The UFC was only 10 events old when legendary MAD Magazine spoofed it in 1996. Remarkably, a whole bunch turned out spot-on.
The long-running animated series “The Simpsons” has an absurdly uncanny knack for predicting future events – sometimes outlandish ones.
And while MAD Magazine likely never will be a threat to that legendary show’s status at the top of the crystal ball heap, it did predict something in the MMA space – a heaping 29 years ago.
In its August 1996 issue, MAD, the long-running American satire magazine, spoofed the then-still-new Ultimate Fighting Championship for its cover story. Inside, seven pages of brilliant parody await – though the ones being parodied probably don’t find it as humorous as others.
At the time MAD’s August 1996 issue went to press, the UFC was less than three years into its existence and had put on only 10 events. It also was in its original ownership group, still years before the Fertitta brothers and Dana White came around.
The skewering MAD did 29 years ago wound up being fairly spot on with things like sponsorship logos on the rear of fight shorts; UFC ticket prices; the presumed safety of the “sport”; MMA homophobia; bible-thumping “Christian” fighters; oversaturation of events; fighter pay; and more.
But perhaps most impressive was right out of the gate, on a mock poster for an event of the “Extremely Ultimate Fights,” all the disciplines are mentioned – real and spoofed. Kickboxing vs. Tae Kwon Do is there, but so are Kung Fu vs. Foo Fighters … and Slapfighting vs. Don Ho.
That’s right. MAD, in 1996, predicted an eventual UFC that would include slapfighting. In 2022, the UFC added Power Slap, a slapfighting promotion, to its portfolio.
Check out the cover and inside spread in the gallery below – including a great matchup between Dan Septic (Severn) and Royce Gravy (Gracie).
