This week, readers weigh in on Dana White and Sherdog, as well as Don Frye’s enshrinement into the UFC Hall of Fame and the role injuries play in main-event matchmaking.
Why is Don Frye not in the UFC Hall of Fame? He won the tournaments at UFC 8 and Ultimate Ultimate 1996 and beat Ken Shamrock in Pride when they were both at their best. One of the toughest fighters to ever put on the gloves in mixed martial arts, he competed when tournament-style fighting was still prevalent. I’m putting out a challenge for anyone who has the guts to stand up and petition for Frye to be inducted into the UFC hall of fame. If anyone deserves to be in the hall of fame, it’s Frye.
-- Rocco
Brian Knapp, associate editor: Rocco, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who could make reasonable arguments against your points. As Sherdog.com’s Jason Probst wrote in a prelude to his Q&A session with Frye in February:
“Rooted in a collegiate wrestling background that included stints at high-level programs at Arizona State and Oklahoma State, Frye utilized a different kind of game than those with his pedigree at the time. He had a better understanding of jiu-jitsu, could operate from his back and did not shy away from trading blows on the feet, even when seemingly outgunned. His arrival signaled the prototype of what would later become the standard -- the well-rounded mixed martial artist capable of competing effectively at any range, in any position -- and his career in the UFC and Pride Fighting Championships marked him as one of the game’s most entertaining fighters to watch. “The Predator” locked horns with some of biggest names of his era, including Mark Coleman, Ken Shamrock and David ‘Tank’ Abbott. Whether it was his thrilling street-style brawl against Abbott in which he won the Ultimate Ultimate in 1996 or his blood-soaked, gutty technical knockout loss to Mark Coleman at UFC 10, Frye always gave fans more than their money’s worth.”
They broke the mold when they made Don Frye. He won two UFC tournaments and reached the final in another, posted a stellar 8-1 record inside the Octagon and remains tied for the quickest knockout in UFC history; he smashed Thomas Ramirez in eight seconds at UFC 8.
Still active at age 43, the timing of Frye’s arrival in the UFC may be what works against him in the long run. So few of today’s MMA fans actually know what he meant to the sport. And with Matt Hughes and Chuck Liddell in the latter stages of their respective careers -- both are certain hall of famers -- Frye may continue to get lost in the shuffle. Recent losses to Yoshihiro Nakao, James Thompson and Ikuhisa Minowa have unfairly knocked some shine off his star, too. The UFC has done an admirable job of recognizing the fighters upon whose shoulders its success was built. Perhaps one day, one of MMA’s most popular and respected competitors will receive his just due.