The History Of Pride FC: Pride 32 - The Real Deal

Posted by Jeffrey Harris on 02.06.2009

Mark Coleman gets another shot at Fedor Emelianenko in Pride FC's first ever show in the United States. This is The Real Deal of MMA.

PRIDE 32: THE REAL DEAL 10/21/2006



-Welcome back MMA fans. Note that this review is from the single disc DVD release of the show so some footage has been clipped from the original PPV broadcast. Going into this event, there was a black cloud over the Pride FC organization. In July, Pride lost their TV deal with Fuji TV due to a scandal linking the Pride organization with yakuza or Japanese mafia. Pride was no longer sustainable under Dream Stage Entertainment. With the company’s future in question, they went on to have the rest of their scheduled shows.

-From the Thomas And Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. 11,727 fans are recorded as being in attendance with about 8,000 paid. This is Pride FC’s first ever show to be held in the United States. Mauro Ranallo, Frank Trigg (sans hair), and Craig Minervini are the commentary team. Minervini was an FSN sportscaster that also did the XFL. Trigg takes a shot at UFC without mentioning them by name about having to wait twenty minutes in-between fights and Pride is nonstop entertainment from beginning to end. Trigg . . . you should still shut up. Trigg analyzes the main event between Mark Coleman and Fedor Emelianenko. There’s some video backstage of Coleman with his two young daughters. There’s also some backstage footage of Fedor and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua who will be taking on Kevin Randleman. The announcers go over the rules for the event which are all under the NSAC rather than the regular Pride FC rules. So all fights will be three 5 minute rounds and under the 10 point must system. Knees or kicks while an opponent is on the ground are now illegal as well. Soccer kicks are banned!

-Introductory video montage of the first ever Pride event in the US. We go then to the arena with Lenny Hart introducing the Pride competitors in the US for the first time. Ladies and gentlemen, this is more than MMA this is the . . . PRIDE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIPS!

Robbie Lawler (MMA Record: 11-4; Pride Record: Debut) VS. Joey Villasenor (MMA Record: 22-4; Pride Record: 0-1)
Lawler had left the UFC with a record of 4-3 after a loss to Evan Tanner at UFC 50. From there he won the Icon Sport Middleweight Championship from Falaniko Vitale before losing it in his first title defense to Jason “Mayhem” Miller in September. Villasenor lost his Pride debut against Ryo Chonan at Pride Bushido 11: Survival. Referee is Yuji Shamada.

Round 1. Lawler starts things off with a jumping side kick and then goes in for a huge flying knee strike. Villasenor goes down, and Lawler hits a couple more grounded right punches before Shamada pulls him off and that’s it!

The Winner: Lawler wins by KO at 0:22 in Round 1. Yikes what a finish and a vicious knockout by Lawler. Villasenor gets up pretty quickly and keyboard warriors are probably still arguing that this was a bad stoppage. Eh-eh. Ranallo says the fight lasted about as long as a Las Vegas marriage. Lawler gets on the microphone and thanks God and his training camp. Lawler went on to have a dominant winning streak as well as winning the Middleweight Championship in the now defunct EliteXC organization. Lawler is consistently ranked as one of the top middleweight fighters in the world.

Kazuhiro Nakamura (MMA Record: 10-5; Pride Record: 10-5) VS. Travis Galbraith (MMA Record: 10-3; Pride Record: Debut)
Nakamura has beaten Evangelista Santos and Yoshihiro Nakao in his last two fights. Galbraith is going into the fight with a three fight win streak in King of The Cage. Nakamura definitely has the most honorable, badass, and awesome corner in Hidehiko Yoshida and Ryo Chonan. This is Nakamura’s first ever fight in the US. Herb Dean (!) makes his Pride FC referee debut!

