2002 in UFC
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The year 2002 was the 10th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. In 2002 the UFC held 7 events beginning with, UFC 35: Throwdown.
Title fights
| Title fights in 2002 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Event | Notes | |||
| Middleweight | Murilo Bustamante | def. | Dave Menne (c) | TKO (punches) | 2 | 0:44 | UFC 35 | |
| Lightweight | Jens Pulver (c) | def. | B.J. Penn | Decision (majority) | 5 | 5:00 | UFC 35 | |
| Welterweight | Matt Hughes (c) | def. | Hayato Sakurai | TKO (punches) | 4 | 3:01 | UFC 36 | |
| Heavyweight | Josh Barnett | def. | Randy Couture (c) | TKO (punches) | 2 | 4:35 | UFC 36 | |
| Middleweight | Murilo Bustamante (c) | def. | Matt Lindland | Submission (guillotine choke) | 3 | 1:33 | UFC 37 | |
| Welterweight | Matt Hughes (c) | def. | Carlos Newton | TKO (punches) | 4 | 3:27 | UFC 38 | |
| Heavyweight | Ricco Rodriguez | def. | Randy Couture | TKO (submission to elbow) | 5 | 3:04 | UFC 39 | |
| Welterweight | Matt Hughes (c) | def. | Gil Castillo | TKO (doctor stoppage) | 1 | 5:00 | UFC 40 | |
| Light Heavyweight | Tito Ortiz (c) | def. | Ken Shamrock | TKO (corner stoppage) | 3 | 5:00 | UFC 40 |
Debut UFC fighters
The following fighters fought their first UFC fight in 2002:
| ISO | Fighter | Division |
|---|---|---|
| United States | Aaron Riley | Lightweight |
| Russia | Amar Suloev | Middleweight |
| Russia | Andrei Semenov | Middleweight |
| United States | Benji Radach | Middleweight |
| Australia | Chris Haseman | Light Heavyweight |
| Japan | Genki Sudo | Lightweight |
| Japan | Hayato Sakurai | Welterweight |
| United States | Ivan Salaverry | Middleweight |
| ISO | Fighter | Division |
|---|---|---|
| England | James Zikic | Light Heavyweight |
| Brazil | Joao Marcos Pierini | Welterweight |
| United States | Keith Rockel | Middleweight |
| United States | Kelly Dullanty | Lightweight |
| England | Leigh Remedios | Bantamweight |
| England | Mark Weir | Middleweight |
| United States | Nick Serra | Welterweight |
| United States | Paul Creighton | Lightweight |
| ISO | Fighter | Division |
|---|---|---|
| United States | Pete Spratt | Welterweight |
| United States | Robbie Lawler | Welterweight |
| Brazil | Rodrigo Ruas | Middleweight |
| United States | Tim Sylvia | Heavyweight |
| United States | Travis Wiuff | Heavyweight |
| United States | Wesley Correira | Heavyweight |
| United States | Zach Light | Lightweight |
Events list
| # | Event | Date | Venue | Location | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 045 | UFC 40: Vendetta | Nov 22, 2002 | MGM Grand Garden Arena | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | 13,770 |
| 044 | UFC 39: The Warriors Return | Sep 27, 2002 | Mohegan Sun Arena | Uncasville, Connecticut, U.S. | 7,800 |
| 043 | UFC 38: Brawl at the Hall | Jul 13, 2002 | Royal Albert Hall | London, England, U.K. | 5,000 |
| 042 | UFC 37.5: As Real As It Gets | Jun 22, 2002 | Bellagio | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | 3,700 |
| 041 | UFC 37: High Impact | May 10, 2002 | CenturyTel Center | Bossier City, Louisiana, U.S. | 7,200 |
| 040 | UFC 36: Worlds Collide | Mar 22, 2002 | MGM Grand Garden Arena | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | 10,000 |
| 039 | UFC 35: Throwdown | Jan 11, 2002 | Mohegan Sun Arena | Uncasville, Connecticut, U.S. | 9,600 |