In late 2003 the sport of MMA was still in its infancy. On November 21 the UFC was at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT with a card that ended with Matt Hughes choking out Frank Trigg to retain his welterweight title. 9,200 people attended that event and the card did 40,000 PPV buys. The company was hemorrhaging money. But change was on the horizon. In a few short years the UFC would explode in popularity and turn into a runaway train that would eventually lead to a $4 billion purchase and a deal with Disney.
The success of that boom period was stoked by the talent that, back in 2003, was paying dues on the regional circuit.