(In the heart of the child who made it, the Super HLUK belt is the most prestigious title on the planet.)

CagePotato Roundtable is our new recurring column in which the CP writing staff and some of our friends all get together to debate an MMA-related topic. Joining us this week is MiddleEasy.com founder Zeus Tipado, who was kind enough to smoke an entire bag of PCP and channel the spirit of Wallid Ismail. If you have a suggestion for a future Roundtable column, send it to tips@cagepotato.com. This week’s topic: Who’s your favorite MMA fighter to never win a major title?

Ben Goldstein

We take personality for granted these days. Everywhere you look, the MMA ranks are packed with shameless self-promoters, aspiring comedians, unrepentant assholes, and assorted clown-men. But in the UFC’s infancy, fighters tended to come in two types: Stoic (see Royce Gracie, Dan Severn) and certifiably insane ( see Joe Son, Harold Howard). David “Tank” Abbott changed all that. He entered the UFC with a fully-fledged persona, and managed to stay in character through his entire career. Simply put, he was the UFC’s first villain, and he played that role more effectively than anyone has since.

Heralded as a “pit fighter” — a term invented by UFC promoter Art Davie — Tank’s martial art of choice was hitting guys in the head really hard, which he did while wearing the sort of fingerless gloves that soon become industry standard. It’s difficult to overstate the impact that Tank’s debut at UFC 6 had on a 14-year-old Ben Goldstein as I was watching the pay-per-view at my friend Josh’s house. It wasn’t just that Abbott starched John Matua in a mere 18 seconds, or that Matua’s body seized up when his head hit the canvas. It’s that Tank reacted to the knockout by mimic-ing Matua’s stiffened pose. Tank actually mocked John Matua for having a seizure. Ruthless! And how about his destruction of Steve Nelmark at the Ultimate Ultimate ’96, which had to be the first “oh shit is that guy dead?” moment in UFC history. Tank was a living reminder that the UFC was very real, and very dangerous.

(Apparently, some fighters thought that LL was the singer of ‘Macarena.’)

With the growing popularity of the sport of mixed martial arts, it’s surprising that we haven’t seen more fighters in music videos. Maybe MTV just isn’t ready for cauliflower ear.

At any rate, there have been a few fighters who have appeared in a handful of videos.

Check out some of our favorites after the jump.

With all of the MMA fighters trying their hands at reality television, it was inevitable that washouts like Butterbean and Bob Sapp would follow suit.

Sapp is pitching the show above to The Travel Channel in the hopes that they’ll pick it up long-term. Unfortunately for Sapp, besides maybe a handful of us and the Japanese, not many people, especially those who watch The Travel Channel could sit through more than one episode of “The Beast” making faces and and a fool out of himself.

When James Toney meets Randy Couture at UFC 118 next Saturday, he’ll be attempting to prove the dominance of the "sweet science" over that weird stuff that gay skinheads do. Of course, he won’t be the first pugilist to try to beat an MMA fighter at their own game — boxing vs. martial arts challenge matches have been around since before "Lights Out" was born. Join us as we take a look back at the brave boxers who preceded Toney…and what became of them.

MILO SAVAGE vs. "JUDO" GENE LeBELL
December 2, 1963

Arguably the first sanctioned MMA match in American history, Savage vs. LeBell came together when legendary judoka/actor Gene LeBell answered a challenge from boxer Jim Beck, who claimed that a professional boxer could beat any martial artist. (Yep, they’ve been making the same boast for almost 50 years.) According to LeBell, he was expecting to fight Beck himself in the televised match, but his opponent was switched at the last minute to Milo Savage, a top-5-ranked light-heavyweight who was allegedly wearing brass knuckles under his fingerless speed-bag gloves, and was greased from head to toe. Despite the disadvantages, Gene sunk a lapel choke in the 4th round and put Savage to sleep. But as with most stories involving Judo Gene, the details are somewhat debatable; this Jonathan Snowden article debunks several aspects of LeBell’s version. Still, LeBell vs. Savage deserves credit as the first MMA-style fight on television, and set up a rivalry between boxing and martial arts that’s somehow still relevant today.

