The Forgotten Fighters of the Past

[pooknicca]

Card blew my mind as a young teenager. That display from Smith on Morris was one of the most violent early beatings. Seared into my psyche, lol. Same with Pardoel/Weit, which was same card....those elbows. I thought Orlando was dead when I first saw it. Scare the shit outta me.

Yes, UFC 2 had a lot of brutal finishes. Hell even Wiet’s win earlier in the night was savage (I guess he paid for it).

 

[pooknicca]

When I was first learning Jui Jitsu, I enjoyed watching Igor Zinoviev fight and was looking forward to him and Frank Shamrock fight… then Frank almost killed him.




Oh, and for all the conspiracy theorists out there…Igor used to be Jeffery Epstein’s bodyguard

Holy crap, you weren’t kidding lol

And didn’t he suffer some kind of permanent damage from that Frank fight?

 

[Prince Nephilim]

Holy crap, you weren’t kidding lol

And didn’t he suffer some kind of permanent damage from that Frank fight?

He got up and walked it off

 

[TheTickG]

Something that I’ve noted about myself is that I have an affinity for the old school UFC vets, who didn’t necessarily stick out to the average fans of the time. I wanted to take some time to note some of these fighters and would love to hear some that come to mind for you.

1) Joe “The Ghetto Man” Charles (UFC record 2-2)
Big Joe was an early Judo practitioner who did surprisingly well in the UFC for those times. He started out his UFC career by submitting Rosier with an armbar in 14 seconds before being easily defeated by Severn. He was one of those guys who could brawl a bit but preferred to aggressively pursue submissions, however many times it was to his own detriment as he put himself in compromising positions and would be submitted himself.


2) Andre “The Chief” Roberts (UFC record 2-1)
The Chief debuted in the UFC dispatching “Dirty” Harry with an elbow but is probably best known for his comeback win against Waterman where he took an absolute beating for the better part of the round before rocking and eventually finishing him. It’s noted that his rationale for pushing through adversity in that fight was due to his previous loss to Goodrige in which he quickly tapped after his nose was broken in the opening seconds of the fight. The Chief wrestled relatively well and knew how to use his size against his opponents. I remember looking around some forums and one of his previous opponents,( Jim Axtell I believe) stated that the Chief was so strong and squeezed him so hard that he s*** himself lol.


3) Brian “Fury” Johnston (UFC record 2-4)
Johnston is credited with laying the foundation for what AKA is today. I remember when growing up, the UFC would always play the greatest knockouts and one that always stood out to me was Johnston’s win over Nasri. The guy seemed like an absolute monster and I thought he was a world beater. Johnson seemed like he had all the potential to be an early star in the UFC as he had the look, could grapple a bit and could kickbox however, he could never get over the hump against the elites of his time in Coleman, Shamrock, and Frye.

Nice.

I think Johnston vs Shamrock was the first fight I watched. It was on VHS and during class. School got quite interesting when we had substitute teachers.

 

[Through The Looking Glass]

Man it's crazy how terrible these guys are. No offense but damn

 

[Frank Kain]

Holy crap, you weren’t kidding lol

And didn’t he suffer some kind of permanent damage from that Frank fight?

He did, that was his last fight, if I recall.

Hell, Im getting sentimental…I watched that UFC with a training partner..he’s in fight finder. Larry Parker. I just could not beat this guy…but it was good practice…. I’m starting to get Denver homesick.

Larry

The industry pioneer in UFC, Bellator and all things MMA (aka Ultimate Fighting). MMA news, interviews, pictures, videos and more since 1997.

www.sherdog.com

 

[BabyBlue_Bomber]

He did, that was his last fight, if I recall.

Hell, Im getting sentimental…I watched that UFC with a training partner..he’s in fight finder. Larry Parker. I just could not beat this guy…but it was good practice…. I’m starting to get Denver homesick.

