Mark Coleman - Published February 1st, 2008
COLEMAN GETS A HALL CALL First-ever UFC heavy champ gets inducted March 1 By MMAMemories.com Mark Coleman, a determined competitor who is one of the people who helped make the UFC what it is today, will be inducted into the organization’s Hall of Fame at UFC 82, which will be held on March 1 at the Nationwide Arena [...] (Read More)

Masakatsu Funaki - Published January 5th, 2008
True connoisseurs of the sport of mixed martial arts could not possibly leave the name of Masakatsu Funaki off their list of the all-time greatest fighters. Funaki’s participation in MMA, like many of the Japanese competitors, had its origins in pro wrestling. He became a member of New Japan Pro Wrestling and later the Universal [...] (Read More)

Rorian Gracie - Published January 5th, 2008
He was one member of the legendary Gracie clan who did not make his name by fighting in officially-sanctioned MMA bouts. But if not for Rorion Gracie, the UFC, as we know it today, would not likely exist. As such he is one of the most important innovators in the mixed martial arts in America. Rorion [...] (Read More)

Bas Rutten - Published January 5th, 2008
A native of the Netherlands, which has spawned many martial arts standouts, Bas Rutten has, over the course of his career, firmly established himself as one of the influential figures in the MMA world. He himself was influenced by the landmark Bruce Lee film “Enter The Dragon,” which encouraged him to get involved in the [...] (Read More)

Frank Shamrock - Published January 5th, 2008
Frank Juarez, a native of Santa Monica, CA, was a wayward boy who later found refuge and direction at the home of Bob Shamrock, who had done the same for many youngsters, including one who later became the legendary Ken Shamrock. Frank was adopted by Bob and took his new father’s surname, and was trained [...] (Read More)

Chuck Liddell - Published January 5th, 2008
Chuck Liddell is destined for eventual entry into the MMAMemories.com Hall of Fame because of many reasons, including the fact that in the Octagon, few have proven to be his equal. Liddell, a standout collegiate wrestler at Cal Poly, where he earned a degree on accounting, made his MMA debut as a UFC competitor in [...] (Read More)

Fedor Emelianenko - Published January 5th, 2008
In the history of mixed martial arts, you may have to go a long way to find a pure heavyweight fighter as accomplished or formidable as the great Russian known as “The Last Emperor” – Fedor Emeliankenko. A competitor with a broad background that includes judo, sambo, muay thai and boxing, with a sprinkling of just [...] (Read More)

Matt Hughes - Published January 5th, 2008
When the list of great competitors in the so-called “lighter weights” in MMA is compiled, a name that must invariably be near the top is that of Matt Hughes, who has won the UFC’s welterweight title not once, but twice. Like many great mixed martial artists, Hughes was a member of Miletich Fighting Systems, spearheaded by [...] (Read More)

Tito Ortiz - Published January 5th, 2008
The legacy of Tito Ortiz will include not only his long list of accomplishments in the ring, but also the mark he left on the sport from a marketing standpoint. He is one of those charismatic competitors who was instrumental in bringing the sport to new levels of popularity. A standout high school athlete who wrestled [...] (Read More)

B.J. Penn - Published January 5th, 2008
B.J. Penn is part of a great tradition of mixed martial artists from the Hawaiian Islands. And he is also part of a great history of students who have been trained in the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by the Gracie family. In fact, Penn became so proficient in that discipline that he achieved the distinction [...] (Read More)

Dana White - Published November 19th, 2007
No figure has been more influential in the “new” era of MMA than Dana White, who through sheer force of will has been responsible for catapulting the sport to levels of popularity few people, even UFC founders Art Davie and Bob Meyrowitz, may have ever thought possible. A boxing trainer and businessman who operated a few gyms [...] (Read More)

Ken Shamrock - Published November 19th, 2007
Though Royce Gracie may have been the first great champion of the UFC, there has not been any other MMA figure who has inspired a more rabid following for a more sustained period than Ken Shamrock. A one-time pro wrestler and toughman competitor, Shamrock became one of the early stars of the style that later came to be [...] (Read More)

Larry Hazzard - Published November 19th, 2007
Larry Hazzard’s background was in boxing; he was a premier referee for many years, then the executive head of the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board (NJSACB). He presided over countless major events in Atlantic City casinos, including numerous world championship fights, and has also overseen scores of mixed martial arts events, including the first UFC show [...] (Read More)

Royce Gracie - Published November 19th, 2007
Royce Gracie was the first real superstar in mixed martial arts, though it can be argued that most of it may have come by accident. In planning for the maiden voyage of the UFC, Rorion Gracie had chosen his younger brother Rickson to compete and hold up the family name. But Rickson fell out due to [...] (Read More)

Art Davie - Published November 19th, 2007
Back in 1992, advertising executive Art Davie, looking for some promotional vehicles for a client, happened upon an idea inspired by an article in Playboy magazine that had been written about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor Rorion Gracie. After meeting with Gracie, Davie conceived an event where competitors using different styles of fighting and the martial arts would [...] (Read More)