MUHAMMAD ALI vs. ANTONIO INOKI
June 26, 1976

It sounded like good, harmless fun — the greatest boxer of all time taking on Japanese pro-wrestling kingpin Antonio Inoki in an exhibition match in Tokyo. But in the days leading up to the show, bizarre rules were added that restricted certain attacks. Most notably, Inoki could only kick if he had one knee on the ground. So, he scooted around the ring kicking Ali’s legs for the entire 15-round duration. Ali only landed six punches the entire fight and went home with two blood clots and an infection. The bout was ruled a draw, and has garnered a reputation as one of the ugliest fiascos in the history of combat sports. Fun fact: The referee of this match? None other than mixed-fighting pioneer Gene LeBell.

(Chuck Liddell and Heidi Northcott pose with what appears to be a wax figure of the dude who killed John Lennon. Photoprops: Fightlinker)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail feedback@cagepotato.com for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…

– Opinion: Jon Fitch Has Earned His Title Shot (Watch Kalib Run)

– Randy Couture Isn’t Buying James Toney’s Tales of Gym Submissions (MMA Fighting)

– MMA Legend/Pop Star Genki Sudo Invades New York (MiddleEasy)

– King Mo: "I’m the Underdog Even Though I’m the Champ" (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Brock Lesnar & Mirko Cro Cop Recruit Pat Barry For Their Training Camps (MMA Convert)

– Top 10 Young Prospects in MMA (LowKick)

– Cain Velasquez Explains His "Brown Pride" Tattoo (MMA Scraps)

– Anderson Silva replaces Chael Sonnen as the world’s #1 middleweight following UFC 117. Wait, what? (FIGHT! Magazine)

– Bellator Fires Back, Counter-Sues UFC Over Jonathan Brookins’s Contract (Heavy.com/MMA)

– Reed Harris Previews WEC 50, Expects Brian Bowles to Return in November (Versus MMA Beat)

The temptation to keep fighting until you’re nothing more than a broken-down shell of your former self can be an overpowering one. Somehow, these men managed to resist it…

BAS RUTTEN

(Rutten vs. Kevin Randleman, UFC 20, 5/7/99)

Though he’s better-known these days as the barely coherent host of Inside MMA and part-time children’s fitness coach, Bas Rutten’s legendary run as a professional fighter ended in 22 consecutive fights without a loss. After knocking off such MMA pioneers as Frank Shamrock (twice), Maurice Smith (twice), and Guy Mezger during his five-year stint in Pancrase, Rutten joined the UFC where he won their vacant heavyweight title in his second Octagon appearance (a split decision over Kevin Randleman at UFC 20). But while preparing for his next fight, Rutten suffered serious injuries to his knee and biceps, and was forced to retire from the sport.

Bas landed on his feet, though – his ongoing commentary gig for PRIDE as well as acting roles kept him busy until he decided he was healthy enough for one last dance around the cage, seven years later. Originally booked to fight Kimo Leopoldo at WFA: King of the Streets in July 2006, Rutten instead faced Ruben “Warpath” Villareal when Leopoldo pissed hot for Stanozolol two days before the fight. The beating was so lopsided that it eventually became featured in a CagePotato Video Tribute. With that last challenge conquered, El Guapo rode off into the sunset for good, an undefeated UFC champion who hadn’t tasted defeat in over 11 years. Party on, indeed.

GENKI SUDO

(Sudo vs. Damacio Page, Premium 2006 Dynamite!!, 12/31/06)

Genki Sudo’s brilliance didn’t end with his unforgettable ring entrances; he was also one of the most skilled submission specialists to ever heel-hook a fat guy. The Neo-Samurai was innovative even when it came to retirement: At the height of his popularity, following a first-round triangle-choke victory over Damacio Page at Premium 2006 Dynamite!!, Sudo announced to the shocked Tokyo Dome crowd that his days as a fighter were over. At that point, he’d won eight of his last nine matches — including victories over Mike Brown, Royler Gracie, and Hiroyuki Takaya — making him one of the only MMA fighters to ever retire in his prime. Sudo now spends his time as a wrestling coach, author, and J-pop star. You know, normal retiree stuff.