Round 1. Nakamura gets in some hard shots while Galbraith hits some body kicks and they both separate while Herb Dean calls a timeout. Herb Dean checks them both to see that nothing is wrong. OK, that was weird. They lock up and separate. Nakamura lands a right jab. Nakamura locks up to try for a takedown but Galbraith defends. Nakamura pushes back Galbraith with a high kick. Galbraith faints a high knee, and Nakamura knocks him down with a big right punch. Ground and pound by Nakamura and this looks like it could be it, but Galbraith holds down and keeps guard. Galbraith grabs the leg and applies the kneebar! Nakamura spins out and pulls butterfly guard on Galbraith. Wow, hell of a reversal sequence. Dean breaks up when they were too close to the ropes and restarts the fight in the middle of the ring. And hey, Pride is actually using a time clock for the fights now. Galbraith tries to apply a guillotine, but Nakamura gets a full sweep reversal and gets into the half-guard of Galbraith. Nakamura separates and stands up as does Galbraith. Galbraith and Nakamura trade more shots. Galbraith takes Nakamura down by the ropes. Galbraith lands an elbow strike to Nakamura’s mid-section while in guard and stands to his feet. Another big jab by Nakamura and they clinch. Nakamura lands a perfect judo throw takedown right as the round ends. Impressive showing and toughness by Galbraith. But Nakamura landed more strikes and more takedowns. Submission attempt and reversal by Galbraith makes this round a 10-9 for Nakamura.

Round 2. Some exchanges by both fighters into the clinch. Galbraith lands some knee strikes but can’t prevent Nakamura from finishing the takedown. Nakamura works in the half-guard and applies a guillotine. Nakamura isn’t able to hold on and separates and lets Galbraith up. Nakamura and Galbraith exchange some more hard shots and Galbraith clinches and pushes Nakamura into the corner. Big knee to the head by Nakamura puts Galbraith down. Nakamura swarms in with some pounding strikes and Galbraith is unable to defend, and Herb Dean stops the bout via TKO.

The Winner: Nakamura wins by technical knockout at 1:16 in Round 2. Hell of a fun bout and an impressive showing by Galbraith. Galbraith decided to stand and exchange with Nakamura, and Nakamura was more than game to play that way. Nice submission attempt by Galbraith, but Nakamura’s superior striking, takedowns, and work in the clinch got him the victory. Nakamura gets on the microphone to speak in ENGLISH! Nakamura thanks the fans and says he loves MMA and promises to be back. After the UFC buyout, Nakamura would drop two fights in the UFC to Lyoto Machida at UFC 76 and then Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou at UFC 84. From there Nakamura would go on to fight for the Sengoku organization.

Phil Baroni (MMA Record: 9-7; Pride Record: 3-2) VS. Yosuke Nishijima (MMA Record: 0-3; Pride Record: 0-3)
Earlier in 2006, Baroni defeated Yuki Kondo at Pride Bushido 10 but then lost his next fight to Kazuo Misaki in the first round of the 2006 Pride Bushido Welterweight Tournament. Baroni gets a fairly mixed reaction from the crowd. Nishijima is a former Japanese boxing champion.

Round 1. Baroni starts with a big double-leg takedown and gets some ground and pound strikes. Baroni passes guard and gets side control. Baroni continues his control and ground and pound on Nishijima and applies a kimura. Nishijima struggles but can’t improve his positioning. Baroni hooks his leg over Nishijima’s head and sinks on the submission more and the referee stops the fight.

The Winner: Baroni wins by submission at 3:20 in Round 1. Ranallo is dumbfounded by Baroni winning a fight by submission. Baroni lifts up the ring girl that gives him the trophy. Minervini goes in the ring to interview Baroni. Baroni said he didn’t know any submission moves and said he wanted to try a “hammerlock” for this fight. Minervini asks Baroni about putting his personal issues aside and coming out to fight. Baroni says he did it for the all the fans that are standing up and cheering for him (even though just as many are booing him). Baroni drops some f-bombs and thanks the fans.

Dan “Hendo” Henderson (MMA Record: 20-5; Pride Record: 11-4) VS. Vitor Belfort (MMA Record: 14-7; Pride Record: 4-2)
Here we go, now you’re talking. Henderson after winning the 2005 Pride Welterweight Grand Prix and becoming the first Pride FC Welterweight Champion went on to 2006 and traded a win and a loss with Kazuo Misaki. Henderson has now gone back up to light heavyweight or Pride Middleweight class to face Vitor Belfort for this fight. Belfort after losing the UFC Light Heavyweight Title back to Randy Couture and a split decision loss to Tito Ortiz returned to the Pride organization in 2005, losing to Alistair Overeem at Pride Total Elimination 2005. Belfort then came back with a knockout victory over Yoshihiko Takahashi at Pride Critical Countdown Absolute. Hell freezes over as we see Lenny Hart for like the first time ever in the ring for the fighter introductions.

