Ultimate Fighting Championship

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Ultimate Fighting Championship
UFC Logo.svg
Type Subsidiary
Industry Mixed martial arts promotion
Founded 1993; 28 years ago
Founders
Art Davie
Bob Meyrowitz
Campbell McLaren
David Isaacs
John Milius
Rorion Gracie[1][2]
Headquarters Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Key people Dana White (president)
Owner
Endeavor (via Zuffa, LLC)
Website www.ufc.com
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA)
promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada, which is owned and operated by Zuffa,
LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings.[3][4][5] It is the
largest MMA promotion company in the world and features some of the highest-level
fighters in the sport on its roster.[6] The UFC produces events worldwide that
showcase twelve weight divisions (eight men's divisions and four women's divisions)
and abides by the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts.[7] As of 2020, the UFC has
held over 500 events. Dana White has been UFC president since 2001. Under White's
stewardship, the UFC has grown into a globally popular multi-billion-dollar
enterprise.[8]

The first event was held in 1993 at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado.
[9] The purpose of the early Ultimate Fighting Championship competitions was to
identify the most effective martial art in a contest with minimal rules and no
weight classes between competitors of different fighting disciplines like Boxing,
Kickboxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Sambo, Wrestling, Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo,
and Judo. In subsequent events, fighters began adopting effective techniques from
more than one discipline, which indirectly helped create a separate style of
fighting known as present-day mixed martial arts.[10] In 2016, UFC's parent
company, Zuffa, was sold to a group led by Endeavor, then known as William Morris
Endeavor (WME–IMG), including Silver Lake Partners, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and MSD
Capital[11] for US$4.025 billion.[12] In 2021, Endeavor bought out Zuffa's other
owners at a valuation of $1.7 billion.[5]

With a TV deal and expansion in Australia, Asia, Europe,[13][14][15] and new

markets within the United States, the UFC has increased in popularity, and has
achieved greater mainstream media coverage; the promotion brought in a total
revenue of US$609 million in 2015,[16] and its next domestic media rights agreement
with ESPN was valued at $1.5 billion over a five-year term.[17]

Contents
1 History
1.1 Early competition: early 1990s
1.1.1 Emergence of stricter rules
1.2 Controversy and reform: late 1990s
1.3 Zuffa era: early 2000s
1.3.1 Struggle for survival and turnaround
1.3.2 The Ultimate Fighter and rise in popularity
1.4 Surging popularity and growth: mid–2000s
1.4.1 Pride acquisition and integration
1.5 UFC 100 and continued popularity: late 2000s – mid-2010s
1.5.1 WEC merger
1.5.2 Strikeforce purchase
1.5.3 Fox partnership
1.5.4 Women's MMA
1.5.5 International expansion
1.5.6 TRT ban
1.5.7 Lawsuits over contractual treatment of fighters
1.6 Endeavor era: 2016–present
1.6.1 ESPN partnership
1.6.2 M-1 Global partnership
1.6.3 Endeavor attempted initial public offering (IPO) filing
1.6.4 Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
1.6.5 Controversy over eye pokes
1.6.6 Endeavor initial public offering (IPO) and Zuffa buyout
2 Facilities
2.1 UFC Performance Institute
2.2 UFC APEX
2.3 Fight Island
3 Anti-doping policy
4 Rules
4.1 Rounds
4.2 Cage
4.3 Attire
4.3.1 Reebok Uniform
4.3.2 Venum Uniform
4.4 Match outcome
4.5 Judging criteria
4.6 Fouls
4.6.1 Fouls against a grounded opponent
4.7 Match conduct
4.8 Evolution of the rules
4.9 The Ultimate Fighter
5 Weight divisions/Current champions
6 Roster
7 Pound-for-pound
7.1 Men's pound-for-pound ranking
7.2 Women's pound-for-pound ranking
8 UFC events
8.1 Production team
8.2 Fighter salaries and contracts
9 UFC records
10 UFC Hall of Fame
11 Media
11.1 Television
11.2 Music
11.3 Video games
11.4 Action figures
11.4.1 Round 5
11.4.2 Jakks Pacific
11.5 DVD
11.6 PlayStation Network and Xbox Live
12 UFC international broadcasters
13 See also
14 Notes
15 References
16 External links
History

