Before there was the Ultimate Fighting Championship, before anyone even knew the term mixed martial arts in the United States, Japan was a haven for adrift fighters looking to display their craft. Otherwise, anonymity was their companion. MMA was not even considered a sport in the U.S. in the early 1990s, treated more with a dubious cringe as a kind of sports speakeasy where combat nomads could convene before fringe crowds.
That is the nebulous world through which Erik Paulson tread. The Minnesota native fell in love with martial arts at an early age.