When the UFC started out, it had a grand prix style, tournament format. Fighters would usually compete more than once per night on route to the finals. This format was prevalent up until UFC 15. Recently, Dustin Poirier suggested bringing back the tournament format for the BMF title. The idea was to have him, BMF champion Max Holloway, Justin Gaethje and Dan Hooker in a four-man elimination tournament. Former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya echoed a similar sentiment in a conversation with Joe Rogan..

On episode #164 of the JRE MMA Show, ‘The Last Stylebender’ said that fighting in a tournament-style format really shows the heart of a fighter. Here’s what the Nigerian-born Kiwi said, “Bring back the tournaments – just for one night. Let’s see who is the real bada**. I’ve done it in kickboxing, I’ve never done it in MMA. I’ve done it in boxing. But, I’m like, ‘Bring back the tournament’, let’s see who’s really about this.”

In the current format, athletes compete once in an event, and at the most – thrice a year. A tournament-style format would require athletes to compete twice or thrice in the same night. Having competed in tournament-style events in kickboxing and boxing before, Israel Adesanya expressed wanting to do the same in MMA.

In the conversation with Rogan, Israel Adesanya recalled the experience of fighting multiple times in the same night – “We have to fight, get the adrenaline dump [out of the way]. Then you go back and sit down for ages, and then eventually [we] have to warm up again. I remember that, I’ve done it a few times. I’ve won a few of them. It shows [heart].”

Joe Rogan has been with the UFC since its grand prix tournament days. He joined the premier fight organization at UFC 12, way back in 1997. The UFC changed its format in 1998 for UFC 18, hence Rogan witnessed the grand prix style of the old UFC for a good year.

Chiming in, Rogan recalled the thrill of watching someone compete more than once and commented on the drama it involved – “Well, it’s also built in drama over the evening where people watch a guy fight once, and then he’s going to fight a second time. And, that was always wild about the early days of the UFC, watching those tournaments.” Grand Prix format events are not uncommon in amateur boxing or amateur MMA for that matter. This format is also prevalent at world judo tournaments, amateur and collegiate wrestling, and jiu-jitsu tournaments like IBJJF Worlds and ADCC.

How would a tournament style play out in the modern UFC era?

Adesanya’s comments about experiencing an adrenaline dump during the start of the tournament is significant. Once a fighter gets past the initial jitters, generally in the first bout, they start to settle into a groove. Once past the adrenaline dump after the first bout, a fighter could perhaps perform significantly better in the following bouts of the night.

This format could definitely change the way fighters perform on fight day. However, this won’t be feasible for the present-day UFC, as the organization has more than 600 fighters on its roster. This kind of format would be time-consuming, with present-day UFC events maxing out at three hours on a long day. Imagine how long a grand-prix style format would go on for. Furthermore, with so many fighters in the UFC, this format could probably clog up the eight divisions in the organization.

What do you think about the tournament style of combat sports events? Would such a format suit the UFC in the present day? Let us know in the comments below.