5/24 Shooto Spirit 2009 - Sendai

Shooto will hold an event in Sendai on May 24. It is a good chance to watch some good fights if you are in the area.

The event so far is mainly about the rookie tournament, but there will be an interesting female fight and a grappling match on the card. There should be more fights to come.

Making a return to the ring is Sendai native Takamaro Watari, this will be his first fight in 2 years. He will be taking on Yuki Yasunaga, who will enter the ring for only his 2nd professional fight (he is 3-1 in amature).

Feather: Takamaro Watari 2-4-2 vs. 0-1-0 Yuki Yasunaga
Female Fly: Masako Yoshida 15-14-5 vs. 4-3-0 Yasuko Mogi

Rookie Tournament:
Fly: Yusuke Sato 1-1-0 vs. 0-2-0 Kazuyuki Yoshida
Bantam: Nozomi Otsuka 1-1-1 vs. 0-1-0 Nariyasu Fujita

Participating:
Toshiaki Hayasaka 0-2-0

Read more...

5/2 Sengoku 8 - Featherweight 2nd Round Announced!

WVR have announced the match-ups for the 2nd round in the featherweight GP. Opinions were split on how entertaining the fights were in Sengoku 7, but I thought it looked very promising.

The BIG fight here is Hatsu Hioki against Ronnie Mann. Hioki proved why he is coming in as the favorite in the 1st round, but Mann is very experienced and Hioki has proved that he is not unbeatable.

Marlon Sandro is my personal favorite for the title, he will take on Nick Denis in his quarter final. This fight will be between 2 undefeated fighters, and I am willing to bet that it will go the distance, even if Denis has a habit of finishing fights early.

2 of the big positive surprises for me in the 1st round will square off in the 2nd. Nam Phan impressed me when he finished Kadowaki in the 1st round, and Omigawa was very impressive when he fought his way to a decision win.

Featherweight GP 2nd Round:
Hatsu Hioki 18-3-2 vs. 17-1-1 Ronnie Mann
Masanori Kanehara 12-5-5 vs. 3-0-0 Jung Chan Sung
Michihiro Omigawa 5-7-1 vs. 15-5-0 Nam Phan
Marlon Sandro 13-0-0 vs. 7-0-0 Nick Denis

Non-Tournament Fights:
Welter: Makoto Takimoto vs. Michael Costa
Light: Kazunori Yokota vs. Leonardo Santos
Light-Heavy: Keiichiro Yamamiya vs. Xande Ribeiro

Read more...

3/28 HEAT 9 - RESULTS Tournament Champions Crowned

Heat held 2 tournament finals and the heavyweight tournaments semi-finals on Saturday. The main event was the welterweight final and title fight between 2 very talented fighters in Justin Holdaas and Max Fernandes. In the middleweight Kick-rule final, Thai Fabiakato "RS Promotion" Lukafa took on Kinji.

The heavyweight tournament had some big semi-finals as well. Ryuta Noji was a late replacement for Dong Yi Yang, and was taking on Pride veteran Sentoryu. The other semi-final saw Christiano Kaminishi take on Sang Soo Lee.

Tournament Finals:
Welter MMA Final: Max Fernandes Def. Justin Holdaas by arm-bar Round 1 1:00
Middle Kick Final: Fabiakato "RS Promotion" Lukafa Def. Kinji by Decision 3-0

Heavyweight Semi-Finals:
MMA: Sentoryu Def. Ryuta Noji by KO Round 1 1:14
MMA: Christiano Kaminishi Def. Sang Soo Lee by Decision 3-0
Kick: Makoto Uehara Def. Goutoku Onda by KO ext. Round
Kick: Hiromi Amada Def. Moon Bo Ram by Decision 2-0

Non-Tournament Fights:
Middle Kick: Danilo Zanolini Def. Hideto Yamada by KO Round 2 1:45
Middle Kick: Yuzo Matsumoto Def. Masatoshi Hyakutake by Decision 3-0
Welter MMA: Jonathan Visitante Def. Toshinari Takashima by Decision 2-1

New Age:
MMA (70kg): Masaomi Kamino Def. Kosaburo Muramatsu by KO Round 2 3:57

Read more...

4/16 DEEP 41 - Miyata Returns!

Saeki has announced that Kazuyuki Miyata is set to make his return at DEEP 41 taking place in Korakuen Hall April 16. Miyata has not fought since his loss in the DREAM lightweight tournament last year. It is over a year since Miyata lost to Luiz "Buscape" Firmino. Since then, he has opened his own gym.

He is taking on the very young (20) Jae Hyun So, in a fight neither fighter wants to lose. Jae Hyun So is a veterean of Korean organization Spirit MC, and though his record is not good there are lots of Korean fighters coming up.

Miyata promised me to go for a KO in his next fight, he has been working hard on his striking so look for an even more agressive Miyata to enter the ring this time! This fight will be at 67kg, and Miyata is hoping to get down to featherweight at 65kg.

Also announced is the fight between Naoki Matsuchita and Korean Baek Won Sik (?)

Kazuyuki Miyata 5-7-0 vs. 2-5-0 Jae Hyun So
Naoki Matsushita 9-10-9 vs. Baek Won Sik (?)

Previously Announced:
Lightweight Title Fight:
Katsunori Kikuno 10-1-1 vs. 7-1-0 Koichiro Matsumoto

Miku Matsumoto vs. 5-2-0 Nicdali "The Nightqueen" Calanic
Ryuki Ueyama 9-11-4 vs. 24-29-10 Kousei Kubota
Yuji Sakurai 9-14-1 vs. 2-6-1 Minoru Kato
Seigo Mizuguchi 4-4-0 vs. 2-3-0 Waka Arash

Participants:
Hiromitsu Kanehara 16-22-1
Toshiaki Kitada 7-4-2
Tomoya Miyashita 9-5-5

Read more...

DREAM 9 - Mousasi vs. Sokoudjou

Though not officially announced, it is confirmed by several sources that Sokoudjou will return to Japan in May. He had a very rapid rise to fame in Pride, knocking out Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Richardo Arona in 2007. When the UFC bought Pride, he went to the UFC and has not been able to replicate his success there.

Now he is released from the UFC and DREAM has picked him up, on his return he will face DREAM middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi, who is on an 11 fight winning streak.

The fight will be fought at light-heavyweight.

Light-Heavy: Gegard Mousasi 24-2-1 vs. 5-4-0 Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou

Read more...

3/28 K-1 World GP in Yokohama - LIVE Results

It is going to be a great night of fights in Yokohama today. K-1 is bringing out their biggest stars, with the exception of Badr Hari who was forced to withdraw (not without controversy).

The main event had a great buildup on the press conferance yesterday, as Alistair Overeem called his girlfried on stage to hand Bonjasky a Oscar for his acting against Badr Hari in the World GP final last year. Bonjasky answered by saying that Overeem should get off the drugs, and this fight got personal. It is MMA against K-1, and Bonjasky does not want to loose this.

There will be spoilers if you read on, for the opening fights, I have only one result the main card is about to start.

Opening Fights:
1. Takashi Tachikawa vs. Yutaka Sakama
2. Hiraku Hori vs. Takumi Sato
3. Mitsugu Noda Def. Yang Rae Yoo by Decision

Main-Card:
Heavyweight Tournament:
4. Semi-Final 2: Melvin Manhoef vs. Keijiro Maeda
Maeda KOs Manhoef in round 1!!! Manhoef charges forward and it looks like he is going in for the kill. Maeda counters with a straight right that floors the favorite.

5. Semi-Final 1: Tyrone Spong vs. Gokhan Saki
Very close 1st round and the judges all score it 10-10.
2nd round is scored 10-10 again. All equal going in to round 3.
Round 3 is scored a draw as well. We will have an extention round, and this should favor Maeda. Gokhan Saki KOs Spong with an overhand right, he got up but it was not able to continue. KO win to Saki!!! Maeda is very fresh, but the 2 underdogs go through.

6. Semmy Schilt vs. Hesdy Gerges
Semmy's jab does all the damage in round 1 and Schilt gets round 1 10-9. Gerges is knocked down with 1 minute remaining in round 2, but he gets back up. Hesdy is still coming forward, but Schlit gets the round 10-8. The fight goes the distance, and Schilt gets the win by Decision.

7. Jerome LeBanner vs. Ewerton Teixeira
Teixeira throws a lot of body kicks that LeBanner has to block with his left arm, which he has injured several times. It looks like Teixeira has the upper hand. Judges have it 20-19 after 2 rounds to Teixeira. Ewerton still working on LeBanner's left arm. LeBanner finishes very strong and we might have another round.

