Dana White won't rule out a revival of Pride FC
by Akimitsu Kuwabara on Jan 23, 2010 8:41 PM EST
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Dana White is pleased with the response that the "Best of Pride FC" series has garnered. So pleased, in fact, that he even mentioned the possibility - however minute it may be at this point - of the revival of Pride Fighting Championship in the future.
Speaking with Sun Media's Scrapyard, White said, "You never know, anything is possible," when asked about hosting events in the ring under the Pride brand.
He explained that the first episode of the series, which started airing on January 15, recorded a solid rating in spite of its time slot on Friday night. If a growing number of fans continue to tune in to the series that revisit some of the most memorable fights hosted by the epoch-making Japanese MMA organization, Zuffa may give the revival of Pride brand a serious consideration.
Pride FC reigned as the premier MMA organization in the world throughout the early part of the millenium. Boasting a stable of top talent - Fedor Emelianenko, Wanderlei Silva, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Dan Henderson, and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, to name a few - Pride was the number one competitor to UFC for many years. In 2007, in the wake of the allegation of ties to organized crime that ultimately led to its dissolution, Pride was purchased by Zuffa.
While Zuffa initially attempted to run Pride, the hostile, labyrinthine business climate in Japanese fighting industry hampered the effort. White commented, "I don’t want to say the Pride name is dead. It’s still a strong powerful brand. But the reality is that us running Pride in Japan, that completely fell apart."
As exciting as the reincarnation of Pride sounds, how will Zuffa realize this lofty vision? How will the UFC audience respond to the ring, different rules, etc? Also, Grand Prix tournament-style fights were one of the hallmarks of Pride but have been absent in UFC since the pre-Zuffa days. Above all, there is the elusive task of maintaining the essence of Pride brand while tweaking it to appeal to the American audience.
At this point, Pride revival will remain a remote possibility. Nonetheless, we can at least dream about what would have happened if UFC and Pride had managed to literally merge as one:
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This video was epic until Lee Murray came up
That guy brings shame on the British MMA community. Hopefully that scumbag rots in a slummy Morrocan prison for the rest of his life.
"Wanderlei is focused and well trained...he will easily win this fight, by a large margin and with much better technique."
Anderson Silva on why Wand is going to smash Bisping. Get ready to lose your dignity frosnt.
That's funny because he's so loved by everyone else outside britain
despite his “trouble” with the british govt. Despite him being a villain it still feel like a lot of people want to see him back much like a genki sudo for example.
As far as Dana’s comments – no one get your hopes up. “Anything is possible” = “Never in hell.” He’ll just use the video library as part of his anti competition programming on Spike. Never again will we have to sit through another unleashed from 06 or a UFN rerun.
by NNR (formerly NameNotRequired) on Jan 23, 2010 9:38 PM EST up reply actions
I don't understand how anyone can love a thug, the guy is a piece of shit and a coward who stole a lot of money and held a bunch of innocent people and families hostage
Agreed, Pride isn’t coming back, the chance of that happening died when Zuffa couldn’t keep it running when they bought the company. The closest that we’ll come to seeing Pride again is the Dream shows and Pride repeats on Spike.
"Wanderlei is focused and well trained...he will easily win this fight, by a large margin and with much better technique."
Anderson Silva on why Wand is going to smash Bisping. Get ready to lose your dignity frosnt.
well, it’s easy to sit home and say this and that but fact is he’s a sweaty criminal who would never be signed to compete in any real MMA organization again even if he was to come back, so there’s absolutely nothing to like.
fresh like uhh.
Agreed again RoB
Murray has no redeeming qualities whatsoever as a person. He masterminded a shocking crime that money aside involved kidnapping innocent workers and their families and I’d personally boycott any MMA promotion stupid enough to ever sign him if the Moroccan government and courts are stupid enough to release him.
"Wanderlei is focused and well trained...he will easily win this fight, by a large margin and with much better technique."
Anderson Silva on why Wand is going to smash Bisping. Get ready to lose your dignity frosnt.
It wouldn't be the same anyway...
