Sherdog’s Top 10: One and Dones

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9. Teila Tuli
UFC 1 “The Beginning”
Nov. 12, 1993 | Denver
Sumo wrestler Tuli was one of the competitors at the inaugural Ultimate Fighting Championship show. His bout with Gerard Gordeau was actually the first in the promotion’s history, and to put it bluntly, nobody in attendance or watching on pay-per-view had the slightest idea what was going to happen.

Tuli, like Art Jimmerson, was a perfectly respectable if not elite competitor in his native discipline. In 1988, his second year as a professional, he was promoted to the Makushita division, the third-highest in the sport, wrestling under the Sumo name Takamishu. Tuli retired from the sport in 1989 and was available when the UFC knocked in 1993.

Although he weighed in at more than 400 pounds, Tuli’s speed and agility were obvious, and he had little trouble forcing Gordeau to the fence. He stumbled, however, and while down Gordeau kicked him in the face, visibly sending a tooth flying across the ring. A follow-up punch was enough to convince the referee to stop the fight.

Tuli never competed again, but the sight of his dislodged tooth and the sheer violence of the finish set the precedent for the brutal, unregulated early years of the sport. Now an actor, Tuli has built a nice career for himself as a regular on “Hawaii Five-0” and in the occasional movie, but MMA fans will always remember him for his role in the sport’s first big night.

Number 8 » An All-American wide receiver at the University of Southern California and 12-year veteran with the Lions, Chiefs and 49ers, compiled nearly 9,000 receiving yards during his NFL career. With his time in the big leagues over, he eventually turned to MMA, and the K-1 organization was happy to oblige him with a purse reportedly worth $100,000.