Review by Adam Stephen Kelly
UK Certification E | UK RRP £12.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 304 minutes
If you ask any man who has made it as a combatant in the Ultimate Fighting Championship who inspired them the most to get involved in mixed martial arts, I'm sure the name that would crop up the most would be Royce Gracie, a fighter who is perhaps more synonymous with the acronyms MMA and UFC than anyone in the sport is and most likely ever will be.
This two-disc set does a great job of killing two birds with one stone. Not only does it chronicle the incredible rise of Gracie's career, but it tells the story of the creation and expansion of the UFC. Why? Because, effectively, they are one and the same. If it wasn't for the invention of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, aka Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, by Helio Gracie, Brazil's original sports hero, the UFC quite simply wouldn't exist. The lineage and history of what is today the premier fight company in the world was carved straight from the Gracie family.
A man who, thanks to his family's tuition and support, single-handedly revolutionised martial arts, Gracie provides great insight into his craft and details his life growing up, as well as the road he traversed to arrive at the very first event in UFC history when the sport was a world away from what it is today, but one that stood for the same ideals then as it does in 2011.
This is an impressive release that is rich in history, gritty no-holds-barred violence and facts that should be extremely appealing to the ears of any true fan of MMA. The evolution of the world's fastest growing sport is incredible and there is one living legend who can be attributed to generating its international success. This is his story.
EXTRAS ???? In addition to his UFC Hall of Fame induction, Ultimate Royce Gracie features the following bonus fights, which include every single one of his battles inside the Octagon, plus a 12-page collector's booklet:
UFC 1: vs. Art Jimmerson
UFC 1: vs. Ken Shamrock
UFC 1: vs. Gerard Gordeau
UFC 2: vs. Minoki Ichihara
UFC 2: vs. Jason Delucia
UFC 2: vs. Remco Pardoel
UFC 2: vs. Patrick Smith
UFC 3: vs. Kimo Leopoldo
UFC 4: vs. Ron van Clief
UFC 4: vs. Keith Hackney
UFC 4: vs. Dan Severn
UFC 5: vs. Ken Shamrock
PRIDE Grand Prix 2000: vs. Nobuhiko Takada
PRIDE Grand Prix 2000: vs. Kazushi Sakuraba (the longest fight in MMA history at over 90 minutes)
PRIDE Shockwave 2003: vs. Hidehiko Yoshida
UFC 60: vs. Matt Hughes