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MMA's Greatest headknockers: Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion 2005 -2007
Chuck Liddell was an original. He kicked ass the old fashioned way, his fist to your head . Before him, this new sport (new to the U.S. at least) called Mixed Martial Arts had been dominated by ground fighters, first by Royce Gracie and his Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and then by some former Collegiate Wrestlers, and their Ground and Pound style who were also learning Jiu-Jitsu.
Then the "Iceman" entered Mixed Martial Arts. He was a throwback to a less complicated fighting style when all you needed was some punching power and a set of gonads.
And when you watched him fight, you didn't need to sit there with your beer in one hand and a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu dictionary in the other. There were no Butterfly-guards, Omoplatas, or Kimuras.
Just some hard punches that when they landed would put his opponent on the ground. And if they were not already unconscious and sometimes even if they were, The Iceman would go to work crouched over them raining down blows with his right hand pumping up and down like a jack-hammer, until the referee could jump in between them and end the suffering.
Before Chuck Liddell started his Mixed Martial Arts career, he was a Collegiate Wrestler and developed his great balance and takedown defense. It was about as easy to take him down as it would be a telephone pole.
The only guys that ever did it were Randy Couture in their first fight in the UFC, and Quinton Jackson in their first fight in the Pride fc. If a "Ground and Pound" fighter was lucky enough to take him down, they couldn't keep him there.
In just a few seconds, he would pop back up to his feet like a Jack in the Box ready to resume his style of Stand and Pound with his two favorite weapons, his left hand and his right hand. He was starting to make Mixed Martial Arts fighting look easy.
Chuck Liddell started his Martial Arts training at the age of twelve when he began studying Koei-Kan Karate. The tattoo on his head says Koei-Kan in Japanese. Chuck also studied Kempo Karate and he also has a Kempo tattoo on his shoulder. And like everyone else in Mixed Martial Arts, he studied Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu but decided against the tattoo.
Before beginning his Mixed Martial Arts career Chuck Liddell fought in some Kickboxing matches, where he had a record of 20 wins and 2 losses, with 16 KOs, and he held two national Kickboxing titles.
Chuck Liddell made his UFC debut in 1998 with a decision victory over Noe Hernandez. Then had a setback with a submission loss to top contender Jeremy Horn. After that loss Chuck started pounding on his opponents, earning a reputation as one of the hardest punchers in Mixed Martial Arts.
He had victories over Kevin Randleman, Murilo Bustamante, Vitor Belfort, and Renato Sobral. Then Chuck Liddell was defeated at UFC 43 by Randy Couture when Couture gained full mount and Ground and Pounded on Chuck.
The next fight went pretty much the same as Quinton Jackson got on top of Chuck and pounded on him until his corner threw in the towel in the 2003 Pride Middleweight Gran Prix tournament. Things didn't look to good for the Iceman at the time.
But then his luck started to change when he came back to the UFC. He fought his one time training partner turned enemy, Tito Ortiz . They had a falling out when Tito was the Light Heavyweight Champ and would not give Chuck Liddell a title shot. Tito had taunted Chuck which added to the bad blood between them.
This would be one of the most highly anticipated fights in MMA history. For most of the first round it was a feeling out process, with a few exchanges here and there. Then close to the end of the round, Chuck Liddell landed a few punches and a kick that Tito blocked. As the round ended Tito pushed the referee into Chuck and started yelling at him.
As the second round started it was apparent that the Iceman was through with the feeling out portion of the fight, as he came forward and landed a twenty-plus punch flurry on Tito and the fight was over, with Tito lying bloody against the cage.
Chuck Liddell's next fight was for the UFCs Light Heavyweight title against Randy Couture. This time the Iceman would fight His Fight standing up, and knock Randy out in the first round to win the Championship. Chuck Liddell was now one of the most feared fighters in all of Mixed Martial Arts.
He then defended his title by avenging his loss to Jeremy Horn, with a TKO in the fourth round. Then he beat Randy Couture again with a second round KO. He then fought Renato "Babalu" Sobral for the second time and Next it was Tito again with a TKO in the third.
With his impressive string of victories it might have been easy for Chuck Liddell to think that he could keep on doing things the way that he had been and keep on knocking people out. But things were changing. Mixed Martial Arts were evolving and in order to stay on top, the fighters needed to stay ahead of the curve.
Some Mixed Martial Arts fighters like "Rampage" Jackson were bringing in Boxing trainers to help in their standup game. Add to that Chuck's biggest weakness was his defense against the punch, since he liked to keep his hands low, especially his left. This made for a bad combination for Chuck Liddell, and made his chin a great target for his opponents that were now being trained in Boxing.
His next fight was a rematch which the world of Mixed Martial Arts eagerly awaited: a fight with Quinton Jackson. In that fight Rampage exploited that weakness and connected with a right to the Iceman's unprotected head and knocked the Champion down and then pounced on him in the Ground pounding mode. The fight was over with Chuck TKOed in the very first round and Rampage was the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.
After losing the title, Chuck's next fight was a split decision loss to Keith Jardine. Then he had a war with Wanderlei the "Axe Murderer" Silva, in which Chuck won a unanimous decision in probably the best fight of the year.
Next up was Rashad Evans, who was undefeated in Mixed Martial Arts. Rashad was a great Wrestler who was also improving his standup game. Chuck Liddell seemed to be winning the fight when Rashad threw a windmill Overhand Right that landed perfectly on Chuck's Skull and once again the Iceman was was out cold.
Now Chuck was realizing that if he wanted to continue his Mixed Martial Arts profession. he had to get some defense to protect his Mohawked Cranium. So before his next fight with Mauricio "Sho-Gun" Rua he brought in a Boxing trainer of his own to work on his defense. The Iceman needed to keep his hands up, to avoid the Sandman.
But it didn't work. The phrase "old habits are hard to break" could have summed up the "Sho-Gun" fight. But this time instead of being clubbed with a right, it was a long looping left hook that glided over Chuck's right hand and came in for a landing on his face. And it was an early finish once more for Chuck Liddell.
Chuck fought again, this time against Rich Franklin, and the results were the same: KO first round. At this time it looks like the Iceman's Mixed Martial Arts career may be over, which is understandable due to the concern for his health. Having been knocked out or TKOed in four of his last six fights is not good for anyone's brain to be abused like that.
But if he has had his last fight, he can retire knowing that he had a major role in making the UFC and Mixed Martial Arts as popular as they are today. He was a great fighter who fought with tenacity and heart, and who wasn't afraid to fight anyone.
Chuck Liddell was a fighter that changed MMA with his style of fighting. In the world of Mixed Martial Arts Chuck Liddell was an original headknocker.
