Bob Meyrowitz, one of the co-founders of the original Ultimate Fighting Championship via his company Semaphore Entertainment Group (SEG), will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame next month during International Fight Week.
The UFC announced his induction on Wednesday, as he joins the “Contributors” wing of the Hall which was put in place last year. Previous members on the “Contributors” end are the posthumous inductions of both Charles “Mask” Lewis and Jeff Blatnick.
Meyrowitz’s SEG was a company providing pay-per-view content in the late 80s into the early 90s, and founders Art Davie and Rorion Gracie brought their idea for the event to Meyrowitz and Campbell McClaren at the company for what woud turn into the first ever UFC event. Meyrowitz owned and ran the UFC under SEG until selling the organization to the Fertitta brothers in 2001.
Meyrowitz joins former heavyweight legend Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira in this year’s induction class. The ceremony takes place on the final day of International Fight Week in Las Vegas, July 10.
Penick’s Analysis: It’s a sensible induction. Meyrowitz was a big part of the UFC extending beyond the first event and turning into what it would become on pay-per-view. Though SEG suffered through the dark ages that led to selling the UFC for just a couple million dollars, we still wouldn’t be here talking about this sport at this level without it all coming together in the first place. McLaren, Davie, and Gracie are probably all future possibilities in that “contributors” wing, but Meyrowitz going in isn’t an unexpected development.
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