10 Things UFC Can Learn From Pro Wrestling

It's sometimes painful to see how quickly former UFC stars are forgotten.

Each year at WrestleMania, the WWE inducts a number of stars from days gone by into its Hall of Fame. The ceremony has become a big deal, and a huge part of the WrestleMania weekend. Not only that, but older WWE talents are often brought back in supporting roles, sometimes in the ring in one-off matches (or gimmicks like the Legends Battle Royal at RAW or the Gimmick Battle Royal at WrestleMania X-7).

The UFC also has a Hall of Fame, though who gets inducted and on what criteria was a mess until recently. Even now, the hall has badly overlooked a number of fighters from yesteryear, and isn't nearly as revered as it should be. Only a dozen fighters have been inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame, and despite the company having bought out most of its competition over the years, it fails to recognize stars from some of the promotions it has acquired. Case in point: Sakuraba, considered one of the greatest fighters of all time, has not been inducted, despite winning the UFC Japan heavyweight tournament in 1997, and having his heyday in Pride, which the UFC eventually scooped up.

Nor does the promotion seem interested in doing much more than a "Where are they now?" style show on UFC Fight Pass. That's a shame, because past fighters could be a huge part of UFC broadcasts, and help rekindle interest in fans who have moved on since their favorite fighters have retired from the sport.