Ultimate Ultimate 1996 1996-12-07

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Event
Ultimate Ultimate 1996

Date
Sat 7th December 1996 (UTC)
Sat 7th December 1996 (Local)

Timestamp

Time

00:00:00 UTC

Timezones
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24-11-21 16:00 (PST Los Angeles)
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24-11-21 18:00 (CST Chicago)
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24-11-21 19:00 (EST New York)
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24-11-22 00:00 (GMT London)
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24-11-22 01:00 (CET Paris)
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24-11-22 04:00 (GST Dubai)
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24-11-22 05:30 (IST Kolkata)
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24-11-22 09:00 (JST Tokyo)
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24-11-22 11:00 (AEDT Sydney)

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League
UFC

Season
1996

Round
5

Status

Location
Fair Park Arena
(6,000 Attendance)

Video Highlights

Description

Ultimate Ultimate 1996 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 7, 1996. The event took place at the Fair Park Arena in Birmingham, Alabama, and was broadcast live on pay-per-view in the United States, and released on home video.

Background:
The card featured an eight man tournament with two alternate bouts, and was the UFC's second "Ultimate Ultimate" tournament, held to find the best of the winners and runners up from past UFC events. This event was the first to introduce the "no grabbing of the fence" rule. Ken Shamrock appeared as a guest on Late Night with Conan O'Brien on the mainstream network NBC to promote the event, a groundbreaking moment for the young sport of mixed martial arts. UFC 10 and UFC 11 champion Mark Coleman was originally scheduled to compete in the tournament but was forced to withdraw from the event due to a virus. The Ultimate Ultimate 1996 also marked the final appearance of UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock before leaving the UFC to go to the World Wrestling Federation. Shamrock would not return to the UFC until 2002 at UFC 40. The event would also be the last time Don Frye fought in the UFC, as he would also transition into pro wrestling, signing with New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Main Card:
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Final / Don Frye vs. Tank Abbott
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Semifinal / Tank Abbott vs. Steve Nelmark
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Semifinal / Don Frye vs. Mark Hall
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Quarterfinal / Ken Shamrock vs. Brian Johnston
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Quarterfinal / Tank Abbott vs. Cal Worsham
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Quarterfinal / Don Frye vs. Gary Goodridge
Ultimate Ultimate 1996 Quarterfinal / Kimo Leopoldo vs. Paul Varelans