Round 1. Henderson comes in and gets the quick takedown on Belfort. Henderson controls Belfort on the ground and pulls him into a front headlock. Belfort then slips out and reverses the position on top of Henderson. Belfort passes right out of the guard into side control. Henderson however is able to work well off his back and push Belfort off and attempts a legbar. Belfort works in the guard and glides into a beautiful legbar, but Henderson quickly slips out of it in a split second. Henderson comes in with his patented rights and lands an uppercut off of the exchange. Henderson locks Belfort up against the ropes and takes him down to the mat. Henderson locks up Belfort’s head again and gets a body shot. Belfort tries to turn it over, but Henderson pulls the headlock into a guillotine choke, but Belfort moves away. Henderson goes in with a right punch on the grounded Belfort and the bell rings to signal the end of the round. Henderson’s takedowns as well as continued aggression and control over Belfort won him the round. The early reversal by Belfort and the submission attempt he almost got make this round a 10-9 for Henderson. Belfort doesn’t seem to be in a quick knockout type of mood tonight. Negative affects from the gas maybe? Some shots in the crowd show Pride FC Middleweight Champion, Wanderlei Silva, sitting in the front row with Nobuhiko Takada. The announcers question why Silva is here hinting at some big announcement.

Round 2. Henderson gets Belfort against the ropes. Belfort jumps into guard against Henderson. “OK, if you are going to be stupid and do that, this is what you get,” says Hendo as he just drops Belfort flat on his back in a takedown. That was a pretty boneheaded move jumping into such a vulnerable position like that by Belfort. Henderson delivers some nice ground and pound with some right handed strikes through Belfort’s guard. Belfort defends and grabs Henderson’s head and the ref breaks the action up as they are too close to the ropes. Back in the middle, and Henderson lands a left punches through the guard. Henderson gets some and hits some mule kick heel strikes to Belfort’s leg. The crowd is liking this. Ref stands Belfort up. Henderson grabs onto Belfort and pushes him against the ropes. Henderson goes in for an overhand right hook, but completely whiffs and almost falls down. Henderson lands with a knee strike to Belfort’s body and gets another takedown. Henderson smothers his forearm to Belfort’s throat from half-guard. Henderson leaves the guard and lands another right and the round ends. Another 10-9 round for Henderson making the current score 20-18, Henderson. Belfort’s just not turning it on against Henderson. Henderson continues with more aggression, control, and takedowns against Belfort.

Round 3. Henderson aggressively comes in with some big right and left hooks. Henderson clinches with some knees and a spinning takedown to Belfort. Henderson is in full guard and lands some more strikes. Henderson even lands with his shoulder striking into Belfort. Henderson lands some aggressive right strikes. Belfort scrambles and sweeps and reverses the position into Hendo’s full guard. Belfort lands some body shots, but Hendo grabs Belfort’s head to keep him down and from inflicting more damage. Henderson blocks damaging blows from Belfort as Belfort checks out the clock knowing he’s running out of time to pull something out. Belfort’s not able to do much from the guard and tries to get up and pass, but Henderson grabs Belfort’s leg going for an anklelock (!), but Belfort avoids Hendo finishing it. Belfort loses his balance, and Henderson gets right back into the cat bird’s seat with and attains side control over Belfort. Hendo lays in more punches to Belfort’s head. Belfort turns over and Henderson keeps on top of him and almost gets his back into an RNC. Belfort turns over again to avoid and the fans are chanting for Hendo. Hendo rains down some shots to Belfort’s body, but Belfort gets a jiujitsu sweep over on Henderson, but there’s only eight seconds left and he looks like he just gives up and doesn’t do anything with 8 seconds left. Bell sounds and that’s the fight. There were a couple good reversals by Belfort, but not enough to give him the round. This was easily another 10-9 round for Henderson making it 30-27 and a textbook unanimous decision for Hendo. Mauro Ranallo: “Is the result anything but academic Trigg?” Frank Trigg: “Uh . . . yeah . . . no.” Once again, please shut up Frank Trigg.

