Monday, January 28, 2008

UFC 3 The American Dream

UFC 3 The American Dream
Grady Cole Convention Centre
Charlotte, North Carolina
September 9th 1994
  • We are back to the original 8 Man Tournament.
  • There are 6 new fighters and 2 returning fighters.
  • The returning fighters are seeded and set on opposite sides of the draw.
  • They are Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock.

All going well we will have a Gracie v Shamrock final.

Round 1

Emmanuel Yarborough v Keith Hackney

Yarborough is a Sumo Wrestler. He stands at 6 foot 8 and weighs over 600 lbs. Hackney is 9 inches shorter and 400 lbs lighter.

The fight starts with Yarborough coming straight at Hackney. Hackney throws an over the head open hand strike. The first shot lands and drops Yarborough to the mat. As he tries for the quick finish Yarborough reverses Hackney and takes him down and takes his back and starts to slap him around the back of his head. Hackney quickly gets up and has Yarborough charges straight at Hackney, Hackney is thrown through the Octagon gate on to the floor below. When the fight is restarted back in the Octagon Hackney starts to throw leg kicks. Yarborough catches his leg, Hackney then unleashes a barrage of punches and open hand strikes to Yarborough's face and head. He drops to the floor and the fight is stopped. Hackney earns the nickname " The Giant Killer ".

Ken Shamrock v Christopher Leninger

This is Shamrocks first fight since losing to Gracie in UFC 1. He is here for one reason which is to redeem his loss from UFC 1.

When the fight starts they shadow each other for about 1 minute. They then clinch and Shamrock gets the take down straight away. Leninger is quick to get Shamrock in his guard. Leninger throws a few punches but no damage is caused, they also trade headbutts. The going is quite slow on the ground as both fighters are biding there time. Leninger then attempts a triangle which Shamrock avoids and takes Leninger's back. Leninger is able to turn and firstly get half guard and then full guard, the only problem is that his head is cranked against the side of the Octagon. To avoid punishment Leninger taps. He is so exhausted he is unable to stand at the end of the match.

Roland Payne v Harold Howard

This fight was fast and exciting.

They both come out throwing big punches. Payne then shoots and takes Howard down. Howard quickly gets back to his feet, as Payne is grabbing one of Howards legs Howard throws numerous downward elbows to the back of Payne's head. Howard then suplex's Payne. Payne recovers quickly and they both start trading punches and Howard ko's Payne. This fight lasted less then a minute.

Royce Gracie v Kimo Leopaldo

The defending champion returns against the mysterious Kimo who out weighs Gracie by 60 lbs.

Kimo rushes straight at Gracie, they clinch and Gracie works hard for the takedown. They then fall through the gate that was broke in the first fight. They are then restarted in the clinch up against the cage. Gracie throws a lot of strikes from the clinch as he tries to get the takedown. He then tries to sweep Kimo and that ends up with both fighters going down and Kimo taking Gracie's back. Kimo tries to work for the choke, Gracie defends the attempt before reversing the position and gaining the full mount. This lasts for less then 10 seconds as Kimo rolls him and ends up in Gracie's guard. Gracie is really struggling for the first time in any of his UFC matches, he then grabs Kimo's pony tail to help him try and control his much larger opponent. Kimo stands back up and loses a big chunk of his hair. Both fighters are exhausted. Kimo takes Gracie down, Gracie then rolls for an armbar off his back and forces Kimo to tap. Both fighters are exhausted and Gracie is carried out of the Octagon by his brothers.

Semi Finals

Ken Shamrock v Felix Lee Mitchell

Hackney broke his hand in his win over Yarborough and Mitchell is brought in as an alternative.

Shamrock goes straight for the clinch and pushes Mitchell up a against the cage as he works for the takedown. Mitchell does well to defend the takedown and gives Shamrock his back while standing. Mitchell continues to defend and manages to get away from Shamrock. Shamrock seems exhausted with all this work trying to get the takedown. Shamrock again closes the gap and eventually gets a trip to take Mitchell down. Once Mitchell is down Shamrock quickly takes his back and wins with a rear naked choke.

Harold Howard v Royce Gracie

This is were the planned super final all goes wrong.

Gracie still seems tired from his first fight, as the fight is about to start a towel is thrown and Gracie forfeits the match, allowing Howard to advance to the final.

Kimo comes down to the Octagon to celebrate eliminating Gracie. Big John McCarthy picks Kimo up around the waist and carries him out of the Octagon.

The final is set, or is it?

Final

Harold Howard v Steve Jennum

With the disappointment of Gracie withdrawing from the competition and with an injury that Shamrock picked up in the Semi final, he also withdraws from the tournament.

Howard comes out and throws a big right that cuts Jennum. Jennum then tries for a takedown and gets caught in a standing guillotine. He manages to push through it and take Howard down who then quickly gets back to his feet. Jennum is persistent and he quickly takes Howard down and gains the full mount and wins with ground and pound.

Jennum fought once on the night and he is the unlikely UFC 3 champion.

Bonus Awards

  • KO of the night Harold Howard v Roland Payne
  • Tapout of the night Royce Gracie v Kimo Leopaldo
  • Fight of the night Royce Gracie v Kimo Leopaldo
  • Fighter of the night Kimo Leopaldo

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice review, I preferred this event to the first two. The Yarbrough fight is just hilarious, with him rolling around like a turtle on its back following a swift smack to the face. He makes Butterbean look like Brandon Vera! Then the Gracie v Kimo fight is fantastic. The quality of some of the fights in the early days are questionable but this one still stands as a great contest. Can't remember but is this where Kimo came in carrying a huge crucifix? Strange.

Anonymous said...

He was carrying a huge crucifix ( very WWE style). He also had the word Jesus tatooed across back.