Issue 224

December 2025

Brad Wharton unpacks how A 300-pound K-1 wrecking ball in Mark Hunt collided with PRIDE’s middleweight executioner Wanderlei Silva, in a New Year’s Eve fight so unhinged it could only happen in Japan.

There was nothing quite like MMA in the mid-00s. The crown jewel was the Japanese combat sports New Year’s Eve extravaganza. In 2004, that extravaganza was a little more extravagant than usual. PRIDE Shockwave 2004 embodied everything that made peak Japanese MMA great. The opener saw ‘shoot-style’ pro-wrestler Ikuhisa Minowa face German K-1 kickboxing legend Stefan Leko. Yojo Anjo got splattered by another Gracie. A diminutive Japanese Judo Olympic gold medalist outlasted a legendary American Sumo rikishi. Anderson Silva got heel hooked. The number one rule? There were no rules. These nights gave you the fights you never knew you needed. How else could the true sickos have found themselves salivating over a bizarro-world, Secret Wars-esque nightmare fight between the 2001 K-1 World Grand Prix champion Mark Hunt, and PRIDE’s middleweight kingpin Wanderlei Silva? 

SETTING THE STAGE

K-1 WGP champions were lionized in Japan, but Hunt stood apart. He’d won by virtue of having a head like a concrete block, fists like lead weights, and an unbridled passion for punching people’s heads in. Big belly, big heart, no quit. A man of the people. Similarly popular was the Brazilian buzzsaw Wanderlei Silva. Silva was the ultimate anti-hero, laying waste to fan favorite after fan favorite in increasingly sadistic ways, hence the ‘The Axe Murderer’ nickname. Each bout was like a Freddy or Jason movie. Enter – on just two days’ notice – Hunt and MMA had its most intriguing bout of the year. A 300lb bar-room brawler so good that he’d won the grandest prize in striking sports. A 200lb MMA champion who’d redefined organized violence. 

ROUND 1

It was a tentative start from Silva. A maniac he may have been, but giving up 70lbs to a fellow berserker was no joke. He bumped Hunt off the ropes for a takedown early, drawing gasps from the fascinated Saitama crowd. Before long, the Kiwi initiated a scramble and avoided his man’s trademark soccer kicks and knees on the way up. The pair swung wild, looping hooks at each other from the edge of the pocket. Hunt cuffed Wandy with a left that knocked him to the floor, but the Brazilian popped straight up. In response, Hunt charged his man in the corner, connecting with a knee to the body before being tripped to the mat and forced to scramble up again through a shower of stomps and knees. Silva clipped him with a left, sending him floating back into the ropes. A combination connected, followed by another trip takedown. Wanderlei effortlessly advanced to side control and slapped on a keylock, prompting analyst Bas Rutten to proclaim the bout over. Hunt had other ideas, reversing into his opponent’s full guard. The crowd roared as Hunt reared back to launch punches from above. Silva kicked his man away, only for the big fella to launch himself into what guest commentator Randy Couture eloquently dubbed the ‘Atomic Butt Drop.’ As ineffective as it was spectacular, the move allowed Silva to scramble back to top position. Wanderlei held his ground, taking fewer risks until a failed stomp allowed Hunt back to his feet with 90 seconds on the clock. ‘The Axe Murderer’ crashed forward, but a slip allowed Hunt to take top position and ride out the round. 

ROUND 2

Silva started the second round with a similar lack of fear and abundance of malice, but it cost him. Hunt connected with a cuffing left and an uppercut, before a clubbing right hand sent his man to the canvas. The big man followed him down, almost getting caught with an armbar, before rearing up and attempting to stomp Wanderlei’s head through the canvas, eventually settling for top position once again. After failing to do any damage, Hunt began following conventional wisdom, stepping back to let the smaller man stand up. A still wobbly Silva took full advantage, securing underhooks and tripping his foe to the mat, immediately taking full mount. Wanderlei chipped away, but once again found himself reversed by Hunt’s sheer power of will. He threw up an armbar at the death, but the bell signaled that it was too little, too late.   

ROUND 3 

Silva stalked Hunt as the final frame got underway, a stark contrast to his usual MO. He attempted a sloppy takedown that the Kiwi countered with a sloppy reversal, allowing Silva to take his back. More scrambles ensued, and again, beyond all logic, it was the novice mixed martial artist emerging on top. It was a brief triumph as Silva took advantage of some open ground to scoot back to his feet. Both men sucked in the big breaths, biting down on their gumshields. Silva bounced off the ropes to connect with another left, danced, and executed a trip takedown. Hunt was given a yellow card ostensibly for ‘holding’ (in addition to serving as a points/position penalty, yellow cards in PRIDE also carried a 10% fine, and were often used as a so-called ‘foreigner tax’ to reduce the purses of high-earning international athletes), prompting a restart from which he was immediately taken back down.  Silva rode out the round until the last second, when Hunt was once again able to reverse out from underneath him, throwing a hook into the wrong postcode as the final bell rang. 

THE DECISION

PRIDE’s holistic scoring system called for the twenty-minute fight to be scored as a whole. It also called for extra consideration for a fighter giving up significant weight. There was also the yellow card penalty issued to Hunt, and the ‘common sense’ narrative that it was clearly in PRIDE’s interest for their 203lb champion’s hand to be raised over the K-1 heavyweight’s. The first judge gave the bout to Hunt, the second to Silva. Nobody looked more surprised than the Kiwi when he heard his name for a second time on the third and final scorecard. But that was PRIDE on News Years Eve. You learned to expect the unexpected. 

Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZgPabWAZ1Q