Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
“Combat Rewind” brings you some of combat sports’ best highlights from every calendar day of the year, courtesy of the UFC Fight Pass archives.
“Combat Rewind” brings you some of combat sports’ best highlights from every calendar day of the year, courtesy of the UFC Fight Pass archives.
Relive the memorable first meeting between B.J. Penn and Matt Hughes at UFC 46 as “The Prodigy” captured the UFC welterweight title.
[autotag]B.J. Penn[/autotag] and [autotag]Matt Hughes[/autotag] faced off for the first time in 2004 in what would be the start of a memorable rivalry.
Penn faced five-time defending welterweight champion Hughes at UFC 46 as he made his 170-pound debut, but the Hawaiian looked instantly at home as he dominated the reigning champion on the mat to secure a memorable victory.
Penn got Hughes on his back early, and “The Prodigy” never let him off the hook. He controlled him in top position for the majority of the round before eventually transitioning to his back with under a minute left and securing the rear-naked choke that forced the tap.
At the time it was a huge upset win for Penn, and it went on to set up a memorable trilogy between the pair. Hughes won the second fight two years later, finishing Penn in the third round, but it was Penn who got the last laugh, knocking Hughes out in just 21 seconds in their final meeting in 2010.
That was Penn’s last victory in the octagon, and he has recently hinted at the possibility of officially calling time on his career.
Check out Penn’s win over Hughes in the video above.
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From strawweight all the way to heavyweight, these are 10 of the greatest comebacks in UFC championship fight history.
There have been some remarkable performances in UFC championship bouts, but some fighters had to dig deep to get the job done.
Some of the greatest comebacks have come in title fights, whether from a defending champion or a title challenger who showed the heart of a champion to weather the storm and turn things around for the finish.
From strawweight up to heavyweight, here are 10 of the greatest comebacks in UFC championship fight history.
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After defending his title three times, UFC light heavyweight champion [autotag]Frank Shamrock[/autotag] drew a young [autotag]Tito Ortiz[/autotag] at UFC 22. It proved to be one of the toughest battles of his career, as Ortiz really took it to Shamrock from the opening bell.
Ortiz dropped him with a straight right just seconds in, and the next 15 minutes would be a nightmare for Shamrock. Ortiz landed numerous takedowns, putting heavy pressure in top position, while landing brutal ground-and-pound.
In Round 4, Ortiz started to slow down. Shamrock pushed forward with hard leg kicks, but Ortiz capitalized on Shamrock’s forward pressure, landing another takedown. With less than a minute remaining in the round, Shamrock reversed position, unloading a barrage of punches on Ortiz who ducked under for a desperation takedown.
Shamrock used a mounted guillotine to get back up, dropping big hammer fists on Ortiz, who was holding onto his leg. A couple more shots and an exhausted Ortiz was unresponsive, prompting the referee to call the fight. Shamrock never gave up, throwing everything he had in the small windows he got throughout the fight, showing incredible heart.
Up next: Hughes delivers a moment for the ages
Thursday marks the 15th anniversary of the epic welterweight title fight that saw Matt Hughes turn the tables after a strong start from Frank Trigg.
Dana White has seen a lot of fights in his day.
However when asked to choose his all-time favorite, UFC president White has long pointed to [autotag]Matt Hughes[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Frank Trigg[/autotag] 2.
The UFC 52 fight took place in 2005 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Thursday marks the 15th anniversary of the epic welterweight title fight that saw Hughes turn the tables after a strong start from Trigg.
Early in the fight, Hughes was hit in the groin. Despite Hughes’ protest, referee Mario Yamasaki did not call a timeout. Trigg saw a window of opportunity and capitalized on it, knocking Hughes down and pounding on him.
Somehow, someway Hughes survived. The then-UFC welterweight champ, Hughes grabbed double underhook, mustered up the strength, and pulled off one of the most prolific moments in MMA history. The image of Hughes running across the cage, carrying Trigg all the way, was etched in MMA history forever.
One slam later, Trigg was down and Hughes was in mount. Trying to avoid the strikes, Trigg rolled over and exposed his back. Hughes sunk in a rear-naked choke and got the tap to retain his title.
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The win was the second time Hughes had defeated Trigg in as many attempts. At UFC 45 in November 2003, Hughes won by the same method – first-round rear-naked choke.
In 2015, Hughes vs. Trigg 2 was inducted into the Fight Wing of the UFC Hall of Fame.
On the bout’s 15th anniversary, relive Hughes’ epic UFC 52 title defense vs. Trigg in the video above.
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Check out the best highlights from this day in history with MMA Junkie’s “Combat Rewind.”
There’s “Flashback Friday” and “Throwback Thursday” (and Tuesday, too, if you want). But at MMA Junkie, we figured why not expand that to every day?
“Combat Rewind” brings you some of combat sports’ best highlights from every calendar day of the year. It’s a look back at history, courtesy of the UFC Fight Pass archives, featuring stellar finishes and classic moments in MMA and beyond on their anniversaries.
Today’s highlight include a vicious Jack Hermansson knockout prior to his UFC run, as well as some true vintage violence from 20 years ago with Rumina Sato picking up a quick win over Yves Edwards, and Matt Hughes picking up the first of five wins he would pick up in a 10-week stretch in 2000.
So kick back and relive the following bits of greatness in the video above:
Fight footage courtesy of UFC Fight Pass, the UFC’s official digital subscription service, which is currently offering a seven-day free trial. UFC Fight Pass gives fans access to exclusive live UFC events and fights, exclusive live MMA and combat sports events from around the world, exclusive original and behind the scenes content and unprecedented 24-7 access to the world’s biggest fight library.
MMA Junkie takes a look at the 10 fighters with the most wins in UFC history.
With UFC on hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic, MMA Junkie takes a look at the 10 winningest fighters in the history of the organization. Of note, all fighters included in this column fight at light heavyweight or below and have promotional debuts ranging from September 1999 to February 2011.
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Six fighters are tied at the 17-win mark inside the octagon: Former heavyweight champ [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag], former lightweight champ [autotag]Frankie Edgar[/autotag], former featherweight champ [autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag], former interim lightweight champ [autotag]Dustin Poirier[/autotag], former middleweight champ [autotag]Anderson Silva[/autotag] and lightweight contender [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag].
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Age: 35
Debut: UFC 91 on Nov. 15, 2008
Number of fights: 29
Number of wins: 18
Dos Anjos was in the UFC nearly seven years before he finally captured the lightweight title. Since losing the belt, he’s spent his years in the welterweight division, adding more to his win total. He’s had some tough results of late but is still exclusively fighting top-tier competition.
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Age: 46
Debut: UFC 22 on Sept. 24, 1999
Number of fights: 25
Number of wins: 18
Once considered the greatest welterweight in MMA history, Hughes debuted in the UFC nearly six years before anyone else on the list. The former welterweight champ still holds a top-10 spot, though, due to his dominant run in the 170-pound division though the mid-2000s.