All judges score it a draw and we go to extention. It was a very close round, LeBanner finished well again. Will it be another round? 1 judge score it for LeBanner, the other score it a draw. It will be a 2nd extention round. LeBanner does not like the decision and comes out very agressively in this round.

The round is very close and the judges score it Teixeira 2-1!

8. Junichi Sawayashiki vs. Glaube Feitosa
Sawayashiki gets knocked down twice in the end of round 1, the bell saves Sawayashiki in this round. A clear round to Feitosa all judges score it 10-7.

A Feitosa left knocks out Sawayashiki early in the second. Dominant performance by Feitosa.

9. Peter Aerts vs. Errol Zimmerman
Aerts looks very fit, it is a close round though. 1 judge score it for the veteran, the other 2 score it a draw.

Zimmerman looks to have Aerts in trouble, but the veteran comes back. It was another close round, both fighters having their moments. Zimmerman takes the round 10-9.

Just before the bell Aerts has Zimmerman in trouble, this will be a close fight and I think it will be an extention round. All judges score it a draw and we will have an extention round.

Aerts is stronger in the extention round and should get the decision. The judges agree 3-0 to Peter Aerts.

10. Heavyweight Tournament Final: Keijiro Maeda vs. Gokhan Saki
Maeda is coming out strong and surprising a lot of people, his legkicks are turning Saki's leg red. It is a close round though, the judges score it a draw.

Maeda continues to come forward and it is a close and good fight. Maeda is countering well, but so far Saki is not showing signs of tiring though. The fight is a draw after 2 rounds.

Another entertaining round, Maeda looks like he is grinding Saki down. Maeda should win it after a strong performance in the 3rd round. The judges disagree with me, it is a draw and an extention round.

It was another close round, Saki finished strong but was it enough?

Maeda gets the upset win 2-0!!! Very good fight, and a huge upset. Maeda looks like he has improved a lot.

11. Main-Event: Remy Bonjasky vs. Alistair Overeem
The BIG fight, K-1 vs. MMA (K-1 Rules, I want to see MMA rules too now)!

The fighters are in the ring and Overeem looks very intense.

Overeem agressive in the start, but the round is even. Everytime Bonjasky tries the leg kick Overeem is able to grab the leg.

Round 2, Overeem continues to move forward and Bonjasky looks like he is not able to deal with Overeem's strength and size. The judges have it a draw so far.

Just as Overeem looks like he is walking away with it, a right sends him to the ground. Overeem is back up, but Bonjasky has the advantage now.

Remy Bonjasky gets the decision 3-0!


Quick Results:
1. Takashi Tachikawa vs. Yutaka Sakama
2. Hiraku Hori vs. Takumi Sato
3. Mitsugu Noda Def. Yang Rae Yoo by Decision
4. Semi-Final 2: Keijiro Maeda Def. Melvin Manhoef by KO Round 1
5. Semi-Final 1: Gokhan Saki Def.Tyrone Spong by KO Ext. Round
6. Semmy Schilt Def. Hesdy Gerges by Decision 3-0
7. Ewerton Teixeira Def. Jerome LeBanner by Decision 2-1
8. Glaube Feitosa Def. Junichi Sawayashiki by KO Round 2
9. Peter Aerts Def. Errol Zimmerman by Decision after ext. 3-0

10. Heavyweight Tournament Final:
Keijiro Maeda Def. Gokhan Saki by Decision 2-0

11. Main-Event: Remy Bonjasky Def. Alistair Overeem by Decision 3-0

Read more...

3/28 K-1 World GP 2009 in Yokohama - Fight Order

K-1 will get a new heavyweight champion tomorrow, fighting for the belt stripped from Badr Hari are:
-Melvin Manhoef
-Gokhan Saki
-Keijiro Maeda
-Tyrone Spong

It will be interesting to see how this plays out, the main event will be Remy Bonjasky against Alistair Overeem. And his fight here is probably the reason we wont see Overeem on the DREAM card.

11. Main-Event: Remy Bonjasky vs. Alistair Overeem
10. Heavyweight Tournament Final: Winner Semi-final 1 vs. Winner Semi-final 2
9. Peter Aerts vs. Errol Zimmerman
8. Junichi Sawayashiki vs. Glaube Feitosa
7. Jerome LeBanner vs. Ewerton Teixeira
6. Semmy Schilt vs. Hesdy Gerges

Heavyweight Tournament:
5. Semi-Final 1: Tyrone Spong vs. Gokhan Saki
4. Semi-Final 2: Melvin Manhoef vs. Keijiro Maeda

Opening Fights:
3. Mitsugu Noda vs. Yang Rae Yoo
2. Hiraku Hori vs. Takumi Sato
1. Takashi Tachikawa vs. Yutaka Sakama

Read more...

K-1 World GP Ring-Girls

My piece on the Sengoku Ring-girls was one of the more popular post that I have made (no kidding)... If you missed it, its here.

From that we learned that the ring-girls normally do more than carry signs around, and hopefully we get to learn a bit more about what the K-1 girls does as well.

From left: Saki Akai, Maki Issou, Eri Sakai and Eriko Fujimoto.



Saki Akai, born January 24 1987, have 3 videos out, there are "idol" type, which means running around in bikinies etc. There is a huge market for these type of videos in Japan, but I never really got into it. She is also a model, and was one of the santa girls on a Tempur exhibition. Here are some more picutres of her in action.









DVD Covers:





Maki Issou, born March 15 1989, also has 2 videos idol videos out. She has been a swimsuit model, and is from Ishikawa prefecture. Maki was also on the cover of Funride magazine in December 2008. Here are some pictures of her.







DVD Covers:





Eri Sakai, born September 28 1986, is an accomplished model, winning "Miss" type competitions in Japan. She also has 5 DVDs out, I have been able to find the cover of 2 and the back of 1 of them. She also likes dressing up for Christmas.









DVD Covers:







Eriko Fujimoto, born August 2 1981, is a very different kind of model, and was Japan's representative in the 2004 Miss World competition. She has also been on several TV shows in Japan. Here are some pictures of her.

Read more...

4/5 DREAM 8 - Kharitonov to take on Monson!

DREAM has finalized the card for their 8th event, and I think it should be an interesting event. FEG have signed some interesting talent and there will be good fights also outside the GP.

In particular, it is interesting to see that Jeff Monson is now fighing in DREAM after fighting in Sengoku earlier. Add to that his legal problems and I am very happy to see him back in Japan.

For the welterweight GP FEG have picked up some every talented fighters and mixed with the experienced fighters already in, it should be good. In particular I am looking forward to seeing Andre Galvao in this GP, a fight between him and Sakurai should be very good. Galvao is taking on the veteran John Alessio, both making their DREAM debuts.

There might be another fight added, making it a 9-10 fight card. As has been reported, Zelg Galesic is off the card, and Andrews Nakahara is taking on Shungo Oyama instead.

Welterweight GP Round 1:
Yuya Shirai vs. 6-1-0 Jason High
Marius Zaromskis 8-2-0 vs. Seichi Ikemoto
John Alessio vs. Andre Galvao
Hayato "Mach" Sakurai 34-8-2 vs. 20-3-0 Shinya Aoki

Featherweight GP:
Hideo Tokoro 21-15-1 vs. 10-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

Non-GP Fights:
Middle: Dong Sik Yoon vs. 16-9-1 Murlio "Ninja" Rua
Middle: Andrews Nakahara vs. 7-11-0 Shungo Oyama
Heavy: Sergey Kharitonov vs. Jeff Monson
88kg: Katsuyori Shibata 2-6-1 vs. 41-29-8 Ikuhisa Minowa

Read more...

4/16 DEEP 41 - Fights Announced

Deep 41 should be another good DEEP event. It was announced yesterday that DEEP 52kg champion Miku Matsumoto will take on an American fighter in Nicdali Calanic. Japanese media is very interested in this fight, despite it being a non-title fight. Miku is on a 9 fight winning streak and have also done well in Shoot Boxing lately.

There is also a lightweight title fight announced, the new champion will be deceided between Katsunori Kikuno and Koichiro Matsumoto. These are 2 fighters that have been in great shape lately, and it should be a good fight.

Announced as a participant is Hiromitsu Kanehara, the veteran of Pancrase, Pride and Rings will be making his DEEP debut. And he will be hungry, having only won 1 of his last 15(!) fights.

I am also hearing rumors of a big name Japanese fighter maybe being added to this card.

Announced:
Lightweight Title Fight:
Katsunori Kikuno 10-1-1 vs. 7-1-0 Koichiro Matsumoto

Miku Matsumoto vs. 5-2-0 Nicdali "The Nightqueen" Calanic
Ryuki Ueyama 9-11-4 vs. 24-29-10 Kousei Kubota
Yuji Sakurai 9-14-1 vs. 2-6-1 Minoru Kato
Seigo Mizuguchi 4-4-0 vs. 2-3-0 Waka Arashi

Participants:
Hiromitsu Kanehara 16-22-1
Toshiaki Kitada 7-4-2
Tomoya Miyashita 9-5-5

Read more...

