Penn. It would be Gomi's first loss on American Soil, and if you count the NC to Diaz as such and not a win, then it is his only loss on US soil. And yes, one of the fighters gets bloody.
Also, Dennis Hallman made short work of another fighter by submission in this event. has a great stoppage win, and Gilbert Melendez pounds out a win with one second left in the second round.

Also at this event, you will see a huge high kick to the chin to give Paul Buentello a win and if you still need another reason, you NEED to watch at least one event with Play-by-play by Phil Baroni. That man is funny.


4. Japan Vale Tudo Japan choose '94, '97 or 98

If I thought it truly was the case you could only afford one of the events I could have really sat down, studied them and chosen the undisputable best of the group, but why? You can probably afford more than one, and to some of you seeing Rickson Gracie is a huge deal, and to some of you watching Randy Couture get submitted is earth -shattering. So here you go for each of my favorite three:

'94: See the original and watch Rickson fight nearly half the fights he ever will on this one night.

'97: While not much of what Frank Shamrock says can be considered gospel, I will believe it when he says this was one of his most important fights ever. He wins against a game opponent and I think there was a little "bad blood" involved. The fight ends with Frank putting the hurt on Enson Inoue and Egan, Enson's brother jumping into the ring with exciting consequences. Also on the card is Erik Paulson, who will be one half of the main event for Mark Cuban's new HDNET fight series on the 13th of this month.

'98: Couture loses, Frank Trigg beats a world class grappler, other fighters with victories that night include: Vladimir Matyushenko and Hayato Sakurai.


5. Meca Vale Tudo 9 From Brazil 8/1/2003

I understand some people cannot stand to watch an event that is commentated in a language you cannot understand. In this case, I have not found an English version but it is still worth watching. In what is one of the most disgusting sights I ever witnessed in MMA, a soon to be UFC veteran Alessio Sakara, pummels on his opponents ears on the canvass. The ear swells up as large as an orange, and a few more power shots later, it pops open. Yes, his ear literally pops open, allowing the blood that had built up inside to flow out. Not surprisingly, the doctor signals the end of the fight after inspecting the non-stop flow of blood. That was only the second fight of the event and there is still more. In the next fight, we see a great technical execution of an Anaconda choke, and in the 5th fight of the night Pride veteran, Daniel Acacio, takes on Delson Henelno, who I just saw victorious at the IFL Team finals of 2007.

American fans can be facile and it would not surprise me if Gabriel Gonzaga "rings a bell," but does not immediately come to mind when you talk about heavy weight superstars. If you cannot remember, he was the last t Challenge for the UFC heavyweight belt and had that crushing high kick that knocked out Cro-Cop. Long before he became forgotten in American minds, he fought on this card against Hammer House's Branden Lee Hinkle.

In the main event, and before becoming a member of Chute Box himself, "Cyborg" Santos takes on "Shogun" Rua. While it is not the best effort on either of their part's, they do not fail to let their fists fly and make some painful submission attempts during the battle.



Check back next week for the last 5 events not named UFC/Pride not to be missed…

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And for those of you wondering what is MMA's Full 38' It means: an octagon is 30 ft across with 4 feet extra on each side, for cornermen, doctors and camera crew. To know MMA, sometimes one needs to make sure they cover some of the lesser know aspects of it, and 38' represents a number a lot of hardcore fans would not recognize. But be warned, do not try to set up an arena without knowing how big the octagon really is, or there will be problems.
Sid Needelman