Customer Rating: 
Summary: Frank Shamrock makes his statement!
Comment: September 24, 1999
Lake Charles Civic Center
Lake Charles, Louisiana
The whole event is about the buildup to Ortiz vs. Shamrock. It's an exciting event and everyone knows throughout the preliminary and undercard bouts that they are going to be witnessing something special a little later on in the evening.
The first bout is between Ron Waterman and Tim Lacjik. Both of these fighters are coming off of losses in the UFC - so both men felt the need to make a statement in this outing. After a slow 1st round, Waterman seems to gas out in the 2nd, allowing Lacjik to sway the lead to his favor. The 3rd is a boring round, with Waterman lying on top of Lacjik for most of the round. This fight goes to a decision. A low-blow in the first ends up playing a large part in the outcome.
Next is John Lewis vs. Lowell Anderson. Pat Miletich makes an appearance as a guest commentator for this fight. Much is made of John Lewis coming into the UFC lightweight division. They speak of his hand speed and strength, which Lewis puts on display immediately in the fight. This one is a drawn-out battle that eventually ends abruptly in the 3rd round.
Jeremy Horn then takes on Jason Godsey in the heavyweight division. Those of us who have followed Horn's career aren't used to seeing him display his skill in this division, but as he is a diverse and adaptive fighter, he can make a place for himself anywhere, at any weight. This fight ends in the first round in decent fashion.
Then we see Paul Jones go up against Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell. Liddell is coming off of a loss to Jeremy Horn and he wastes no time proving his point in this fight. Liddell was determined to become a force in the UFC and it's great to get to see him back in the early stages of his UFC career.
Due to some of the fights ending rather quickly, we get to see one of the preliminary fights that had already taken place earlier in the evening - and OH MY GOD, what a highlight-reel-worthy fight it was. Brad Kohler vs. Steve Judson. Those of you who have seen the UFC Hits 2 DVD or Ultimate Knockouts will no doubt remember this classic KO.
Now on to the main event! There is great drama behind this match between Tito Ortiz and Frank Shamrock. Ortiz suffered his first loss against Guy Mezger of the Lion's Den, only to return and beat Guy Mezger in their rematch bout, as well as Jerry Bohlander, also of the Lion's Den. Ortiz had basically begun to dominate the middleweight division in Shamrock's absence. Shamrock had taken time away from fighting to get married. Tonight he would return to reassert himself as the best in the division and, perhaps, in the division. Each of these combatants had fought in the UFC 4 times prior to this bout. Ortiz was 3-1 and Shamrock was 4-0.
For most of this fight, we see Ortiz on top, with Shamrock remaining busy from the guard. Ortiz keeps the smaller Shamrock down, yet Shamrock doesn't seem to be bothered by this position in the slightest. HE is the one that makes this fight exciting. While Ortiz lies on top of him, he constantly makes escape attempts and makes Tito work for his positioning. Shamrock's remarkable conditioning becomes increasingly apparent as the fight wears on. Ortiz begins gassing. Shamrock is winning the standup face-off in the 4th round - Ortiz takes him down again - the crowd boos. Shamrock escapes and drops an elbow to the side of Ortiz's head, followed by a few hammer-fists. This succession of blows bring the bout to a close, with Ortiz tapping out. This was, without question, one of the best and most tactical fights in UFC history. Shamrock relinquishes his belt after the fight and moves on and out of UFC competition, leaving behind a legacy of unparalleled athleticism and ability and keeping his mystique as one of the greatest fighters in mixed martial arts completely intact.
This is recommended viewing for fans of MMA. Shamrock really does make his fights interesting, exciting and inspiring.
Customer Rating:
Summary: GREAT
Comment: Overall a great tape not as good as Ultimate street brawls but pretty good for a caged event.The second fight is between Extreme Fighting and Japan Vale Tudo veteran John Lewis and Lowell Anderson. This fight was great with no resting and the ending was great.The third fight is between Pancrase, Extreme Challenge, and UFC veteran Jeremy Horn and Pancrase, Extreme Challenge and UFC veteran Jason Godsey. This was a rematch from an Extreme Challenge event, but the match was good and the ending was great.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Light it UP!
Comment: Obviously the highlight of this tape is the Shamrock - Ortiz fight, and it doesn't disappoint. This is one of the greatest fights in MMA and UFC history, and a must-see. Tito represents the new breed of cross-training, sophisticated ground-and-pound wrestlers and Frank represents japanese-style submission fighting and striking at their very highest levels.The other fights are good too, but even if they weren't the middleweight championship on its own makes this tape worth seeing.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Mediocre Card, except for exceptional Main Event
Comment: Ultimate Fighting Championship XXII. (Only One Can Be Champion) can and should only remembered for one fight, Tito Ortiz vs. Frank Shamrock. Basically there were 6 or 7 fights that were insignificant and tame, but the main event was for the ages.The fights before the main event did have some worth mentioning highlights. Some fights worth mentioning were Hughes/Ignatov, Liddell/Jones, and who will ever forget the ending of Judson/Kohler. It wasn't that these fights were boring in any way, but they were all minor league match ups.
After disposing of two good Lions Den fighters (Bohlander, Metzger), Tito Ortiz had skyrocketed to the #1 contender position with only middleweight champion Frank Shamrock standing in his way to greatness. With the ability to shed 20 pounds for the weigh in and regain it all at fight time, Ortiz had the strength and wrestling advantage. Shamrock at this point had stepped out of big brother Ken's shadow. He had formed an alliance with former Heavyweight Champion Maurice Smith. Using Smith's Kickboxing/striking knowledge along with his strong submission fighting base, Shamrock became a complete fighter.
The fight was an action-packed masterpiece, with a decisive end and a gracious loser. It was the beginning and the end of two great UFC careers. For this fight only, I strongly recommend this tape.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Outstanding show!
Comment: UFC XXII is a great show with great fights. The first fight is between UFC 20 and 21 veteran Ron Waterman and Tim Lajcik. This is a good back and forth bout, but the ending may leave a bad taste in your mouth.The second fight is between Extreme Fighting and Japan Vale Tudo veteran John Lewis and Lowell Anderson. This fight was great with no resting and the ending was great.
The third fight is between Pancrase, Extreme Challenge, and UFC veteran Jeremy Horn and Pancrase, Extreme Challenge and UFC veteran Jason Godsey. This was a rematch from an Extreme Challenge event, but the match was good and the ending was great.
The fourth fight is between International Vale Tudo and UFC veteran Chuck Liddell and Extreme Fighting, Shooto and UFC 21 veteran Paul Jones. Both men worked hard and the fight was great.
The fifth fight was between Brad Kohler and Steve Judson. This fight was short and sweet with a great knockout.
The main event was for the UFC Middleweight Championship between Champion Frank Shamrock and Tito Ortiz. Shamrock is a former King of Pancrase and has victories over Bas Rutten, Enson Inoue, Kevin Jackson, Igor Zinoviev and John Lober. Oritz is one of the most improved fighter in the world since his debut at UFC 13 and has victories over Lion's Den fighters Jerry Bohlander and Guy Mezger. This fight is the best fight of 1999 and has a great story to match.
Overall great show and a must buy for any mixed martial arts fan.