4/21 K-1 World Max Final 16 - Fights Announced

FEG have announced some fights for the K-1 World Max Final 16 event that wil take place in Fukuoka April 21.

This looks like it will be a very good event, and if you are in Fukuoka it should be a good one to go to.

It was announced today that the excentric and entertaining "Jienotsu" Nagashima will take on Albert Kraus in the tournament. Nagashima went out of the Japan Tournament after suffering a cut in his round 1 fight, a cut that opened up in his round 2 fight and forced a stoppage. He clearly made a good impression though, and now he will be back.

What to expect from him? He will enter the ring dressed like a girl...


Other fights in the Tournament will see Andre "Dida" finally getting his K-1 fight, he was due to fight in 3 days, but visa issues forced him to push it back. He will be part of the tournament here, and his opponent will be none other than 2 time champion Buakaw Por Pramuk.

Also scheduled to participate is Japanese star Masato and Russian Artur Kyshenko.

World Max Tournament FINAL16　3min x 3R Ext. 1R:
Yoshihiro Sato vs. Drago
Buakaw Por Pramuk vs. Andre "Dida" Amade
Albert Kraus vs. Yoichiro "Jienotsu" Nagashima

Opening Fight:
TATSUJI vs. Ryuji

Participants:
Masato
Artur Kyshenko
Andy Souwer
HIROYA
Murat Direkci
Nieky "The Natural" Holzken、
Taishin Kohiruimaki
Hiroki

Tickets:
SRS 23,000　
S 13,000　
A 6,000

Read more...

5/2 Sengoku 8 - Takimoto Fighting Costa

Sengoku have announced 3 fight for Sengoku 8 over the last few days, this event will take place in the Yoyogi 2nd Gymnasium.

So far it looks like it should be a very good event, it will feature the 2nd round fights of the featherweight GP. But there have been some interesting additions outside the GP over the last couple of days.

The latest announcement is that Makoto Takimoto will be fighting at welterweight, and competing for a place in the Sengoku welterweight GP that is to be held later this year. His opponent will be Chute Boxe's Michael Costa. As for other fighters in the Sengoku welterweight GP, fighters mentioned where: Josh Thompson, Mike Pyle and Fabricio Monteiro.

Of course Sengoku would like to see stars like Ryo Chonan and Akihiro Gono to return to Japan. As faith has it, I have a feeling both, but Ryo Chonan in particular is on his way out of the UFC... Maybe they would like to keep him now...

Previously it was announced that grappling star Leonardo Santos will take on Kazunori Yokota in a lightweight fight that should determine the #1 conternder for Kitaoka's belt. Kitaoka on his had is set to fight for the Pancrase belt in June.

Another grappling star returning is Xande Ribeiro. He will take on Pancrase Super-veteran Keiichiro Yamamiya, Yamamiya was the first Pancrase Light-Heavyweight champion. His last fight was a Pancrase title fight in October, a loss to Ryo Kawamura. He will be a tricky opponent for Ribeiro as he is very hard to get to the ground.

Non-Tournament:
Welter: Makoto Takimoto vs. Michael Costa
Light: Kazunori Yokota vs. Leonardo Santos
Light-Heavy: Keiichiro Yamamiya vs. Xande Ribeiro

Featherweight GP 2nd Round Participants:
Jung Chan Sung 3-0-0
Masanori Kanehara 12-5-5
Marlon Sandro 13-0-0
Michihiro Omigawa 5-7-1
Nam Phan 15-5-0
Hatsu Hioki 18-3-2
Ronnie Mann 17-1-1
Nick Denis 7-0-0

Read more...

3/28 HEAT 9 - Fights Announced

A few of the fights on this card have been ready for a while, but there have been some additions outside the tournaments too. With 4 days left, this card shoule be just about final.

If you are in Nagoya, I would strongly suggest going out to this one! There are some really good fighters on the card and it should be a fun event. The event is taking place in Nagoya.

There has been a major change to the heavyweight tournament, Dong Yi Yang, who defeated Ryuta Noji in the previous round is out due to an injury sustained during practice. Noji is stepping in to take his spot against Sentoryu, though I think the loss of Yang is bad for the tournament, Sentoryu vs. Ryuta Noji will be a very entertaining match-up.

A bit of the history of the tournaments here.

Tournament Finals:
Welter MMA Final: Justin Holdaas 2-1-0 vs. 3-0-0 Max Fernandes
Middle Kick Final: Fabiakato "RS Promotion" Lukafa vs. Kinji

Heavyweight Semi-Finals:
MMA: Sentoryu 4-7-0 vs. 7-4-0 Ryuta Noji
MMA: Christiano Kaminishi 5-1-0 vs. 11-6-0 Sang Soo Lee
Kick: Goutoku Onda vs. Makoto Uehara
Kick: Hiromi Amada vs. Moon Bo Ram

Non-Tournament Fights:
Middle Kick: Danilo Zanolini vs. Hideto Yamada
Middle Kick: Yuzo Matsumoto vs. Masatoshi Hyakutake
Welter MMA: Toshinari Takashima 3-3-2 vs. Jonathan Visitante

New Age:
MMA (70kg): Masaomi Kamino vs. 2-2-1 Kosaburo Muramatsu

Read more...

UPDATES: DREAM and Sengoku sign Fighters

I am finally back in Norway, and there were some big updates from DREAM and Sengoku while I was in the air. I thought I would just group them together here.

DREAM
GracieMag is reporting that Murilo Ninja has signed for DREAM and will fight on the DREAM 8 card scheduled for April 5. He is currently in training in Brazil, where he is working with his brother (sherdog has an article on the preparations here). "Ninja"'s opponent for his return to Japan is said to be a Korean fighter.


Of course DREAM 8 will feature the 1st round of the DREAM 8-man welterweight GP, still 4 spots open in that.

Sengoku
-The signing of the very talented grappler Leonardo Santos is not news, but Sengoku have now announced his first fight. It will take place at Sengoku 8, May 2. The opponent is the very experienced Kazunori Yokota.

-Also announced for the event is Xande Ribeiro against Keiichiro Yamamiya.

Read more...

Narita Airport Accident

Another post unrelated to MMA... As faith has it, today I am flying out of Narita, and this morning there was an accident here. This is causing major delays, and a runway is closed.

My thoughts go to the families. It was a transport flight from FedEX (I think), and from what I have heard, there are fatalities.

As far as I know the cras happened at 6:48 AM Japan time, other than that, I have very little information.

I was at Fukuoka Airport about to depart just as this accident happened. As usual, they had the news on there so I got to see the reason for the delay (not a fun feeling)

I was able to take these shots. Guess its been an eventful, but not fun day so far...

Read more...

5/10 Shooto The Final Tradition - Gomi to make a Return to Shooto

Shooto will hold the final event in their Tradition series (celebrating 20 years of Shooto), in May. The event will take place in JCB Hall, where also the first "Tradition" event took place.

This card will be a solid one, the fights announced holds some of the biggest Shooto profiles, and there is more to come.

Former champion Takanori Gomi will return to Shooto and it is going to take on the current champion Takashi Nakakura in what should be an awesome fight. Gomi is coming off 2 straight losses and will be eager to get back on the winning track. It is 6 years since Gomi fought in Shooto, that time he lost a decision to the current DREAM champion Joachim Hansen. Nakakura on the other hand, is on a 5 fight winning streak and has not lost since August 2005 when he fought Mitsuhiro Ishida.

Other fights announced were Koutetsu Boku vs. the Shooto prospect from Kyoto, Yutaka Ueda. Ueda is undefeated in Shooto, but will still come in as the underdog agianst the former Pacific champion and DREAM veteran.

The current lightweight champion "Lion" Takeshi is taking on the veteran Rumina Sato. The popular Rumina really needs a win here, having only 1 win in his last 6 fights. But the champion is not going to make it easy for him to get back on the winning track.

Announced:
Takanori Gomi 29-5-0 vs. 11-2-1 Takashi Nakakura
Koutetsu Boku 13-5-2 vs. 6-1-1 Yutaka Ueda
"Lion" Takeshi Inoue 15-3-0 vs. 24-13-2 Rumina Sato

Read more...

3/20 Shooto Tradition 6- Results

Shooto Tradition 6 starts at the same time as the Sengoku event today. I will be updating the results as they become available here.

2 title fights on the card and lots of interesting talent, it should be a good event in Korakuen Hall.

