UFC 45: Revolution

If nothing else, the poor Pay Per View buy rate of UFC 45, which featured a main event pitting Welterweight Champion Matt Hughes against Frank Trigg, demonstrated that casual MMA fans at the time wanted to see the heavier weight classes. Light Heavyweight fighters such as Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Ken Shamrock, and Chuck Liddell had all impressed in previous Pay Per View efforts, and none were featured on the UFC 45 card.

Although Hughes basically dominated Trigg from start to finish, choking him out at the 3:54 mark of the first round, Trigg would turn to trash talk aplenty to hype up an eventual rematch, and kick start one of the biggest rivalries in the UFC at the time. UFC 45 also marked the creation of the UFC Hall of Fame, as the first two members were inducted during the live Pay Per View broadcast. The inductees were Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock, who shared mid-event smiles and pleasantries in the Octagon where they had twice gone to war.