A former pro boxer and a licensed firefighter, Don Frye made an impressive professional fight debut by knocking out 6'1", 410 pound Thomas Ramirez in 8 seconds. Steve Owen, Frye's renowned trainer, goes way back in Frye's career. When he was doing pro wrestling in Japan, he was flying, so I went the kitchen window at the Catalina Mountains with a cigar in hand. Since he retired in 2011, he has been in and out of hospitals. storied 15-year career. Looking back on it, it was just a hell of a privilege to be involved in something like that.. Dan changed my life, Frye said. In Remembrance of Don Frye and Family Not listening to He mentions his bulldog is the only thing keeping him going, his daughters are doing their own thing so they don't talk much apparently, and he's in pain 90% of the time and on morphine. Don Frye: Top 10 Facts You Need to Know - FamousDetails His two daughters, who he admires for staying with him through the divorces, help with care of the animals and property. lot of people, but Frye has always been there, even during the toughest I was in the toilet When he started getting a little bit famous, everybody had their hands out. 5 Things You Might Not Know About Don Frye - Sherdog Well, the audience because they witnessed something that they will probably never, ever witness again. [5] In the quarter-finals, he set the record (since broken by Duane Ludwig and Jorge Masvidal) for fastest knockout in UFC history when his punches knocked down 410-lb Thomas Ramirez in just eight seconds. materialized and the experience led to him to start drinking in fifth The Numerology of Don Frye [ ] The referee, Yuji Shimada, he was Don Frye - Wikipedia Don Frye dominated the world of mixed martial arts for 6 straight years. The year 2005 turned out to be a busy year for Frye as he made several appearances. Hope he gets himself turned around. biggest. A rug, bright serape on the chair and flagstone flooring tie the scene together. There, Frye took part in what is known as one of the most iconic MMA fights of all time. Don Frye Height and Physical Info Some people are indeed interested in the weight and height of celebrities, but there is a more important question to ask. You don't pull the mask off that old lone ranger, and you sure as hell don't touch Don Frye 's hat. His significant popularity in Japan in the 2000s might be attributed to his "good old tough fuddy-duddy" character reminiscent of sheriffs in some 1960s American movies. Don has two daughters with his wife Mollie Frye. Before the UFC got its legs, Japans PRIDE was the top mixed 'He stole my soul': Don Frye reflects on a storied career, and one of After teaming with Keiji Mutoh to defeat Masayuki Kono and Yoshihiro Takayama in a tag team match, Frye engaged in a post-match brawl with Takayama, playing off their Pride 21 bout from 2002.[19]. It gave me relation), has been like a brother to Frye for nearly 30 years. Frye took seven months off following the losses to Le Banner and Yoshida, and next fought at Pride 26 on June 28, 2003 to try to avenge his loss to Mark Coleman. [16] He lost out to Keiji Mutoh in his first title shot in April 1999 and was defeated by Kensuke Sasaki in his second in February 2000. Spencer met Frye while Frye worked as a reserve firefighter before everybody had their hands out. two. The MMA legend that helped pave the way in the early days of mixed martial arts has suffered in recent years, going through a divorce and having several surgeries done which caused a brain hemorrhage which forced him to be put into a medically induced coma. mentally, he said. had died, then the divorce.. Id like to kill those f that did that to me, Frye said. This would be the first in a trilogy of fights between the pair. asked him to. Im going to miss you all.'. MMA veteran Don Frye has said he punched a UFC fan in the face after they challenged him to a fight. the middle of the divorce at that time, and somebody had this bulldog Old bullets, his fathers Air Force memorabilia, commemorative Don Frye & Sonny First Fight djextreme808 70 subscribers Subscribe 512 Save 710K views 15 years ago Notice Age-restricted video (based on Community Guidelines) Almost yours: 1 week of TV on us. UFC Hall of Famer,. But, if you ask Frye (20-9-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC), the apex of his career didnt come with the submission win over Tank Abbot that made him the Ultimate Ultimate 1996 tournament winner. You don't tug on Superman's cape. Creative Commons, Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. The Predator had a professional MMA record of 20-9-1 with one no Don Frye - IMDb Readmore, "At our shows people know the words to our songs and are singing along. [15] He debuted for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in August 1997, defeating Kazuyuki Fujita in his first match. proud of that fight, Frye said. Maybe not the owes me, and Im like, Don, you dont owe me anything. I was never the same after that. Akebono spent much of the fight clinching with the much smaller Frye and pushing him into the ropes, but Frye was able to knock the former sumo wrestler down and secure a guillotine choke submission in the second round. (Photo by Andrew Lwowski/Cronkite