The Winner: The fight goes to the judges and all three rule 30-27, Henderson. Henderson picks up the victory via unanimous decision. Don’t mess with “Decision” Dan! Impressive and dominating performance for Henderson as he went up a weight class for this fight and was coming off of a loss to Kazuo Misaki. This fight is pretty symbolic of Belfort’s problem in that he will look dangerous with a scary knockout victory in one fight, but then complete and utterly lacking with that instinct in the next. Following this fight, Belfort tested positive for 4-hydroxytestosterone, an illegal substance. Belfort claimed the 4-hydroxytestosterone was in an over the counter drug and then produced a statement from a doctor that he received medical injections with the testosterone. The NSAC concluded that Belfort may not have known about the substance, but it was still a violation of the banned substances. Belfort’s suspension of 9 months was upheld. Belfort would then go to England to fight in Cage Rage for two fights before returning to fight in the US almost two years later in 2008 at Affliction: Banned where Belfort got back to his winning ways with a knockout victory over Terry Martin. Belfort followed up by going down to middleweight and getting a brutal knockout victory over top-ranked middleweight and long-time friend and training partner of Dan Henderson at Team Quest, Matt Lindland. While Pride might’ve been in it’s final days, Henderson still had one last classic, history-making fight yet to occur marking him in the anals of not just Pride FC but MMA history itself. Despite Belfort lacking his on again/off again killer instinct, this was probably the fight of the night. And don’t feel too bad for Belfort, he’s still married to a gorgeous Playboy playmate, Joana Prado.

Sean O’Haire (MMA Record: 1-1; Pride Record: Debut) VS. Eric “Butterbean” Esch (MMA Record: 6-2-1; Pride Record: 0-1)
Here we go with yet another signature Pride FC side freakshow attraction. Yup, another fake fighter/former pro-wrestler in the ring with none other than Butterbean. And who is the referee then nother other than Steve Mazzagatti, the worst referee in the history of MMA and probably one of the top five worst referees of all time. He’s so terrible that Dana White even came out and said he sucks. O’Haire is apparently a last minute replacement in this fight for Mark Hunt. The Nevada State Athletic Commission thought Hunt with his wins over Wanderlei Silva and Cro Cop would’ve had too much of an advantage over the less experienced Esch.

Round 1. Mazzagatti says, “HOOK ‘EM UP!” O’Haire pointlessly tries a body kick and Butterbean lands a huge right hook that rocks O’Haire. O’Haire goes in and Butterbean lands a series of right hooks that put O’Haire down in less than 30 seconds as Trigg laughs his ass off.

The Winner: Butterbean by knockout at 0:29 in Round 1. Minervini interviews Butterbean. Butterbean thanks the fans and he was ready to go for this fight. Butterbean says he was training with American Top Team and was ready to go on the ground if necessary. Uh . . . yeah right. Another typical stupid Pride feakshow and the only really terrible thing they put on tonight.

-Nobuhiko Takada, acting director of Pride FC, addresses the fans in “English”. Takada says with this show they’ve made history and that they are happy to be here in Las Vegas and tomorrow they will “break history!” Takada says Pride is here to say. Yeah, we wish Takada-san. Takada-san than brings out Hayato Sakurai, Hidehiko Yoshida, and Kazuyuki Fajita to address the fans as well. Sakurai’s wearing a Josh Barnett shirt and welcomes the fans to Pride. Yoshida gets on the mic and thanks the fans and I think he says, “I luv Amerika!” Fujita gets a big ovation and says “Next time, MY TIME!” Takada-san gets back on the microphone and says the next three fights will have some of Pride’s greatest warriors and asks the fans, “ARE YOU READY FOR PRIDE?!”

Josh “The Babyfaced Assassin” Barnett (MMA Record: 19-4; Pride Record: 4-3) VS. Pawel Nastula (MMA Record: 1-2; Pride Record: 1-2)
Barnett defeated Mark Hunt and then Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira in the 2006 Open-Weight Grand Prix, but then went on to lose to Cro Cop in the finals on the same night Barnett defeated Minotauro. Nastula finally got an MMA win over Edson Drago at Pride Critical Countdown Absolute in July 2006. Herb Dean is the referee

Round 1. Nastula and Barnett jockey for control of the clinch against the ropes. Barnett opens up with some strikes but then goes again into the clinch. Barnett lands a knee strike to the kidney as Nastula pushes Barnett into the corner. Nastula finishes the takedown and gets side control. Dean breaks the fighters up for lack of ACTION even though Ranallo and Trigg disagree, thinking Nastula was very active in the side mount. Nastula double-underhooks Barnett and clinches him against the ropes and Nastula lands another takedown. Nastula works in the guard and Barnett reverses and applies a legbar right as the bell rings. There was a good submission attempt at the end by Barnett, but with the successful takedowns and control in the first round by Nastula, that makes the first round 10-9 Nastula.