Bantamweight Shooto World Title Fight:
9. Shinichi "BJ" Kojima Def. Yuki Shoujou by rear-naked choke Round 3 0:38

Featherweight Shooto World Title Fight:
8. Masakatsu Ueda Def. So Tazawa by Decsion 3-0
Another strong decision win for Ueda.

There is a break before the final 2 fights. In that, there are some announcements, May 10 Shooto will hold the Tradition Final, and on the card will be the following:

Koutetsu Boku vs. Yutaka Ueda
"Lion" Takeshi vs. Rumina Sato

Participating:
Takashi Nakakura

6. Feather: Hiromasa Ogikubo Def. Tetsu "Hadairo" Suzuki by decision 3-0
5. Fly: Noburo "Shinpei" Tahara vs. Takehiro Harusaki DRAW
4. Bantam: Masaaki Sugawara vs. Daiji Takahashi DRAW
3. Fly: Atsushi "ATCH Anarchy" Takeuchi Def. Mikitoshi Yamagami by Decsion 3-0
2. Welter: Takayuki Okochi Def. Michiyuki Ishibashi by KO Round 1 0:13

Rookie Tournament:
1. Feather: Kota Onojima Def. Takashi Niikuni by TKO

Read more...

3/20 Sengoku 7 - RESULTS

It is Sengoku's turn to kick off the featherweight GP, DREAM started their earlier this month and I will call it a bit disappointing. Lets hope the Sengoku GP lives up to expectations.

I will be posting the results live, or close to it here.

Spoilers for those who read on (starting 5PM Japan time). This event should air LIVE on HDNet!

Some background reading:
Sherdog Weigh-in
Sherdog Preview
MMA Weekly Preview
DREAM vs. Sengoku GP (Recommended)

Sherdog PbP

1. Feather GP: Seiya Kawahara 6-1-0 vs. 6-0-0 Nick Denis
Nick Denis is too strong for Kawahara, TKO in ROund 1.

2. Feather GP: Tetsuya Yamada 3-0-0 vs. 16-1-1 Ronnie Mann
Yamada is impressive and showes that he has ground skills. Mann has been mostly on the defensive (I disagree with the Sherdog scores then...). Awesome first round by both fighters though. Mann looks like the fresher fighter coming out for round 2.

Round 2 is clearly for Mann, Yamamda gets taken down and though he is never really in danger does little to do damage. Yamamda has tried to work a kimura, but so far Mann has been able to avoid.

Yamada comes out hard in the final round, but Mann takes it to the ground. Yamada looks like he is getting tired and Mann is taking over. It goes the distance, and it should go to Mann.

Ronnie Mann gets a close decision. 3-0

3. Feather GP: Shintaro Ishiwatari 6-1-3 vs. 2-0-0 Jung Chan Sung
The fighters come out swinging. Ishiwatari is the better technical striker, but Jung has the reach, and tags Ishiwatari. As Ishiwatari goes to the ground, Jung gets the back and sinks in the rear-naked choke. Round 1 submission win. Awesome fight.

4. Feather GP: Masanori Kanehara 11-5-5 vs. 3-5-3 Jong Man Kim
Kanehara controls round 1 and had Kim in trouble, Kim went to the ground but Kanehara got stuck in the half guard (I suspect his ZST experience worked against him here). Kanehara wins round 1.

Kanehara is in control most of the round, but just as the time is running out Kim gets a guilliotine attempt that looks very tight. We will never know if this would finish the fight, as the bell rings. Kanehara should be in control at this point.

Another close, but action packed fight goes the distance. Kanehara should get this IMO.

Kanehara gets the decsion 3-0.

5. Feather GP: Marlon Sandro 12-0-0 vs. 9-4-0 Matt Jaggers
Sandro is able to get the takedowns, but is not able to advance. Every time Sandro advance his position, Jaggers reverses. A VERY close round, but Sandro has the takedowns.

Sandro takes the fight to the ground again, and gets Katagatame choke in round 2.

6. Feather GP: Michihiro Omigawa 4-7-1 vs. 13-1-0 L.C. Davis
Omigawa gets the take down and works his way to mount. He is having a hard time utilizing it though. As Davis tries to get out, Omigawa gets the back, then the arm and the round ends. Omigawa wins round 1.

Its like Omigawa has figured out how he should fight... He is able to take Davis down againg, but Davis gets back up. Davis needs to keep this fight standing, round 2 is very close though. I think Omigawa has control at this point.

Records mean nothing, and here is the proof! Omigawa has dominated Davis, Davis has not been able to do anything to stop Omigawa's offence.

Omigawa gets the decision 3-0!

BREAK TIME: There is a break, and Satoru Kitaoka enters the ring. He will defend his belt in August, and he will fight once before that.

7. Non-GP Heavy: James Thompson 14-9-0 vs. 9-2-0 "Big" Jim York
Thompson runs in and misses, York follows up and starts the round better. It is a slugfest and "Big" Jim hits with a left that sends Thompson to the ground, KO win for "Big" Jim York.

8. Feather GP: Hideki Kadowaki 13-8-2 vs. 14-5-0 Nam Phan
Phan sends the former Shooto champion to the ground in the first round. A right hook sends Kadowaki down, big KO win. Kadowaki was never able to get it to the ground in an action packed 1st round.

9. Feather GP: Hatsu Hioki 17-3-2 vs. 6-0-2 Chris Manuel
Hioki is on the offensive from the start, Manuel does well to defend all the submission attempts from Hioki. Eventually Hioki has a mounted triangle and the fight is over. A DOMINATING performance!!

Main Event: Non-GP Light-Heavy:
10. Ryo Kawamura 9-3-2 vs. 3-0-0 Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal
Kawamura looks like he is being outpowered early on. Kawamura survives round 1, but its all King Mo.

Looks like Kawamura got poked in the eye, and it takes up a lot of time, twice. "King Mo" gets a yellow and he has never gone this far in a fight... It is closer in round 2, but Kawamura looks the more defensive fighter. This round might be a draw due to the yellow card though.

"King Mo" looks like he is more comfortable getting the takedowns now. Kawamura is the one fighting to stand up, but King Mo just continues to take it to the ground. The fight goes the distance, but it should go to King Mo.

King Mo gets the decision 3-0

Read more...

3/20 Shooto Tradition 6 - Hiromasa Ogikubo

I was going to write up something on both the Sengoku and the Shooto events going on today, but with all the moving and stuff going on there has just been no time.

1 fight feature a guy from my gym, and I spoke with him just over a week ago. Hiromasa Ogikubo is facing the grappling specialist Haidairo. This should be a very good fight. The winner should be close to a title shot, Ogikubo's previous opponent (So Tazawa) is fighting for the title on the same card.

I think most fight fans are familiar with Hadairo, especially since he has competed in ADCC. Hadairo has very good ground skills, but Katsuya Toida will tell you that he can punch too (if you stand still and smile at him).

Ogikubo won the 2007 Rookie Tournament in the featherweight division, and has gone on to be ranked #7 in that division. He is still undefeated and this could be seen as his biggest fight so far in his career. Ogikubo likes to go for takedown and in top position rain down punches and in many cases get the chance of finishing by rear naked choke.

This is a fighter to take note of, if you havent already.

Here are some of his fights:

Rookie Tournament Final 2007 vs. Yasuhiro Kanayama


vs. Hiroyuki Tanaka (Shooto Tradition 2)


vs. Kazuya Tamura (Back to Our Roots 5)

Read more...

4/5 DREAM 8 - "Mach" will take on Aoki!

FEG has announced a big fight for round 1 in the welterweight GP. Both Aoki and Sakurai have expressed an interest in this re-match. In 2005 "Mach" defeated Aoki by decision in Shooto, and Aoki has expressed that he would like a chance for a rematch. When I met with Sakurai, he also expressed an interest in this match-up and it should be a very good one.

There are still 4 spots open in this GP, with no foreign fighter announced yet.

Welterweight GP:
Hayato "Mach" Sakurai 34-8-2 vs. 20-3-0 Shinya Aoki

Non-GP Fights:
Zelg "Benkei" Galesic 9-4-0 vs. 1-1-0 Andrews Nakahara
Katsuyori Shibata 2-6-1 vs. 41-29-8 Ikuhisa Minowa

Featherweight GP:
Hideo Tokoro 21-15-1 vs. 10-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

Welterweight GP Participants:
Seichi Ikemoto 18-14-5
Yuya Shirai 15-7-0

Read more...

3/20 Shooto Tradition 6 - ***REMINDER***

***REMINDER***
This card has been ready for a while and it is very good. Personally, I am looking forward to the Ogikubo fight, but there are 2 title fights on as well. Also, look out for Yamagami, who always seems to be a hit with the crowd.

