Correct, Severns, Frye and Shamrock do not belong in the same category as Huges and Ortiz -- who (Ortiz) I don't think is washed up, and whether he is past his prime is questionable. I think Ortiz is still very much in the ballpark competitively. Severns was a very one dimensional fighter -- and fighter may not even be the proper term; he was a greco wrestler, who dominated early on because of his size and awesome Greco abilities. He punched like a girl, period. Frye was absolutely a better boxer than Severns, and a better fighter, but he is too old, too stiff, too unable to adapt. Its almost embarassing watching someone like Frye continue to fight. The lack of adaptability and flexibility is the major crippling factor with older fighters. When you see someone like Shamrock trying to fight Ortiz, its an obvious mismatch, primarily because Shamrock is past his prime, has lost his killer instinct, and cannot respond or adapt to cogent attacks. And although he has wrestled, his wrestling habits are old school, not fresh, and lack flexibility -- hence the ease with which Ortiz takes him down. Ortiz is hardly the best wrestler in UFC -- but he's a lot better than Shamrock -- who was regarded quite highly for his wrestling skills l0 years ago. Royce Gracie, as his fight with Huges showed, is way beyond his element fighting the new school guys. ALso, I think Gracie has to have his major tool -- the Gi. Without it, he not only seems quite helpless against good fighters, but he looks like a concentration camp escapee! The Gi helped Gracie in two ways: it allowed him to hide his rather gaunt physique and portray someone who might actually have some muscle hidden beneath it; it also was a powerful weapon, which I am guessing is why you don't see it in the UFC -- I assume it is not allowed just because it is a weapon. ALthough Huges still would have trounced Gracie with the Gi, Gracie wouldn't have appeared so helpless -- it might have added some depth to his arsenal in this fight.