… without the ring, the rules or the crazy commentators and ring announcer chick.
We all know Dana sure as hell ain’t gonna be bringing ANY of that back. He loves the Octagon too much with it being his main product and all, and he won’t want to “damage” MMA by promoting the Pride rules.
If Pride came back, it’d be like WWE still trying to run ECW…. Total bollocks.
What Dana says in this thing is pure BS. No one can revive the juggernaut that was PRIDE!
Man I miss the old days. Watching Vitor and Sakuraba entering the ring still brings chills down my spine…
Whatever the fuck you do in life, echoes in eternity! <----slightly edited
-Maximus[Gladiator]
by The Negation on Jan 24, 2010 5:50 AM EST up reply actions
i never liked pride
the ring entrances were just gay and lasted waaaay too long, the japs production is so damn cheesy its embarrassing. the weird old woman screa,ing the anouncements was just painful and the ring lead to too many resets. Most of the pride fighters have been proven to be second rate compared to the ufc’s best and tournaments lead to great matchups being ruined because the fighters dont go in on an even footing and the winner is often decided by who had the easiest draw in the early rounds, its dead and buried for a reason and I don’t miss anything bout it.
Paniczoo reincarnated.
With you ziiiing
It was impossible to find it on live TV, I always got stuck waiting for the VHS to come out, in the earlier years that is. And after seeing a cage, I thought the boxing ring idea was stupid. A lot of Pride FC was based around mismatches. I also hate tourney style set-ups. We are in the minority here, but I don’t pretend to like Pride to fit in.
martial arts is about technique over size and strength. While strength and speed are great, technique will always overcome it.-FuckerDave 01/19/10
WTF?????????????
How could you not like Pride??????
The fighters were like Hero’s there, and the production was second to none. The Japs really respect the fighters and you felt like they were honoured, in and out of the ring. The UFC is good without a doubt, but will never compare to Pride. I could watch Pride over and over(which I often do) and never get sick of it, even tho I know the results and so on, but it was so damn exciting and some of the best fights ever in MMA were in Pride.
Tito Ortiz: I think Chuck's lost a step, maybe i've lost a step also, but that's what makes the fight so exciting!
I agree, some of those fighters(while on steroids) looked pretty good
Steroids, Yakuza, Freak shows, boxing ring, flashy entrances, Kicks to downed opponents, shitty production value, many more.
A lot of things I didn’t like about Pride. A couple good fights isn’t able to cancel all this other shit out. I still watch the fights, but I prefer the North American product. I know the fighters are being tested.
martial arts is about technique over size and strength. While strength and speed are great, technique will always overcome it.-FuckerDave 01/19/10
The mob connections of pride make me question some of the results. Some of the decisions seemed a little fishy. I agree with you jay. in that the entrances totally horrible, and I just don’t like the ring.
Myth: Three Americans die every year from rabies. Fact: Four Americans die every year die from rabies.
I like the ring for the oddest reason.
whenever i put on some old school pride i always crank the surround sound because i LOVE the sound the mat makes when fighters are moving around a lot of shooting in for take downs.
I do a lot of jacking off, ya know, because I don’t get no women, so these arms are, like, humongously big. See it’s workout, and it’s pleasure.._" Charles Bennett
"He who fights and runs away lives to fight another day and looks like a ***** today." -Tank Abbott.
Jay - all those things are the reason to like PRIDE,
In Pride it was all about the fights no about who won what and rankings. It was characters, and the fighting spirit. Not everyone was on some randy “everyone please fellate me” couture bs. There were good guys, bad guys, over the top guys. Great rivalries, tournaments, just……I dare you to rewatch the PRIDE Decade dvd and tell me you don’t miss it.
Also i responded to your diego ranking comment. I had to disagree and break it down for you. tell me what you think.
by NNR (formerly NameNotRequired) on Jan 24, 2010 12:08 PM EST up reply actions
Answered the diego comment, I will break it down better if you'd like, I just gave a quick response
I agree that the fights were great in Pride. I just always hated the ring. I think it takes a lot away from a fight. I won’t list the reasons, because they’ve been listed by a lot of people already. I know steroids played a large part of the success of some of the Pride fighters. The organization was heavily involved with the Mafia. I could never find a Pride event live prior to the year 2000. I thought a lot of the camera angles were bogus.