Larry

The industry pioneer in UFC, Bellator and all things MMA (aka Ultimate Fighting). MMA news, interviews, pictures, videos and more since 1997.

www.sherdog.com

“The Violater” is a bad ass nickname…

 

[Frank Kain]

“The Violater” is a bad ass nickname…

It fits him too. Before I met him, he got out of prison.

 

[GordoBarraBJJ]

3) Brian “Fury” Johnston (UFC record 2-4)
Johnston is credited with laying the foundation for what AKA is today. I remember when growing up, the UFC would always play the greatest knockouts and one that always stood out to me was Johnston’s win over Nasri. The guy seemed like an absolute monster and I thought he was a world beater. Johnson seemed like he had all the potential to be an early star in the UFC as he had the look, could grapple a bit and could kickbox however, he could never get over the hump against the elites of his time in Coleman, Shamrock, and Frye.

I remember ordering this on Direct tv up here in canada way back (you could buy usa satellite dishes and get usa programing). Big John did more damage to Brian.

Didn't he have some neck issues that forced him to retire?

 

[GordoBarraBJJ]

Maybe Murilo Bustamante????

 

[Kowboy On Sherdog]

Paulo Filho

 

[WoozyFailGuy]

Oh yeah I remember Andre the chief Roberts very well, he had a really good record and was probably one the best SHW fighters ever in MMA. He used to train with Hughes brothers and Miletich and those guys.. he has good hands and very good wrestling and was crazy strong. Its a shame more people don't know about him as he is one of a few Native American MMA fighters.

I remember watching some interview with him in 2001 time and He had a very long bloodline going back a very long time, I can't remember what it was but it was crazy long time ago. He was part of a tribe and also did lots of works on reservations etc etc

He also had 2 brothers, one of them was a fighter too and the other wasn't, but the funny thing is they are tiny compared too him, he was like 400 Ibs or between 360 - 400 depending what fight, but his other brother was a WW/MW and his other brother is tiny.. looks about 5'3'' lol

I would not want to be hit with the cinderblock hooks Roberts was catching Waterman with at the end of the fight. Too bad there aren't enough legitimate SHWs to have a slobberknocker division. Hell, I'd be fine with the removal of HW limit, maybe.

My long time sweetheart. Marloes Coenen

I always thought she was the most attractive WMMA fighter.

My contribution is more recent than others, but I hardly see anyone ever remember him: Ivan Menjivar. Guy started his career at 170, and actually retired at 20-7 after losing to Palaszewski at an IFL event before he joined the WEC and eventually moved down to bantamweight. Not a world beater, but he's fought a ridiculous whose who for someone who has never actually fought for a title. He fought GSP in GSP's pro debut, Matt Serra, Joe Lauzon, Uriah Faber, Caol Uno, Brad Pickett (another criminally forgotten fighter), and Wilson Reis.
Ivan was a case of a small but talented guy not having the division he belonged in existing during the majority of his career.

He is doing well now, still training BJJ, and has four kids with his wife.

 

[Bullitt68]

How about 2 greats from the early Lions Den era. Tre Telligman, who was missing one entire pectoral muscle, and little Jerry Bohlander. That guy fought guys that were over 100 lbs. heavier than him! He didn't always win, but he was tough as nails. Finally, the guy who had the same training regiment as Tank Abbott, Scott Ferrozzo. The guy weighed about 350 lbs., and was a bouncer at a night club!

I love that old Lion's Den crew. Shout-outs also to Guy Mezger, Pete Williams, Vernon White, and Mikey Burnett. What a crew. Bohlander was always my favorite, though. Like you said, tough as nails and never gave a shit how big the other guy was. His fights with Scott Ferrozzo and Gary Goodridge were epic. People used to say that he was Ken's favorite, he saw the most potential in him and really took him under his wing. And other than the loss to Goodridge and an upkick loss to Bustamante, he was beating everybody. Then when he lost to Tito, he seemed to lose interest in the sport for some reason and his career just fizzled out. He said it himself that he felt burned out, and then when 9/11 happened, he went into law enforcement, became a cop, and never looked back. Well, he looked back once and took one more fight in 2004 and got to officially end his career with a submission victory. Hell of a career while it lasted, though.

