Welcome to a brand new series from Scranton MMA ~ Know Your Roots! This is a series that is especially important for every student at the academy as it not only addresses the rich and exciting history of the UFC™ but it also illustrates very clearly why Scranton MMA is a Royce Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Network. In this series will be breaking down and analyzing all of Royce’s classic UFC™ fights, from UFC 1 to UFC 60!
One of the first things you will learn is how different the original inception of UFC is from the current format of today’s UFC fight cards. The very first UFC was held in Denver, Colorado in 1993. Some of you weren’t even born yet! UFC 1 used an eight-man tournament format in which the champion would receive $50,000. The tournament had no weight classes and consisted of single no-time limit round fight to the finish. The fight only ended by submission, knockout, throwing in the towel, or referee stoppage due to a severe cut or injury. Any martial art attire was welcome including gloves and kimonos. Although the first event was billed as “No Rules”, there were limitations on what the fighters should and should not do; including no biting and no eye gouging. Royce Gracie won the tournament by defeating all of his opponents via submission. His first opponent in the tournament was Art “one glove” Jimmerson and that is where we will begin our journey through UFC history! Stay tuned!