The fans in Japan were top notch, and 120,000 respectful fans at an MMA event is something to dream about. I just really get turned off, knowing what was happening outside the ring and behind the scenes at Pride.
martial arts is about technique over size and strength. While strength and speed are great, technique will always overcome it.-FuckerDave 01/19/10
Mixed feelings on Pride
I loved the production values, entrances and commentary of their shows and even today the UFC can’t come close to putting on as good a spectacle as Pride. The music and announcing was superb and still gives me chills when I watch DVDs and is far better than the crap metal songs that the UFC play. They also had some stacked divisions and the tournaments were great fun, plus the rules allowed for very exciting fights and brutal finishes. The fans were also great and really respectful.
However, it wasn’t a very professionally run organisation and it’s hard to take a company seriously when they have such horrendous officiating and judging, are blatantly biased in favour of Japanese fighters, protect champions with non-title fights and are ran by the Yakuza. The mismatches and freakshows put on to keep the Japanese fans happy also annoyed me, I’m much more of a fan of competetive fights not purposely booked beatdowns. The ring also puts me off as despite looking and sounding nicer than the cage it just doesn’t work for grappling exchanges and the constant rope breaks takes away the legitimacy of the fight.
It’s a shame that Pride is no more and it’s still great fun watching the past fights and seeing legends like Wandi, Fedor and Big Nog in their primes as well as watching Shogun, Rampage and Andy develop into world class fighters. There is a lot that the UFC could learn from them in how to put on a great show but as a sporting organisation I prefer the UFC.
"Wanderlei is focused and well trained...he will easily win this fight, by a large margin and with much better technique."
Anderson Silva on why Wand is going to smash Bisping. Get ready to lose your dignity frosnt.
Agreed NNR, would you believe I was only watching the Pride Decade show two days ago, it rocks and so did Pride imo.
WAR PRIDE!
Tito Ortiz: I think Chuck's lost a step, maybe i've lost a step also, but that's what makes the fight so exciting!
Jay - better breakdown please!!!
So far this is why IMO he’d open as an underdog
Sherk – better top game, better cardio, boxing despite t-rex arms is lightyears ahead(no 1-2 combos only). I can’t think of anything Diego brings that sherk doesn’t do better (idk maybe you can).
Kenflo – finisher, way better and more diverse striking. Very good guard and just as good in scrambles. Hell just compare his performances against Guida and Joe mama with Diego’s. Quick tapouts vs Grueling wars ending in split decisions.
Melendez – very good defensive wrestling. Hell he stalled out a technical wrestler like Ishida. A dry hump off the cage until you gas wrestler is very simple. Equivalent cardio, simple standup like diego but actually packs power now. Essentially a clay guida with a semblance of standup, more power, better top game and better wrestling.
by NNR (formerly NameNotRequired) on Jan 24, 2010 3:40 PM EST up reply actions
Just my opinion but,
Sherk-not what he used to be. He’s lost his edge, he prefers to stand with everybody. Diego is a lot longer than him and could easily out box him the way Edgar did. The combos in the Penn/Diego fight were simple and ineffective(didn’t expect more). I don’t know if Sherk has better cardio, but I wouldn’t doubt it. Diego has enough cardio to make it a non-factor anyhow.
Kenflo-I agree with this pick. Kenflo has been at LW longer and his body has gotten used to it. I think Kenny would finish Diego. Maybe if Diego had 2 more fights at LW my pick would change, but not right now. I would pick Kenny in this fight.
Melendez: Not sold. I don’t know why you think he is packing power now, I think the opposite. He used to knock people out all the time. He fought a lot of cans and has looked average against top competition. He has had many years and opportunities to go to the UFC and has flaked every time. He isn’t a big LW and Diego would have a wrestling advantage IMO. Not that the fight would go to the ground, but at least Diego would be the one to decide if it does or not. I don’t think Melendez or any of the SF LW would fair to well in the UFC.
martial arts is about technique over size and strength. While strength and speed are great, technique will always overcome it.-FuckerDave 01/19/10
I loved pride.
