No one at the time could have grasped the brevity of what was about to take place and how it would forever change mixed martial arts. Twenty years ago today, on Oct. 11, 1997, Dream Stage Entertainment brought Pride Fighting Championships into existence, as 47,860 fans poured into the Tokyo Dome for Pride 1.
In that moment, the combat sports landscape was permanently altered.
Pride 1 staged six MMA bouts, resulting in three submissions, two draws and a knockout. The headliner saw undefeated jiu-jitsu ace Rickson Grace dispatch Nobuhiko Takada with a first-round armbar in less than five minutes.