March 14, 2007 Observer Newsletter: UFC 68 recap, Bad News Allen passes away
The greatest test of an event is the memories that last over time. There have been a lot of great matches, even in the last month. But in the modern era of MMA, there has really only been one true all-time legendary battle. It’s the one people will talk about and be in awe of for decades, and that was Kazushi Sakuraba’s performance on May 1, 2000 at the Tokyo Dome.
Sakuraba, participating on a one-night open weight tournament, beat Royce Gracie in the longest modern era match, a no time limit bout that went 90:00 before Royce’s father Helio threw in the towel as his son could do nothing to stop repeated leg kicks. After that match, Sakuraba came back out and faced Igor Vovchanchyn, at the time the No. 1 heavyweight in the world. Vovchanchyn outweighed Sakuraba by more than 40 pounds at weigh-ins, and by this time after the prior match, it was probably closer to 50 pounds. Sakuraba was actually winning the fight for 10:00, but finally, he gassed, took a pounding, and at the 15:00 round break, his corner told him not to continue.
Even though Fedor Emelianenko vs. Mirko Cro Cop was the generation’s ultimate heavyweight battle, it will not be remembered nearly as well.
Subscribers can read this issue here.
Dave Meltzer is the founder and lead writer on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the weekly constant when it comes to news and reviews in pro wrestling and mixed martial arts for more than 40 years. Dave also co-hosts Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and had had bylines for The National, Yahoo Sports, MMA Fighting and others.