I would have to agree though about the judges, refs, steroids, mismatches made it a bit unproffessional but all of that aside the entertainment which it’s always about in Japan was great and so were many of the fighters! the thing i probably disliked the most about Pride were the refs, they never stopped a fight in time and could easily be thrown away as they were about 3 ft tall and 50 lbs.
K-1 is the new and only thing in Japan worth watching for me.
fresh like uhh.
I with u pal! The pride fights wer 2nd to none
& there will never be anything like! Those fights wer sooo legendary & it was all about fights! The pride rules wer the closest thing u cud get 2 a real fight! The grand prixs wer so awesome u actually found out who the best fighter in the world was! No protecting anybody! U don’t wana fight yur getting taxes 10% of yur check!
by d*locc on Jan 24, 2010 2:40 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Your racism is embarrassing
its Japanese production. Japs is derogatory ww2 slang
Well excuse me for not writing JAPANESE and i'm hardly racist seeing as my wife is half CHINESE....
Just letting you know I’m no racist, eventhough i think your post was directed at ziiiing, I also used ‘Japs’ in my post, and by no means ment anything derogatory by it.
Tito Ortiz: I think Chuck's lost a step, maybe i've lost a step also, but that's what makes the fight so exciting!
Same old pc bs.
Funnily enough my girlfriend is Chinese, but she hates JAPS with a passion. Something about mass murder, torture, ethnic cleansing and human experimentation, I wasn’t really listening. Besides that Jap is an abreviation and less offensive than calling an American a yank or an Irish man a paddy or Australians ozzy. Dry your eyes and heal your bleeding heart.
Paniczoo reincarnated.
by ziiiiing on Jan 24, 2010 6:10 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Can't beat the chinese women.....well the nice ones anyway....lol
Tito Ortiz: I think Chuck's lost a step, maybe i've lost a step also, but that's what makes the fight so exciting!
This would be awesome
But I don’t think it can happen. There’s too many obstacles! Where would they the fighters, the UFC?
You love what he did?
In the ring or the heist? Didn’t he hold a little girl hostage?
"i only want to be known as the best ever, is that too much to ask?" - BJ Penn.
by Omoplato on Jan 24, 2010 12:48 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
...
hundreds of thousands of iraq’s afghans have been killed but you still support the troops? what is worse? the little girl is alive and kicking
WANDY RIP Bispings going to toy with you then destroy you
The war in Iraq is a travesty but I blame the corrupt politicians rather than the majority of the troops who are just doing their duty
Murray is an evil piece of shit, how would you like to be kidnapped by a mad man or have your child held hostage? I bet you wouldn’t “love” what Murray did if you were put in that situation or not be bothered because those held hostage survived.
"Wanderlei is focused and well trained...he will easily win this fight, by a large margin and with much better technique."
Anderson Silva on why Wand is going to smash Bisping. Get ready to lose your dignity frosnt.
i would be into that
Bring back the tournaments and have the majority of events overseas. I just can’t see ufc sharing top fighters, if there a top contender and under zuffa contract Dana may have trouble sharing the talent. I’d love to see it happen.
"When they took away headbutts, I had to learn some skills." Mark Coleman
by DrewMoney$$$ on Jan 23, 2010 10:53 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I always hear different rumors and opinions about the dissolution of Pride, everything from bankruptcy to ties with the Yakuza.
Anyone know what’s the real story or have any sources (aside from Wikipedia…)?
Fightopinion.com
Check out the lengthy, detailed investigative journalism pieces penned by Zach Arnold. He covers the behind-the-door drama behind the collapse of Pride thoroughly, and while it is quite a time-consuming read, you should check it out if you want to be informed.
by Akimitsu Kuwabara on Jan 23, 2010 10:55 PM EST up reply actions
nice tip. I will check that out later.
