What is PRIDE?

[complete]

THE WORLD'S PREMIERE MIXED MARTIAL ARTS CONTEST
THE EVENT


A legendary event in Japan, the PRIDE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIPS match the world's elite fighters in competitions of honor and art. Imagine Brazilian Jiu - Jitsu practitioner versus kick boxer, Judo specialist versus wrestler ... this is the sport of mixed martial arts ... this is PRIDE FC. Each match is the culmination of years of training by these athletes, the finest representatives of their martial art who not only compete for victory, but also to defend their fighting style!
PRIDE FC began in 1997 with one philosophy---the acceptance of any fighting technique from any school. In other words, attempt to mimic the realities of an actual fight in the form of a legitimate and honorable sport. The Brazilians call is "Vale Tudo," some fans call it "no holds barred," but today both of these terms have evolved into a sport called "mixed martial arts." For PRIDE FC, this dream was realized on October 11, 1997 when Rickson Gracie faced Nobuhiko Takada at the main event of PRIDE FC I at the Tokyo Dome in Japan. Gracie personified the legend of Gracie Jiu Jitsu, his family's unique fighting style from Brazil. His opponent, Takada, represented the style of professional wrestling. Both claimed the superiority of their fighting art and looked to prove it to themselves, their opponents, and the fans. This philosophy is what continues to drive PRIDE FC today.
Though the basic idea is to eliminate as many restrictions as possible in a mixed martial arts match, this is still ultimately a sport and safety is always paramount. In its history, there have been no serious injuries in any PRIDE FC event. When more closely compared to such mainstream American sports as NFL-style football (with its violent collisions) and boxing (with its repeated head blows), the sport of mixed martial arts has an impeccable safety record. In PRIDE FC, the referee has the authority and obligation to stop the match whenever a fighter is no longer able to defend himself. To compliment this, seven doctors are available at ringside in the event of any type of accident or emergency. In addition, there are a series of rules, implemented both to protect the fighters and to uphold the integrity of the sport.


THE BUSINESS


PRIDE FC is organized by parent company Dream Stage Entertainment (DSE). Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, DSE has nurtured the growth of mixed martial arts in its native country and is now committed to expanding into North America and the world. As a phenomenon, PRIDE FC has grown through innovation, high production values, matchmaking, and a history of dramatic fights. Now it enters the American consciousness: DVDs are available in major retail outlets, pay per view audiences are tuning in (PRIDE FC is available on iNDEMAND, DISH NETWORK, DIRECTV, and TVN), and in February 2003 video game company THQ released the PRIDE FC video game for the PlayStation 2. In addition, in June of 2002, DSE became the first foreign-based company to be granted a license by the Nevada State Athletic Commission ... paving the way for the company's first event outside of Japan.


Inaugural PRIDE FC event:
Tokyo Dome ... October 11, 1997


First Grand Prix tournament:
Tokyo Dome ... January 30, 2000 (opening round)
Tokyo Dome ... May 1, 2000 (semi-finals and finals)



First U.S. Pay Per View broadcast:
May 13, 2000 (Grand Prix semi-finals and finals)

Largest Crowd:
Tokyo National Stadium ... 91,107 (SHOCKWAVE 2002)

[NinjaMaster]

I for one is happy to see Pride forum started. I admit I don't know much about it but heard about it quite a bit. It's heavily advertised on cable channels and full page ad on martial arts magazines all the time.

[oddtodd81]

Im also very excited to see PrideFC forum goodjob looking forward to spending some time in here... =)

[complete]

Blockbuster has a lot of the old Pride FC DVDs. I plan on renting and watching them in next couple of weeks.

[MMA_Fan]

My username is UFC_Fan. How can I support Pride?

All right. I'll check it here once in a while.....

[complete]

Don't let your username stop you from enjoying something you love, MMA. By the way, if you want your username changed, PM me with what you'd like it to be changed.

[oddtodd81]

Largest Crowd:
Tokyo National Stadium ... 91,107 (SHOCKWAVE 2002)

Holy Crap!!! The largest crowd the UFC had was around 20,000 people isnt it?

This number by PrideFC dwarfs UFC!!!

[oddtodd81]

By the way I like your new name MMA FAN nice choice... =)

[complete]

PrideFC is definitely bigger, gets more coverage, but UFC is coming on strong. I read an article where UFC's pay per view numbers now have exceed those of WWE this year.

PrideFC has been more of an international event while UFC has been more of US-only. Interesting enough, PrideFC PPV is $34.95 whereas UFC PPV price has increased to $39.95.

PrideFC fighters want to come to US to fight (as Wanderlei mentioned during UFC61), I'm sure we will see some mix ups in the future that will hopefully level the playing field.

BTW, there is another smaller league called WFA - World Fighting Alliance?? They've signed ex-UFC ex-Pride fighters such as Kimo Leopoldo, Bas Rutten, Quinton Jackson, Vernon White, Ricco Rodriguez, etc.

Will be interesting to see how many different leagues will survive.

[oddtodd81]

UFC 65: NOVEMBER 18 IN LAS VEGAS

-Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva (provided that Liddell debeats Renato Sobral in August and is not injured in doing so; and provided that Silva is not injured in the semi-finals or finals of the Pride Open Weight Grand Prix in September)

-Kazuyuki Fujita vs. TBA
-Phil Baroni vs. TBA

Note: The currently scheduled date for this event is November 18th, but that date is subject to change because there is also an HBO Boxing PPV that is currently scheduled for November 18th.

United States PPV suggested retail price: $39.95

[JoeDaddy12]

Both organizations are great but right now ufc has better talent