Reader Reax
READER REAX: What fight hooked you on the UFC and MMA in general?
Nov 12, 2013 - 11:45:12 PM READER REAX: What fight hooked you on the UFC and MMA in general?

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We asked MMATorch readers in the wake of the UFC's 20th anniversary what it was that hooked them on MMA and the UFC in general. Here are the first batch of responses:

Matt Writes: "My friend made me watch GSP vs Dan Hardy, and watching Dan Hardy bend and show the will to fight on was amazing. Since that event I have only missed one UFC event due to a snowstorm in October of 2011. I am just in love with every aspect of the sport, all martial arts competing together. I find at least a handful of fights interesting to me on every card and I am now a fan for life."


Adam H. Writes: "My first MMA fight that I ever watched was Anderson Silva v. James Irvin. What a finish! I didn't continue to watch after that, and maybe it was because I didn't really understand what I saw. I was a pro wrestling fan, and a huge Lesnar fan. My first full fight card was when he fought Randy Couture for the UFC Heavyweight Title. That fight brought me to MMA, but I can count on one hand how many pay-per-view cards I've missed since then.

I guess to answer the question frankly, Lesnar brought me to MMA, but the awesome athletes of the UFC kept me there. I stopped watching pro wrestling, for the most part, after that.">


Daniel G. Writes: My name is D.J. I had no idea what MMA was all about until I was fifteen. I thought it was just a bunch of idiots who thought they were tough and didn't know what it meant to be a true martial artist. That is, until after one of my sister's quinceanera practices. All of our friends were at our house, we had just ordered pizza, and were looking for something to watch on TV. As I scrolled through the TV guide, I saw "UFC Unleashed." I thought, "Eh. Might as well," and selected it. There were two episodes of the program. One featuring Lyoto Machida, and one featuring Anderson Silva. After watching Anderson flow and knock his opponents out like they were nothing, and watching in awe as Machida used his confusing karate style to win the Light Heavyweight Championship, I was hooked. I watched UFC Unleashed whenever I could, which led to an Ultimate Fighter finale. I started watching TUF. I never knew I'd be so into this sport, but now I can fall asleep calmly and like a baby while old PRIDE fights are playing on the television. It's been great, and now I train in MMA myself. Looking forward to watch this sport expand.


Shawn O.: I was a fan of the UFC since UFC 1, and until Gracie-Shamrock at UFC 5. After that fight I completely lost touch with the UFC until maybe the third or fourth episode of TUF 1. Because of TUF, I bought UFC 52 not knowing one fighter other than Liddell and Couture. Then I was introduced to Matt Hughes. As soon as Hughes made that crazy comeback, slammed Trigg and choked him out, I was hooked. I couldn't get enough after that. I credit TUF 1, Hughes-Trigg and UFC 52 for making me a fan.


Matt R. : I'm a pro wrestling fan so, like many, I started watching MMA after Brock Lesnar joined the UFC. The first event I watched was UFC 91 with some friends, and it was a case of being drawn there for Brock but staying for the lighter weight classes. Hazelett vs. McCrory and Kenny Florian vs. Joe Stevenson are the fights that really hooked me and made me want to seek out more MMA. They showed me the skill these fighters had and it made me fall in love with Jiu Jitsu as well.