(Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
No. 3 UFC 91: Couture vs. Lesnar (Nov. 15, 2008)
When Dana White announced that Randy Couture would be returning to the UFC to defend his heavyweight championship against MMA newcomer Brock Lesnar, everyone started talking.
Some fans were furious at the idea and thought Lesnar to be unworthy of a title shot, while others thought the opposite. Either way, the event received a ton of mainstream media attention.
People who normally wouldn’t watch a UFC event were ordering the pay-per-view just to see that fight.
When Lesnar and Couture stepped into the Octagon, history was made, as Lesnar defeated Couture to capture the heavyweight championship in just his fourth professional MMA fight.
While the event fell a bit short in terms of expectations made by Dana White, the fact remains that this event was a huge step forward for the UFC in the mainstream media.
No. 2 UFC 66: Liddell vs. Ortiz II (Dec. 30, 2006)
UFC 66’s main event was a championship fight between two of the UFC's biggest light heavyweight stars: light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell defending his title against former champion Tito Ortiz. There was a ton of bad blood between the two, and the first time they fought, Liddell knocked Ortiz out in the second round.
Two years later, Ortiz called out Liddell for a rematch, and after some back and forth trash talking between the two, they were signed on for a rematch at UFC 66. The result was similar, with The Iceman stopping Ortiz in the third round with strikes to successfully defend his title.
The co-main event saw Forrest Griffin take on Keith Jardine and also saw the return of Andrei Arlovski and the post-TUF debut of Michael Bisping.
The event produced the highest live gate revenue in North American mixed martial arts history, extending the previous record at UFC 57 by over $2 million. At the time, it was estimated to be the UFC's biggest pay-per-view success with just over one million buys.
No.1 The Ultimate Fighter Season One Finale (April 9, 2005)
It was the first ever live UFC event broadcasted on non-pay-per-view television, and in terms of bringing MMA to the mainstream media, it was the most significant.
Previous to this event, MMA only had a handful of loyal followers, and the sport as a whole seemed to be on life support. The Ultimate Fighter reality show was a last ditch effort from UFC president Dana White to turn the company and the sport around.
The main event was a light heavyweight bout between Rich Franklin and UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock, but the spotlight was stolen by the incredible bout between Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonner.
Hailed as one of the greatest fights in UFC history by many, Griffin and Bonnar produced a three-round stand up war that went the distance. This fight was so exciting that it had fans everywhere sending out text messages to their friends telling them to turn on Spike TV immediately.
Although Griffin would take the decision, both men were given UFC contracts for their amazing performance.
Without The Ultimate Fighter Season One Finale, the UFC would not be in existence today.
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