Vale Tudo Relics: The UFC Debuts in Brazil

Brazil has played host to more Ultimate Fighting Championship events than any other nation on the planet outside the United States. Thirteen cities have hosted a combined 39 shows, with Rio de Janeiro leading the way and now positioned to welcome the company’s fifth pay-per-view of 2024 in May.

I covered most of the 39 events, and without a doubt, the first of them was one of the most memorable. Held on Oct. 16, 1998 at the Portuguesa Gymnasium in Sao Paulo, UFC 17.5 was marked by two devastating knockouts (Vitor Belfort vs. Wanderlei Silva and Pedro Rizzo vs. David Abbott), along with Frank Shamrock’s second title defense and multiple incidents in which the Octagon was compromised by non-combatants—a fact that took Brazil out of the UFC’s plans for more than a decade.

If You Build It, They Will Come

Brought to Sao Paulo by International Vale Tudo Championship organizer Sergio Batarelli, at the time the most influential promoter in Brazil, UFC 17.5 had an excellent audience. Almost 9,000 people were there. Despite a great card featuring Shamrock, Belfort, Rizzo, “Tank” and Silva, who was beginning to emerge as a superstar, the event received negative reviews from American promoters, mostly due to the Brazilians’ insistence on invading the cage to celebrate victories.

The fight between Belfort and Silva actually started at the press conference two days before. Chute Boxe found out that Belfort was not feeling well and had considered not competing, and the famed team took the opportunity to put pressure on him, as was customary at IVC events. “He’s scared to death,” Jose Landi-Jons said at the presser. “You’re going to break him.” Silva, fresh off an impressive victory over Mike Van Arsdale that earned him an IVC championship, declared he would win in less than five minutes.

A perceived lack of motivation from “The Phenom,” who had suffered his first defeat to Randy Couture at UFC 15, and Silva’s desire to win in impressive fashion had the Belfort team in a state of worry. However, once the Octagon door closed, it was a different story. In exactly 44 seconds, Belfort launched a brutal sequence of punches and blasted Silva from the center of the cage to the fence, where the Curitiba native fell. It remains one of the more memorable knockouts in UFC history. More than 10 of Belfort’s training partners flooded the Octagon to celebrate the stoppage.

Saved by Super Glue

After winning two World Vale Tudo Championship tournaments, Rizzo made his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut opposite Abbott, who arrived in Brazil motivated by a quick victory over Hugo Duarte at UFC 17. The defeat of master Marco Ruas under the Pride Fighting Championships banner weeks before was not the only factor weighing on Rizzo’s shoulders. Four days before the event, he suffered a cut below his eye while training with Ebenezer Fontes Braga. In order to hide the weakness from his opponent, Rizzo used an unorthodox resource: super glue.

“I knew that the first punch that came in would open it,” he said, “but there was no other way.”

Abbott stormed in with his usual aggression and silenced the arena when he knocked down Rizzo at the start. The fight returned to the feet before “Tank” managed to take down the Brazilian and re-open his cut with a few punches. However, lack of action from Abbott prompted the referee to call for a restart. From there, Rizzo started to utilize low kicks to hurt the American. Already limping, Abbott was surprised by a right hook that led to his knockout 8:07 into the bout. As soon as “Tank” fell, a huge group descended on the cage to celebrate with Rizzo’s victory. He proceeded to show off his shirt, which had Ruas’ photos on it.

“They said that each person who entered the cage would cost me 10% of my purse,” Rizzo said. “When I saw that crowd celebrating with me, I thought I’d have to pay for the fight.”

Braga, meanwhile, also emerged with his hand raised at the event, as he submitted Jeremy Horn with a guillotine choke 3:27 into their encounter.

Ambitious Aspirations

UFC 17.5 also featured two title fights. Pat Miletich bested Mikey Burnett for the inaugural welterweight crown, as he laid claim to a split decision after 15 minutes of regulation and two three-minute overtimes. Meanwhile, Shamrock had no trouble defending his light heavyweight title for a third time, as he won his rematch with John Lober. He took down Lober twice, pushed his head into the fence and struck him into submission. After the fight, Shamrock called for a match with Belfort.

“Vitor is an excellent fighter who I respect a lot,” he said, “but I don’t believe there’s anyone who can beat me in this weight class.”

Following the event, Carlson Gracie revealed to me backstage that he aimed to follow the same plan in the UFC that he had followed in jiu-jitsu and create a champion in every division. His idea? Claim the welterweight belt with Amaury Bitetti, the light heavyweight title with Belfort and the heavyweight crown with Carlos Barreto.