Dana would be smart to Open and Operate PRIDE FC again. But no to the extent of running it the way it way – create a partner business.
Just grow it from the beginning. Sign fighters that are new to MMA and grow the brand all over again… and in 5-10years cross promote with your own crop of talent. He can also steal from Shooto / k1 / Dream / Sengoku – when there is an opportunity to do so.
Im sort of thinking like a WEC but for the heavier guys.
"He wants to get in close and use that reach advantage" - Mike Goldberg
"Half of this game is 90% Mental" - Tim Sylvia
"I have two words for you... Destiny" - Diego Sanchez.
Anyone interested in a dumbest MMA quote of all time poll?
yuck
But no to the extent of running it the way it way – create a partner business.
but not to the extent of running it the way it was… start smaller.
"He wants to get in close and use that reach advantage" - Mike Goldberg
"Half of this game is 90% Mental" - Tim Sylvia
"I have two words for you... Destiny" - Diego Sanchez.
Anyone interested in a dumbest MMA quote of all time poll?
Thanks Akimitsu, I really appreciate that and will definitely read up on it.
by Godfather2386 on Jan 24, 2010 8:55 AM EST up reply actions
Oh fuck! Why the hell would they do that? I want all the best fighters under one roof. It makes no sense. Why would the people who own the UFC want another organization? I hope this doesn’t happen.
if they did it in japan it could work. pride would be a good graveyard for ufc hasbeens and popular japanese fighters
hughes vs. some jap……..tank vs. bob sap……….. tim silvia vs. hong man choi……..
if the japanese will pay to watch jose canseco fight, they will watch anything.
by Conan the Barbarian on Jan 24, 2010 12:31 AM EST up reply actions
Wow Conan
That’s a horrible post.. First of all pride in it’s prime was the equivalent to the ufc in that same time frame. Second, lumping all the japanese people into one category is kind of a dick move. I wouldn’t speak of pride as a ufc graveyard like they’re on the same level as strikeforce or elite xc.. Pride was an incredible org.
"i only want to be known as the best ever, is that too much to ask?" - BJ Penn.
by Omoplato on Jan 24, 2010 12:55 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
key word being "WAS." pride is no more. i was mearly giving a scenario where i think it would make sense and cents to bring back pride.
obviously i wasn’t lumping ALL japanese into one group, but they do/will pay for that type of entertainment in japan.
by Conan the Barbarian on Jan 24, 2010 3:11 AM EST up reply actions
well conan
i honestly think if pride were to announce they were resurfacing today, tickets would be sold out tomorrow. real talk. japan LOVES pride. they could even keep the fight card a secret and people would still show up to fill the seats. its not that pride went bankrupt due to poor show turnouts…they had some underworld business politics happening..allegedly..
and one another note, since when do we, humans, not buy into the occasional spectacle for means of entertainment? i mean we had 3 tito vs shamrock fights. three lopsided beatdowns. not to mention the dmv/coolio/latino guy card, kyle maynard (awesome wrestler, dont get me wrong) etc..
so for today my friend, conan, you FAIL
"i only want to be known as the best ever, is that too much to ask?" - BJ Penn.
Under the right circumstances it could be great....
If they did it in Japan, with Pride Rules and the UFC control it could be great. Think about how awesome it would be to have guy like GSP, Anderson, Machida, Rua, Lesnar, BJ Penn, Aoki, Alvarez, Aldo, JDS,Big/Little Nog, Bowels, Torres,Hendo, and Marqurdt all competing in the Grand Prix!!! Something we have not been privy to as UFC fans since Chuck had his attempt squashed by Rampage. That of course is assuming they could reel in all the Japanese talent! If not, just the idea of a Grand Prix between the current UFC and WEC great is good enough for me! Pride and the UFC could be used in much the same way Dream and Strike Force work together. I also would like to see how fight change, now that the stomps and soccer kicks are in to play. Will the great wrestlers chance the missed takedown as much knowing that knees to the head or a field goal style kick is awaiting at the end of a missed single leg! I like the idea and we could finally narrow down who the best of the best is!
