Before UFC fans were introduced to the likes of Khabib Nurmagomedov and his pet bear, there was another Man/Bear duo in the world of mixed martial arts and the answer might surprise you.

Yogi Bear and Ranger Smith.

On September 24th 1999, the creator of the Ren & Stimpy Show; John Krisfaluci and his studio Spümcø were commissioned to create a parody special of ‘The Yogi Bear Show’ which was titled ‘Boo Boo Runs Wild’ which aired on Cartoon Network.

The plot follows Boo Boo Bear entering into a feral state due to all the rules and regulations of Jellystone Park with Yogi Bear and Ranger Smith working to stop him.

So how does this relate to MMA? Well one of the pivotal moments of the show has Ranger Smith ready to shoot Boo Boo, but Yogi unable to let this happen tackles Ranger Smith to the ground where they end up in a MMA inspired affair.

Anyone familiar with the sport back in the 1990’s will recognize the nod to Mark Coleman as Yogi Bear administers a healthy dose of ground and pound with his fists as well as ‘The Hammers’ trademark head butts. Ranger Smith on the other hand appears to be favouring a closed guard game though he was unable to pull off a submission on Yogi.

Fortunately for them Boo Boo comes to his senses and steps in to stop the carnage (and gets himself knocked out) causing Smith and Yogi to stop fighting.

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Yogi Bear is a cartoon character who has appeared in numerous comic books, animated television shows and films. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in The Huckleberry Hound Show.

Yogi Bear was the first breakout character created by Hanna-Barbera and was eventually more popular than Huckleberry Hound. In January 1961, he was given his own show, The Yogi Bear Show, sponsored by Kellogg’s