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UFC's epic journey started on November 12, 1993 when it hosted its first ever fighting event titled UFC 1. It was a pay-per-view event with around 8,000 people in live attendance.
The idea was to bring fighters from all parts of the world with different styles and techniques and see which martial art is supreme.
UFC 1 was a tournament-based event that Royce Gracie won by defeating three different fighters via submission in a single night.
Here is the complete list of fighters that participated in the historic event:
- Gerard Gordeau
- Teila Tuli
- Kevin Rosier
- Zane Frazier
- Royce Gracie
- Art Jimmerson
- Ken Shamrock
- Patrick Smith
In the quarter-finals of the event, none of the fights crossed the five-minute mark. Gerdeau defeated Tuli by TKO in just 26 seconds, Rosier finished Frazier in the opening round, Gracie took a little over two minutes to submit Jimmerson and Ken Shamrock finished Smith via a heel hook. All of these victors progressed to the semi-finals.
Gerdeau faced off against Rosier in the semi-final and finished him via TKO in under a minute when Rosier's corner threw in the towel.
The second semi-final was arguably the most anticipated fight of the night. The two favorites, Shamrock and Gracie, would finally face each other on that historic night. It took the Brazilian legend less than a minute to submit Shamrock.
In the finals, Gracie made easy work of the Dutch fighter and finished him in under two minutes to win the tournament. The Brazilian fighter took home a cheque of $50,000 for winning the tournament.
Royce Gracie is considered a legend in the UFC
Royce Gracie is a pioneer of the sport of MMA and has cemented his place as a legend in the UFC. The Brazilian icon shocked the world with his arrival into the UFC.
The fighter made a name for himself by submitting significantly bigger fighters left and right with the help of Brazilain jiu-jitsu.
After winning the inaugural UFC event, Gracie went on to win UFC 2 and UFC 3 as well. The 54-year-old's MMA career spanned across three decades and ended in February 2016 with a win over Ken Shamrock.
