UFC 37.5: Belfort vs. Liddell, the First UFC on Brazilian Network TV

The partnership between Rede Globo and the Ultimate Fighting Championship that started in 2011 is arguably the biggest turning point in the sport's history in Brazil. From the moment that Brazil’s largest television network started broadcasting numbered UFC events, taking a sport that had been exclusively on cable channels Sportv and Combate, and starting to show MMA in its journalism and entertainment programming, the sport was cemented as the second most popular in the country, but Globo was not the first TV station in Brazil to make a live broadcast of the UFC. Almost 20 years ago SBT, the second-biggest network channel in Brazil, owned by the most popular TV presenter in the country, Silvio Santos, was the first to broadcast the UFC live, showing the fight between Chuck Liddell and Vitor Belfort at UFC 37.5, held at the Bellagio casino in Las Vegas in June 2002.

This story was made possible thanks to a deal between Santos and Belfort. Aware that Belfort was romantically involved with model Joana Prado, who was already participating in Brazil’s most popular reality show, A Casa dos Artistas (Artists’ House), Silvio invited Vitor to enter in the show, obviously focused on increasing the audience.

Returning from Pride to the UFC

At that time Belfort was returning from Pride Fighting Championships to the UFC, on a streak of four victories over Gilbert Yvel, Daijiro Matsui, Bobby Southworth and Heath Herring. “The Phenom” agreed to return on the assumption he would face UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz in his first fight back.

The fight was signed while “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” was injured and the UFC decided to offer Belfort a matchup with rising talent Liddell, who had just scored knockouts over Kevin Randleman and Guy Mezger and decision wins over Amar Suloev and Murilo Bustamante. “Liddell didn't have a name at the time. As Silvio Santos knew that I had an affair with Joana, and wanted to create a couple in that second season of the Casa dos Artistas, he made me a much better financial proposal to take part on his TV show,” recalls Belfort, revealing one condition imposed to Mr. Santos. “If I accepted, He would broadcast my fight live on SBT.”

After shaking hands with the SBT owner, Belfort did his part to spice up the audience by finally engaging his relationship with Prado, who at the time had just appeared on the cover of Playboy magazine and was the most coveted woman in the country. At the end of the program, on May 19, Belfort realized that it would be worth taking advantage of the heat of events and not running the risk of seeing Santos change his mind. He accepted the fight with Liddell, even having less than a month to get ready. “My sponsor, BMG Bank, guaranteed US$10,000 as sponsorship quota for the broadcast. Even though I knew I couldn't be in my best shape, I was aware of what that meant for the sport in Brazil, so I accepted the challenge,” recalls Belfort.

Liddell Wins, Challenges Ortiz

Belfort started the fight by taking Liddell down twice, but both times, the American got back up. From then on Belfort, guided by his physical trainer Paulo Caruso, decided to spend the entire first round waiting for the man with the Mohawk to counterattack. In the second round Liddell came back more aggressive and connected the best punches, leaving the fight to be decided by the final round.

Aware that the last five minutes would define the fight, Belfort went on the attack, giving the impression that he would take the fight until at 3 minutes, 45 seconds, Liddell countered a sequence of punches from Belfort with an accurate cross to the chin, which brought Belfort down and ended up being definitive for the result of the fight. “I knew I would hit him sooner or later, now I want the belt,” Liddell told me as he left the Octagon, already dreaming of the long-awaited title fight with his former training partner Ortiz. “Tito is a great friend, but at the time of the fight it will be different.”

The UFC Helping SBT to Beat Globo

The day after the event, SBT would reveal impressive audience numbers: 12 points on Ibope, which in that year was equivalent to 3.5 million Brazilians seeing the event live. It was a number never before reached by SBT at that time, and which allowed Santos’ network to beat Rede Globo. The pioneering spirit of SBT served to ratify the numbers of Sportv, which for some time had already been pointing out MMA as its second-biggest audience, behind only soccer. Two months after UFC 37.5, in August 2002, Rede Globo launched Premiere Combate, the world's first 24-hour cable TV channel dedicated to combat sports.

In 2003, Rede Globo sent its best journalist, Gloria Maria, to make a historical story about Pride’s grand prix, on a night when Rodrigo 'Minotauro' Nogueira and Wanderlei Silva won the belts of the biggest event in the world. But not even the record rating of 42 points, the most popular program on Brazilian TV, made Globo directors open its programming to MMA.

It was necessary for Rede TV, the fourth-largest channel in Brazil, to broadcast UFC Rio 1 live and lead MMA to surpass Globo's audience for the second time, nine years after UFC 37.5, for Rede Globo to sign with the UFC and to show MMA not only on its cable channels (Sportv and COMBATE), but also on its flagship channel.

But, without a doubt, the first one to bet on our sport was Silvio Santos, 20 years ago.

Lawler’s Second UFC Win

With all due respect to Liddell and Belfort, the great sensation of UFC 37.5 was newcomer Robbie Lawler. A little over a month after upsetting 23-fight veteran Aaron Riley in his debut at UFC 37, Lawler returned to the Octagon to face Steve Berger. After fully dominating the first round, Lawler closed out the fight with a straight right in the second. Twelve years and 30 fights later, Lawler would become UFC welterweight champion by beating Johnny Hendricks at UFC 181.

Rodrigo Ruas was another Brazilian present on the card of that event. With four fights and three MMA wins, Ruas took on the much more experienced partner of Pat Miletich, Tony Fryklund, who was undefeated in seven MMA fights. Supported by his uncle Marco Ruas, flanked by black belts Joe Moreira and Castello Branco, Ruas started better standing up, but soon the physical difference and the American's superior wrestling technique started to make the difference. Rodrigo bravely resisted Fryklund’s ground-and-pound until 3:45 of the second round, when referee Kipp Kohlar interrupted the fight, decreeing a technical knockout.

Also fighting that night was Yves Edwards, who already sported 27 fights on his résumé and had no difficulty knocking out Brazilian Marcos Pierini with a well-aimed kick to the chin at 1 minute, 19 seconds of the first round.

A one-dimensional Nick Serra, brother of future welterweight champ Matt Serra, struggled to submit striker Benji Radach. But despite having starred in the best moments of the fight, coming close with two triangle chokes, the jeers from the crowd every time Serra pulled guard ended up making the difference and Radach won the unanimous decision.