Chuck Liddell is perhaps the most accomplished Mixed Martial Artist of all time. He write a New York Times best seller in 2008 titled "Iceman: My Fighting Life."
For more than two full years, Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell reigned as the UFC light heavyweight champion at a time when it was the premium division in the entire sport, facing the best fighters in the world and winning.
Chuck relied on an extensive background in wrestling and kickboxing with concentrations in in Kempo and Koei-Kan karate. He began wrestling in college and developed a unique style that leveraged his amazing takedown defense skills as the perfect compliment to his world class striking abilities. That style has seen been copied by many fighters and is known as 'sprawl and brawl' by most fans these days.
Chuck Liddell started training at the age of 12 in Santa Barbara. He was a four-year starter on the football team at San Marcos High School, and a Division 1 wrestler at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, graduating in 1995 with a B.A. in Business. As a graduation gift to himself, he had his iconic tattoo inked on his scalp, which reads "Koei-Kan" ("prosper with happiness") in Japanese. He transitioned to mixed martial arts when he earned a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under sensei John Lewis.
Liddell made his UFC debut in 1998 with a dominant decision victory over Noe Hernandez. He soon established his reputation as a devastating striker with victories over Tito Ortiz, Renato Sobral and Wanderlei Silva during the next few years. On May 26, 2004, he knocked out Randy Couture to win the UFC Light Heavyweight Title. He defended his title successfully five times, with a knockout or a TKO. He surrendered his belt after losing in a match against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, three years after being crowned champion.
Liddell came back better than ever and fought successfully several more times even as his age advanced well beyond the limits of most top fighters. He finally fought his last fight against Rich 'Ace' Franklin and lost by knockout when a fierce Franklin continued on after having his arm broken by a kick Chuck Landed early in the fight to end the night with a right hand that caught Chuck right on the chin. Always a class act, Chuck took the loss well and retired a Hall Of Fame MMA first ballot selection.
Ivan E. Salaverry (born January 11, 1971) is a retired mixed martial arts fighter originally from Canada. He is now quickly becoming one of the most respected MMA instructors in the world. He has been a member of Team Punishment, made famous by Tito Ortiz, and is known devastating submissions including some innovative holds never seen before he started using them in the octagon. Salaverry is a veteran of the middleweight division and has fought in both the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the now-defunct World Fighting Alliance. In 2008 Salaverry fought his last MMA fight as part of UFC 84, losing to Rousimar Palhares by an arm-bar submission in the first round.
Salaverry may be most famous for being the pioneer of a crucifix-style position from side control which is now referred to as "The Salaverry" during Mixed Martial Arts broadcasts and competitions.
Frank Mir (Francisco Santos Mir III born May 24, 1979) is an American Heavyweight mixed martial artist, former UFC Champion and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt who is actively competing in the heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was born in Las Vegas, Nevada and became world champ early in his career before a tragic motorcycle accident nearly ended his career. He then returned to the octagon to claim the interim Heavyweight title before losing to Brock Lesnar in a brutal ground and pound loss that left him battered but not done yet.
