Fansided MMA
FanSided

The top 10 biggest fight cities in the world

By Thomas Albano

The Las Vegas Strip and skyline including various hotels and casinos are seen at night in Las Vegas, Nevada, in this photograph taken October 18, 2016. / AFP / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)
The Las Vegas Strip and skyline including various hotels and casinos are seen at night in Las Vegas, Nevada, in this photograph taken October 18, 2016. / AFP / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
9 of 11
Next
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – NOVEMBER 15 : Aerial view on “Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas” and the city centre of Rio de Janeiro on November 15, 2015 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Frédéric Soltan/Corbis via Getty Images)
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – NOVEMBER 15 : Aerial view on “Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas” and the city centre of Rio de Janeiro on November 15, 2015 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Frédéric Soltan/Corbis via Getty Images) /

3. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Brazil is another country which has played a role in the development of martial arts, but above all, it has played a role in just simply the establishment and growth of mixed martial arts. It was here in the 20th century where the legendary Gracie family of Rio de Janeiro developed a style known as jiu-jitsu and started putting it to use against athletes from other martial art styles and combat sports in Vale Tudo tournaments, submission grappling contests and their own “Gracie Challenge.”

Ultimately, the style was put on a world showcase with the very-first Ultimate Fighting Championship event in November 1993. On a cold night in Denver, Colorado, one of the Gracie family’s smaller-framed members, Royce, would defeat Art Jimerson, Ken Shamrock and Gerard Gordeau in one night to win the tournament. More importantly, that night changed the game in combat, showing the importance of an emphasis on grappling, ground and submission work.

Gracie would go on to win the UFC 2 and 4 tournaments and fight Shamrock to a draw in the very first UFC superfight at UFC 5. Since the Gracie family left their mark on MMA, many of MMA’s top talents have come from Brazil, including Anderson Silva, Jose Aldo, Fabricio Werdum, Vitor Belfort, Lyoto Machida, the “Pitbull” Freire brothers, the Nogueira brothers and many more.

Despite the influence of the Gracie family and all the MMA talent that came from the country, Brazil only hosted one UFC event — UFC Brazil: Ultimate Brazil — before the 2010s. But in 2011, the UFC finally came back to Brazil with UFC 134. And the Brazilian audience greatly embraced a UFC return to the area, filling up the then-HSBC Arena (now Jeunesse Arena) to the brim, loudly chanting and cheering for their countrymen and celebrating wildly with every victory of theirs. That passion hasn’t died down all these years later, and now UFC events in Brazil are a staple —  at least three times every year — with Rio hosting a pay-per-view card almost every year.

HOME/UFC