Round 2. Barnett double-underhooks Nastula and they clinch some more against the ropes. Barnett lands with a knee to the midsection and gets some right and left hooks off the clinch before grabbing back on to Nastula. Nastula gets a knee to the head while being pushed into the corner and Barnett responds with a body shot. Herb Dean demands: “ACTION!” Barnett exchanges with Nastula, and Nastula rattles Barnett with some big right and left punches. Barnett scores with a knee strike to Nastula’s head, but Nastula grabs the bodylock and nails the takedown. Nastula takes side control as Barnett struggles to get free. Nastula looks like he doesn’t really know what to do to Barnett while he’s on top. Nastula . . . see that thing on the end of your arm that’s in a blue glove. That’s a hand. Bend the fingers on your hand and make a thing called a fist. Use your fist to bash your opponent’s head! Barnett is able to scramble and sprawl over on top of Nastula and grabs the ankle. Toe hold submission! Nastula taps and Dean stops it!

The Winner: Barnett wins by submission at 3:04 in Round 2 with the toe hold. Barnett’s drug test for this show came out clean while Nastula tested positive for nandrolone. Nastula argued the test results, but well . . . make of it what you will. This would end up being Nastula’s last bout in Pride FC. Following the end of his suspension, Nastula returned to MMA at Sengoku – Fourth Battle where Nastula lost to Yang Dong Yi via TKO. Barnett gets on the microphone and says even though he was banged up and didn’t train for this fight as well as he should’ve, it was more important to him to make it to this show and fight for Pride in the US. Barnett saw the foot and grabbed it like food in front of a dog. Minervini says it was victory from jaws of defeat, but Barnett was confident because there was plenty of time left. Barnett would lose his last fight in Pride FC to Minotauro at Pride Shockwave 2006 and wouldn’t return to fighting until 2008. Since then, Barnett’s been on a four fight winning streak, beating Gilbert Yvel by submission from strikes at Affliction: Day Of Reckoning.

-Wanderlei Silva addresses the fans. Silva wanted to compete at this show, but he got brutally knocked out a month before by Cro Cop at Final Conflict Absolute. Silva’s here and he calls out Chuck Liddell so they can finally have their much anticipated bout. There was a lot of talk about Silva and Liddell fighting throughout 2006 in a type of inter-promotional bout, but that never materialized. Liddell/Silva was a dream match for many fans, but it would never occur in Pride FC.

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (MMA Record: 13-2; Pride Record: 9-1) VS. Kevin Randleman (MMA Record: 16-11; Pride Record: 4-6)
Shogun suffered his first defeat in Pride at the hands of Mark Coleman at Pride 31 when Shogun’s arm was broken after a slam by Coleman. Coleman was awarded the victory by technical knockout which was followed by a shocking brawl between the Hammer House and Chute Box training camps. Shogun returned and defeated Cyrille Diabate by TKO at Final Conflict Absolute. Shogun wanted another crack at Coleman, but Coleman is fighting Fedor, so Shogun gets Coleman’s fellow Hammer House member, Randleman. Randleman gets a big ovation and looks pumped.

Round 1. Randleman rushes and gets the takedown. Shogun then grabs the the lower leg of Randleman and applies the submission and Randleman can’t do anything except to try grabbing and leaning onto the ropes. Shogun finishes the hold and twists and wrenches back on Randleman’s ankle. Randleman howls in pain. Randleman tries to roll over and improve his position. Shogun moves and falls back with a kneebar at a very sick looking angle. Randleman finally taps and that is all.

The Winner: Shogun wins with the submission at 2:35 in the first round. Impressive and dominating submission win by Shogun. For Randleman, pretty much the same as his loss to Cro Cop at Shockwave 2004. Bum rush in and get submitted quickly. Shogun gets the microphone and thanks the fans and Pride FC official, Sakaikabara. Shogun says every time he is here he will do his best to impress the fans.

Non-Title Bout: Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko (MMA Record: 23-1; Pride Record 12-0) VS. Mark “The Hammer” Coleman (MMA Record: 15-7; Pride Record: 8-4)
Fedor submitted Coleman about 2 minutes into their first fight at Pride Total Elimination in 2004. Fedor’s coming off of healing a broken hand injury. Coleman went into a certifiable roid rage after the first loss to Fedor. Fedor also hasn’t defended the Pride FC Heavyweight Title since around spring of 2005 when he defeated Cro Cop. But they still book him against freaking Zuluzinho at Shockwave 2005. The crowd is excited to see Fedor in the states for the first time ever.