The former logo of the UFC, used from 1993 to 1999

Early competition: early 1990s

Royce Gracie used Brazilian jiu-jitsu in the early years of UFC to defeat opponents
of greater size and strength.
Art Davie proposed to John Milius and Rorion Gracie an eight-man single-elimination
tournament called "War of the Worlds". The tournament was inspired by the Gracies
in Action video-series produced by the Gracie family of Brazil which featured
Gracie jiu-jitsu students defeating martial artists of various disciplines such as
karate, kung fu, and kickboxing. The tournament would also feature martial artists
from different disciplines facing each other in no-holds-barred combat to determine
the best martial art and would aim to replicate the excitement of the matches Davie
saw on the videos.[18] Milius, a noted film director and screenwriter, as well as a
Gracie student, agreed to act as the event's creative director. Davie drafted the
business plan and twenty-eight investors contributed the initial capital to start
WOW Promotions with the intent to develop the tournament into a television
franchise.[19]

In 1993, WOW Promotions sought a television partner and approached pay-per-view

producers TVKO (HBO) and SET (Showtime), as well as Campbell McLaren and David
Isaacs at the Semaphore Entertainment Group (SEG). Both TVKO and SET declined, but
SEG – a pioneer in pay-per-view television which had produced such offbeat events
as a man vs woman tennis match between Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova –
became WOW's partner in May 1993.[20] SEG contacted video and film art director
Jason Cusson to design the trademarked "Octagon", a signature piece for the event.
Cusson remained the Production Designer through UFC 27.[18] SEG devised the name
for the show as The Ultimate Fighting Championship.[21] UFC promoters initially
pitched the event as a real-life fighting video game tournament similar to Street
Fighter and Mortal Kombat.[22]

WOW Promotions and SEG produced the first event, later called UFC 1, at McNichols
Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado on November 12, 1993. Art Davie functioned as the
show's booker and matchmaker.[23] The show proposed to find an answer for sports
fans' questions such as: "Can a wrestler beat a boxer?"[24] As with most martial
arts at the time, fighters typically had skills in just one discipline and had
little experience against opponents with different skills.[25] The television
broadcast featured kickboxers Patrick Smith and Kevin Rosier, savate fighter Gerard
Gordeau, karate expert Zane Frazier, shootfighter Ken Shamrock, sumo wrestler Teila
Tuli, boxer Art Jimmerson, and 175 lb (79 kg) Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Royce
Gracie—younger brother of UFC co-founder Rorion, whom Rorion handpicked to
represent his family in the competition. Royce Gracie's submission skills proved
the most effective in the inaugural tournament, earning him the first ever UFC
tournament championship[26] after submitting Jimmerson, Shamrock, and Gordeau in
succession. The show proved extremely successful with 86,592 television subscribers
on pay-per-view.

It's disputed whether the promoters intended for the event to become a precursor to
a series of future events. "That show was only supposed to be a one-off", eventual
UFC president Dana White said. "It did so well on pay-per-view they decided to do
another, and another. Never in a million years did these guys think they were
creating a sport."[27] Art Davie, in his 2014 book Is This Legal?, an account of
the creation of the first UFC event, disputes the perception that the UFC was seen
by WOW Promotions and SEG as a one-off, since SEG offered a five-year joint
development deal to WOW. He says, "Clearly, both Campbell and Meyrowitz shared my
unwavering belief that War of the Worlds[note 1] would be a continuing series of
fighting tournaments—a franchise, rather than a one-night stand."[28]

With no weight classes, fighters often faced significantly larger or taller

opponents. Keith "The Giant Killer" Hackney faced Emmanuel Yarbrough at UFC 3 with
a 9 in (23 cm) height and 400 pounds (180 kg) weight disadvantage.[29] Many martial
artists believed that technique could overcome these size disadvantages, and that a
skilled fighter could use an opponent's size and strength against him. With the 175
lb (79 kg) Royce Gracie winning three of the first four events, the UFC quickly
proved that size does not always determine the outcome of the fight.

