The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is the largest Mixed Martial Arts promotion company in the world, which hosts most of the top-ranked fighters in the sport and produces events worldwide. Based in the United States, the UFC has eight weight divisions and enforces the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts.Dana White serves as the president of the UFC while Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta control the UFC's parent company, Zuffa, LLC.

The first UFC event was held in 1993 in Denver, Colorado. The purpose of the event was to identify the most effective martial art in a real fight between competitors of different fighting disciplines, including Boxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Tae Kwon Do, Wrestling, Muay Thai, Karate and other styles. In subsequent competitions, fighters ventured outside their base style to utilize effective techniques from other disciplines, which indirectly helped create an entirely separate style of fighting known as present-day mixed martial arts.

With a cable-television deal and expansion into Canada, Europe, Australia the Middle East,Asia and new markets within the United States, the UFC as of 2011^[update] has gained in popularity, along with greater mainstream-media coverage. As of 2001^[update] viewers can access UFC programming on pay-per-view television in the U.S., Brazil, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Italy. UFC programming can also be found on FX, Fuel TV, and Fox in the U.S., on ESPN in the United Kingdom and Ireland, as well as in 150 countries and 22 different languages worldwide. UFC also carries a mobile site for on-the-go users and a Sports Bars page for fans to find places showing the pay-per-view. It is also available on the Roku streaming player.

Dana White (born July 28, 1969) is the current President of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts organization based in the United States.

Born in Manchester, Connecticut on July 28, 1969, White grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada, Ware, Massachusetts and Levant, Maine. White is a passionate Boston Red Sox fan. During his youth, he bounced back and forth between Boston and Maine. He attended the University of Massachusetts Boston but did not finish; however, while there he did launch a boxing program for inner-city youth.

White has a background as an aerobics instructor. In 1992, White established Dana White Enterprises in Las Vegas. He conducted aerobics classes at three gyms in the Las Vegas area and began managing MMA fighters Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell.

While working as a manager, White learned that Semaphore Entertainment Group, the parent company of the UFC, was looking for a buyer for the UFC. White contacted childhood friend Lorenzo Fertitta, an executive at Station Casinos, and a former commissioner of the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Within a month, Lorenzo and his older brother Frank bought the UFC, with White installed as its president. White currently owns about 9% of Zuffa, LLC, the entity the Fertitta brothers created to own and manage the UFC.

Gilbert Q. Melendez (born April 12, 1982) is an American mixed martial artist of Mexican descent currently fighting out of San Francisco, California, he is the current Strikeforce Lightweight Champion fighting in the lightweight division for Strikeforce.

He formerly competed in the lightweight division of PRIDE Fighting Championships. He has trained extensively with Turbo Fairtex, Jake Shields, Cesar Gracie, Nick Diaz, Nate Diaz and David Terrell. Melendez is the Strikeforce Lightweight Champion and has avenged both his career losses. Melendez is ranked as the #3 lightweight fighter in the world by Sherdog.

Melendez aka El Nino began fighting in the pre-Zuffa World Extreme Cagefighting and Rumble on the Rock shows and also spent some time overseas where he fought for Shooto and PRIDE Fighting Championships

Melendez won the Strikeforce Lightweight Championship from Clay Guida by split decision on June 9, 2006.

Melendez held the belt for two years before losing it on June 27, 2008 to Josh Thomson by unanimous decision (50–45, 50–45, 50–45) at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Thomson.

Ronda Rousey (born February 1, 1987) is an American judoka and mixed martial artist and the current Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion. She has finished all of her opponents by armbar in the first round. She formerly trained at the Olympic Training Center in Wakefield, Massachusetts under guidance of Jimmy Pedro and is now part of Team Hayastan in Santa Monica, California.

Rousey trains under Gokor Chivichyan and Edmond Tarverdyan of the Glendale Fighting Club in Glendale, CA. Rousey also trains with Leo Frincu and Gene Lebell, along with Team Hayastan fighters such as Manny Gamburyan, Karen Darabedyan, Sako Chivitchian and Sevak Magakian. She is managed by Darin Harvey of Fight Tribe MMA.

Rousey is currently the #1-ranked pound-for-pound female MMA fighter in the world by MMARising.com, and is ranked #1 at 135 pounds and #2 at 145 pounds according to the Unified Women's MMA Rankings.

At just 17, Rousey qualified for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, becoming the youngest judo player in the entire Games. Also in 2004, Rousey won a gold medal at the 2004 World Junior Judo Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

Sara McMann (born September 24, 1980) is the first American woman in history to receive a silver medal in women's wrestling at the 2004 Summer Olympics games in Athens, Greece. She wrestled in the Women's Freestyle 63 kg or 138.75 lb weight class. Sara was a Silver Medalist in 2003 World Championships and Bronze Medalist in 2005 & 2007 World Championships. Sara started wrestling at the age of 14 in Marion, North Carolina at McDowell High School.

McMann is currently the #10-ranked pound-for-pound female MMA fighter in the world by MMARising.com and the #5-ranked 135-pound female fighter according to the Unified Women's MMA Rankings.

Sara's parents are Thomas William McMann and Paula Jean McMann. She has one sister, Nickolina McMann, and one brother, Jason McMann. Sara's brother, Jason, who wrestled at Quince Orchard High School in Maryland, was murdered Jan. 23, 1999 at the age of 21.

McMann attended McDowell High School in Marion, North Carolina where, in addition to wrestling, she participated in theatre productions. She earned a degree in Theatre at Lock Haven University, where she was a member of the school's wrestling team under the coaching of Carl Poff from 1999-2003. She previously attended University of Minnesota-Morris from 1998-1999, where she was coached by Doug Reese. She has graduated from Gardner-Webb University with a Masters Degree in Mental Health Counseling.