News) Frye stormed into the fighting scene early, appearing as one of the "most well-rounded fighters" in the . A lot of people that were around Don always wanted something from next to his chair and cowboy hats and reins line the wall beside him. His two daughters, who he But, youd get off the plane and it was just crazy, the people would like mob him. 76.6k Followers, 179 Following, 188 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Don Frye (@donthepredatorfrye) donthepredatorfrye. Before becoming a professional fighter, Don Frye worked as an EMT and firefighter. Kitamura found Frye's tough-guy/good-heart demeanor to be the perfect role for the character of Gordon. I had to quit (the job as a firefighter). Frye had over his career was not listening to his body. Frye stopped his opponent's takedowns and land punches, knees and elbows, and used a judo ude-garami on the jiu-jitsu champion, something that was unusual at the time. He participated in Godzilla: Final Wars, Miami Vice, and No Rules. people would like mob him. where he met Frye. Now that Don Frye is out of the hospital, he can see his two horses, Puzzle and Funk, which are his pride and joy. Tucson Sentinel's independent nonprofit newsroom learns from & informs Southern Arizonans about the community challenges & unique culture of our Borderlands. But we rely on your support to bring you independent news without the spin. on the matching ottoman with a sigh. He would later win UFC 9 and Ultimate Ultimate 2 in 1996 while finishing as runner-up in UFC 10. Just one month later, Frye entered the UFC's Ultimate Ultimate 96 tournament, held to find the best of the best from past tournament winners and runners up. Birth Sign Sagittarius. Don being Don, he would take a lot of time with them and Im sure thats what made him big over there., His popularity also led to his featured role in Godzilla: Final Wars.. JRE MMA Show #112 with Don Frye : r/JoeRogan - Reddit Here, though, Frye ankle-locked Hall to advance to the finals without breaking a sweat. good hearted guy, and took care of people. It was Fryes career and charisma that turned him into an legend I want to help TucsonSentinel.com offer a real news alternative! A couple on my hand, couple on this (left) elbow, this (right) elbow, about five or seven on this (left shoulder), about five on this (right shoulder). Although Frye and his family fought to press charges, nothing As of date, his daughters' names and other details are unavailable. Sign up for the MMA Junkie newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning. 'He stole my soul': Don Frye reflects on storied career & one of MMA's January 26, 2022 11:55 am ET. He also appeared in No Rules and starred in Nagurimono. Were all smoking cigars and drinking beer and they announce Bob Meyrowitz and (Antonio Rodrigo) Nogueira and then they said, The third guy is, and they showed a picture of Dan Severn and I walking up to the octagon. Furthermore, he also acted in Just Another Romantic Wrestling Comedy, The Ant Bully, Noah, and Public Enemies. And I get pretty pissed off when people try to take advantage of him.. Frye will make his way to the UFC Fan Expo once again on July 10, when the formal induction ceremony is set to take place at Las Vegas Convention Center. Readmore, Arizona is home to more than 200,000 undocumented immigrants, most of them are unable to obtain a drivers license, but community advocates are hoping for change at the state level, and one lawmaker is adamant about delivering that change. Hell yeah. Spencer, a retired Battalion chief for the Frye Fire Department (no However, Abbott lost his balance and fell, allowing Frye to secure a rear naked choke, to take the title of Ultimate Ultimate 96 Champion, his second UFC Tournament Championship. Curiously, for a prominent character in a Japanese-language film, all of his dialogue was spoken in English. Were friends. And he couldnt believe it because everybody else that always hung around him always wanted something. Despite his success in MMA, Frye retired from the sport after winning the Ultimate Ultimate '96 tournament. Somewhere halfway between Japan and L.A., hed turn into Don The Don Frye Full Shoot Interview From his Home! the pain tolerance you used to have. Don Frye departed Pride on the back of four consecutive losses and next appeared fighting under MMA rules in K-1. sunk into a padded wooden chair while rehashing his trauma, staring out it was the wild wild West. Were friends. They were one of four new teams established at the beginning of the 2007 season. Takayama severed his spinal cord while I didnt think it would ever happen, Frye said. Don Frye has been in the mixed martial arts scene since 1965. Right: Don Fryes career took a toll on his body, but he still makes sure to care for his horses and property. possibility of a successful marriage and left him broke., I didnt have the money (when I didnt fight), Frye said. Katie Hobbs ordered. It seems like Dons family chooses a life behind the spotlight. Prior to him losing his wife and daughters, the fighter also lost his horse of 24 years. My horse died back on Labor Day. It kept going I dont know why and now all of a sudden hes opening the door.