During this early part of the organization, the UFC would showcase a bevy of
different styles and fighters. Aside from the aforementioned Royce Gracie, Ken
Shamrock, and Patrick Smith, the competitions also featured competitors such as
Hall of Famer Dan Severn, Marco Ruas, Gary Goodridge, Don Frye, Kimo Leopoldo, Oleg
Taktarov, and Tank Abbott. Although the first events were dominated by jiu-jitsu,
other fighting styles became successful: first wrestling, then ground and pound,
kickboxing, boxing, and dirty boxing, which eventually melded into modern mixed
martial arts.

In April 1995, following UFC 5 in Charlotte, North Carolina, Davie and Gracie sold
their interest in the franchise to SEG and disbanded WOW Promotions. Davie
continued with SEG as the show's booker and matchmaker, as well as the commissioner
of Ultimate Fighting, until December 1997.

Emergence of stricter rules

Although UFC used the tagline "There are no rules" in the early 1990s, the UFC did
in fact operate with limited rules. It banned biting and eye-gouging, and allowed
techniques such as hair pulling, headbutting, groin strikes, and fish-hooking.
[citation needed]

In a UFC 4 qualifying match, competitors Jason Fairn and Guy Mezger agreed not to
pull hair—as they both wore pony tails tied back for the match. That same event saw
a matchup between Keith Hackney and Joe Son in which Hackney unleashed a series of
groin shots against Son while on the ground.[citation needed]

The UFC had a reputation, especially in the early days, as an extremely violent
event, as evidenced by a disclaimer at the beginning of the UFC 5 broadcast which
warned audiences of the violent nature of the sport.[citation needed]

UFC 5 also introduced the first singles match, a rematch from the inaugural UFC
featuring three-time champion Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock, called "The
Superfight". This proved an important development because singles matches would
feature fighters who suffered no prior damage from a previous fight in the same
event, unlike tournament matches.[citation needed]

"The Superfight" began as a non-tournament match that would determine the first
reigning UFC Champion for tournament winners to face;[30] it later evolved into a
match that could feature either title matches or non-title matches. The
"Superfight" would eventually completely phase out tournament matches; by UFC
Brazil, the UFC abandoned the tournament format for an entire card of singles
matches (aside from a one-time UFC Japan tournament featuring Japanese fighters).
UFC 6 was the first event to feature the crowning of the first non-tournament UFC
Champion, Ken Shamrock.

Controversy and reform: late 1990s

The violent nature of the burgeoning sport quickly drew the attention of the U.S.
authorities.[31]

In 1996, Senator John McCain (R-AZ) saw a tape of the first UFC events and
immediately found it abhorrent. McCain himself led a campaign to ban the UFC,
calling it "human cockfighting", and even sending letters to the governors of all
fifty US states asking them to ban the event.[32]

Thirty-six states enacted laws that banned "no-holds-barred" fighting, including

New York, which enacted the ban on the eve of UFC 12, forcing a relocation of the
event to Dothan, Alabama.[33] The UFC continued to air on DirecTV PPV, though its
audience remained minuscule compared to the larger cable pay-per-view platforms of
the era.

In response to the criticism, the UFC increased cooperation with state athletic
commissions and redesigned its rules to remove the less palatable elements of
fights while retaining the core elements of striking and grappling. UFC 12 saw the
introduction of weight classes and the banning of fish-hooking. For UFC 14, gloves
became mandatory, while kicks to the head of a downed opponent were banned. UFC 15
saw limitations on hair pulling, and the banning of strikes to the back of the neck
and head, headbutting, small-joint manipulations, and groin strikes. With five-
minute rounds introduced at UFC 21, the UFC gradually re-branded itself as a sport
rather than a spectacle.[34]

Led by UFC commissioner Jeff Blatnick and referee John McCarthy, the UFC continued
to work with state athletic commissions.[35] Blatnick, McCarthy, and matchmaker Joe
Silva created a manual of policies, procedures, codes of conduct, and rules to help
in getting the UFC sanctioned by the athletic commissions, many of which exist to
this day.[35] Blatnick and McCarthy traveled around the country, educating
regulators and changing perceptions about a sport that was thought to be
bloodthirsty and inhumane.[35] By April 2000, their movement had clearly made an
impact.[35] California was set to become the first state in the U.S. to sign off on
a set of codified rules that governed MMA.[35] Soon after, New Jersey adopted the
language.[35]

