UFC 5

UFC 5: The Return of the Beast was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on April 7, 1995, at the Independence Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina. The event was seen live on pay per view in the United States, and later released on home video.

History

UFC 5 used an eight-man tournament format, with the winner receiving $50,000. The event also featured the first ever UFC Superfight, as well as two alternate fights, which were not shown on the live pay-per-view broadcast. The tournament had no weight classes, or weight limits. The fights had to end by knockout or submission; therefore no judges were used.

The Superfight match was the main attraction, and the winner of this fight would become the reigning UFC Champion. It consisted of rivals Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock facing off in the most anticipated match in UFC history to that date. Up to this point, Ken Shamrock's only defeat in the UFC was to Royce Gracie in UFC 1.

UFC 5 was the first UFC event to feature any kind of time limits since UFC 1. A 20 minute time limit was imposed for the quarterfinal and semi-final round matches in the tournament. The finals of the tournament and the Superfight had a 30 minute time limit. The Superfight overran to 31 minutes before incorporating an on-the-spot decision to extend the fight by a further five minutes. As there was still no winner, the match was declared a draw. The referee for the night was 'Big' John McCarthy. Dan Severn won the tournament by defeating Dave Beneteau with a keylock.