| UFC 12: Judgement Day | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The poster for UFC 12: Judgement Day | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | February 7, 1997 | |||
| Venue | Dothan Civic Center | |||
| City | Dothan,Alabama | |||
| Attendance | 3,100 | |||
| Buyrate | 122,000 | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
UFC 12: Judgement Day was amixed martial arts event held by theUltimate Fighting Championship on February 7, 1997 at theDothan Civic Center inDothan,Alabama.[1] The event was seen live on pay per view in theUnited States, and later released onhome video. This event was alsoVitor Belfort's debut in the UFC.
UFC 12 was the firstUFC event to feature weight classes; heavyweights (200 lb and over) and lightweights (under 200 lb) battled in two separate mini tournaments, each consisting of two semifinal bouts and a finals match.
The event also featured a Superfight betweenDan Severn andMark Coleman. The fight would unify theUFC Superfight Championship with the UFC tournament championship and determine the first everUFC Heavyweight Champion. Mark Coleman was a late substitution forDon Frye, who had earned the rematch with Severn after winning theUltimate Ultimate 1996, but was unable to participate in UFC 12 because of injuries he had suffered in that previous event. Frye never returned to the UFC. "Judgement Day" also featured two alternate bouts in case of tournament injury.
UFC 12 marked the first UFC appearance ofVitor Belfort, who won the heavyweight tournament and was only 19 years of age. UFC 12 also marked the first appearance of commentatorJoe Rogan, who handled backstage interviews for the event and interviewed the winners of the main events.
After being removed from many pay per view carriers, and with mounting pressure from politicians such as SenatorJohn McCain, the UFC had continuing troubles finding a venue, and a state, that would host UFC 12.[2]It was first announced that UFC 12 would be held inNiagara Falls, New York, to which it was ultimately denied sanctioning rights. Next, it was announced that UFC 12 would be held inOregon, which soon banned the event. Finally, the UFC returned toAlabama, where it appeared in the small city ofDothan, located about 200 miles southeast ofBirmingham.
The UFC would continue to hold events exclusively in theSouthern US States (aside from occasional shows inJapan andBrazil) until 2001, when the UFC was sanctioned by theNew Jersey State Athletic Commission.
| Lightweight Finals | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Lightweight | Jerry Bohlander | def. | Nick Sanzo | Submission (neck crank) | 0:39 | [a] | |
| Lightweight Semifinals | |||||||
| Lightweight | Jerry Bohlander | def. | Rainy Martinez | Submission (rear naked choke) | 1:18 | ||
| Lightweight | Yoshiki Takahashi | def. | Wallid Ismail | Decision | 15:00 | [b] | |
| Lightweight Alternate bout | |||||||
| Lightweight | Nick Sanzo | def. | Jackie Lee | TKO (strikes) | 0:48 | ||
| UFC Heavyweight Championship | |||||||
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Heavyweight | Mark Coleman | def. | Dan Severn | Submission (neck crank) | 2:57 | [c] | |
| Heavyweight Finals | |||||||
| Heavyweight | Vitor Belfort | def. | Scott Ferrozzo | TKO (punches) | 0:43 | ||
| Heavyweight Semifinals | |||||||
| Heavyweight | Scott Ferrozzo | def. | Jim Mullen | TKO (knees) | 8:02 | ||
| Heavyweight | Vitor Belfort | def. | Tra Telligman | TKO (cut) | 1:17 | ||
| Heavyweight Alternate bout | |||||||
| Heavyweight | Justin Martin | def. | Eric Martin | Submission (heel hook) | 0:14 | ||
| Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||
 Jerry Bohlander | FIN | ||||||||
| Rainy Martinez | 1:18 | ||||||||
| Jerry Bohlander | FIN | ||||||||
| Nick Sanzo[a] | 0:39 | ||||||||
 Yoshiki Takahashi | DU | ||||||||
| Wallid Ismail | 15:00 | ||||||||
| Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||
| Scott Ferrozzo | TKO | ||||||||
| Jim Mullen | 8:02 | ||||||||
| Scott Ferrozzo | 0:43 | ||||||||
 Vitor Belfort | TKO | ||||||||
| Vitor Belfort | TKO | ||||||||
| Tra Telligman | 1:17 | ||||||||