Round 1. Coleman goes in for the takedown. Fedor sprawls and grabs the head. Coleman lets go and Fedor unleashes his strikes on Coleman. Coleman goes low and grabs Fedor’s leg to try and endure the onslaught. Fedor defends Coleman’s takedown attempts and grabs hold of a guillotine choke. Coleman pushes out of it but still can’t complete the takedown. Coleman holds on to the legs and gets the takedown on Fedor, but Fedor is able to stand back up because Coleman wasn’t controlling Fedor’s hips. Fedor punches Coleman off him and knocks him down with some nasty looking punches. Coleman goes back down and low at Fedor’s leg, really just hanging on for dear life not to get finished. The fighters clinch up against the ropes and a clear shot of Coleman’s face shows that his left eye is pretty much swollen shut. The referee stops the action so the medical staff can check Coleman’s eye. The doctor allows Coleman to continue. Big mistake. Coleman clinches Fedor into the corner again, but the referee breaks it up for lack of action. Neither fighter lands anything in the last ten seconds, and it’s going to round 2. Credit to Coleman, he hung on despite some nasty punishment. He scored a takedown, but was not able to do anything with it. However, credit for hanging on and a brief takedown does not earn him a 9. Round goes 10-8 for Fedor. Definiton one-sided, 10-8 round even with Coleman’s boring clinching against the ropes. Coleman had nothing to bring against Fedor besides just holding on to him to avoid getting his face smashed and knocked out.

Round 2. Coleman swings and gets nothing but air. He shoots for the takedown on Fedor, but Fedor just sprawls again and lands shots to Coleman’s head. Coleman pushes and is finally able to land a takedown and goes into the full guard of Fedor. However at this point, Coleman has nothing left to deliver some significant or smart punishment to Fedor. Fedor turns his body over and grabs the arm. Fedor armbar! Coleman taps, and that ends the fight!

The Winner: Fedor remains the greatest pound for pound fighter in the world and of all time (sorry Dana) with the submission at 1:15 in Round 2. This was pretty much an exact replay of the finish of the first Fedor/Coleman fight in 2004. Coleman at his age really needed a better gameplan then just try to shoot for a takedown and hope to ground and pound Fedor when Fedor was able so easily to submit him from that same position in their first fight not to mention Fedor’s equally dangerous stand-up game. Coleman didn’t really even try to land any shots on Fedor which is where Fedor has sometimes proven to be somewhat vulnerable. I guess Coleman needs some sort of credit for trying and landing a couple takedowns on Fedor, but . . . I don’t think he really deserves it in his arrogance against Fedor twice.

-Coleman’s face is an absolute mess after the fight. He yells to his daughters and says he loves them and then promises he will be back . . . with some f-bombs. What follows is one of the most incredibly disturbing displays in the history of . . . history. Coleman embraces his devastated and bawling little girls in the middle of the ring. He then picks them up and carries them over to the jovial, humble, and smiling monster that just beat the crap out of their dad, Fedor. “Say hi to Fedor, he’s a nice guy.” OK, Coleman, I mean I think it’s time to go to the locker room. Coleman puts them down and asks Fedor for a shot and does a play jab. Coleman enjoys it a little bit too much and does another. Alright Coleman, that’s enough get to the darn locker room already. Major props to Fedor for grinning and bearing this . . . whatever this was. Minervini comes in to interview Fedor through Fedor’s translator. Fedor says he’s watched a lot of Coleman’s fights and respects Coleman. Fedor says since he hasn’t fought in a while he wanted to fight longer and feel Coleman out more, which I guess is Fedor’s modest, roundabout way of admitting he could’ve ended the fight about 30 seconds into the first round. Fans are emptying the arena, and there are some shots of Coleman going back to the locker room with his daughters. Fedor poses with his training camp. The credits roll with clips from the highlights of the evening.

-DVD includes a 5 minute fighter walk-in montage since the fighter entrances are clipped from the main show. There’s also a photo montage of Pride fighters for the US tour.

UP NEXT: Pride 33: The Second Coming . . . or as I like to call it, the greatest MMA event in the history of history!

The 411: An impressive showing for Pride FC with all of their internal strife and their future uncertain. The show had a good little mix of everything even though there could've been a stronger main event maybe or an actual title bout for that matter this being Pride's first show in the US. Another issue with Pride FC is how they would constantly have their champions compete in these non-title bouts. The fights were fun, and this show does prove that had circumstances been different, Pride could've been more of the force in the US and abroad. The Pride shows had a great, unique presentation and aura, but some of the matches and mis-matches were a little ridiculous. Thankfully, this show had very little of that.

Final Score:  8.0   [ Very Good ]