UFC 34: “High Voltage” Shocks the World

Part II

*originally published in the Nov ’01 issue of Full Contact Fighter*

A smaller venue than Mandalay Bay, the MGM Grand Arena seated approximately seven thousand. As the preliminary matches started, many of these seats were empty. First up were the heavyweights: Roberto Traven versus Frank Mir.

A black belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu with fights going all the way back to UFC 11, Traven entered the Octagon first. Known for his grappling skills, he proved a formidable champion when he competed in the Abu Dhabi submission tournament. If this fight were to go to the ground, nothing less than complete dominance was expected.

Mir, the local boy, sported a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and background in wrestling. Though he had a 23-pound weight advantage, his record was short: only two professional fights, with this his first bout in the UFC. As some had anticipated, the fight was quick. The outcome, however, was nothing anyone could have imagined. After a few strong punches, Mir took the Brazilian down and landed in his guard. From there, a scramble brought them back to their feet, with more punching from an advancing Mir. Backpedaling, Traven stumbled and dropped to his back near the fence. Mir was over him, maintaining constant pressure. In a quick series of moves, Mir stepped over Traven’s legs to take mount, then reached for an extended arm. At one minute and five seconds, the Abu Dhabi champ was forced to tap.

“I didn’t think it would be so short,” said Mir, above the cheering fans. “I trained for a 30 minute bout.” The underdog had won in a convincing fashion, and the fans loved it. “Now that I’m in the UFC, I want to stay in the UFC,” Mir told the crowd. “I’m not going anywhere.” In submitting a master grappler, the Las Vegas resident had made an impression – and set the tone for the rest of the night.

Next up were middleweights Phil Baroni and Matt “the Law” Lindland. Though their last fights in the Octagon had lacked excitement, the pair had been matched up here to help establish a pecking order in the new weight class. Baroni, infamous for his trash-talking antics, promised to break “the Law” – no easy task, as Lindland was an Olympic silver-medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling. Would these two be able to follow the pace of the match prior? For those who predicted a boring “lay-and-pray” bout, this one was the farthest thing from it. Despite lasting all three rounds and going to the judges for decision, Baroni and Lindland battled their hearts out in what many described as the fight of the night. Lindland did his best to stay on top, getting the takedown many times and maintaining control. Twice Baroni reversed him and, in the first and third rounds, managed to throw some heavy leather. Though not enough to earn the win, Baroni nearly had Lindland out, and showed immense heart by not giving up in the face of bad positions or exhaustion.

Lindland received the majority decision. “Phil fought better than I expected,” he said afterwards, and indeed, Baroni had clearly given it his all.

The last preliminary match-up saw the return of light-heavyweight Evan Tanner as he faced off against Homer Moore. Tanner, coming off a quick loss to champ Tito Ortiz, needed this win. Training with Lindland and heavyweight champ Randy Couture, he professed to know little about his opponent. Moore, with a spotless record in the Arizona Rage in the Cage shows, was indeed an X-factor. Nonetheless, Tanner achieved the victory he had sought: at fifty-five seconds into the second round, Tanner secured an armbar from the guard, forcing the bigger man to tap out. “I felt really confident coming into this fight,” said Tanner, a Texas native. “My training was key and I have such a great team with Randy and Matt teaching me so much.” For Moore, who had spent time training with the Lion’s Den for his UFC debut, it was back to the drawing board.