Mixed martial arts, the astoundingly popular brand of fighting most recognized today through the Ultimate Fighting Championship, is an art that has been around since the Ancient Greeks started the Olympics.

While Mike Tyson was shouting "Ludicrous" and laying down opponents with a vicious right hand in the United States, the rest of the fighting world took it to the mat in a different way.

The ancient pankration of the Greeks - dating back to 648 B.C. - eventually transformed into a more violent fighting art known as Etruscan and the Romans' pancratium - which was constantly on display in the Roman Coliseum. The fighting was no-holds-barred with very little rules in place. In the ancient times, as one might suspect, the idea was primarily to kill, or, at the very least, incapacitate your opponent.

Throughout the 1800s, fighters of different calibers and various styles used to meet via tournaments. One of the earliest and most famous of these tournaments was in 1887, when USA-born boxer John L. Sullivan entered the ring against a Greco-Roman wrestling champion, William Muldoon. Sullivan lost the fight quickly and decisively. Around 1900, another similar bout took place, featuring boxing champion Bob Fitzsimmons vs. another Euro Greco-Roman champ, Ernest Roeber. Roeber promptly hooked Fitzsimmons in an armlock, forcing his submission.

These displays of mixed fighting styles eventually gave birth to what we know today as mixed martial arts. In the early 1900s, mixed-style contests held throughout Japan, other areas of Asia and Europe, and the Pacific Rim started to increase in frequency. The famous Gracie Family's vale tudo martial arts tournaments starting being held in Brazil in the 1920s, and in Japan - where mixed martial arts was known as Kakutougi - the sport gained recognition and reached climax in the 1970s.

In 1991 Art Davie met Rorion Gracie, and after deciding that mixed martial arts tournaments were sure to be a crowd pleaser, the UFC was born. In the first ever Ultimate Fighting Championship tournament, Royce Gracie, a prize Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighter, easily won by submitting three opponents in under 5 minutes. The UFC and the Pride Fighting Championships quickly propelled the sport to new heights.

Today's mixed martial arts fighters use a range of styles. From the ground-and-pound techniques of Jiu-Jitsu fighters and wrestlers to the slug-it-out style that boxers with minimal martial arts experience bring, any spectator is bound to find an eclectic mix of fighting styles during any given match.

The best fighters of MMA today display multiple skill levels in multiple styles. Wholly unlike Bruce Lee movies of the past, MMA fights give spectators a true glimpse of what martial arts battles are like. They're rugged, raw, and unless a person has ample training, they can be extremely dangerous. In fact, even the most skillful fighters are at high risk. As such, the overseeing of fights is a huge concern. There have been many rules put in place to protect fighters, and the referees will not hesitate to stop a fight.

MMA is still exploding all over the world. The pay-per-view events take in millions of dollars and entire movies, novels and television series have been dedicated to the art. No matter where you're from in the world and no matter what style of fight you use, you're welcome to test your skills in an MMA ring.

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UFC Action Figures, Playsets & Accessories From JAKKS Pacific For The Summer 2010

UFC Deluxe Figures Wave 3

Available online and hitting retail shelves now! UFC Deluxe Figures Wave 3 action figures include BJ Penn, Chuck Liddell, John Fitch, Karo Parysian, Mark Coleman (Legends), Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (Pride) and Thiago Silva. All UFC Deluxe action figures feature Ultra-Flex^(TM) articulated technology to replicate real MMA moves! These authentic replicas of real fighters include officially licensed fight wear and apparel and are styled and deco'ed to match individual event appearances.

UFC Deluxe Figures Wave 4

Coming this Summer! UFC Deluxe Figures Wave 4 action figures include Andrei Arlovski, Don Frye, Jaime Varner, Kimbo Slice, Matt Hughes, Rich Franklin, Sean Sherk and Wanderlei Silva and will be on store shelves by end of June.

UFC Deluxe action figures are available at Walmart, Toys"R"Us, Target, Kmart and select online retailers. SRP $9.99-$11.99

UFC Deluxe Figure 2-Packs Wave 1

Collectible 2-packs of Deluxe UFC action figures commemorate epic UFC battles and celebrate the best MMA fights of all time from past and present.

Wave 1 includes:

• UFC 79 -- Chuck Liddell versus Wanderlei Silva
• UFC 87 -- Brock Lesnar versus Frank Mir
• UFC 77 -- Anderson Silva versus Rich Franklin

Coming this summer! Deluxe Figure 2-packs will be available at Walmart, Toys"R"Us and Kmart. SRP $19.99

UFC Micro Figures 2-Pack Wave 1

Kid-focused, Micro Figure battle 2-packs with full articulation & playable fight gear accessories.

Wave 1 includes:

• UFC 100 Brock Lesnar versus Frank Mir
• UFC 58 BJ Penn versus Georges St. Pierre
• UFC 64 Anderson Silva versus Rich Franklin
• UFC 47 Chuck Liddell versus Tito Ortiz

Coming this summer to Walmart, Toys"R"Us and Kmart. SRP $4.99

Electronic Reaction Octagon Playset

Relive exciting MMA fights with the innovative UFC Electronic Octagon playset that have action figure activated sound effects. Real UFC announcers call the action! The 20" playset is an authentic replica of the real UFC Octagon complete with officially licensed sponsors & brands.

