Bas
Rutten
remains a revolutionary figure in mixed martial arts
more than seven years since he exited the stage as a competitor,
having helped bridged the gap from one generation to the next.
A former
Ultimate Fighting Championship and
Pancrase
titleholder, “
El Guapo”
completed his career with a 28-4-1 record that included 24
finishes. Rutten was best known for his work in Japan, where his
combination of violence and flamboyance carried weight with those
who appreciate the artistry involved with mixed martial arts. The
affable Dutchman fought for the final time in 2006, when he wrecked
Ruben
Villareal with leg kicks at a World Fighting Alliance event in
Los Angeles. However, he has kept himself relevant in the MMA world
through various announcing gigs and appearances in feature films
like “Here Comes the Boom.”
As Rutten’s accomplishments and exploits continue to fade in the
rearview mirror, a look at some of the numbers that accompanied him
along his journey:
57: Years of age for Rutten, who was born on Feb. 24, 1965 in
Tilburg, Netherlands, roughly 40 miles northeast of Amsterdam.
4:26:48: Of total fight time for Rutten. He went the distance on
six different occasions and carries a 4-1-1 record in those bouts.
Rutten’s longest match lasted 27:35, resulting in a rear-naked
choke submission of
Ryushi
Yanagisawa at Pancrase “Eyes of Beast 7” in 1995.
14: Rutten victories by submission, accounting for 50% of his
career total (28). His methods of choice: three guillotine chokes,
three rear-naked chokes, two ankle locks, one arm-triangle choke,
one heel hook, one kneebar, one toe hold, one armbar and one neck
crank. Rutten owns 10 other victories by knockout or technical
knockout (36%) and four more by decision (14%).
2: Sub-minute finishes on the Rutten resume. He put away
Ryushi
Yanagisawa with palm strikes in 43 seconds at Pancrase “Yes, We
Are Hybrid Wrestlers 1” on Sept. 21, 1993 and submitted
Manabu
Yamada with an ankle lock in 54 seconds at Pancrase Truth 7 on
Oct. 8, 1996.
16: Fighters other than Rutten who are enshrined in the Pioneers
Wing of the UFC Hall of Fame. They are
Royce Gracie,
Ken
Shamrock,
Dan Severn,
Randy
Couture,
Mark Coleman,
Chuck
Liddell,
Matt Hughes,
Tito
Ortiz,
Pat Miletich,
Antonio
Rodrigo Nogueira,
Don Frye,
Maurice
Smith,
Kazushi
Sakuraba,
Matt Serra,
Rich
Franklin and
Kevin
Randleman.
1: Stalemate on the Rutten ledger. He fought to a majority draw
with
Osami
Shibuya at Pancrase Alive 3 on March 22, 1997.
5: Rutten wins over UFC champions. He bested Randleman, Smith
(twice) and
Frank
Shamrock (twice).
22: Consecutive appearances without a loss to close out his career.
Rutten went a remarkable 21-0-1 between April 8, 1995 and July 22,
2006.
3: Organizations for which Rutten suited up as a mixed martial
artist. He went 25-4-1 in Pancrase, 2-0 in the UFC and 1-0 in the
World Fighting Alliance.
.684: Cumulative winning percentage between the three men—
Ken Shamrock
(twice),
Frank
Shamrock and Maskatsu Funaki—who defeated Rutten. They sport a
combined record of 90-40-6.
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