Who is the UFC's most important fighter?

duke09 · 07-29-2007, 07:08 PM

we have seen best fighter, fight, sub, etc, etc,. but i pose the question: who is the most important fighter-- who has done the most for the ufc, its success, its popularity, the image of the sport and so on? who is it that was essential for the ufc to turn the corner into mainstream culture and sports legitimacy? who best represents the ufc of today/yesterday, and so on.

i am not asking for more recent guys, just guys who have helped shape the ufc. please list fighters and reasons, and, as always, please be respectful of other's opinions.

here goes:

1) royce gracie. the man put the ufc on the map, he garnered the interest of many with his "crazy new fighting style" and domination of the early ufcs. he was also a great spokesperson for the ufc, and i really think that many tuned in/ordered to see the mystery clouted "BJJ guy".

2)randy couture. the nickname 'captain america' says it all. he wasnt a brash brawler with few teeth and tattoos, but rather a well spoken and respectful newcomer who shocked the world beating down 20 year old men whilst being older than most of those he faced. as his career progressed, he remained polite, courteous, and represented the ufc (still does) with honour, pride,and grace. a vegetarian who is always in peak condition, treats everyone with respect, has never spoke ill of any of his adversaries, randy couture is an embodiment of all that is sportsman like about this sport. he has had countless appearances, devotes much of his time to charity and the promotion of teh sport. to be sure, the ufc could not e where it is without the natural. despite his age, he always arrives to perform,and many viewers, including dukey, are afraid not to tune in when randy fights for fear of what they might miss!

3) chuck liddell. the face of mma today is certainly the iceman. countless cameos, tv appearances, radio appearances and the like, chuck is everwhere, including mainstream magazines. chuck koed people at night and exalted the ufc position in mainstream media by day. if no one around you knows a ufc fighter, he/she would likely know chuck 'the iceman' liddell

4) micheal bisping. although still relatively yound and new to the ufc, in the ufc's goal of global mma domination, young bisping is teh golden gate bridge to the European markets. his attitude, although brackish at times, has won and garnered teh respect and affection of UKers from every demographic. everything starts somewhere, and although it could be argued that the UFC would eventually bust into teh UK market, bisping was, at the very least, a catalyst that made things a lot easier for Mr. White and his brand of combat sport.

5) tito ortiz. although do not like tito, few can dispute that tito was teh face of the ufc for many a year. tito was perhaps the most recognizable face in a sea of what many though was merely a bunch of toothless goons punching each other in the face. love tito or hate him, you all know him. he was the draw for quite some time, and he continues to put asses in the seatsand buy rates on teh charts. the controversy and drama surrounding ortiz is similar to teh flies floundering around pigpen's head from peanuts, but bet your ass, people tune in for tito; some to see him get punched in the mouth, others to see him win. irrespective, tito has a following.

these are dukey's quick picks, please add your own, comment, or pm me a picture of a monkey kissing clint eastwood. just so long as it makes you happy

Cacti45 · 07-29-2007, 07:18 PM

Chuck Liddell, and Randy Couture are the most important, not the best, but the most valuable

Corey · 07-29-2007, 07:25 PM

If I had to pick, it would have to be Tito Ortiz. Couture and Liddell came a close second though.

Tito Ortiz, as he says, is the ufc. He has brought in such a big fanbase over the last half a decade or so that I'm surprised he's not in the ufc hall of fame already. People who have never even heard of mma have heard of tito ortiz. He was the top dog in the lhw division for a while, which I think alot of people overlook nowadays. He's arrogant as hell and unapologetic of it.

xVERITASx · 07-29-2007, 07:32 PM

Well I would have to say Tito Ortiz. He carried the franchise so people like Couture and Liddell could become the icons they are today. I am not saying these guys did not help its growth I just believe without a champ like Ortiz the UFC may not be around. There are way to many people who could be on this list though, someone nobody has mentioned so far is Shamrock.

OneTwoPunch · 07-29-2007, 07:33 PM

Definetley Liddell, people pay the most money to watch the Iceman fight.

surfinkimo · 07-29-2007, 07:45 PM

Tito brought the fans, however Chuck brought the money. Now that Pride fighters are starting to invade the UFC they will bring more money and a huge global fan base.

Osnodon · 07-29-2007, 07:50 PM

Ortiz made the sport mainsteam, I think he's been the most important.

Cacti45 · 07-29-2007, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Osnodon

Ortiz made the sport mainsteam, I think he's been the most important.

actually Spike TV made it mainstream. And Chuck took it from there

MTKrav911 · 07-29-2007, 08:06 PM

Tito ORtiz

He brought out all the celebrities. He was the first Vegas Headliner, he still gives Sellouts and is insanely popular.

His name alone, not even Chuck Liddell has matched.

Sure Chuck Liddell made a few magazine covers, but as far as name recognition?