Good post monkey.
Tito Ortiz: I think Chuck's lost a step, maybe i've lost a step also, but that's what makes the fight so exciting!
that would be so sick monkey!
we all can wish right? i think the risk would be too high for the zuffa fam with that idea though..two cash cows of different weight classes go at it and one of them gets badly injured by a strike such as a head stomp or soccer kick to the grill..thats money out of their pocket. ufc already owns the mma world..they please how they feel suitable..not the other way around. sadly.
but imagine torres vs florian or bj vs aldo..gomi vs sanchez (170lb version)..
"i only want to be known as the best ever, is that too much to ask?" - BJ Penn.
Much better all round imo.
Tito Ortiz: I think Chuck's lost a step, maybe i've lost a step also, but that's what makes the fight so exciting!
Don Frye v James Toney
“I tell you what: Anybody who fights an [expletive] like James Toney or Herschel Walker or Jose Canseco or any of them other [expletives] that come into our sport at their age should be required to take them down and break as many bones as possible on them and keep them crippled for six-to-eight weeks,” Frye recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). “I’d break both their [expletive] arms so they’d have to hire somebody to wipe their ass for the next six-to-eight weeks. It should be a requirement.”
“That’s why nobody respects this sport, and it’s just a circus act right now,” Frye said. “They have these morons come in at the age they should be sitting in the retirement home, and they walk in and get a high-dollar fight.”
WANDY RIP Bispings going to toy with you then destroy you
Haha Frye is spot on there, though to be fair to Toney at least he's had success in another popular combat sport
He’s not some retired NFL player or disgraced baseball player looking for a new career.
"Wanderlei is focused and well trained...he will easily win this fight, by a large margin and with much better technique."
Anderson Silva on why Wand is going to smash Bisping. Get ready to lose your dignity frosnt.
For a second, I almost thought the video was fake
… until I saw Bruce Lee.
I think the rating were high because
alot of fans these days were not fans back when Pride was severly badass. I love the fact that they were allowed to kick guys that were down but could not understand not being able to throw an elbow. Anyways Pride was the fucking goods back in the day along with the UFC, they were equal to me, one wasnt bigger than the other.
If you are/were a fan of MMA
then you liked Pride, to say Fuck Pride its all about the UFC makes me think you never saw a Pride event. Are you a fan of Fedor, Wandy, Shogun etc. then you were a fan of Pride. All top notch guys, your comment is really stupid, sorry man it just is.
I watched Pride quite a bit, and to tell you the truth I didn’t really like it, and I would consider myself an MMA fan. Sure some of the fighters are among the all time greats, I just was never into the over the top entrances, along with mob connections and steroid allegations soured it for me.
Myth: Three Americans die every year from rabies. Fact: Four Americans die every year die from rabies.
Fuck the entrances & all the that bullshit!
The fights itself r unmatched! 2nd to none! U can’t name a better fight than the 1s that happened in the Pride ring.
by d*locc on Jan 24, 2010 5:27 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
We all have our preferences…I wasn’t knocking the competition that was in Pride. I just didn’t like some of the aspects such as the enterences, the ring, the roids, the mob and so on. I enjoy watching the fights still, but if I had to I would go with the UFC over Pride.
Myth: Three Americans die every year from rabies. Fact: Four Americans die every year die from rabies.
Currently I would have to say my favourite is GSP. I do have a lot of fighters that I like though (check my profile, and don’t bash me too much for Bisping). I used to really love watching Oleg Taktarov, Severn, and of course the Mustache Don Frye.
Myth: Three Americans die every year from rabies. Fact: Four Americans die every year die from rabies.
I gotta give u props for the old school!
Theyvneed 2 get Oleg in the hall of fame! He’s a f’ing legend! Also Marco Ruas duznt get enuff props either!!
by d*locc on Jan 24, 2010 8:43 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
off topic
does anyone still use mmaplayground under the UFCmania team? i could only really find the like of VM and PhillyQ, was wondering if anyone still used it?