***

The Shooto Trandition series have been awesome, as you would expect as Shooto is celebrating its 20th anniversary with this.

The latest event, #6 in the series, will have 2 title fights on the card. The main-event will be the bantamweight title fight between "BJ" Kojima and Yuki Shoujou. "BJ" is coming off a draw with Jesse Taitano at Tradition 5. Shoujou defeated Shooto veteran Yasuhiro Urushitani in this last fight, and this should be a very good fight.

The co-main event is the other title fight on the card. The undefeated Masakatsu Ueda is taking on So Tazawa. Tazawa is coming off a draw with Ogikubo in Tradition 4. So Tazawa have not lost since his last fight with Ueda, that almost exactly 2 years ago and Ueda won by Brabo choke in round 3.

Also on the card are some very interesting fights. Ogikubo, who is unbeaten in his Shooto career, will take on the grappling specialist "Hadairo".

There was one fight added with the announcement of the fight order. The veteran Takayuki Okochi will take on Michiyuki Ishibashi. Okochi have not tasted victory in over 6 years, and should be very determined to get one here. Ishibashi is not far behind, his only professional win was back in 2007, or 4 fights ago.

Bantamweight Shooto World Title Fight:
9. Shinichi "BJ" Kojima vs. 8-4-2 Yuki Shoujou

Featherweight Shooto World Title Fight:
8. Masakatsu Ueda 8-0-2 vs. 8-3-3 So Tazawa

6. Feather: Hiromasa Ogikubo 5-0-2 vs. 8-6-3 Tetsu "Hadairo" Suzuki
5. Fly: Noburo "Shinpei" Tahara 5-3-0 vs. 5-4-0 Takehiro Harusaki
4. Bantam: Masaaki Sugawara 7-3-0 vs. 6-10-3 Daiji Takahashi
3. Fly: Atsushi "ATCH Anarchy" Takeuchi 5-4-2 vs. 3-0-0 Mikitoshi Yamagami
2. Welter: Takayuki Okochi 7-12-3 vs. 1-5-1 Michiyuki Ishibashi

Rookie Tournament:
1. Feather: Takashi Niikuni 1-0-0 vs. Kota Onojima

Read more...

Shooto March Rankings

Only minor changes this month, mainly due to the fights at the first Gig Tokyo event in Shinjuku Face.

Most notably, flyweight ranked #2 Shinya Murofushi suffered his first loss.

The welterweight division saw unranked Kenichiro Togashi defeat #3 ranked Ganjo Tentsuku.

Flyweight:
Champion: Open

1. → Ramba “M-16” Somdet
2. ↑ Noburo "Shinpei" Tahara
3. ↑ "Heat" Takeshi Sato
4. ↓ Shinya Murofushi
5. ↓ Takehiro Harusaki
6. ↓ Atsushi Takeuchi
7. ↓ Hiroaki Yoshioka

"Heat" Takeshi submitted #2 ranked Shinya Murofushi at GIG Tokyo Vol. 1 and comes in at #3, "Shinpei" Tahara climbs into the vacant #2 spot.


Bantamweight:
Champion: → Shinichi “BJ” Kojima
-From October 14 2006, Defended 3 times against Mamoru, Akagi and Urushitani

1. → Yuki Shoujou
2. → Ryuichi Miki
3. → Yasuhiro Urushitani
4. → Junji Ikoma
5. → Mamoru Yamaguchi
6. → Jucie Formiga
7. ↑ Shimokawa Yusei
8. ↑ Jesse Taitano
9. ↓ Masatoshi Abe
10. → Yasuhiro Akagi

Masatoshi Abe has not fought for a year and a half and is moved down in the ranking.


Featherweight:
Champion: → Masakatsu Ueda
-From March 28 2008, Defended 1 Time against Galvao

1. → Eduardo Dantas
2. → Marcos “Louro” Galvao
3. → Daniel Lima
4. → Koetsu Okazaki
5. → So Tazawa
6. → Atsushi Yamamoto
7. → Hiromasa Ogikubo
8. → Kenji Osawa
9. → Junya "Kodo" Kudo
10. → Tetsu Suzuki

No Change


Lightweight:
Champion: → “Lion” Takeshi Inoue
-From November 29 2008.

1. → Akitoshi Tamura
2. → Hatsu Hioki
3. → Hideki Kadowaki
4. → Antonio Carvalho
5. → Savant Young
6. → Hiroshi "Iron" Nakamura
7. → Renan Barao
8. → Bao Quach
9. → Rumina Sato
10. → David Lejenas




Welterweight:
Champion: → Takashi Nakakura
-From May 3 2008 Defended 0 times)

1. → Yusuke Endo
2. → Willamy Chiquerim "Chiqueirinho"
3. ↑ Bendy Casimir
4. ↑ Kenichiro Togashi
5. ↓ Ganjo Tensuku
6. ↓ Hamid Corassani
7. → Grzegorz Trendowski
8. ↑ Mizuto Hirota
9. ↑ Koutetsu Boku
10. ↓ Jani Lax

Kenichiro Togashi gets a strong win against Ganjo Tentsuku at Gig Tokyo vol. 1 and climbs into 4th spot. Brian Cobb goes out of the ranking due to inactivity.


Middleweight:
Champion: → Shinya Aoki
-From February 17 2006, defended 0 times

1. → David Baron
2. → Xavier Lucas
3. → Wim Deputter
4. → Niek Tromp
5. → Igor Fernandes
6. → Zelim Felican
7. → Roemer Trumpert
8. → Hernani Perpetuo
9. → Akihiro Yamazaki
10. → Tommy Depret

No Change


Light-Heavyweight:
Champ: → Siyar Bahadourzada (From July 15 2007, defended 0 times)

1. → Leandro Silva
2. → Akihiro Murayama
3. → Andre Silva
4. → Sauli Heilimo
5. → Grazhuydas Smailis
6. → Masashi Yozen
7. → Nathan Schouteren
8. → Petras Morkevicius
9. → Rolandas Agrba
10. → Shiko Yamashita

No Change

Read more...

4/5 DREAM 8 - Shirai Qualifies for DREAM GP

This is news from Saturday, but I forgot my laptop in the hotel and I am just now able to catch up on news...

Anyway, DEEP held a DREAM welterweight GP qualifier in the ClubDEEP event on March 14. The winner was Yuya Shirai, and he is therefore the 4th confirmed participant in this 8-man tournament.

The event now looks like this:
Non-GP Fights:
Zelg "Benkei" Galesic 9-4-0 vs. 1-1-0 Andrews Nakahara
Katsuyori Shibata 2-6-1 vs. 41-29-8 Ikuhisa Minowa

Welterweight GP Participants:
Hayato "Mach" Sakurai 34-8-2
Shinya Aoki 19-3-0
Seichi Ikemoto 18-14-5
Yuya Shirai 15-7-0

Featherweight GP:
Hideo Tokoro 21-15-1 vs. 10-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

Read more...

Caol Uno Announced for UFC 99

I have been without a computer for a few days, so this might be old news. It has also been rumored for a while, but Caol Uno is making a return to the UFC in June.

UFC 99 is taking place in Germany, that is the first UFC event to take place there (to my knowledge).

Caol Uno did well in the DREAM GP last year, but lost out to Shinya Aoki in a fight he was mostly on the defensive. The fight before that he showed how good he is by submitting Mitsuhiro Ishida, something that was never done before.

Caol Uno makes his return against Spencer Fisher.

Read more...

3/20 Sengoku 7 - Fight Order

A week before the event WVR have announced the fight order for Sengoku 7. Sengoku also has a feeatherweight GP this year, and unlike DREAM all the round 1 fights seems to take place at this event.

King Mo's profile is now high enough to warrant him taking on Ryo Kawamura in the main event. These are 2 fighters that are popular with the Japanese fans, and it should be a good fight.

The featherweight GP has a good mix of new and very talented fighters and some very experienced fighters.

This event also signals the return of James Thompson to Japan!

Main Event: Non-GP Light-Heavy:
10. Ryo Kawamura 9-3-2 vs. 3-0-0 Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal

9. Feather GP: Hatsu Hioki 17-3-2 vs. 6-0-2 Chris Manuel
8. Feather GP: Hideki Kadowaki 13-8-2 vs. 14-5-0 Nam Phan
7. Non-GP Heavy: James Thompson 14-9-0 vs. 9-2-0 "Big" Jim York
6. Feather GP: Michihiro Omigawa 4-7-1 vs. 13-1-0 L.C. Davis
5. Feather GP: Marlon Sandro 12-0-0 vs. 9-4-0 Matt Jaggers
4. Feather GP: Masanori Kanehara 11-5-5 vs. 3-5-3 Jong Man Kim
3. Feather GP: Shintaro Ishiwatari 6-1-3 vs. 2-0-0 Jung Chan Sung
2. Feather GP: Tetsuya Yamada 3-0-0 vs. 16-1-1 Ronnie Mann Ushiwaka
1. Feather GP: Seiya Kawahara 6-1-0 vs. 6-0-0 Nick Denis

Read more...

