MMA moments that almost changed history...

A thread to name events, decisions, signings or other situations that caused the MMA landscape to be reshaped.


1. Anderson Silva not signing with the UFC early last decade. Go check out what the sherdog WW rankings were around 2000-01. The Spider was indeed the worlds best WW. A nearly forgotten and unknown aspect of his career, but he nearly signed to fight in the UFC to fight for the title in 2000 after he gained the lineal title from Mach. Had this happened, there is a good chance Matt Hughes goes from the greatest WW of all time to an also ran in the division. Side note - I wish Undisputed had a special WW Silva that could be unlocked, fight night has all weight classes that the fighters there fought in...

2. Tito Ortiz not ducking Chuck Liddell. I love Tito and consider him one of the greatest fighters ever, but the truth is he knew Liddell was a terrible matchup for him. With Tito defeating Wanderlei, he was easily considered the best in the world at the time. Liddell's status might be even higher if he'd gotten his fight with Ortiz earlier in their career, and Ortiz might not have had the chance to ever defend his title again, at least not a record five times.

3. Newton getting the decision over Dan Henderson at UFC 17. Had Newton won this bout(which he probably should have), he would have etched his name among the P4P alltime greats like Saku, Royce and Shamrock who used MW/WW frames to defeat natural HW and LHW's.

4. Kevin Jackson not retiring. There is a strong case to claim Kevin Jackson is the best, most predigreed wrestler ever to enter MMA being an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling,. Jackson who won UFC 14, would have been an interesting match up for guys like Coleman and Couture who were active in the sport around this time. It is likely he would be cited in retrospect as the best fighter to come from wrestling and could be the primary figure in the first wave of wrestlers that entered the UFC at the time, ahead of Couture, Coleman or Randleman. It is less likely Rizzo and Mo Smith could have sprawled on him. He only had a few career fights, but his only losses were subs to Frank Shamrock and Jerry Bohlander, who at the time were both top five fighters.

5. Ricco not being robbed blind against Big Nog - Ricco's career was almost finished after this bout, and he fell in to obscurity with this loss and the subsequent loss to Rizzo. If he won this bout, he likely would have been no more than a fight away from Fedor, and you just never, never know. Respectful nods to the close and arguable decisions against IFL and EliteXC champions Ben Rothwell and Antonio Silva in those promotions as well.

6. Ken vs Kimbo going down as planned. - Two things could have happened. Either Kimbo loses via leglock to the Hall of Famer, or Kimbo lands the first flurry of the fight and puts Kenny boi down. Either way, I doubt EliteXC would have gone under at this moment, as a Shamrock loss to mainstream fans and journalists wouldn't be seen as nearly as shocking of an upset, perhaps just a learning experience(mainstream fans learning UFC 1 lessions finally) for Kimbo, and either way the pay off conspiracy wouldn't have happened. Kimbo was a primary reason believe it or not that Rashad and Rampage did so well on PPV and why that show was created by Dana. It was a perfect way to engage a boxing/ethnic fan base that the UFC has had trouble reaching in the past. Strikeforce would be different now, maybe M-1 would have been able to scam EliteXC instead. Never know.

7. Josh Barnett passing his roid tests. Numerous alternate realities are plausable here. Had he stayed in the UFC, he would have been a tough nut to crack, and could have become a dominant champion and could have made a real argument for being the best HW in the world. Had he passed his test before Affliction, today he could be the number 1 HW in the world, or Affliction might still be in business, or at the very least given Fedor yet another former UFC champion and top five HW on his resume for nutcases to try and deny.

Can you guys think of others?

Good list, though no one would've beat Fedor.

How about if Pride wasn't bought by Zuffa and was still thriving. How different would the UFC be right now? Would Brock be there instead of the UFC? Rampage, Machida and Rua also? The UFC would be nowhere near as big.

great list wolf really like the premise fr the thread idea

wanted to let you know though since you didnt state why, Kevin Jackson was forced to retire from MMA/NHB, he was given an ultimatum, quit fighting in MMA/NHB or find yourself a new job (he was a trainer for the US Olympic Team). The Olympic committe was going to remove him unless he retired.

I think Ken would have beat Kimbo, but of course that s what i think, your right though, EliteXC doesnt go under

Also I think the one major thing you left off is what if Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock are allowed to go until there is a winner at UFC 5. Royce Gracie may not have left the organization if this happens

+1 coming your way when i get a vote wolf

Ya I know he was forced to retire from "the bloodsport", but if that wasn't the case, think of how different things might have been?

Hell if he became UFC HW champion as an Olympian maybe the dark ages don't last as long?

very true, but honestly dont think he could have ever achieved that, your right, Frank and Jerry were both top 5 fighters in the world at the time, but he was fighting at Middleweight (current Light Heavyweight) dont really see how hes going to win a heavy title

he without a doubt had the greatest wrestling pedigree in MMA history, but I think Kevin Randleman was more suited for MMA than Jackson was.

There really was no LHW in 1997. There were little guys and there were big guys. One or the other.

Wolfgangsta wrote:

There really was no LHW in 1997. There were little guys and there were big guys. One or the other.

but what was it called and where did the light heavyweight title originate from???? Middleweight Champion Frank Shamrock who won the title by submitting Kevin Jackson in 16 secodns

then came the "Lightweight Division" which we know as Welter now

also your right though, middle was 200 and under, when in reality Tito Ortiz was 225 when he fought Frank Shamrock and Frank weighed in at 198 and then pulled a big thick book out of his pocket. Jerry Bohlander was another fighter who fought at under 200 pounds that was often rumored to be over 200

like for example, no chance in hell Mo Smith sprawls Kevin Jackson,

the question is can Kevin Jackson survive in the guard that tired out Mark Coleman, and made Kevin Randleman pretty ineffective (even though Randleman won )

also these 2

Vitor Belfort doesnt pull out of his fight with Guy Mezger at UFC 19, and TIto Ortiz isnt convinced by his management (originally turned down the rematch) to take the fight

and Guy Mezger gets the decision he deserves vs Sakuraba and faces Royce Gracie .

How different would MAM have been if those 2 things dont happen

How about if Camps like the Lions Den, Milletich, and Brazilian Top Team were never formed?

What happens if Fujita had finished off Fedor?

good adds ludo and krazy

shit krazy what if RIcardo Arona gets the decision he deserves againts Fedor?

What if Frank Shamrock was never encouraged to follow in Ken's footsteps by getting into Martial Arts? The History of MMA could have been truly changed forever

good add LA

Figured you gizz ur pants over that one

What if Randy never returned the UFC?

What if Lee Murray doesn't rob a bank in the UK? This guy had the potential to be a great MW.

What if Frank Shamrock never retires from the UFC after defeating Tito? How long could his run have been, Tito may have never become a Champ.

hahahah that was funny,

Murray was an interesting fellow

LA Ive been saying that alot lately and ya know what

I think Frank makes about 10 damn defenses and no chance in hell Tito ever becomes champ

I'd probably have picked Tito if they fought again but its definitely an interesting question

Those 2 were just for Bird

Fedor signs with the UFC right after Pride gets boughtout, Affliction probably never exists(as an MMA Org)

What if Mark Kerr never gets addicted to painkillers.