Whenever an outspoken opponent of mixed martial arts uses the word “Bloodsport” to describe the UFC or its competitors, it’s a safe bet that they’ve probably never watched an entire MMA event or the 1988 Jean Claude Van Damme movie either. Otherwise they would realize that, in addition to being awesome, the film isn’t really that bloody at all. In fact, compared to the average horror slasher flick, it’s incredibly tame. Also, they’d see that most real MMA bouts end without much bloodshed, and those that do are less serious than they look. In fact, in the entire history of MMA, not one fighter has ever bled to death. That’s testimony to the sheer amount of blood in the human body. For doubters, here are a few fights that prove that marvelously.
Alex Reid vs. Murilo “Ninja” Rua
The crowd at Wembley Arena in London, UK, was expecting a war between local hero Alex Reid and Brazilian opponent Murilo “Ninja” Rua, but they got an altogether different kind of blood-bath when the two clashed, literally, on April 21st of 2007. Charging across the ring to deliver a low kick, Reid cracked his leg against Rua’s kneecap, opening a gash that appeared to stretch almost the entire length of his shinbone. Incredibly, he continued to fight and tried to kick Rua again before the referee noticed the sheer volume of blood pouring from the wound and called a halt to the bout.
Tony Fryklund vs. David “The Crow” Loiseau
If one fighter is known for cutting his opponents, it’s Canadian David “The Crow” Loiseau; and although he has won many of his fights with his trademarked slashing elbows, none were as bloody as his win over Tony “The Freak” Fryklund at Ultimate Combat Championship 12: Adrenaline on January 25th, 2003. Facing his shorter and stalkier opponent, “The Crow” put his superior wingspan to good use, peppering Fryklund with shots from the outside. Whenever “The Freak” managed to secure a clinch, Loiseau answered with his lethal elbows; one of which caught Fryklund square in the forehead, opening a major vein in the process. Referee Yves Lavingne called for a doctor to check the cut and the fight was immediately stopped; much to Frykund’s displeasure. The sight of him showered in blood, screaming in frustration is one image many fight fans will never forget.
Fedor Emelianenko vs. Tsyoshi Kohsaka
Heavyweight wrecking machine Fedor Emelianenko has only one loss on his otherwise perfect record; a 17-second defeat to Tsuyoshi Kohsaka from December of 2000. After defeating Ricardo Arona in the preliminary brackets, Emelianenko advanced to take on the Japanese judoka, who had beaten Emelianenko’s fellow Russian Mikhail Illoukhine by knockout earlier in the evening. At the time, Fedor was only 3-0 in MMA, so no one was shocked when Kohsaka landed the perfect punch and opened a cut over Fedor’s eye the size of a small banana. Curiously, Japanese ring officials insisted on prying the cut open to inspect it’s enormous depth; sickening fight fans with a close-up no one really needed to see. Four months after the bout, Fedor returned to go on an undefeated spree that continues to today, and includes a revenge win over Kohsaka for marring his perfect record with a bloody stain.
Marvin Eastman vs. Vitor Belfort
No list of the worst wounds in mixed martial arts would be complete without a nod to the undisputed king of cuts; recognized around the sport as the worst laceration in the history of MMA and, possibly, the entire sporting world. When Marvin “The Beastman” Eastman took on Vitor Belfort in June of 2003, none of the fight fans in attendance at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, NV, expected to see history in the making; but that’s exactly what happened. Midway into the first round, Belfort countered Eastman’s low kicks with two knees that both landed hard, and sent Eastman sprawling to the mat. Following up with a flurry of punches, Belfort finished off his opponent and, somehow, opened a would on Eastman that looked like nothing short of an axe-wound, stretching from the bridge of his nose nearly to his ear. Just over a minute into the fight,
Yves Edwards vs. Joe Stevenson
After losing to Josh Neer in April of 2006, Ultimate Fighter winner Joe Stevenson made the drop from welterweight to lightweight and, in July of that year, made his 155-pound debut against former top-ranked lightweight Yves Edwards. While Edwards was able to dominate in the first round with striking and submission attempts, Stevenson came back in the second round to slaughter his opponent with ferocious ground and pound. Pinning the “thug-jitsu” fighter against the fence, Stevenson opened up with relentless elbows that opened a huge cut on the top of Edwards’ head. With both men floundering in a giant pool of tomato soup, the fight was called to a halt at the end of the second round. Afterwards, Edwards looked like he’d lost a fight with a machete-weilding maniac.
Chris Lytle vs. Josh Koscheck
When welterweight UFC fighters Chris Lytle and Josh Koscheck squared off in July of 2008, fans were expecting to see a classic striker vs. grappler matchup and both fighters delivered. But the fight was much more than 15-minutes of lay-and-pray and sprawl-and-brawl. When Koscheck opened up Lytle’s face at the end of the second round, the match began to look more like a horror film than an MMA contest. Incredibly, Lytle came back in the third round to come after Koscheck in a last-ditch effort. The result was an unbelievable sight, as a blood-soaked Lytle nearly knocked out the wrestler in the final moments of the match, but time expired before Lytle could either get the KO or bleed out entirely.