As the UFC continued to work with the athletic commissions, events took place in
smaller U.S. markets, and venues, such as the Lake Charles Civic Center. The
markets included states that are largely rural and less known for holding
professional sporting events, such as Iowa, Mississippi, Louisiana, Wyoming, and
Alabama. SEG could not secure home-video releases for UFC 23 through UFC 29. With
other mixed martial arts promotions working towards U.S. sanctioning, the
International Fighting Championships (IFC) secured the first U.S. sanctioned mixed-
martial-arts event, which occurred in New Jersey on September 30, 2000. Just two
months later, the UFC held its first sanctioned event, UFC 28, under the New Jersey
State Athletic Control Board's "Unified Rules".[36]

As the UFC's rules started to evolve, so too did its field of competitors. Hall of
Famers Mark Coleman, Randy Couture, Pat Miletich, Chuck Liddell, Matt Hughes, and
Tito Ortiz all emerged from this era.

Zuffa era: early 2000s

After the long battle to secure sanctioning, SEG stood on the brink of bankruptcy,
when Station Casinos executives Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta and their business
partner Dana White approached them in 2000, with an offer to purchase the UFC. A
month later, in January 2001, the Fertittas bought the UFC for $2 million and
created Zuffa, LLC as the parent entity controlling the UFC.

"I had my attorneys tell me that I was crazy because I wasn't buying anything. I
was paying $2 million and they were saying 'What are you getting?'" Lorenzo
Fertitta revealed to Fighters Only magazine,[37] recalling the lack of assets he
acquired in the purchase. "And I said 'What you don't understand is I'm getting the
most valuable thing that I could possibly have, which is those three letters: UFC.
That is what's going to make this thing work. Everybody knows that brand, whether
they like it or they don't like it, they react to it.'"[37]

With ties to the Nevada State Athletic Commission (Lorenzo Fertitta was a former
member of the NSAC), Zuffa secured sanctioning in Nevada in 2001. Shortly
thereafter, the UFC returned to pay-per-view cable television with UFC 33 featuring
three championship bouts.

Struggle for survival and turnaround

The UFC slowly, but steadily, rose in popularity after the Zuffa purchase, due
partly to greater advertising,[38] corporate sponsorship, the return to cable pay-
per-view and subsequent home video and DVD releases.

With larger live gates at casino venues like the Trump Taj Mahal and the MGM Grand
Garden Arena, the UFC secured its first television deal with Fox Sports Net. The
Best Damn Sports Show Period aired the first mixed martial arts match on American
cable television in June 2002, as well as the main event showcasing Chuck Liddell
vs. Vitor Belfort at UFC 37.5.[39] Later, FSN would air highlight shows from the
UFC, featuring one-hour blocks of the UFC's greatest bouts.

UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock was instrumental in the UFC's turnaround into a
mainstream sport.
UFC 40 proved to be the most critical event to date in the Zuffa era. The event was
a near sellout of 13,022 at the MGM Grand Arena and sold 150,000 pay-per-view buys,
a rate roughly double that of the previous Zuffa events. The event featured a card
headlined by a highly anticipated championship grudge match between then-current
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Tito Ortiz and former UFC Superfight Champion Ken
Shamrock, who had previously left to professional wrestling in the WWE before
returning to MMA. It was the first time the UFC hit such a high mark since being
forced "underground" in 1997.[40] UFC 40 also garnered mainstream attention from
massive media outlets such as ESPN and USA Today, something that was unfathomable
for mixed martial arts at that point in time.[41] Many have suggested that the
success of UFC 40 and the anticipation for Ortiz vs. Shamrock saved the UFC from
bankruptcy; the buyrates of the previous Zuffa shows averaged a mere 45,000 buys
per event and the company was suffering deep monetary losses.[41] The success of
UFC 40 provided a glimmer of hope for the UFC and kept alive the hope that mixed
martial arts could become big.[42] Beyond the rivalry itself, the success of UFC 40
was due in part to the marketing and outreach power of crossover athletes – from
Pro Wrestling to MMA and MMA to Pro Wrestling – a practice with roots in Japan's
Pride Fighting Championships.[43] Long time UFC referee "Big" John McCarthy said
that he felt UFC 40 was the turning point in whether or not the sport of MMA would
survive in America.
"When that show (UFC 40) happened, I honestly felt like it was going to make it.
Throughout the years, things were happening, and everything always looked bleak. It
always looked like, this is it, this is going to be the last time. This is going to
be the last year. But, when I was standing in the Octagon at UFC 40, I remember
standing there before the Ortiz/Shamrock fight and looking around. The energy of
that fight, it was phenomenal, and it was the first time I honestly said, it's
going to make it." –"Big" John McCarthy[44]

