Vale Tudo or vale-tudo, also known as No Holds Barred (NHB) in the United States, is an unarmed, full-contact combat sport with relatively few rules. It became popular in Brazil during the 20th century and would eventually evolve into modern Mixed martial arts (MMA). For years "Vale Tudo" was used as a synonym for MMA in Brazil, but the term fell into disuse due to the emergence of stricter rules and the influence of the media to have a more "civilized" name. It is now used to refer to an early, more rules-free stage of the modern sport.
Royce Gracie is a Brazilian retired professional mixed martial artist. Gracie gained fame for his success in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a member of the Gracie jiu-jitsu family, a UFC Hall of Famer, and is considered to be one of the most influential figures in the history of mixed martial arts (MMA). He also competed in PRIDE Fighting Championships, K-1's MMA events, and Bellator.
Randall Duane Couture is an American actor, former U.S. Army sergeant, former mixed martial artist and former collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestler. During his tenures in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), he became a three-time UFC Heavyweight Champion, two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, an interim UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, making him a six-time UFC Champion and the UFC 13 Heavyweight Tournament winner. He is the first of eight fighters to hold two UFC championship titles in two different divisions.
David Lee "Tank" Abbott is an American retired mixed martial arts fighter, professional wrestler, and author. He currently hosts his own podcast series titled "The Proving Ground with Tank Abbott." Abbott is perhaps best known for being an icon in the early stages of mixed martial arts and the UFC, but has also competed in the PRIDE Fighting Championships, Strikeforce, EliteXC, and Cage Rage. His fighting style, which he developed brawling in the bars and streets of Huntington Beach, California, was described by his future manager Dave Thomas as "Pit Fighting". He also authored a novel titled Bar Brawler.
Shooto is a combat sport and mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the Shooto Association and the International Shooto Commission. Shooto was originally formed in 1985, first as a particular fighting system and then in 1989 as a mixed martial arts promotion. It is considered one of the first true mixed martial arts competitions, with its Vale Tudo Japan events being essential to the rise of PRIDE Fighting Championships and the development of modern MMA. Many Japanese MMA fighters had their start at Shooto and the organization still holds both professional and amateur tournaments.
Daniel DeWayne Severn, nicknamed "The Beast", is an American professional wrestler, retired mixed martial artist and amateur wrestler. A UFC Hall of Fame member, Severn is considered one of the leading pioneers of mixed martial arts and the first true world-class wrestler to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is best known for his success in the early years of the UFC where he became the first UFC Triple Crown champion in history by winning the UFC 5 tournament, Ultimate Ultimate 1995, and UFC Superfight Championship. Severn has also competed in King of the Cage, PRIDE FC, Cage Rage, WEC, RINGS and MFC, and holds a professional MMA Record of 101–19–7.
Patrick Jay Miletich is a retired American mixed martial artist and former sports commentator. He is known for his fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he became the first UFC Welterweight Champion and UFC 16 Welterweight Tournament Winner. Miletich is also known as a highly successful trainer and coach, having founded Miletich Fighting Systems. This camp is considered one of the most successful in MMA history and has produced several world champions. On July 6, 2014, he was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
Mark Kerr is an American former collegiate wrestler and mixed martial artist. During his MMA career he was regarded by many as the best fighter in the world, and was a World Vale Tudo Championship tournament winner, a two-time UFC heavyweight tournament winner, and a PRIDE FC competitor. He is a two-time heavyweight ADCC champion, and won the absolute title once.
Marco Antônio de Lima Ruas is a Brazilian former mixed martial arts fighter, submission wrestler, kickboxer and instructor. Ruas was the UFC 7 Tournament Champion, and also competed for the World Vale Tudo Championship (WVC), PRIDE Fighting Championships and the International Fight League, where he head-coached the Southern California Condors.
Heath Herring is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division of Rizin. While perhaps best known for competing in PRIDE, he has also formerly competed for the UFC and K-1.
Forrest Griffin is an American retired mixed martial artist and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. He was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2013 and currently serves as the Vice President of Athlete Development at the UFC Performance Institute. Griffin, a former Georgia police officer, first rose to prominence after winning the first season of The Ultimate Fighter. In the tournament finals, he defeated Stephan Bonnar, which is widely credited as sparking the success of the UFC.
Daniel Jeffery Henderson is an American retired mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler, who last competed as a middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the last Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion and was the last Welterweight and Middleweight champion of Pride Fighting Championships. Henderson was the Brazil Open '97 Tournament Champion, the UFC 17 Middleweight Tournament Champion, the Rings: King of Kings 1999 Tournament Champion and the Pride Welterweight Grand Prix Tournament Champion. Henderson also challenged for the UFC Middleweight Championship (2x), the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship and the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship. Henderson was the first mixed martial artist to hold two titles in two different weight classes concurrently in a major MMA promotion. At the time of his retirement after UFC 204, he was the oldest fighter on the UFC roster.
Jason DeLucia is an American retired mixed martial artist.
UFC: The Ultimate Ultimate 2 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 7, 1996. The event took place at the Fair Park Arena in Birmingham, Alabama, and was broadcast live on pay-per-view in the United States, and released on home video.
UFC 13: The Ultimate Force was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on May 30, 1997 in Augusta, Georgia. The event was seen live on pay-per-view in the United States, and later released on home video.
Jerry Bohlander is an American former mixed martial artist. He is most notable for his UFC appearances and was a former UFC champion, winning the first lightweight tournament at UFC 12. He was a member of the legendary fight team the Lion's Den alongside other notable fighters such as Ken Shamrock, Guy Mezger, and Frank Shamrock. Bohlander was considered one of the best under 200 lb. fighters in the world during his time with the UFC.
Paul Varelans was an American professional mixed martial artist. He competed in Ultimate Fighting Championship from 1995 to 1996, and had a worked match in Extreme Championship Wrestling in 1996.
David Beneteau is a Canadian former mixed martial artist and freestyle wrestler who is best known for his appearances in Ultimate Fighting Championship at UFC 5, 6, 15 and, Ultimate Ultimate 1995.
Chris "The Westside Strangler" Brennan is an American mixed martial artist who last competed in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor from 1996 until 2012, he competed for the UFC, PRIDE, Cage Rage, King of the Cage and Shooto. He is a former King of the Cage Middleweight Champion and former King of the Cage Middleweight Superfight Champion. He is also one of 18 fighters to compete in the -77 kg division at the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships in 2005. Chris was also the founder of Nogi Industries, a Mixed martial arts clothing company. In 2014 Chris was inducted in to the Mixed Martial Arts Hall of Fame. Chris is the owner and founder of Next Generation MMA. After retiring from MMA competition Chris switched his focus back to grappling events and also entered and won the No-Gi Black Belt World Championships in 2013, 2014, and 2015. He was also the 2014 Nogi Pan American Champion.
Bradley Devin Katona is a Canadian mixed martial artist and the former Brave CF Bantamweight Champion. Katona formerly competed in the UFC and was the featherweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter 27.