B.J. Penn vs. Joe Stevenson
Undoubtedly the bloodiest fight to ever get shown on free television, Stevenson made the trip to Newcastle, England to take on B.J. Penn for the lightweight belt. With wins over Kurt Pelligrino, Melvin Guilard and Dokonjonosuke Mishima following his win over Edwards, Stevenson earned his top-contender status. But Penn wasted no time showing him who was champion, knocking him down in the opening seconds and immediately mauling him with elbow-spikes. To his credit, Stevenson was able to fend off most of the shots until the end of the first round, when a downward elbow crested into his forehead and cut him badly. Despite the best efforts of the UFC cut man, the bleeding continued unabated into the second round, and became profoundly worse as Penn unloaded even more punishment onto Stevenson’s face. Blinded by his own blood pouring into his eyes, along with the fists of Penn pouring on punishment, Stevenson was unable to defend himself and rolled over to expose his back. With a minute left in the second round, Penn sunk the choke and forced Stevenson to tap out. Afterwards, as Stevenson wept in frustration, Penn licked the blood off his gloves, sickening viewers around the world.
Ross Pointon vs. Marius Zaromski
Although it is a lesser-known fight than some of the others on this list, the match between Ultimate Fighter veteran Ross Pointon and striking powerhouse Marius Zaromski deserves to be here without question. After his stint on TUF, Pointon returned to the U.K. and took on the knockout fighter from Lithuania. While the British brawler got the better of the opening exchanges, he began to gas quickly and shot in on his opponent in the second round, looking for a takedown. Zaromski landed a knee that caught Pointon over the eye, opening a cut much like the one Eastman suffered against Belfort, except much less famous. Imagine hacking a steak in half with a meat cleaver and you get a good visual of how it looked for fans.
Kalib Starnes vs. Alan Belcher
Canadian Kalib Starnes took on Alan Belcher at UFC 77: Hostile Territory in October of 2007. While both came into the octagon with well-rounded skills, it was apparent from the outset that Starnes wanted the fight on the ground, while Belcher was intent on keeping it standing. With the Canadian driving in for the clinch and takedown attempts, Belcher fired back with crisp punches and jumping knees, one of which caught Starnes clean over the eye. Bleeding heavily from the wound, Starnes fired back at his opponent and had Belcher on the defense a few times. By the second round, however, the sheer amount of blood leaking into Starnes’ eye was overwhelming, and Belcher began to take over. When the referee called the doctor into the cage to inspect the cut, it became quickly apparent the fight should be stopped as the doctor said simply “I can see your skull.”
Nick Diaz vs. K.J. Noons
Just as some fighters, such as Loiseau, are notorious for cutting their opponents, some others are notorious for being cut. In the modern era of mixed martial arts, Nick Diaz has to be on that list; as he suffers massive facial wounds in most of his fights. While his bout with Takanori Gomi is worth mentioning; both for the amount of bleeding and the fact he won the fight anyway, it is his fight against K.J. Noons in EliteXC that trumps the others for the worst cuts of his career. Fighting for the 160-pound title, Diaz ate sharp fists and knees for the entire first round. For his efforts, Noons may as well have had a sword in either hand, as every blow that landed seemed to rend flesh from Diaz’ face. When the doctor stopped the fight after the first stanza, Diaz protested the decision despite the fact that his face was in ribbons.
Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Ricardo Arona
In one of the most ill-concieved matches in MMA history, someone thought it would be a good idea to match Kazushi Sakuraba against Ricardo Arona in June of 2005. The result was a terrible beating that left “The Gracie Hunter” looking like he’d been run over by a truck. While Sakuraba was able to mount some offense and put Arona on his back, the sheer strength of Arona was too much for him, especially considering how Pride rules allowed Arona to hold Sakuraba in a front headlock and deliver relentless knee strikes. The second round saw Sakuraba take more of the same punishment that he absorbed in the first, both from the headlock and from the guard. By the end of that round, Sakuraba was clearly done, and Japanese officals had no choice but to ring the bell and signal the end of the match, as their national hero looked ready for a body bag, with a giant mouse over his right eye, complete with a machete-wound across it.
Edwin Dewees vs Gideon Ray
Edwin “Babyface” Dewees and Gideon Ray went toe-to-toe on cable television for the fourth season of Ultimate Fighter and, while the match wasn’t quite as bloody as Penn vs. Stevenson, it was pretty close. When Ray landed a sharp elbow to the forehead of Dewees, the blood began to spurt, but the referee saw no problem with letting the match continue for three rounds. The sheer amount of gore leaking from his forehead was so incredible, Dewees actually put one hand over the wound to try to stop the bleeding, but to no avial. By the end of the match, where he was awarded a decision victory, Dewees’ bleach blonde hair had turned red.