Despite the success of UFC 40, the UFC was still experiencing financial deficits.
By 2004, Zuffa had $34 million of losses since they purchased the UFC.[45] Fighters
who came into prominence after Zuffa's takeover include Anderson Silva, Georges St-
Pierre, Rich Franklin, B.J. Penn, Sean Sherk, Matt Serra, Ricco Rodriguez, Robbie
Lawler, Frank Mir, Karo Parisyan, and Nick Diaz.

The Ultimate Fighter and rise in popularity

Faced with the prospect of folding, the UFC stepped outside the bounds of pay-per-
view and made a foray into television. After being featured in a reality television
series, American Casino,[46] and seeing how well the series worked as a promotion
vehicle, the Fertitta brothers developed the idea of the UFC having its own reality
series.

Logo of The Ultimate Fighter

Their idea, The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) was a reality television show featuring up-
and-coming MMA fighters in competition for a six-figure UFC contract, with fighters
eliminated from competition via exhibition mixed martial arts matches. It was
pitched to several networks, each one rejecting the idea outright. Not until they
approached Spike TV, with an offer to pay the $10 million production costs
themselves, did they find an outlet.[45]

In January 2005, Spike TV launched The Ultimate Fighter 1 in the timeslot following
WWE Raw. The show became an instant success, culminating with a notable season
finale brawl featuring light heavyweight finalists Forrest Griffin and Stephan
Bonnar going toe-to-toe for the right to earn the six-figure contract. The live
broadcast of the season finale drew a very impressive 1.9 overall rating. Dana
White credits TUF 1 for saving the UFC.[47]

On the heels of the Griffin/Bonnar finale, a second season of The Ultimate Fighter
launched in August 2005, and two more seasons appeared in 2006. Spike and the UFC
continued to create and air new seasons until the show moved to FX in 2012.[48]

Following the success of The Ultimate Fighter, Spike also picked up UFC Unleashed,
an hour-long weekly show featuring select fights from previous events. Spike also
signed on to broadcast live UFC Fight Night, a series of fight events debuting in
August 2005, and Countdown specials to promote upcoming UFC pay-per-view cards.

After a very successful run on Spike and with the upcoming announcement of the
UFC's new relationship with Fox, Spike officials made a statement regarding the end
of their partnership with the UFC, "The Ultimate Fighter season 14 in September
will be our last... Our 6-year partnership with the UFC has been incredibly
beneficial in building both our brands, and we wish them all the best in the
future."[49]

With the announcement of UFC's partnership with Fox in August 2011, The Ultimate
Fighter, which entered its 14th season in that September, moved to the FX network
to air on Friday nights starting with season 15 in the Spring of 2012. Along with
the network change, episodes are now edited and broadcast within a week of
recording instead of a several-month delay, and elimination fights are aired live.
[50]

Surging popularity and growth: mid–2000s

New York City Times Square ad for UFC 88: Breakthrough featuring Chuck Liddell vs.
Rashad Evans
With increased visibility, the UFC's pay-per-view buy numbers exploded. UFC 52, the
first event after the first season of The Ultimate Fighter featuring eventual-UFC
Hall of Famer: Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell, avenging his defeat to fellow eventual-
Hall of Famer, Randy Couture, drew a pay-per-view audience of 300,000,[51] doubling
its previous benchmark of 150,000 set at UFC 40. Following the second season of The
Ultimate Fighter, the UFC's much-hyped match between Liddell and Couture drew an
estimated 410,000 pay-per-view buys at UFC 57.

For the rest of 2006, pay-per-view buy rates continued to skyrocket, with 620,000
buys for UFC 60: Hughes vs. Gracie—featuring Royce Gracie's first UFC fight in 11
years—and 775,000 buys for UFC 61 featuring the highly anticipated rematch between
Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz, the coaches of The Ultimate Fighter 3.[52] The
organization hit a milestone with UFC 66, pitting Ortiz in a rematch against
Liddell with over 1 million buys.[53]