Tito Ortiz is more to trigger someone knowing him than "The Iceman"

But RAMPAGE will be the first UFC MEga Star!!! It's written all over his face. He's what Americans identify with as a champion!

Just Wait!

Cacti45 · 07-29-2007, 08:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MTKrav911

Tito ORtiz

He brought out all the celebrities. He was the first Vegas Headliner, he still gives Sellouts and is insanely popular.

His name alone, not even Chuck Liddell has matched.

Sure Chuck Liddell made a few magazine covers, but as far as name recognition?

Tito Ortiz is more to trigger someone knowing him than "The Iceman"

But RAMPAGE will be the first UFC MEga Star!!! It's written all over his face. He's what Americans identify with as a champion!

Just Wait!

the only time Tito sells out a show is when he fights a popular tuf fighter (Griffin) or Chuck. UFC 73 didnt come close to selling out

MTKrav911 · 07-29-2007, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cacti45

the only time Tito sells out a show is when he fights a popular tuf fighter (Griffin) or Chuck. UFC 73 didnt come close to selling out

Actually UFC 73 did sell out

There wre even what they call exit sales

Which means some actually had tickets for standing rooms

This in freakin Sacramento CA

Cacti45 · 07-29-2007, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MTKrav911

Actually UFC 73 did sell out

There wre even what they call exit sales

Which means some actually had tickets for standing rooms

This in freakin Sacramento CA

Mmmmmmmmmm No

MMA WEEKLY - Your #1 Source for Daily MMA News, Interviews, Multimedia, and More

they didnt even sell 9000 tickets

GeorgeXVX · 07-29-2007, 09:07 PM

Ken Glamrock or Tito Ortiz.... For the fans before TUF these were the house hold names of MMA even though there was no MMA. The WWF was really into talking about Kens past and gave me and my friends in 6th grade an interest. We went to Blockbuster and found Best of Ken Shamrock DVDs long before we saw any other UFC event. Tito was on talk shows before Chuck was even that big of a name with the UFC fans. Tito was on tv long before people cared about Chuck.

codkaz · 07-29-2007, 09:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MTKrav911

Actually UFC 73 did sell out

There wre even what they call exit sales

Which means some actually had tickets for standing rooms

This in freakin Sacramento CA

Yah Cacti's right, i did some research too, and the attendance was less than "Stacked"

duke09 · 07-29-2007, 09:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeorgeXVX

Ken Glamrock or Tito Ortiz.... For the fans before TUF these were the house hold names of MMA even though there was no MMA. The WWF was really into talking about Kens past and gave me and my friends in 6th grade an interest. We went to Blockbuster and found Best of Ken Shamrock DVDs long before we saw any other UFC event. Tito was on talk shows before Chuck was even that big of a name with the UFC fans. Tito was on tv long before people cared about Chuck.

i agree to some degree about most everything you said, but i cant help but wonder if ken being in the wwe took away from the reality and legitimacy of the ufc and mma. i dunno, he just seemed too cartony and i was aways concerned that he could cartoonize mma and the ufc.

you are correct though in saying that ken's exposure on wwe did bring a lot of attention to the ufc and mma.

Corey · 07-29-2007, 09:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cacti45

the only time Tito sells out a show is when he fights a popular tuf fighter (Griffin) or Chuck. UFC 73 didnt come close to selling out

This is the tito of today you are thinking of. We are talking about the tito in like 2000. If were are strictly talking about the ufc right now, I would say chuck liddell is the biggest name, with randy as a close second.

GeorgeXVX · 07-29-2007, 09:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by duke09

i agree to some degree about most everything you said, but i cant help but wonder if ken being in the wwe took away from the reality and legitimacy of the ufc and mma. i dunno, he just seemed too cartony and i was aways concerned that he could cartoonize mma and the ufc.

you are correct though in saying that ken's exposure on wwe did bring a lot of attention to the ufc and mma.

i am not saying he is good for the sport. But thats how me and my group of friends first heard about the UFC. Ken is a joke and so is frank imo. Thats why i called him Glamrock

nayr01 · 07-29-2007, 09:50 PM

What about the great royce if it wasent for him their might not be a ufc and everyone would be brawling taknig karate ,kung fu, wrestling and god knows what else. Tito has done a tone but he also gives it a bad image. If my mom turned on tito tv and saw tito she realy wouldnt want me being a fan of that. Royce is king he said it best
"This is my house i built it"

GeorgeXVX · 07-29-2007, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nayr01

What about the great royce if it wasent for him their might not be a ufc and everyone would be brawling taknig karate ,kung fu, wrestling and god knows what else. Tito has done a tone but he also gives it a bad image. If my mom turned on tito tv and saw tito she realy wouldnt want me being a fan of that. Royce is king he said it best
"This is my house i built it"

Roids are good for the sport?

codkaz · 07-29-2007, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeorgeXVX

Roids are good for the sport?

he built the house, but now he's tearing it down