''UFC 20: Battle for the Gold'' was a
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world.
In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...
event held by the
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...
on May 7, 1999 at the
Boutwell Auditorium in
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...
. The event was seen live on pay per view in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, and later released on
home video
Home video is recorded media sold or Video rental shop, rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD and Blu-ray. ...
.
History
UFC 20 was the final event of what the UFC called "The Road to the Heavyweight Title", a tournament of sorts spanning four events, held to determine the Heavyweight Champion after
Randy Couture
Randall Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American mixed martial arts commentator, actor, former United States Army sergeant, former professional mixed martial artist, and former Collegiate wrestling, collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestlin ...
vacated the title (due to contract disputes with the UFC).
Bas Rutten
Sebastiaan "Bas" Rutten (; born 24 February 1965) is a Dutch-American actor, former mixed martial artist, kickboxer and professional wrestler. As a kickboxer, he fought 16 times, winning the first 14 matches by knockout, 13 in the first round ...
defeated
Kevin Randleman
Kevin Christopher Randleman (August 10, 1971 – February 11, 2016) was an American mixed martial artist, amateur and professional wrestler, and former UFC Heavyweight Champion. Randleman's background was in collegiate wrestling, in which he ...
to become the new Heavyweight Champion in a controversial split decision.
Referees for the event were
Mario Yamasaki (first time for UFC pay-per-view) and
John McCarthy.
Results
Encyclopedia awards
The following fighters were honored in the October 2011 book titled ''
UFC Encyclopedia''.
*Fight of the Night: Pedro Rizzo vs. Tra Telligman
*Knockout of the Night: Wanderlei Silva
*Submission of the Night: Pete Williams
See also
*
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...
*
List of UFC champions
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC Championship#Title match system, championships.
Historical notes
At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, ...
*
List of UFC events
List of UFC events is a list of events held and scheduled by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. UFC's first event, UFC 1, took place on November 12, 1993. Each UFC event contains ...
*
1999 in UFC
References
External links
UFC20 results at Sherdog.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ufc 020
Ultimate Fighting Championship flagship events
1999 in mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts in Alabama
Sports in Birmingham, Alabama
1999 in sports in Alabama