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Today it’s common to see pro-wrestling style antics inside the UFC – whether it’s the likes of Conor McGregor and Michael Bisping cutting charismatic promos, or Tom Lawlor’s outlandish entrances, or fighters such as Anderson Silva and Nick Diaz taunting their opponents in the cage.
Back in the late 90s though, antics like that were few and far between. So when Ortiz arrived with his bleach blond hair and shorts decorated with flames and adverts for pornographic websites, he was immediately a breath of fresh air and received attention like few other fighters.
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The first sign that Ortiz could be a star villain for the UFC came after the Mezger fight when he pulled on a porno-sponsored t-shirt that read ‘Gay Mezger is my bitch’ and flipped off Mezger’s corner. Ken Shamrock – then a fully-entrenched member of the WWF roster – was in Mezger’s corner that night and went ballistic.
It was the beginning of one of the biggest feuds in MMA history.
Ken would not be the first Shamrock that Tito fought, though – first he faced Ken’s adopted brother Frank for the UFC Middleweight title. According to Shamrock, Tito had around a weight advantage of 35lbs in the cage that night.
Early on, the fight looked like it was going Ortiz’s way. The round system of three – or five – five-minute rounds had been implemented by then and Tito took the first three on the scorecards by taking the smaller Shamrock down and working him over from the top, even rubbing and gouging at his cuts.
By the fourth round though, Ortiz was exhausted and Shamrock was able to reverse him, then finish him off with strikes when he had nothing left in the tank. Post-fight Shamrock announced his retirement, which left the title vacant. While Tito had lost the fight, it seemed clear that he was destined to hold the title regardless.
