It featured the second Superfight, the debut of the pit fighter, the introduction of new rules, and a controversial semi-final. In July 1995, the Ultimate Fighting Championship presented their sixth show, promoted as the “Clash of the Titans”.
The show began with the tournament quarter-finals, with pit fighter Tank Abbott taking on Hawaiian bone-breaker John Matua.
The match was a quick and wild affair. Abbott caught Matua with lunging blows early, leaving Matua staggering like a baby just learning to walk until he fell to the ground. Abbott got in another punch before referee “Big” John McCarthy stepped in to give Abbott the knockout win after just 18 seconds.
Next up was Taekwondo fighter Cal Worsham against trap fighter Paul Varelans.
The two came out swinging, with Worsham quickly staggering his bigger opponent. Varelans recovered and worked his way back, eventually landing a left elbow to the back of Worsham’s head that sent him crashing to the floor. The referee stopped the fight, awarding Varelans the win by knockout.
The next matchup pitted kenpō karate fighter Rudyard Moncayo against kickboxer and former tournament finalist Pat Smith.
Smith ran across the cage at the start, immediately knocking Moncayo down with a front-kick. Smith then showed how much he’d improved his grappling game, pulling off a standing guillotine on Moncayo before getting the take down. Smith took Moncayo’s back and got him in a rear naked choke, securing the win by submission.
The last quarterfinal match saw wrestler and UFC finalist Dave Beneteau taking on sambo expert Oleg Taktarov.
A fast-paced fight saw Beneteau score an early take-down, but the Russian quickly got back up to his feet. After Beneteau landed a few strikes, Taktarov got a take down of his own, locking Beneteau in a guillotine for an impressive submission victory.
The semi-finals began with Tank Abbott taking on Paul Varelans.
Abbott put on an impressive punching display, taking the big man down and unloading with the ground and pound.
At one point, Abbott grabbed the cage as he kneed Varelans in the face, taking a moment to smile at the crowd.
With his left knee holding down Varelans’ face, Abbott connected with a series of lefts. It wasn’t long before the referee intervened to give Abbott the TKO win.
The second semi-final was a controversial affair as Oleg Taktarov faced muay thai boxer Anthony Macias, who stepped in to replace the injured Pat Smith.
Both fighters were managed by Buddy Alvin, who was also the manager of the other alternate, Guy Mezger. When Smith pulled out, there was a slight delay as the organizers searched for a replacement. The story goes that neither Mezger or Macias wanted to fight their training partner, but Macias finally stepped up to the plate, with Alvin taking his place in Taktarov’s corner.
When the fight began, Macias ran straight into a Taktarov guillotine, tapping out within seconds. The look on the Russian’s face afterwards said everything as the crowd and the commentators voiced their displeasure. It was pretty obvious that Macias had taken a dive, and as a result the match would prove to be his final UFC appearance.
After a brief interview with UFC 7 entrant Marco Ruas, it was on to the bout for the Superfight title as Ken Shamrock faced Dan Severn.
The match turned out to be a great display of grappling. Both men jockeyed for position at the start, and a few moments later Severn escaped from Shamrock’s initial attempt to catch him in a guillotine.
Seconds later, Shamrock outwrestled Severn and went for the guillotine again. This time, Shamrock caught Severn, and it wasn’t long before the Beast tapped out, giving Shamrock the win and the Superfight Championship.
Then, it was on to the tournament final between Tank Abbott and Oleg Taktarov.
This turned out to be the longest fight of the night by far. Abbott began with his usual brawling, but soon began to visibly tire.
The fight went to the ground, with Abbott taking Taktarov’s guard, occasionally going for a few punches while the Russian looked for an arm bar.
It was a war of attrition, very much in the Royce Gracie style, with the referee eventually exercising his new authority and standing the fighters up.
Abbott managed to connect with a big left against the cage before Taktarov came back with a standing guillotine. Abbott slumped to the ground as Taktarov took his back, eventually securing a rear naked choke for the tournament-winning submission victory.
In conclusion, UFC 6 turned out to be a pretty good show. The early fights may not have been particularly impressive, and the whole Macias affair left a nasty taste in everyone’s mouth, but on the whole, the show delivered.
As for the rule changes, they turned out to be what the UFC needed. Giving the referee the power to stand fighters up due to inactivity certainly made the final a more enjoyable affair.
So in all, UFC 6 gets the thumbs up as another interesting slice of MMA history, and one you should check out if you get the opportunity.
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