http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PRIDE_Fighting_ChampionshipsPride's rules[18] differed between main Pride events and Bushido events. It was announced on November 29, 2006 that Bushido events would be discontinued.[11]
[edit] Match length
Pride matches consisted of three rounds; the first lasted ten minutes and the second and third each lasted five minutes. Intermissions between each round were two minutes long. In Pride events held in the United States, NSAC Unified MMA rules were used: non-title matches consisted of three five-minute rounds and title matches consisted of five five-minute rounds, both with 60-second intermissions between rounds.
When two rounds of a Grand Prix took place on the same night, Grand Prix bouts consisted of two rounds, the first lasting ten minutes and the second lasting five. Intermissions between each round remained two minutes long.
[edit] Weight classes
Pride Fighting Championships does not divide their fighters based on weight divisions per se. A fighter may be booked to fight an opponent of any weight. Weight divisions are used for championship bouts and for Grands Prix to decide a best fighter at a given weight class.
* Heavyweight (more than 93 kg / 205 lb)
* Middleweight (less than or equal to 93 kg / 205 lb)
* Welterweight (less than or equal to 83 kg / 183 lb)
* Lightweight (less than or equal to 73 kg / 161 lb)
[edit] Ring
Pride used a five-roped square ring with sides 7 m in length (approximately 23 ft).
[edit] Attire
Pride allowed fighters latitude in their choice of attire but open finger gloves, a mouthguard and a protective cup were mandatory. Fighters were allowed to use tape on parts of their body or to wear a gi top, gi pants, wrestling shoes, kneepads, elbow pads, or ankle supports at their own discretion, though each was checked by the referee before the fight.
[edit] Victory
Matches could be won via:
* Submission
o A fighter taps either his opponent or the mat three times.
o A fighter may also verbally submit.
* Knockout
o A fighter falls from a legal blow and is either unconscious or unable to immediately continue.
* Technical Knockout
o Referee Stoppage (the referee stops the match after seeing that one fighter is completely dominant to the point of endangering his opponent).
o Doctor Stoppage (the referee stops the match in the event that a fighter is injured via a legal blow and the ring doctor determines that he cannot continue).
o Forfeited Match (a fighter's corner throws in the towel).
* Decision
o If the match reaches its time limit then the outcome of the bout is determined by the three judges. The fight is scored in its entirety and not round-by-round. (In Pride events staged in the United States, however, the fights were scored round by round.) After the third round, each judge must decide a winner. Matches cannot end in a draw. A decision is made according to the following criteria in this order of priority:
1. the effort made to finish the fight via KO or submission,
2. damage given to the opponent,
3. standing combinations and ground control,
4. takedowns and takedown defense,
5. aggressiveness, and
6. weight (in the case that the weight difference is 10 kg/22 lb or more).
If a fight was stopped on advice of the ring doctor after an accidental but illegal action, e.g. a clash of heads, and the contest is in its second or third round, the match will be decided by the judges using the same criteria.
* Disqualification
o A "warning" will be given in the form of a yellow card or a green card (The green card gives a 10% deduction of a fighter's purse) when a fighter commits an illegal action or does not follow the referee's instruction. Three warnings will result in a disqualification.
o A fighter will be disqualified if a match is stopped on advice of the ring doctor as a result of his deliberate illegal actions.
o The application of oil, ointment, spray, Vaseline, massaging cream, hair cream, or any other substances to any part of the fighter's body before and during the fights is prohibited. The discovery of any of these substances will result in a disqualification.
* No Contest
o In the event that both sides commit a violation of the rules, the bout will be declared a "No Contest."
o If a fight is stopped on advice of the ring doctor after an accidental but illegal action, i.e. a clash of heads, the match will be declared a no contest in the first round only.