I do a lot of jacking off, ya know, because I don’t get no women, so these arms are, like, humongously big. See it’s workout, and it’s pleasure.._" Charles Bennett
"He who fights and runs away lives to fight another day and looks like a ***** today." -Tank Abbott.
pride was the epitomy of awesomnessnessness
the only thing i didn’t like was when the organisation vp would bang the drums at the start wearing a sumo thong type garment, not nice, although strangely i couldn’t take my eyes off the tv………wierd..
by freedomthrtyfve on Jan 24, 2010 11:00 AM EST reply actions
MMA in a ring makes no sense
MMA is meant for a cage. Those fights in the ring get tangled in the ropes like every 5 seconds. It’s annoying as hell and totally changes the momentum of the fights. Plus the hoards of random Asian dudes hitting your fingers, shaking the ropes and pushing on your butt when you get on the ropes is just weird.
Reviving PRIDE Makes Sense...
Respect, Production Value Second to None, Building Characters (Good Fighters, Bad Guys and Over the top personalities), the music, that Crazy Old Lady annoucer chick and Tournament style fighting (Bushido and Pride GP)
For all the above reasons, I’m a huge fan of Pride. Dana has gone on record in the past in saying the only reason Pride no longer exists is that when the Fertittas bought it, nobody would agree to put it on TV or PPV in Japan…
If Dana was smart, he would have revived PRIDE when ZUFFA sold 10% of it’s holdings to Flash Entertainment in hopes of expanding in East Asain markets. There are TONS of fight fans in Japan and China and the biggest population per capital. UFC would still be # 1… but they could put on tournaments (or events *under UFC rules) UFC vs PRIDE similiar to USA vs CANADA at UFC 58… but hold these tournaments under the PRIDE banner… the flashy entrances, the music, the trophies… all that.
If that model is successful, bring back PRIDE full swing in Japan… because MMA fans in Japan will not forget or forgive UFC so easily for buying out and essentially turning its back on the PRIDE organization…. the way to get those fans back is to revive PRIDE.
Y don't they show Wands legendary stare downs?!
I love pride I think it was the best thing in mma ! Let’s see sum aleksander emelienenko vs Josh Barnet or segei khraitonov those fights wer so bad ass!
by d*locc on Jan 24, 2010 2:46 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Your right d*!
The Pride theme music alone beats the UFC theme music, and you could easily watch any past Pride event and enjoy, couldn’t say the same about past UFC. IMHO Pride will never be replaced, even if it does re-surface, (the rules would have to be old-school Pride) however exciting it might be, the fights we witnessed in those days will never be replaced!! And will always be the bench-mark imo to how a MMA event should be. You can say it was ott, the entrances, the refs etc etc but all these things used to make the show for me, and you could really see that the fighters came first, and the fans, one of a kind!! I don’t even mind watching some of the old Pride events I have downloaded that are not even in English, thats how much I love Pride. Without it we would never of had Nog v Fedor(and so many other wars) , the 5 years of the unstoppable Wand era, my boy CRO COP’s countless high-light reel KO’s etc etc etc, man i fucking loved Pride!!
Tito Ortiz: I think Chuck's lost a step, maybe i've lost a step also, but that's what makes the fight so exciting!
U no wuts up Pal!
Honestly Big Nog, Josh barnet, Alex emelinenko, cro cop (in his prime), mark hunt,overeem, Wand in the same tourny 2 see who was the best fiter! R u kidding me! The only thing IMHO is the 2005 & 2003 pride middle w8 tournys! 2003 is my personal fav!
by d*locc on Jan 24, 2010 5:03 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Give kazushi sakuraba his f'ing props!
He’s the OG that started pride! Living legend ! Sakuraba is the 1 that got me in2 Pride! I remeber seeing a Pride DVD with Royce Gracie on it wen Royce was the shit & undefeated ! Sakuraba was the 1st one 2 beat royce Gracie in a 6 round 1 hour fight that blew me away!then came back the same night 2 fight igor vovchachyn!
by d*locc on Jan 24, 2010 5:19 PM EST via mobile reply actions
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