4/5 DREAM 8 - Fights Announced

FEG have announced 2 non-GP fights today. Zelg "Benkei" Galesic will be taking on Brazilian Andrews Nakahara in a middleweight fight.

Also announced is a fight that should please the Japanese crowd, Ikuhisa Minowa will take on fellow prowrestler Katsuyori Shibata in a fight that is sure to be very entertaining.

Of course, already announced is a fight in the featherweight GP between DJ Taiki and Hideo Tokoro.

Announced:
Zelg "Benkei" Galesic 9-4-0 vs. 1-1-0 Andrews Nakahara
Katsuyori Shibata 2-6-1 vs. 41-29-8 Ikuhisa Minowa

Previously Announced:
Welterweight GP Participants:
Hayato "Mach" Sakurai 34-8-2
Shinya Aoki 19-3-0
Seichi Ikemoto 18-14-5
Winner of Yuya Shirai 14-7-0 vs. 9-3-0 Yoon Young Kim

Featherweight GP:
Hideo Tokoro 21-15-1 vs. 10-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

Read more...

DREAM 8 Poster

This is the DREAM 8 Poster (I have a feeling there will be a more artistic one too).

As you can see, a few fighters are revealed: Ronaldo Jacare and Katsuyori Shibata.

The other fighters were already announced: Hideo Tokoro, DJ Taiki, Hayato "Mach" Sakurai and Shinya Aoki.

Read more...

Less Updates the Coming Week

The time has come for me to pack up my things and head back to Norway to search for a job. I will continue this blog and give you the Japanese news, hopefully add some European news as well.

But this week I am packing up the things here in Japan, I will also be spending a week on the road going from Tokyo to Fukuoka (a well deserved holiday). So I expect less updates, but I will be making posts if something big comes up.

Read more...

3/8 Shooto BORDER- Season 1 - RESULTS

The "other" event last night took place in Osaka. This one was sold out, and I am sure the crowd enjoyed it. Most of the fights went the distance, and that shows that there were some competitive fight here.

The main event saw veteran Junji Ikoma come out on top against last years rookie tournament champion and the previously undefeated Fumihiro Kitahara.

The co-main event saw another rookie tournament champion, Kosuke Eda draw his fight with Hiroyuki Tanaka.

Junji Ikoma Def. Fumihiro Kitahara by Decision 2-0
Kosuke Eda vs. Hiroyuki Tanaka Draw
Kazuya Satomoto Def. Yukinari "Hibiki" Tamura by TKO (doctor stop) Round 2 1:10

Rookie Tournament Fights:
Light: Tsuneo "Jackknife" Kimura Def. Takayoshi Ono by Decision 3-0
Welter: "Gypsy" Taro Kusano Def. Hiroshi Sugimoto by Decision 2-0
Feather: Keita Yoshida vs. Joji Kawamata "Joestar" Draw
Fly: Teppei Masuda Def. Hiroyuki "Ron" Kondo by Decision 3-0

Read more...

DREAM 7 Ratings SUCKED!

I have no other words for it... They aired it late at night, and there were not too many stars on the card. BUT a rating of 2.4% is not good.... Shinya Aoki vs. David Gardner drew the biggest crowd with 4%. Good thing Gardner got to say hello.

The attendance is reported to have been 19,528, which is much higher than I thought it would have been...

Source:
SportsNavi

Read more...

4/5 DREAM 8 - Participants So Far

DREAM 7 is just over and all I am thinking is that DREAM needs the next few events to be a bigger success than it was last night. There were some ok fights, and I think hard-core fans enjoyed the event, but this was not the kind of event that would draw the average person into watch DREAM next time. Some sections in the arena looked empty as well.

The main attraction for DREAM 8 will be the welterweight GP, and they have Hayato "Mach" Sakurai and Shinya Aoki in that. In addition to the 2 stars, DEEP champion Seichi Ikemoto will participate.

It is also announced that, in a now familiar way, Yuya Shirai and Korean Yoon Young Kim will fight for a spot in the GP. This fight will take place in ClubDEEP March 14.

Welterweight GP Participants:
Hayato "Mach" Sakurai 34-8-2
Shinya Aoki 19-3-0
Seichi Ikemoto 18-14-5
Winner of Yuya Shirai 14-7-0 vs. 9-3-0 Yoon Young Kim

Featherweight GP:
Hideo Tokoro 21-15-1 vs. 10-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

Non-GP Participant:
Ikuhisa Minowa 41-29-8

Read more...

3/8 DREAM 7 - LIVE Results

I will be posting results and some short comments here. Am at home, enjoying the event live on SkyPerfect.

For play-by-play, Sherdog will do the honors, that means that I can sit back and relax with a few friends and beers.

If you have some questions relating to the event, please feel free to leave a comment (if you get an error message, click the "Post Comment" button again).

It should be a very good and exciting event, and it will start a couple of hours after the UFC event finishes (4PM Japan time).

Some background reading:
My preditions
Some Betting Odds (so many sites out there for this..)
Presenting the Featherweights (Sengoku and DREAM

Other sites to follow the event on:
Sherdog PbP
BloodyElbow

Spoilers if you read on!

The live broadcast has started, and we should soon be watching the first fight.

DREAM 7 is dedicated to the memory of Helio Gracie, both Kazushi Sakuraba and Yuki Nakai was in the ring to honor his memory.

Results:
1. Feather GP: Takafumi Otsuka 8-3-1 vs. 3-2-0 Bibiano Fernandes
The fighters are making their way to the ring, it looks like there would be no problem getting a ticket, but its still early. I think this might be one of the better fights though.

Round 1
Bibiano gets the takedown early, and is working for side control. Bibiano has been on top so far, but the damage is limited to some punches and the ref stands it up. Bibiano gets yellow card, and looks puzzled, the crowd agrees.
Otsuka looks nervous,and he has a bloody nose that seems to attract his attention. So far Bibiano should be ahead.

1st round is over and I think Otsuka has looked nervous. Bibiano won this round, but it is judged as one.

Round 2
Bibiano gets Otsukas back early in the 2nd, but Otsuka just stands up and is able to get out. IMO Otsuka is showing his skills only in defense today, normally he is a very offensive fighter and I think it looks like he is afraid of losing. Otsuka is hit with a knee that almost ends the fight, but he is able to continue to fight back.

This should be a decision to Bibiano.
The judges agree 3-0 Bibiano.

2. Feather GP: Chase Beebe 12-3-0 vs. Joe Warren
The fighters are in the ring.

Round 1
As expected, Joe Warren is going for takedowns, but so far is unable to make it stick. Chase is looking good on his feet so far. Beebe looks like he is getting tired in the 2nd half of the round and Warren is able to take him down. The momentum is changing a bit now. Beebe gets a big cut over his left eye from a knee, the end of the round was all Warren.

The doctor stops the fight due to the cut on Chase Beebe, Joe Warren wins his debut.

3. Feather GP: "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura 9-3-1 vs. 13-2-0 Abel Cullum
The fighters are in the ring now, and "Wicky" is now known as the MMA Monkey.

Round 1
So far, Cullum has been very agressive and been able to take the fight to the ground. "Wicky" gets out of what looks like a very good arm-bar attempt, but Cullum is spending a lot of energy. "Wicky" is not able to get the space he needs to far. "Wicky" is very busy defending on the ground, this is a very good jiu-jitsu fight so far. Cullum has been cut by a knee and some counter punches, but he is still winning this fight so far. Cullum gets mount and this time makes it count, but "Wicky" scrambles and gets guard.

Round 2
Cullum has come in with a VERY good gameplan, the fight has been all ground so far and "Wicky" has not been able to get anything going. Finally "Wicky" gets something going, but the time is almost up.

"Wicky" got to show a little bit, but Cullum should get this decision in a very good fight. Cullum really showed that he is quality fighter.

Cullum gets the decision 3-0

4. Light: Mitsuhiro Ishida 17-4-1 vs. 19-9-0 Daisuke Nakamura
Round 1
This fight starts slow, Ishida is very careful in going forwards and then goes for a takedown. Nakamura is going for a Kimura. Nakamura scrambles, but Ishida gets out on top. Nakamura is very technical, but Ishida is showing strength is getting out of kimura attempt. Nakamura gets a small cut, looks like it is from the glove, not a puch. The doctor checks it, and the fight continues. This is turning into a ground fight with Nakamura on the bottom.

