“I Coulda Been a Contender!”

When the editor of Black Belt proposed an article on prominent fighters from the 1960s and ’70s who would have excelled in mixed martial arts if MMA had been created three decades earlier, I found the concept intriguing. After some thought as to what methodology I could use, I agreed to write it. Much research and analysis followed, then I settled on a dozen names.

I based my selections on the following. First, all the people had to be well-known fighters in that era. Second, all had to be legitimate competitors/champions in their martial art or combat sport or had to have legitimately proved themselves in combat behind closed doors. Third, all had to possess full-contact experience. Fourth, all had to have the talent, fight IQ, open-mindedness and adaptability to transition to MMA. Finally, all of them had to own an indomitable will to win.

Here are those 12 martial artists listed in no particular order.

Benny Urquidez

An eclectic martial artist, Benny Urquidez was arguably the greatest American kickboxer of all time. He started as a and karate stylist, then segued into other fighting arts such as boxing, judo and wrestling. Afterward, he merged them into a system he dubbed