Tekken 6 MMA Boxing Live Action Trailer – Watch more Game Trailers
(Props: Break.com Game Trailers)

Above is the live-action trailer for Tekken 6, which succeeds in being awesome despite the fact that the game itself is only briefly shown at the end. The gist is, fighters from all walks of life — Josh Barnett, Dan Hardy, and Evander Holyfield, among others — discuss what drew them to fighting and why they do it. I guess they’re supposed to represent the different styles and mindsets in the video game, though the montage fails to include boxing kangaroos or a sentient wooden training dummy. There is, however, a Tekken 6 character that’s clearly based on Roy Nelson.

(The Fireball Kid returns on Saturday; Diaz may be ringing in ’09 overseas.)

— Though most of us want to see him return to the UFC eventually, Nick Diaz‘s next fight will likely be in Japan. Diaz’s manager Cesar Gracie told MMA Weekly that he’s already been contacted by Fight Entertainment Group (Dream’s parent company) and Sengoku, and Diaz will be competing either on FEG’s K-1 Dynamite! card on New Year’s Eve, or Sengoku VII on January 4th. Diaz’s EliteXC contract states that he can compete in Japan as long as it doesn’t interfere with his EliteXC duties — so, no problems there.

— According to MMA Fighting, former IFL lightweight standout Chris Horodecki will return to action on November 24th at the Shootboxing “S-Cup 2008,” a one-night eight-man tournament that will go down at the Saitama Super Arena; the tournament will also feature PRIDE vet Luiz Azeredo. Known as “standing vale tudo,” Shootboxing doesn’t incorporate ground-fighting, although throws and standing submissions are allowed. Horodecki is still penciled in to compete at Affliction’s “Day of Reckoning” show on January 24th.

(Props: BloodyElbow)

So David Blaine did his Dive of Death thing last night, and Esther was right about the Kimbo Slice segment: There was no trick involved whatsoever. Blaine just let Kimbo haul off and slug him in the stomach twice. It was impressive that Blaine didn’t crumple to the ground in agony — though maybe not as impressive as making the Statue of Liberty disappear.

(Props: TheTrollSmasher)

If you’ve never seen the UFC 42 fight between Genki Sudo and Duane “Bang” Ludwig, set aside some time and check this out. Sudo’s gender-bending kabuki ring entrance is easily the most bizarre in UFC history, and calling his style “completely unorthodox” is still an understatement. You’d think that Ludwig would dash in with some punches at the beginning of the fight when Sudo has his back turned, but he was probably too freaked out to understand what was happening. Unfortunately, the fight also ends with one of the most questionable unanimous decisions in UFC history. Maybe Sudo’s geisha-boy antics invoked emotions in the judges that they weren’t quite ready to deal with…

Don’t you wish more American fighters had quirky blogs where they detailed the hilarious minutiae of their lives? We’re stuck with the there-but-for-the-grace-of-God heaviness of Evan Tanner’s journal, while Akihiro Gono is complaining about his sexual frustration and Shinya Aoki is describing the pattern samples for his new tights. Anyway, Genki Sudo (of K-1 and Ninja Warrior fame) just updated his blog, Suki MMA translated, and we just wanted to share:

I had my birthday on Mar 9 and decided to buy something for me. The item I choose is a rolex watch. I went to see my parents and told them about buying it. My dad said, you did great in your 20′s and I will pay for it. I thought he is generous because of getting an influence of the metabolic syndrome. I thanked him and he asked me to tell everybody he bought my rolex.

Spread the word, Potato Nation — Genki didn’t pay for that watch himself.

This was the 10th fight of Kid Yamamoto’s current 14-fight win streak, and ended, as most of Kid’s fights do, with a first-round knockout. Yamamoto most recently put Rani Yahya to sleep at K-1 Premium 2007 Dynamite!! Genki Sudo is perhaps best known for his near-victory on Ninja Warrior.

Dana White, Joe Rogan, BJ Penn, Joe Stevenson, and Gabriel Gonzaga get us hyped for UFC 80:

(Props: MMA Fever)

Manny Gamburyan performing the leg lock that blew-out Nate Mohr’s knee at UFC 79:

And finally, here’s Japanese MMA star Genki “Neo-Samurai” Sudo competing on the Most Extreme Elimination Challenge-esque TV show Ninja Warrior. So close!

(Props: Bloody Elbow)