Pride Fighting Championships of Japan held some of the most exciting, intriguing and brutal events in mixed martial arts history in its existence between 1997 and 2007. With the Strikeforce World Grand Prix Heavyweight semifinals taking place this week…
Pride Fighting Championships of Japan held some of the most exciting, intriguing and brutal events in mixed martial arts history in its existence between 1997 and 2007.
With the Strikeforce World Grand Prix Heavyweight semifinals taking place this weekend, it brings back memories and desires of rival promotions to the UFC such as Pride FC.
There have been many that have come and gone through the years such as World Extreme Cagefighting, Affliction MMA and International Fight League to name a very few.
There have also been some that have manged to hang around right up until we speak today with stables such as BAMMA, Maximum Fighting Championship and, of course, Bellator.
The UFC remains the big dog of mixed martial arts organizations and there is no and has not been a close rival since the days of Pride FC in Japan.
Pride was the biggest promotion in the history of Japan and boasted a stable of talented ferocious fighters that rivaled that of the UFC.
Here are my Top 10 greatest events in Pride FC history.
Having an entire library of Pride events can be a satisfying feeling for any MMA fan, and it can also help to introduce newer fans to the biggest stars of the sport and the fights that defined them.
Fighters like Wanderlei Silva, Fedor Emelia…
Having an entire library of Pride events can be a satisfying feeling for any MMA fan, and it can also help to introduce newer fans to the biggest stars of the sport and the fights that defined them.
Fighters like Wanderlei Silva, Fedor Emelianenko, Mirko “Cro Cop” Flipovic, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Kazushi Sakuraba all made names for themselves fighting in the organization before its buy-out from the UFC in 2007.
The 10-year run produced some of the best fights in MMA history, and these 10 DVDs showcase the best of the best when it comes to Pride.
The career of Murilo “Ninja” Rua, MMA veteran and brother of former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, has ended. Rua fought on the BAMMA 6 last Saturday, losing to Tom Watson.After the fight, “Ninja” announced his retirement from th…
The career of Murilo “Ninja” Rua, MMA veteran and brother of former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, has ended. Rua fought on the BAMMA 6 last Saturday, losing to Tom Watson.
After the fight, “Ninja” announced his retirement from the sport of mixed martial arts, ending the career of a well-known and beloved fighter. Rua was the former Elite XC middleweight champion and fought in Pride Fighting Championships for years along with his brother.
Rua announced the news of his retirement on Twitter. He stated:
“Congratulations to my opponent Tom Watson in the victory tonight, he was better and deserved. I would like to announce officially my retirement from PRO MMA fights tonight. It was an amazing run, and it’s a very tough moment but there comes a time for all in life, and it’s time to move on. I am proud of all I did in MMA and all experiences I had. I will continue to work with MMA, doing seminars, [t]eaching classes, training fighters, and doing my share to help our sport that I love so much.”
Rua would go on to thank the people that helped him in his career. Rua said:
“I want to also thank to all the trainers that helped me from day 1 as a white belt until now. All training partners that pushed me so much, all sponsors that believed and still believe in myself. All my friends in the press. Many thanks to Bad Boy MMA and BVA Bank and mostly, I want to thank my true friends, my family, my mom and dad, my wife that I love so much, my kids who are my joy and my brothers. I want to thank my manager for being my friend, and I want to sincerely thank my brother [Marucio Rua] for all support and making me so proud. Life goes on, memories will stay forever, and MMA will still be my life forever. Thank you so much you all! — Murilo “Ninja” Rua.”
He will be missed but it is nice to see a fighter know when to hang it up.
Since he has been rehabilitating his injuries, Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira has spent a considerable amount of time away from the Octagon. Fans last witnessed the Brazilian laid out on the canvas, courtesy of Cain Velasquez at UFC 110. It …
Since he has been rehabilitating his injuries, Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira has spent a considerable amount of time away from the Octagon.
Fans last witnessed the Brazilian laid out on the canvas, courtesy of Cain Velasquez at UFC 110. It was only the second time Nogueira had been finished in his career. But according to his boxing coach, Luis Dorea, the 34-year-old is currently training and hoping to make his return to the UFC soon.
“Regarding Rodrigo, he has been training very well. He’s doing rehab, seeing positioning, but the first step is his condition, his health,” Dorea told TATAME, courtesy of FightersOnly Magazine.
Aside from nursing his injuries, and preventing anything further, Nogueira has been open to fighting UFC heavyweight prospect Brendan Schuab at UFC Rio this summer. Schaub has also voiced his interest in fighting the Brazilian, but Dorea has another opponent in mind.
“I would like so much to see a bout between Nogueira and Cro Cop,” he said.
Nogueira and Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic have a shared history as both men engaged in a memorable bout while competing in Pride FC, which saw the Brazilian pick up the victory. Dorea expressed his interest in the potential bout, seeing it as a great opportunity for both competitors and for the fans as well.
“I saw Cro Cop say he wanted to fight him. They’re two legends, two names… It really would be very interesting for the MMA world.”
In regards to scheduling the bout, Dorea said he would like to see the bout take place in Brazil this summer. However Dorea’s intention is to make sure Nogueira is healthy first and foremost.
“If he is 100 percent, he’ll fight. He has a physio team helping and he is totally into the recuperation… but this is a fight I would like to see: Nogueira vs Cro Cop,” he said.
