A Hall of Fame induction is not an honor freely given (except induction into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame), the UFC Hall of Fame not excepted.
There is not room for every elite competitor who has ever put on a pair of gloves, nor space for every man who has happened upon UFC gold.
Indeed, the UFC Hall of Fame is a (metaphorical) pantheon built to immortalize those who have made greatness in others look ordinary by comparison. Those who should never be mistaken for “just elite” or “just important.”
Tito Ortiz became the latest man to earn a spot in the promotion’s Hall of Fame, but he is not the only fighter that has competed in 2012 who will have that honor.
The following is a list of 10 UFC fighters who will follow in Ortiz’s footsteps once it is all said and done.
As a brief note on criteria for the list, fighters have been given consideration based upon their accomplishments as UFC fighters, not mixed martial artists. In other words, accomplishments earned in any promotion aside from the UFC do not factor in.
After all, this is the UFC Hall of Fame, not the MMA Hall of Fame.