Sherdog’s Top 10: Fighters of the 1990s

10. Don Frye

From the thick mustache and the gruff voice to the light-switch power in his hands, Frye exuded masculinity. It all fit together as a frightening puzzle. Frye wrestled collegiately at Arizona State University and Oklahoma State University, crossing paths with fellow future MMA legends Dan Severn and Randy Couture. He made his professional mixed martial arts debut on Feb. 16, 1996 in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, where he carved up Thomas Ramirez, Sam Adkins and Gary Goodridge in a combined 3:10 to win the UFC 8 tournament. Frye’s eight-second rout of Ramirez was at the time the quickest knockout in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. “The Predator” went on to become a three-time UFC tournament finalist -- he was also the last man standing in the Ultimate Ultimate 96 bracket -- and compiled an 11-1 record in the 1990s, a first-round technical knockout loss to Mark Coleman in the UFC 10 final his only misstep. None of his 12 bouts during the decade went the distance. Frye retired with a career mark of 20-9-1 and was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2016.

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