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There are fighters and then there are fighters. What's the difference, you ask? One involves a job description; the other, a state of mind. Make no mistake, mixed martial arts is one of the most punishing sports there is or will be. Its multifacetedness spawns a whirlwind of threats, to prepare for which, fighters must put themselves through the Spartan training regimes those disciplines demand.
But fighters can always prepare for particular opponents, can they not? Study their fights, analyse patterns, weight strengths and weaknesses and then strategise accordingly. But how do you prepare for something even more wearing, but where peril isn't as obvious as a punch or a kick? How do you design a gameplan for life?
There is no answer, except to live it. The exuberance of youth gives way to the temperance of age and daring to dream becomes chucklesome. Following your heart takes a lot of courage, but imagine doing it at an age when you have grandchildren. We set out on a quest to illuminate the names of these brave souls who made that leap of faith at a ripe age:
Honorable mention:
Dan Severn
Dan "The Beast" Severn made his MMA debut before many casual fans of the sport were even born - in 1994. His suplexes at UFC 4 to Anthony Marcias grabbed eyeballs and quite possibly were a rallying cry for amateur wrestlers looking for a career path. Severn established his credentials by winning UFC's Ultimate Ultimate 1995, where he beat the likes of Paul Varelans, Tank Abbott and Oleg Taktarov in the same night.
The UFC Hall of Famer was being trumpeted into WWE rings as a UFC badass long before Brock Lesnar, which in a way, makes him the original Beast. Severn spent a couple of years in the WWE, after which he returned to the independent circuit, where he is still active.
Dan Severn hung up his MMA gloves in 2013, at the age of 54 and with over a 100 wins. He is one of only 3 fighters to be able to make that claim. A comeback fight against Ken Shamrock was pencilled in 2016, but it never materialised.
#5 Ron Van Clief
In just over two decades, the sport of mixed martial arts has gone from fighting for survival, to being glamorous. It wouldn't be disparaging to say that the lure of the camera sparks some level of desire to step into the cage.
In Ron Van Clief's case, it couldn't be further from the truth. At age 51, Van Clief locked horns with Royce Gracie at UFC 4, with a broken ankle, at that. Still the oldest to compete in the UFC, he was submitted but didn't walk out of the octagon a loser.
In fact, he served as commissioner of the UFC, which at the time(1994-1995) was holding on for dear life in the face of persecution from people like future US presidential nominee, John McCain.
Van Clief made his film debut in 1975's "The Black Dragon", which is also the nickname Bruce Lee gave him a decade prior. They met during a trip to Hong Kong in 1966 and Van Clief believes Bruce Lee would've made a formidable lightweight in today's MMA landscape.
A longtime Karateka, he retired from active competition in 2002 at age 60. He now lives in the Virgin Islands, where he teaches BJJ and competes in tournaments as well.
#4 Ann Perez De Tejada
Most sextagenarians take up knitting or playing the piano or such, at their age. Ann Perez De Tejada took up MMA. The 69-year-old, who competed in a strawweight bout last year, has a Karate background spanning 15 years before her MMA debut.
At 61, she was introduced to BJJ to augment her preparation for a Karate black belt test, and fell in love with it.
De Tejada says that the derision she faces because of her age only fans her flame to fight. Despite having lost her debut bout, she has no plans of retiring, which makes her the oldest active MMA fighter in the USA, possibly the world.
It could be said that at least some of that never-say-die spirit has rubbed off from her Grudge Training Center teammate, Justin Gaethje.
#3 Skip Hall
In 2006, Dan Severn must have done a double take when he looked at his opponent, Skip Hall, up and down. Severn, 48 years old himself, couldn't have imagined in his wildest dreams that he would be fighting someone 10 years older. The fight ended with Hall being choked out by The Beast, but he did step into the cage one last time after that.
A former US army veteran, Hall started training in BJJ just shy of his 50th birthday and notched up impressive personal bests in weightlifting after that age - his PB squat is an astounding 600 lbs!
The bout against Dan Severn would be his penultimate, with his last fight ending unfortunately in a no contest due to an eye poke. Hall retired in 2008 aged 63, with the distinction of being the oldest MMA debutant (57 years)
#2 Herschel Walker
If there was a list of the best pure athletes in the history of professional sport, Herschel Walker would easily make the top 10. He overcame weight issues and a speech impediment to become a track and field star with astonishing speed.
His singular athleticism would prove formidable on the football field and in 1980, he was the most sought after high school player going into college.
Walker would show everyone exactly why, by winning the Heisman Trophy (awarded to the best college football player in America) in 1982. He was snapped up by the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League before he graduated and in 1985, was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys.
Walker enjoyed his greatest success in the NFL with the Cowboys, who exploited his blinding speed and shaped a lot of their offence around him. In 1989, at his peak, Walker was traded to the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for five players, a move which would prove ill-fated for him.
Bad tactics and underutilisation would plague his tenure there, and Walker actually left the NFL to represent the USA in bobsled racing in the 1992 Winter Olympics.
He returned later in 1992 to play for the Philadelphia Eagles, then the New York Giants in 1995 and finished his career in 1997, with the team he began with, the Dallas Cowboys.
In 2009, Walker was signed to Strikeforce's Heavyweight division and began training at the American Kickboxing Academy. In his debut on January 30, 2010, a 47-year-old Walker, down on the scorecards, defeated 27-year-old Greg Nagy by 3rd round technical knockout. A year later, he beat Scott Carson by TKO, this time in the first round.
#1 John Williams
What do you imagine would be the most taxing part of an average 70-year-old's day? Climbing stairs? Bending to pick something up? Making it to the bathroom? For John Williams, it was to overthrow a man trying to break him inside a cage.
In 2010, at 70 years of age, "Gray Wolf" became the oldest MMA debutant and winner, when he submitted Larry Brewbaker by ankle lock in the second round.
A lifelong martial artist, Williams competed in powerlifting competitions and made his amateur MMA debut in 2000. His amateur record stands at 4 wins, 5 losses. He has not fought professionally since.
In 1987, he reportedly set a world record for most ice blocks broken with a single punch - 10 of them, with each of them 11 inches thick.
