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To watch mixed martial arts now, to witness the slick productions, screaming fans and dynamic fighters, it's hard to believe how far and how fast the sport has come in a single decade.

"If you would've come to me in 1999, and said there's going to be this new sport emerging, and by 2009 it's going to be where it is right now, I would have told you that would be an extremely unlikely and impressive achievement," said Robert Thompson, a noted pop culture expert and professor of Television and Popular Culture at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

As metaphors go, the one that describes the state of MMA as the '00s began is almost too perfect to believe. Because as the calendar turned the page to the year 2000, the sport lay injured and ignored in a Louisiana hospital bed, a victim of its own hand.

During Decade of '00s, MMA Went From Debacle Debut to Miracle Growth originally appeared on MMA Fighting on Mon, 21 Dec 2009 11:44:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tags: Anderson Silva, Brock Lesnar, Chuck Liddell, Cung Le, Dana White, Fedor Emelianenko, Forrest Griffin, Georges St. Pierre, Gina Carano, Jens Pulver, Josh Koscheck, Ken Shamrock, MMA News, Pedro Rizzo, Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz by MMA Fighting
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The unpredictable nature of mixed martial arts produced another stunning outcome Saturday when heavy underdog Keith Jardine produced a split-decision victory over the recently deposed Ultimate Fighting Championship light-heavyweight king Chuck Liddell.

Jardine knocked Liddell down in the second round, and repeatedly landed scoring punches through the third round in a bout fought throughout in a stand-up striking position at Anaheim’s Honda Center.

“It feels like I won the belt,” said Jardine, a near 4-1 underdog.

Less than four months after losing his title in a first-round knockout loss to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Liddell, 37, dismissed pre-fight questions that age was getting the better of him.

Tags: Chuck Liddell by MMACoverage
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The “Dean of Mean” Keith Jardine held session Saturday night at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., with a shocking upset of former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell.

Jardine chopped away at the “Iceman’s” legs for the duration of the bout, and floored the ex-champion with a right hand in the second frame before taking a split decision. “Kicking is my thing,” declared Jardine, who upped his record to 13-3-1. The loss for Liddell marked the first time in his career that he has dropped consecutive contests. Judges Cecil Peoples and Richard Bertrand saw the contest 29-28 for Jardine, while Marcos Rosales gave two rounds to Liddell. On the undercard, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was supposed to be the PRIDE import that would tear through the UFC. Somebody forgot to tell Forrest Griffin.Griffin, the light heavyweight winner of the first season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” dominated the Chute Boxe star for 14 minutes before putting him away with a rear-naked choke with 15 seconds remaining in the final period.

Tags: Chuck Liddell, Keith Jardine, UFC 76 by MMACoverage
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Keith Jardine hadn’t heard of Houston Alexander. So when Alexander, who was making his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, pummeled “The Dean of Mean” in UFC 71, Jardine thought he may have landed himself on the next undercard.

Instead, Jardine will go from losing a lower-tier bout to the chance to redeem himself against the biggest name in mixed martial arts — Chuck Liddell– in tonight’s featured fight at UFC 76 in Anaheim, Calif.

After that loss, “I didn’t know what was going to happen,” Jardine said. “And honestly, when I got the call I thought, ‘Oh, I am being joked with.’ I thought it was a joke and I didn’t believe it right away.”

Tags: Chuck Liddell, Keith Jardine by MMACoverage
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In some ways Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell reminds some of the “Caine” character in the television series Kung Fu that ran during the 1970s.

He’s quiet but deadly.

Even during conversations with the relentless media Liddell maintains his poise.

Can he keep that poise on Saturday when he finds himself in the Octagon against Keith “The Dean of Mean” Jardine (12-3-1) at the Honda Center for UFC 76 in Anaheim, California? It’s a match that could test even a Shaolin monk.

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There’s no rest for the weary if you’re a UFC fan. The fight promotion’s latest card, UFC 76: Knockout, is slated to take place Saturday from The Pond in Anaheim, Calif. at 10 p.m. ET on pay-per-view. It will be the UFC’s third major card in two weeks coming off the heels of UFC 75 on Sept. 8 in London and UFC Fight Night 11 this past Wednesday.

While it’s the third show in two weeks, the card on paper is hardly a letdown. The show will feature the return of former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell and the much-anticipated debut of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.

Tags: Chuck Liddell by MMACoverage
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UFC president Dana White reckons Chuck (The Iceman) Liddell fell victim to a “rock-star lifestyle” when he lost his light-heavyweight title to Quinton (Rampage) Jackson in May at UFC 71.For his part, Liddell feels he just paid for a sloppy punch – a lazy left to the body that exposed his chin to a right cross. Jackson threw it and connected, nailing the champion.

On Saturday night, Liddell gets a chance to show he has put such bad habits behind him as he takes on Keith (The Dean of Mean) Jardine at UFC 76 at the Honda Center. It’s not as sexy a fight as Liddell versus Wanderlei (The Axe Murderer) Silva, but that mixed martial arts matchup awaits Liddell providing he wins Saturday.

Tags: Chuck Liddell, Keith Jardine by MMACoverage
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One of the reasons it’s so difficult for anyone who knows UFC lightweight champion Sean Sherk well to believe he’s guilty of using anabolic steroids, as the California Athletic Commission has alleged, is his complete disdain for anything he feels may harm his body.

Sherk is so fanatical about caring for his body and what goes into it that he loathes walking through casinos because he doesn’t want to ingest second-hand smoke.

“The Iceman” Chuck Liddell, the former UFC light heavyweight champion, has never had such concerns.

Tags: Chuck Liddell by MMACoverage
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‘The Iceman’ last entered the ring in August when he lost the light-heavyweight title to Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson at UFC 71.

He will be looking to get back to winning ways and reclaim his place among the title contenders.

But ‘Dean of Mean’ Jardine has a point to prove after his last Octagon appearance saw him lose in just 48 seconds to Houston Alexander.

Jardine said: “It will be a real honour to fight Chuck, he’s the greatest light-heavyweight champion ever and I’m excited to fight him at UFC 76.

Tags: Chuck Liddell, Keith Jardine, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, UFC 76 by MMACoverage
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Scattered across a mat-covered floor, a dozen figures are locked in combat.

One pair — Cpl. James Tomko and Spc. Josh Winter — are a frenetic whirl of movement. Feet and fists weave a chaotic tapestry of arm bars, submission holds and leg locks.

They’re hitting each other, but they’re not boxing. They’re grappling, but it’s not exactly wrestling. What they’re doing is not like any specific martial art, either.

Winter goes for a combination: arm bar to triangle to oma plata.

Tomko counters by stacking, passing the guard and changing angles.

Tags: Chuck Liddell, Chuck Norris, Ken Shamrock, Randy Couture, Royce Gracie, The Ultimate Fighter, Tito Ortiz, UFC, UFC 66, Urijah Faber, WEC by MMACoverage
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