Round 2
The 2nd round is continuing like the first, Ishida is on top and Nakamura is scambling to get out. Nakamura is going for a leg-lock in the dying seconds, but time runs out. I would give this to Ishida.

Decision goes to Ishida 3-0

5. Welter: Shinya Aoki 19-3-0 vs. 16-10-0 David Gardner
Round 1
The fighters are standing off in the start, as expected Aoki goes for a takedown and gets mount. Like a spider Aoki takes the back and continues to work for a choke, Gardner fights it off so far. Gardner is able to get out and runs away to make Aoki stand up. Aoki quicky gets the back and Gardner deceides to say "hello Japan", Aoki uses that to sink in the choke and gets the submission by rear-naked choke. One of the most stupid things I have seen....

Break - No News...

6. Light: Ross Ebanez 19-6-0 vs. 22-5-2 Tatsuya Kawajiri
Fighters are entering the ring for the first after the break.

Round 1
Ebanez didnt make weight and gets yellow card. Kawajiri gets the takedown, as expected, but Ebanez is able to get back up. Kawajiri gets the back and attempts to get a rear-naked in. Eventually the rear-naked choke sinks in, a convinsing win by Kawajiri.

Kawajiri wants to fight JZ Calvan at DREAM 9! That would be an awesome fight!

7. Feather GP: Yoshiro Maeda 23-6-2 vs. 10-2-0 Micah Miller
Micah Miller comes in wearing long tights, dont know if he will wear them in the fight but this is one fight I have been looking forward to!

Round 1
Miller looks a lot taller than I expected. Maeda is running around the reach so far and they almost fall out of the ring. Maeda takes Miller (who is compered to Aoki by Japanese commentators) down. Maeda is not making much progress on top, Miller is showing off his guard. The ref stands it up and gives a yellow (I dont know who), the fight goes straight back to the ground, Miller on bottom. Miller goes for an omopalata, but Maeda gets out. The fights been all Miller so far.

Round 2
Miller looks a lot more tired than Maeda, but he is leading after the 1st round. Miller is tired but continues to go forward and try for takedowns. Maeda is still looking good and the fight could go either way. Just as the bell rings Miller has an arm-bar attempt going. I would give it to Miller.

Maeda gets the decision 3-0, and I am surprised!

8. Feather GP: Hiroyuki Takaya 9-6-1 vs. Kim Jong Won
Round 1
Looks like Won is not going for takedowns yet, but I expect that to change soon. Very quiet start to the fight. Takaya throws a body kick that allows Won to take him down, but it looks like Takaya will get right back up. The fight has been mainly standup, but very little action.

Round 2
Takaya closes in and a straight right hits the target. The ref steps in to save won as Takaya continues the GnP. Takaya by TKO.

Main-Event - Featherweight Round 1:
9. Masakazu Imanari 15-6-1 vs. 12-5-1 Atsushi Yamamoto
Round 1
Yamamoto shows he has power in his punches, but it only takes Imanari to the ground (where he wants to be). Imanari has Yamamoto in his guard, but is unable to do anything. He is going for a gogopalata, but the ref stands it up. Nothing really happens on the feet and Yamamoto gets another takedown. Imanari sweeps and gets on top, still no sign of a foot lock that everyone is expecting. Instead he goes for an arm-bar. Yamamoto gets out on top and is in Imanari's guard. Imanari continue to go for the gogopalata when the bell rings.

Round 2
Imanari gets another yellow as Yamamoto is on top and Imanari is inactive ont he bottom. Imanari is keeping his dstance, and to be honest its pretty boring. Yamamoto gets another takedown and is on top. Imanari uses the rubber guard, like he has all fight, and Yamamoto gets up. The fight ends with Yamamoto on top, like most of the fight, and he should get this decision.

Imanari get the decision 2-1!

Read more...

3/8 Shooto -BORDER- Season 1 - The complete card *Reminder*

***REMINDER***
Thought it would be useful just to remind you that its not only DREAM taking place tomorrow. This Shooto event is also taking place in Osaka, and is nearly sold out. There is still standing room available, those tickets are JPY4,000.
**************************************

TK Promotion and Shooto Japan is putting on what should be a very interesting card in Hirano City center on March 8. Already the card is finalized, so they cant be blamed for not being properly prepared.

There are 7 fights on the card, and the last 2 should be very interesting. In addition to that, there is of course some Rookie Tournament fights on as well.

The main event is Shooto veteran Junji Ikoma against 2008 rookie tournament winner, the unbeaten Fumihiro Kitahara. Ikoma finished 2008 ranked #4, but he didnt have the best of years. Though he didnt lose any fights, he only managed to win 1 of 4 (2 draws against Jin Akimoto).

The co-main event sees the Pacific ranked #10 Hiroyuki Tanaka take on another 2008 Rookie Tournament champion in Kosuke Eda. So, 2 of last years Rookie Tournament champions get a chance to improve their rankings early in 2009. I am sure that will give the fighters who are in this year's tournament some extra inspiration when they have their first round fight in this card.

7. Main-Event: Bantam: Junji Ikoma 11-9-4 vs. 4-0-0 Fumihiro Kitahara
6. Feather: Kosuke Eda 7-2-2 vs. 6-5-1 Hiroyuki Tanaka
5. Welter: Yukinari "Hibiki" Tamura 8-2-4 vs. 4-2-0 Kazuya Satomoto

Rookie Tournament Fights:
4. Light: Takayoshi Ono 4-4-1 vs. 2-1-0 Tsuneo "Jackknife" Kimura
3. Welter: "Gypsy" Taro Kusano 1-2-1 vs. 1-1-1 Hiroshi Sugimoto
2. Feather: Keita Yoshida 2-0-1 vs. 3-2-2 Joji Kawamata "Joestar"
1. Fly: Teppei Masuda 1-2-1 vs. 1-1-0 Hiroyuki "Ron" Kondo

Read more...

DREAM 7 - Predictions

I normally don't do this, but I am seeing that some fans think this is the weakest DREAM card yet. These things are always subjective, but I would wait until after the event to judge. The fact that you don't know the fighters doesn't make them bad... I see fighters on this card that I know nothing about, and that makes me more interested. FEG has seen them worthy of a spot, and I want to see if they can live up to that.

The real reason some fighters are lesser known is that few featherweights have, up until now, fought overseas. Also keep in mind that this GP is at 63.5kg, which might actually make it closer to a bantamweight GP (depending on what you are used to watching).

It is a long time since I have done this, but I will give you my predictions.

A word of warning: I suck at predicting fights, and you might do better going with the opposite picks of mine. I never put money on the fights and if you do, please base that on your own predicitions.

1. Feather GP: Takafumi Otsuka 8-3-1 vs. 3-2-0 Bibiano Fernandes
This match up looks awesome to me, Bibiano is famous for his jiu-jitsu and that is key here. Otsuka's base is wrestling, but he is a bred MMA fighter with few weaknesses.

Otsuka will try to keep this fight standing, but it will hit the ground at one point. Otsuka will try to make it later.

I think it will be an entertaining fight that will go the distance. If it does, I think its because Otsuka is successful and he gets the decision.

2. Feather GP: Chase Beebe 12-3-0 vs. Joe Warren
These are 2 fighters that I know virtually nothing about. Chase Beebe has the MMA experience, a veteran of WEC he lost his 2 last fights and will be looking to get back on the winning track.

Joe Warren, all I know is that he is a very good wrestler and has some solid training partners. Could he be another King Mo? We will have to wait and see, but he has everything to gain in this fight.

I would go for Chase Beebe, but its just because of his experience.

3. Feather GP: "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura 9-3-1 vs. 13-2-0 Abel Cullum
Abel Cullum is another of the fighters I am looking forward to seeing here. I have seen a few of his fights and his jiu-jitsu is very good. The key here will be his take downs though.

"Wicky" is a guy that fans of Japanese MMA will be very familiar with, even though he will make his debut on the big stage tomorrow. "Wicky" is one of the more exciting and unorthodox fighters out there, and unusually for Japanese fighters, this guy does not want to go to the ground.

Key for "Wicky" will be to get into the right rhythm, and I think he will enjoy the big stage. Cullum needs to make his take downs stick, he does not want to stand with "Wicky".

I see Abel Cullum being hit late in round 1, and will predict a TKO win for "Wicky". Remember: 10 minutes 1st rounds.

4. Light: Mitsuhiro Ishida 17-4-1 vs. 19-9-0 Daisuke Nakamura
This is an awesome match-up, and a chance for Daisuke Nakamura to climp into the top 10 lightweights.

Ishida is a fighter that in some ways seems to fly under the radar, a very quiet and unassuming guy, but in the ring he means business. He has only been submitted once in his career, that was to Caol Uno in the DREAM tournament last year. He quickly redeemed himself by a spectacular fashion in his US debut.

