The Ultimate Fighting Championship in a mixed martial arts organization based in the U.S., now recognized as the greatest promoter of MMA in North America. Founded in 1993, UFC events were originally eight tournaments or sixteen men, led by the organization Semaphore Entertainment Group (SEG) in association with the WOW Promotions (headed by Art Davie and Gracie Rorion).
It started as a tournament to find the best fighter in the world regardless of their style. The UFC was based on adaptation of Brazilian vale tudo fighting. Often violent and brutal with a group of minimum rules, the UFC brand of vale tudo, initially known as the fight without barriers, allowed fighters of various disciplines to prove that martial arts style prevailed over another in real situations and unregulated .
Some of the first fights in the UFC, while their missions were able to determine which style was better, were less performance sport and more which led to accusations of brutality by the opponents. Political pressures eventually led the UFC to make it illegal to veto cable providers to UFC programming. It was also rumored that some competitors had reinforced their credentials in the traditional martial arts to legitimize their presence.
With a cable television contract with Fox Sports Net and the legitimization of the MMA in California, the UFC is currently rising in popularity, and increased media coverage. UFC programming can now be seen in the United States, as well as in England, Canada, Japan, Mexico and Brazil. And from January 2001 Zuffa, LLC is owned and operated by UFC President Dana White.
