Vale-tudo is a combat sport in which, as the name implies, the beating runs wild. In MMA, any type of fight is accepted, from capoeira to jiu-jitsu, including boxing, karate, kickboxing, muay thai, wrestling and other martial arts. Ultimate Fighting (actually Ultimate Fighting Championship or UFC) and Pride are the two biggest world championships of this type of sport. We detonate the main differences between them in the chart on the opposite page – to set up this notary, we relied on the right strokes of the brothers from Tatame magazine, specialized in MMA. At least in the rules of the dispute, Pride and UFC are equivalent: their participants are free to punch, kick and grab the opponent. But the UFC was way more animalistic: in the first editions, the fighters were not separated by weight and there was no time limit for the fight – the fight only ended with a knockout or if one of the fighters gave up. Today, things are a little more organized: fighters wear gloves, are examined by doctors to assess their condition in the intervals between rounds, and weight categories have been created. And both the UFC and Pride ban the most vicious punches. MMA history begins in the 1940s, guess where? In Brazil! In Rio de Janeiro, the brothers Hélio and Carlos Gracie roamed the gyms challenging fighters of any modality to prove that jiu-jitsu was the most efficient of the martial arts. These challenges became known as “vale-tudo” – hence the popular name of the sport. With professionalization, he gained a milder international name: mixed martial arts or MMA (something like “mixture of martial arts”). In the late 1980s, Hélio’s eldest son, Rorion Grace, moved to the United States. Along with television executives, he created the UFC, a tournament that opened the world’s eyes to MMA. UFC carried the sport’s main championship belt until 1997, when a group of Japanese businessmen organized the first edition of Pride. Today, the two tournaments fight head-to-head for fan preference, but Pride is one punch ahead, concentrating the best fighters. In the land of the samurai, each combatant takes up to 500 thousand dollars for a single fight, while the UFC pays “only” 200 thousand.
Main MMA tournaments in the world, UFC and Pride have similar rules – and a real fight
UFC
WHEN WAS IT CREATED – 1993
WHERE IT IS PLAYED – United States
NUMBER OF EDITIONS – 52
NEXT EDITION – No date set. UFC 52 took place on April 16
NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS – On average, there are 16 in each edition, chosen among 139 ranked athletes
CATEGORIES – Lightweight (from 65.6 to 70.2 kg), welterweight (from 70.2 to 77 kg), middleweight (from 77 to 83.8 kg), light heavyweight (from 83.8 to 92, 8 kg) and heavy (from 92.8 to 120 kg)
COMPETITION MODE – In the first editions, the UFC was disputed in the form of an elimination tournament, with quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. The fighter who sent three opponents to the canvas won the belt. Today, each edition brings together an average of ten combatants, who fight only once. Some fights are worth the title, others just ranking positions
WHAT YOU CANNOT – The rules limit about 30 hits. The heaviest aggressions are prohibited, such as bites, hair pulling, blows to the back of the head, finger in the eye or in another orifice.
MATCH DURATION – Three five-minute rounds
WHEN THE FIGHT IS OVER – In knockouts or when one of the two fighters gives up. If no one falls to the end, the judges decide the winner on points.
RING – It is the octagon («octagon»), an eight-sided cage surrounded by bars
QUEM SE DÁBEM – The so-called wrestlers — wrestling fighters, a sport known in Brazil as Olympic wrestling. They are experts at knocking and smashing opponents into the octagon rails so they can strike them.
BIGGEST CHAMPION – Royce Gracie – The Brazilian was champion of three of the first four editions of the UFC — in two of them, he beat three opponents in the same night! Using immobilization, a trademark of Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Royce sent opponents up to 50 kilos heavier to the mat.
AN UNFORGETTABLE FIGHT – Vitor Belfort x Wanderlei – Silva In the historic clash on October 16, 1998, Vitor (pictured, left) applied a lightning knockout at 44 seconds of the first round. After the beating, he won that year’s UFC belt. Wanderlei, despite being defeated, migrated to Pride and became the biggest name in the event
PRIDE
WHEN WAS IT CREATED – 1997
WHERE IT IS PLAYED – Japan
NUMBER OF EDITIONS – 27 from Pride and 3 from Pride Grand Prix (PGP), a special tournament created in 2000
NEXT ISSUE – The first round of PGP 4 took place on April 23
NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS – On average, there are 16 in each edition, chosen among dozens of ranked athletes
CATEGORIES – Bushido (lighter fighters, up to 83 kg), middleweight (up to 93 kg) and heavyweight (over 93 kg)
COMPETITION MODE – In Pride, the dispute is the same as in the UFC, with fighters facing each other only once in fights for positions in the ranking or for the title. In Pride Grand Prix, combatants face each other in an elimination system, with quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. Whoever wins all three wins the tournament and can challenge the best ranked fighter in the category
WHAT YOU CANNOT – All UFC prohibitions, with two differences: Pride does not allow elbows (in the UFC, it is allowed), but it does allow kicks and stomps while the opponent is on the ground — this is not allowed in the UFC
DURATION OF THE MATCH – Three rounds, the first with 10 minutes and the others with 5 minutes
WHEN THE FIGHT IS OVER – In knockouts or when one of the two fighters gives up, hitting the ground three times with his hand. If no one falls, the judges decide the winner.
RING – It’s similar to boxing. The main difference is that Pride’s ring has an extra rope
WHO DOES WELL – Versatile fighters, who know how to fight on their feet and on the ground. In Pride, the fight is less “creepy” than in the UFC. When one of the opponents feels that he is going to be pinned to the ground, he runs to the ropes and leaves the ring. The fight is then interrupted and starts again with both of them on their feet.
BIGGEST CHAMPION – Wanderlei Silva – This Brazilian who is good at fighting was undefeated for four years and won 27 fights, losing only 4 and drawing one. He is a fan of muay thai, Thai kickboxing. He is an idol in Japan, where he even inspired dolls and video games.
AN UNFORGETTABLE FIGHT – Bob Sapp x Rodrigo Minotauro – On August 28, 2002, the Brazilian Minotauro (pictured, in the foreground) was being beaten by Sapp, a giant measuring 2.15 meters and 60 kilos heavier than the Brazilian. But Minotauro tired his opponent and, at the end of the fight, he landed a perfect armbar, forcing the brute to ask for water.