Nakamura has quietly built an 8 fight winning streak, his last loss being to Vitor Ribeiro. He is a well rounded fighter, and is often involved in very exciting fights.

Key for Ishida will be to get Nakamura to the ground and I think he has the wrestling to do that, but once there he needs to keep Nakamura on his back. That is where he can start his GnP. I think Ishida's wrestling and strength will be too much for Nakamura. Ishida will get the decision.

5. Welter: Shinya Aoki 19-3-0 vs. 16-10-0 David Gardner
We are getting into 2 fights that I wont go into too much details... Everyone knows Shinya Aoki and what he will be looking to do, I know nothing about David Gardner.

Aoki will win this one by submission, I hope it will be something exciting.

I know what you are thinking, whats with this match-up??? It is because Aoki is fighting in the welterweight GP next month. It is worth noting that this fight is at welterweight.

Before the next fight, there is a short break. Look for welterweight GP news here.

6. Light: Ross Ebanez 19-6-0 vs. 22-5-2 Tatsuya Kawajiri
I have very little knowledge of Ross Ebanez, but I do know a bit about Kawajiri.

I hope Kawajiri pulls it together here. He will get the win, I hope its not be decision.

7. Feather GP: Yoshiro Maeda 23-6-2 vs. 10-2-0 Micah Miller
This match-up is very hard to predict for me, it makes it a good one. But I also have not seen enough of Micah Miller to know what Maeda is up against.

Maeda I think is a bit unpredictable and it seems to be against taller and aggressive fighters. Miller is taller, I don't know if he is aggressive enough.

This fight has delayed this post for a few days now, gut feeling says Miller will take it.

8. Feather GP: Hiroyuki Takaya 9-6-1 vs. Kim Jong Won
Hiroyuki Takaya is a very experienced fighter, he is taking on a Korean Judoka in Kim Jong Won. Won is making his MMA debut, and Dong Sik Yoon has said he is very impressed by his striking. I don't think he should try to strike his way to a win here though.

Hiroyuki Takaya will take this if he comes in shape, I am worried about his weight cutting "skills" (stamina) especially in the later part of round 1. Takaya by decision.

9. Masakazu Imanari 15-6-1 vs. 12-5-1 Atsushi Yamamoto
If you dont know what to expect fromt the main event, you have not followed Japanese MMA closely (and there is nothing wrong with that). Imanari is famous for his leg-locks, Yamamoto will try to keep this fight standing for as long as it takes to wreck Imanari's face (see the Tokoro fight).

Imanari is not going to waste time on his feet, look for him to dive in and go for a leg. The whole world will know what to expect here.

I see this fight ending in the first few minutes, it could be by a Yamamoto KO/TKO. More likely is a Imanari submission though.

Read more...

4/25 Valkyrie 02 - Valkyrie is Still Alive!

Its been a very long time since the first Valkyrie event, and it lead me to believe that we would not see another event. Luckily, I was wrong! Valkyrie is alive and will hold their second event 25 April in Differ Ariake.

On the card will be some very good fighters, Yuka Tsuji and Roxanne Modafferi are 2 of the fighters announced today.

Participants:
Yuka Tsuji 21-1-0
Naoko Omuro 8-7-3
Kyoko Takabayashi 8-3-0
Roxanne Modafferi 13-4-0

Read more...

3/8 DREAM 7 - Fight Order

FEG have announced the fight order for Sunday's Featherweight GP Round 1. The main event is the fight between Masakazu Imanari and Atsushi Yamamoto, and I cant see it going the distance.

The night will be kicking off with a fight that I think might be fight of the night, Otsuka vs. Bibiano. It should be a close fight and I think it will be very entertaining.

This event is all about the featherweights, but there will be other big names on the card as well, including Tatsuya Kawajiri, Shinya Aoki and Mitsuhiro Ishida.

Main-Event - Featherweight Round 1:
9. Masakazu Imanari 15-6-1 vs. 12-5-1 Atsushi Yamamoto

8. Feather GP: Hiroyuki Takaya 9-6-1 vs. Kim Jong Won
7. Feather GP: Yoshiro Maeda 23-6-2 vs. 10-2-0 Micah Miller
6. Light: Ross Ebanez 19-6-0 vs. 22-5-2 Tatsuya Kawajiri

Break

5. Welter: Shinya Aoki 19-3-0 vs. 16-10-0 David Gardner
4. Light: Mitsuhiro Ishida 17-4-1 vs. 19-9-0 Daisuke Nakamura
3. Feather GP: "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura 9-3-1 vs. 13-2-0 Abel Cullum
2. Feather GP: Chase Beebe 12-3-0 vs. Joe Warren
1. Feather GP: Takafumi Otsuka 8-3-1 vs. 3-2-0 Bibiano Fernandes

Read more...

3/8 DREAM 7 - Betting Odds

Here are the betting lines from Sportsbook.com. I have never used any betting company, so if you have experience, good or bad, it would be good to hear about it.

Anyway, the odds seem ok. Kawajiri and Aoki are going in as huge favorites, but thats probably to be expected. If I were looking for value, I would go for Otsuka.

Tatsuya Kawajiri -575
Ross Ebanez +375

Shinya Aoki -1100
David Gardner +600

Mitsuhiro Ishida -185
Daisuke Nakamura +155

Masakazu Imanari -185
Atsushi Yamamoto +155

Hiroyuki Takaya -175
Jong Won Kim +145

Yoshiro Maeda -155
Micah Miller +125

Chase Beebe -140
Joe Warren +110

Takafumi Otsuka +165
Bibiano Fernandes -205

Akiyo Nishiura +105
Abel Cullum -135

Some additional odds from MMA Underdogs/Bodog.

Read more...

Presenting the Featherweights

Samurai Fighting TV had a 2 hour special they called "Featherweight Best Fighters". Of course it was mainly the Japanese fighters, or showing fights they had the rights for. It was a great 2 hour show, and I have tried to "recreate" it here.

I think there are lots of fans out there that dont know what to expect from the Japanese fighters in these GPs. This might be a good way to introduce them, fighters like Shintaro Ishiwatari, Atsushi Yamamoto and Takafumi Otsuka are just some examples of fighters you should look out for.

I wasnt able to find all the fights shown in the Samurai TV program, but there should be a lot to watch here anyway. Unfortunately, it just covered fighters that have fought in Japan so there will be some new fighters for me too in these GPs. Also worth noting that this is NOT specific to any of the GPs, fighters from both Sengoku and DREAM are included and it is a LONG post.

Masakazu Imanari

vs. Mike Brown (DEEP 22)


vs. Yoshiro Maeda (DEEP 22)

Part 1


Part 2


vs. Hiroshi Uemura (DEEP 37)


Atsushi Yamamoto

vs. Tetsu "Hadairo" Suzuki (Shooto Back to our roots 5)


vs. Jong Man Kim (K-1 Hero's Seoul 2005)


Hiroyuki Takaya

vs. Hatsu Hioki (Shooto)


vs. Jani Lax (K-1 Hero's 2)


Yoshiro Maeda

vs. Taisho (DEEP 21)


vs. Muangfahlek Kiatwichkien (DEEP 22)


Takafumi Otsuka

vs. Masanori Kanehara Part 1. (DEEP 38)


vs. Masanori Kanehara Part 2


"Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura

vs. Hiroshi Nakamura (Shooto 5/29-2005)


Highlight by Rip Dorey


vs. Matteus Lahdesmaki (Shooto Tradition 2)
part 1


Part 2


Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

vs. Shoji (DEEP & CMA)
Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Jung Chan Sung

vs. Fanjin Son (DEEP 39)


vs. Michiro Omigawa (DEEP-Gladiator)


Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto

vs. Caleb Mitchell (Shooto 9/5-2003)


Hatsu Hioki

vs. Rumina Sato (Shooto Tradition 4)


Masanori Kanehara

vs. Shunichi Shimizu (ZST 16)


Shintaro Ishiwatari

vs. Kazuhiro Ito (must see) (Shooto Shooting Disco 4)

Shooto Disco 4 Shintaro Ishiwatari vs Kazuhiro Ito
Uploaded by KebabHunter

vs. Tenkei Fujimiya (Shooto Tradition 3)


Seiya Kawahara

vs. Yuki Yamasawa (Pancrase Shining Tour 1)


vs. Masaki Yanagisawa (Pancrase Shining Tour 5)


Hideki Kadowaki

vs. Rumina Sato

Rumina Sato vs Hideki Kadowaki
Uploaded by torihada

Marlon Sandro

vs. Miki Shida (Pancrase Shining Tour 2)


Highlight video

Read more...