[edit] Fouls
Pride Fighting Championships considered the following to be fouls:
1. Head butting. (Beginning at Pride 12)
2. Eye gouging.
3. Hair pulling.
4. Biting.
5. Fish hooking.
6. Any attacks to the groin
7. Strikes to the back of the head, which includes the occipital region and the spine. The sides of the head and the area around the ears are not considered to be the back of the head. (see Rabbit punch)
8. Small joint manipulation (control of four or more fingers/toes is necessary).
9. Elbow strikes to the head and face.
10. Intentionally throwing your opponent out of the ring.
11. Running out of the ring.
12. Purposely holding the ropes. Fighters cannot purposely hang an arm or leg on the ropes and it will result in an immediate warning.
In the event that a fighter is injured by illegal actions, then at the discretion of the referee and ring doctor, the round would attempt to be resumed after enough time has been given to the fighter to recover. If the match could not be continued due to the severity of the injury then the fighter who perpetrated the action was disqualified.
[edit] Match conduct
* If both fighters are on the verge of falling out of the ring or become entangled in the ropes, the referee would stop the action. The fighters must immediately stop their movements and then be repositioned in the center of the ring in the same relative position. Once they were comfortably repositioned, they would resume at the referee's instruction.
* Referees can give a fighter a penalty card for lack of activity. Every card, including warning cards, are a 10% deduction of a fighter's purse, this method was aimed to prevent inaction.
[edit] Matches between fighters of different weight classes
Pride made special provision for fights between fighters of different weight classes or fighters with a large weight difference in the same weight class. The lighter fighter was given a choice on whether to permit knees or kicks to the face when in the "four points" position in the following cases:
* If both fighters are in the middleweight class and there is a weight difference of 10 kg/22 lb or more between the fighters.
* If the match is between a middleweight and heavyweight and there is a weight difference of 10 kg/22 lb or more between the fighters.
* If both fighters are in the heavyweight class and there is a weight difference of 15 kg/33 lb or more between the fighters.
[edit] Pride Bushido
There were a few minor differences from main Pride events.
* Bouts on Pride Bushido events consisted of two rounds; the first lasting ten minutes and the second lasting five. Intermissions between each round are two minutes in length.
* Bushido "Challenge Matches" consist of two rounds lasting five minutes each. Intermissions between each round are two minutes in length.
* In Bushido, red cards were issued in a similar way that yellow cards are used in Pride FC. A red card results in a 10% deduction of the fighter's fight purse. Red cards could be given out in an unlimited number without disqualification. If fighters committed the following actions, they shall be given a red card by officials:
o Stalling or failure to initiate any offensive attack,
o making no attempt to finalize the match or damage the opponent, and
o holding the opponent's body with the arms and legs to produce a stalemate.
[edit] Differences from the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts
Some states' athletic commissions require mixed martial arts events to modify rules to match the Mixed Martial Arts Unified Rules of Combat, as introduced by the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board, and adopted by the Nevada State Athletic Commission in order to receive state sanctioning.[19][20]
Pride's rules differed from the Unified Rules of Combat in the following ways:
* Pride allows kicking and kneeing the head of a downed opponent. This is considered a foul in the Unified Rules, which only allows kicks and knees to the head of a standing opponent.
* Pride allows a fighter to stomp the head of a downed opponent. This is considered a foul in the Unified Rules.
* Pride allows a fighter to spike (piledriver) an opponent onto the canvas on his head or neck. This is considered a foul in the Unified Rules.
* Pride does not allow elbow strikes to the head of an opponent. The Unified rules allows elbows provided they are not striking directly down with the point of the elbow.
* Pride's matches include a ten minute first round, with two minute rest periods. The Unified rules allow rounds no longer than five minutes, with rest periods not exceeding one minute.
* Pride's matches are not judged on the ten point must system, rather judges score the whole fight. The Unified rules call for all matches to be judged using the ten point must system.
At the announcement on March 27, 2007 that the Fertittas are purchasing Pride, it was stated that all future Pride events (after Pride 34) would be held under Unified Rules, eliminating 10 minute opening rounds, ground knees, stomps and more, though there were no more Pride events held to use these rules.[21]