Definitely remember Telligman! It sucks that he was on the wrong end of the highlight when it came to his fight with Big Timmy because he was actually pretty skilled despite what the record shows.

Well, to most "casuals" they'd only know him for the Tim KO, but to hardcore fans he's best remembered for his two wars with Pedro Rizzo. He lost both times, but even more than Barnett or Arlovski, Tra gave him absolute hell, just went after him with no fear and made him earn both victories.





His career high, though, has to be when he stepped in for the injured Ken Shamrock and took on Igor Vovchanchyn at PRIDE 13, scoring a massive upset win in an awesome battle with the legendary Ice Cold. That's always been one of my favorite "hidden gem" fights.

Nice.

I think Johnston vs Shamrock was the first fight I watched. It was on VHS and during class. School got quite interesting when we had substitute teachers.

Haha, very true. A substitute teacher I had in high school was this jacked Russian dude. We came to find out that he grew up wrestling and at the time was training at Keith Hackney's gym. I had just gotten into MMA recently, and to be talking to a guy who was presently training with a UFC legend was so insane to me

 

[Khaosan]

Well this made me feel old af, thanks TS.

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

I would not want to be hit with the cinderblock hooks Roberts was catching Waterman with at the end of the fight. Too bad there aren't enough legitimate SHWs to have a slobberknocker division. Hell, I'd be fine with the removal of HW limit, maybe.

I always thought she was the most attractive WMMA fighter.

My contribution is more recent than others, but I hardly see anyone ever remember him: Ivan Menjivar. Guy started his career at 170, and actually retired at 20-7 after losing to Palaszewski at an IFL event before he joined the WEC and eventually moved down to bantamweight. Not a world beater, but he's fought a ridiculous whose who for someone who has never actually fought for a title. He fought GSP in GSP's pro debut, Matt Serra, Joe Lauzon, Uriah Faber, Caol Uno, Brad Pickett (another criminally forgotten fighter), and Wilson Reis.
Ivan was a case of a small but talented guy not having the division he belonged in existing during the majority of his career.

He is doing well now, still training BJJ, and has four kids with his wife.

I rolled with Menjivar once at Tristar when I was completely new to grappling. It felt like grappling a beast. Super nice guy, too.

 

[HHJ]

Maybe Murilo Bustamante????

Those early MW UFC champs really dont get much attention today.

Bustamente was a really good fighter,who gave Rampage,Dan henderson and others some tough fuckin fights.

He was like Demian Maia before Demian Maia

 

[hoevan]

How can i remember them if they are forgotten, TS?

You will Remember The Name!!!

Butwho'll mmm...willmullitover, or something like that.

 

[HHJ]

Anyway I dont know who people remember and who they dont.

I'll just mention some fighters of note that maybe people should check out,from the old days.


Alex Stiebling was an American fighter who went and fought in Brazil and beat some of the guys there. Then he had two back to back victories over Wallid Ismail and Allan Goes. He started calling himself the "Brazilian Killer' and even had that stenciled in on his tights.

Now we know already how touchy Brazillian guys are about this kinda shit,but imagine back then in the early 2000s when Brazilians didnt even like fighting each other.

Anyway the game ended when he fought Anderson and lost...and got bloodied up.

Anderson has photos of him in possession of the tights. One wonders if that was freely given,or taken by force.










Stiebling kept fighting after that,but was never at the level before he fought Anderson,and kinda faded into obscurity. He didnt beat any more brazilians and retired after a loss to Ninja Rua in 2009

 

[HHJ]

Nice to see Marloes get some love. She was a classy lady. Not too many fighter types like that.

 

[Choco]

Nice to see Marloes get some love. She was a classy lady. Not too many fighter types like that.

When Jack Slack simps on you, you cannot be that forgotten.