This Week In MMA History (April 17-23)

April 23 2005- Pride Total Elimination 2005 took place. Star studded first round of Pride's middleweight tournament. Wanderlei Silva defeated Hidehiko Yoshida in the main event and a 23 year old Mauricio Rua started his claim as one of the top fighters in the world with a 1st Round TKO victory over Rampage Jackson.

April 21 2007- UFC 70: Nations Collide took place. Was the 2nd UFC event held in the United Kingdom and first in Manchester. Considered one of the greatest and surprising KO's in UFC history Gabriel Gonzaga knocked out Mirko Cro Cop with a devastating head kick late in the first round of the main event.

April 19th 2008- UFC 83: Serra vs St-Pierre II took place. The event was held in Montreal Quebec and was UFC's first event in Canada. At the time it broke 2 UFC records which were fastest sellout ever and largest crowd (which was 21,390). It was headlined by the rematch of then current champ Matt Serra and interim champ Georges St-Pierre. GSP won by TKO (knees) in the 2nd round.

April 18th 2009- UFC 97: Redemption took place. 2nd UFC event held in Montreal. Broke the previous mentioned UFC 83 attendance record by 61. Thales Leites challenged Anderson Silva for his Middleweight Title in the main event. Anderson won a controversial decision where little action took place and neither fighter was willing to engage in their opponents strength. In the co main event Shogun Rua knocked out Chuck Liddell late in the 1st round.

Birthdays

April 17th 1982 Martin Kampmann- A contender in both the UFC's middleweight and welterweight divisions. Has a career 22-5 record with notable wins over Paulo Thiago, Carlos Condit, Jorge Rivera and Thales Leites. Lost his last 2 fights to Diego Sanchez and Jack Shields by decisions where many people thought he won both.

April 20th 1979 Nate Marquardt-Former 3 time Middleweight King of Pancrase champion and one time challenger to Anderson Silva's middleweight title is considered one of the top middleweights in the world. Has recently announced his move to the welterweight division. Career record of 31-10-2 with notable wins over Dan Miller, Rousimar Palhares, Demian Maia and Martin Kampmann

April 20th 1984 Tyson Griffin- Had 12 fights in the UFC lightweight division before recently announcing his move to the featherweight division. Has won UFC fight of the night 5 times. Career record of 19-5 with notable wins over Clay Guida, Urijah Faber, and Hermes Franca.

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