In the early part of the 18th century, the Bulldog was bred in England for the purpose of bull baiting. Bull-baiting is a blood sport involving the baiting of bulls. In the time of Queen Anne of Great Britain, it was performed in London at Hockley-in-the-Hole, twice a week, and was reasonably common in the provincial towns. At Stamford and at Tutbury, a bull was annually hunted through the streets. Before the event started, the bull's nose was usually blown full of pepper to enrage the animal before the baiting. The bull was often placed in a hole in the ground. A variant of bull-baiting was "pinning the bull", where specially-trained dogs would be set upon the bull one at a time, a successful attack resulting in the dog fastening his teeth strongly in the bull's snout. Since these dogs were used for protection from angry bulls, they had to have tremendous strength in their jaws and bodies. They also had to be stubborn enough to hang onto a stampeding bull, no matter what the bull did to them, to protect the farmer they worked for.

Bulldogs were widely used in Britain, where savage contests developed to see who had the most ferocious animal. The dogs were pitted against chained bulls to satisfy spectators need for gory entertainment. The bull baiting was cruel to both the dog and the bull. During these matches the dog would assault the bull, while trying to avoid the stomping hooves and slashing horns of the bull. The dog would attempt to grab on to a nose or ear, and hang on until the bull collapsed from exhaustion or lack of oxygen. Many dogs were crushed underneath the bull's hooves, disemboweled by slashing horns, and tossed through the air causing broken legs, backs, and skulls when they hit the ground. On the whole, both the dogs and the bulls suffered greatly. Every class of person from commoners to royalty enjoyed this sport until mass public outcry finally forced Parliament to take a stand and ban the practice of bull baiting in 1835.

A Bill for the suppression of the practice was introduced into the British House of Commons in 1802, but was defeated by 13 votes, and it was not till the year 1835 that it was finally put down by Act of Parliament, called the Cruelty to Animals Act 1835, which forbade the keeping of any house, pit, or other place for baiting or fighting any bull, bear, dog, or other animal. Wikipedia Encyclopedia

With bull baiting banned, dog breeders turned their attention to dog fighting. Bull dogs were preferred because of their fierceness, courage, and tenacity. The British breeders began to cross the largest, heaviest, fighting bulldogs with smaller, quicker, fierce terriers to produce better fighters. Breeders also bred the most intelligent dogs, so they would be less likely to make mistakes when fighting. It is from the terrier that pit bulls get their kind nature and juvenile behavior; it is also where they get their killer instincts. The pit bull was bred and born to fight until death...never give up until the end.

This cross-breed became the fountainhead of today's prominent fighting breeds. Staffordshire Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers and Pit Bull Terriers all hail from this "Ancestry". Dogs who fall into this broad class are identified as pit bulls. They're prized for a quality called gameness, or heart, meaning they won't give up on a commanded task no matter how difficult or dangerous.

Due to the agility and gameness of this newly developed breed many began to also fight dogs with each other. Soon dog on dog fighting and ratting became so popular that practically all Inns and Pubs were equipped with a fighting pit.

The Neapolitan Mastiff is a descendant of the Molossus, the mammoth war dogs of the Middle East, and was frequently used in the Roman arenas pitted against lions, bears, and gladiators for entertainment. As dogs of war, they fought alongside the Roman legions, and in this way they were spread throughout Europe. Eventually the descendants of the Roman Molossian splintered into several different Mastiff breeds known across Europe.

The breed is reported to have been pitted against leopards in the ancient Roman arenas.

The origins of the breed can be traced back to antiquity and the Molossian family of dogs. The Molossian family of dogs bears the name of the people with whom they were most often associated - the Molossi tribe, a group of people who lived in ancient Greece and favored the use of robust, muscular dogs in warfare. Officially termed canus molossi (dogs of the Molossi), these animals were reknowned for their fierceness, and for their innate ability to intimidate the enemies of the tribe.

The Molossians gave rise to another family of dogs known as the Mastiffs...The mastiffs were known for their strength and power. The early Britons employed a variation of the Mastiffs as pugnaces - fighting dogs that could be used in either a guardianship or warfare capacity. When the Roman emperor Claudius defeated the Briton Chief Caractacus in 50 AD, the powerful pugnaces piqued his interest. He quickly seized on the opportunity and began exporting select quantities of the dogs back home to satiate his countrymen's appetite for entertainment in the arenas and coliseums of Rome.

Once in Rome, the British dogs were crossbred with their Roman counterparts. From the years 50 AD to 410 AD, the breed was widely disseminated throughout the Roman Empire for use as fighting dogs. Along the way they mixed with other indigenous breeds throughout Europe, creating a genetic melting pot for the bulldogs that are the immediate antecedents of the American Pit Bull Terrier.