Coming this summer to Toys"R"Us. SRP $49.99

Championship Belts Wave 2

Authentic, wearable belts for UFC, Pride & WEC! Wave 2 includes UFC Championship Belt, Ultimate Ultimate Belt and PRIDE Grand Prix Belt.

Coming this summer to Walmart, Toys"R"Us, Target, Kmart. SRP $14.99

Round 5 MMA Figures

World of MMA Champions:Series 4

• Gina "Conviction" Carano
• Dan Henderson
• Dan Henderson "Limited Edition w/ Flag Accessory"
• Only 2548 Units Ever Made, Each Unit Numbered
• Mauricio "Shogun" Rua
• Mauricio Rua Limited Edition w/ Walkout TShirt
• Only 2548 Units Ever Made, Each Unit Numbered
• Cung Le
• Cung Le "Special Edition w/ Yellow Shorts"
• Matt "The Terror" Serra

Ships August 2009

World of MMA Champions: Series 3

• Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski
• Big John McCarthy
• Frank Mir
• Antonio "Minotauro" Nogueira

World of MMA Champions: Series 2

• Anderson "The Spider" Silva
• Rich "Ace" Franklin
• Sean "The Muscle Shark" Sherk
• Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva

World of MMA Champions: Series 1

• Randy "The Natural" Couture
• Tito Ortiz
• Matt Hughes
• Quinton "Rampage" Jackson

JAKKS Pacific UFC (MMA) Action Figures

The first series will begin around Early-November of 2009. A new series will be released every other month.

The numbers to the right are per case quantities.

TBD = To Be Decided

Deluxe UFC Figures #1 12.0

• Chuck Liddell 3.0
• Anderson Silva 2.0
• Forrest Griffin 2.0
• Michael Bisping 1.5
• Evan Tanner (Classic) 1.5
• Yushin Okami (Pride) 1.0
• Cheik Kongo 0.5
• Thales Leites 0.5

Deluxe UFC Figures #2 12.0

• Rampage Jackson
• GSP
• Minotauro Nogueira
• Lyoto Machida
• Bas Rutten
• Thiago Alves
• Nate Marquardt
• Mike Thomas Brown

Deluxe UFC Figures #3 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• Patrick Cote 2.0
• Thiago Silva 2.0
• Kevin Randleman (Classic) 1.5
• Dennis Kang (Pride) 1.5
• Marcus Davis 1.0
• Dean Lister 0.5
• Antonio Mendes 0.5

Deluxe UFC Figures #4 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• Karo Parysian 2.0
• A-Level UFC (Classic) - TBD 2.0
• Fabricio Werdum 1.0
• Ricardo Almeida 0.5
• Luigi Fioravanti 0.5
• WEC Figure - TBD 1.0

Deluxe UFC Figures #5 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• Stephan Bonnar (Classic) 1.5
• Pride Figure - TBD 1.5
• Frankie Edgar 1.0
• Kurt Pellegrino 0.5
• Luiz Cane 0.5

Deluxe UFC Figures #6 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC (Classic) - TBD 2.0
• Jason Day 1.0
• Hermes Franca 0.5
• Alan Belcher 0.5
• WEC Figure - TBD 1.0

Deluxe UFC Figures #7 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• B-Level UFC (Classic) - TBD 1.5
• Pride Figure - TBD 1.5
• Alessio Sakara 1.0
• Marvin Eastman 0.5
• Nate Quarry 0.5

Deluxe UFC Figures #8 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC (Classic) - TBD 2.0
• Mike "Quick" Swick 1.0
• Amir Sadollah 0.5
• Paul Kelly 0.5
• WEC Figure - TBD 1.0

Deluxe UFC Figures #9 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• B-Level UFC (Classic) - TBD 1.5
• Pride Figure - TBD 1.5
• Jesse Taylor 1.0
• Pete Sell 0.5
• Marcus Aurelio 0.5

Deluxe UFC Figures #10 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC (Classic) - TBD 2.0
• B-Level UFC - TBD 1.0
• B-Level UFC - TBD 0.5
• Rachel Leah 0.5
• WEC Figure - TBD 1.0

Deluxe UFC Figures #11 12.0

• A-Level UFC - TBD 3.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• A-Level UFC - TBD 2.0
• B-Level UFC (Classic) - TBD 1.5
• Pride Figure - TBD 1.5
• B-Level UFC - TBD 1.0
• Ed Herman 0.5
• Thiago Tavares 0.5

OCTAGON PLAYSETS

• Basic Octagon ( Due Nov '09)
• Real Sounds Octagon
• Official Scale Deluxe Octagon

ROLE PLAY - BELTS

Championship Belts # 1 6.0

• UFC Belt 4.0
• PRIDE Belt 1.0
• WEC Belt 1.0

ROLE PLAY - UFC TRAINING SET

MICRO FIGURES

UFC Micro Figures 2-Pack #1 12.0

• UFC Event - TBD 3.0
• UFC Event - TBD 3.0
• UFC Event - TBD 3.0
• UFC Event - TBD 3.0

MICRO FIGURES PLAYSET

UFC Micro Playset w/4 Figures