10/18 Shooto GIG Tokyo Vol. 3 - RESULTS

A very interesting event in Shinjuku Face right now. I started updating the results a bit late, and will update the early fights later. The 3 last fights will be close to live.

Okazaki defeats Ogikubo in the fight for the Shooto Pacific Rim featherweight title!

Main-Event Pacific Shooto Featherweight Title Fight:
Koetsu Okazaki Def. Hiromasa Ogikubo by KO Round 2 2:08

Welter: Guy Delameau Def. Jin Kazeta by Decision 3-0
Light: Masaki Yanagisawa Def. Kazuhiro Ito by Triangle Choke Round 2 1:07
Feather: Yuta Nezu Def. Nobuhiro "Mike" Hayakawa by TKO Round 2 4:38
Mddle: Mateus Irie Nechio Def. Yoshinori Takahashi by armbar Round 1 2:58
Feather: Makoto Sannai Def. Keita Ishibashi by armbar Round 1 3:09
Light: Yoshitaka Okigi Def. Hiroki Kita by armbar Round 1 3:28

Rookie Tournament:
Welter: Koji Matsumoto Def. Munehiro "Mike" Kin by rear-naked choke Round 1 4:28
Bantam: Yosuke "Flying Monkey No*2" Saruta Def. Jun Nagasoe by Decision 3-0
Fly: Yusuke Sato Def. Tomokazu "Kewpie" Sato by Decision 3-0

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10/18 Shooto Gig Tokyo Vol. 3 - Fight Order

Shooto promotor Sustain and Shooto Gym Tokyo have announced the fight order for their event in Shinjuku Face on October 18. It should be a good event and the main event will be a awesome fight for the Shooto featherweight Pacific rim title fight. Both Koetetsu Okazaki and Hiromasa Ogikubo are awesome fighters and the winner of this fight will be a very deserved champion.

But this card has a lot of talented and interesting fighters on it. Some fighters worth mentioning are Guy Delameau and Yuta Nezu, I am picking both of them for a win even though I like cheering for the eternal underdog "Mike" Hayakawa (he is a much better fighter than his record indicates).

Featherweight Pacific Title Fight:
10. Koetsu Okazaki 5-1-1 vs. 6-0-2 Hiromasa Ogikubo

9. Welter: Jin Kazeta 8-9-2 vs. 10-5-1 Guy Delameau
8. Light: Kazuhiro Ito 5-4-0 vs. 7-7-1 Masaki Yanagisawa
7. Feather: Yuta Nezu 7-3-1 vs. 1-4-3 Nobuhiro "Mike" Hayakawa
6. Middle: Mateus Irie Nechio 4-3-0 vs. 0-6-0 Yoshinori Takahashi
5. Feather: Makoto Sannai 1-1-0 vs. 0-1-0 Keita Ishibashi
4. Light: Hiroki Kita 2-5-1 vs. 0-1-0 Yoshitaka Okigi

Rookie Tournament Semi Finals:
3. Welter: Koji Matsumoto vs. 2-1-0 Munehiro "Mike" Kin
2. Bantam: Yosuke Saruta 1-2-0 vs. 2-3-0 Jun Nagasoe
1. Fly: Yusuke Sato 2-1-0 vs. 1-0-0 Tomokazu Sato

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10/18 Shooto Gig Tokyo Vol. 3 - Pacific Title Fight Announced

Sustain have announced some fights for their 3rd event to be held in Shinjku Face on October 18.

There are some very interesting fights on the card, in what lookes like the main event, Japanese standouts Koetetsu Okazaki will take on Paraestra Matsudo's Hiromasa Ogikubo for the Shooto Pacific title. Ogikubo is undefeated so far in his career while Okazaki has only lost once, to the Shooto world champion, Masakatsu Ueda. Ring rust might play a part here, as Okazaki has not fought since that loss, which was back in March 2008.

Featherweight Pacific Title Fight:
Koetsu Okazaki 5-1-1 vs. 6-0-2 Hiromasa Ogikubo

Welter: Jin Kazeta 8-9-2 vs. 10-5-1 Guy Delameau
Middle: Mateus Irie Nechio 4-3-0 vs. 0-6-0 Yoshinori Takahashi

Rookie Tournament Semi Finals:
Welter: Koji Matsumoto vs. 2-1-0 Munehiro "Mike" Kin
Bantam: Yosuke Saruta 1-2-0 vs. 2-3-0 Jun Nagasoe
Fly: Yusuke Sato 2-1-0 vs. 1-0-0 Tomokazu Sato

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11/29 Shooot Tradition 04 - Pictures

Saturday's Shooto event was awesome, I was there and took some pictures.

Hayakawa has an ability to get stuck in some submissions in the 2nd round. Here Nezu is close to ending the fight early, something that would have been a shame. Hayakawa was the better fighter in the 1st round, but Nezu took the second and it ended in a deserved draw.


Atsushi Takeuchi was better than Katsuya Murofushi standing, and got in some good punches.


When the fight hit the ground, he looked in control there too.


Eventually Takeuchi get a guiliotine choke in that ended the fight in the second round.


Ogikubo wanted to take Tazawa down, and he did that in all the rounds. Unfortunately, Tazawa defended well and it ended in a draw.


The last 3 fights on this card were awesome on paper, first out was Takashi Nakakura against Bendy Casimir. I had picked this as a very close fight, and was wrong... Casimir looked good once the fight was standing, but on the ground Nakakura proved to be the better grappler. Nakakura landed some heavy punches.


Casimir was forced to give up his back and Nakakura took full advantage. With just seconds remaining in the first round he sunk in a deep rear-naked choke.


I think Casimir thought he could last the round and did not tap. But with 2 seconds left the ref was forced to stop the fight and Casimir was left unconcious.


A very strong performance by Nakakura!


The next fight was between Rumina Sato and Hatsu Hioki. In this fight Hioki didnt take long to get Rumina on the ground, and once there he got mount. The ref had to step in, Hioki's gnp was too much for the veteran.


The main event was the title fight between Hideki Kadowaki and "Lion" Takeshi. I think everyone expected Kadowaki to take this to the ground. I was surprised that he didnt immediately do that though. He was able to land some good shots on the challenger and for a second it looked like "Lion" was in danger.


Unfortuantely for Kadowaki, the fight did not end that way. "Lion" took round 2 and 3. In the end he also get the decision and was crowned the new champion.

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11/29 Shooto Tradition 4 - Results

Just came home form the event, and it was a good one!! For the ones who have been waiting for the results.

Kadowaki came out like a champion, he tried his best on his feet and actually hit "Lion" a couple of times. As the rounds went on though, it went more and more the way of the challenger, and he got the decision in the end.

For me, the big fight was Ogikubo. I actaully thought he controlled most of the fight on the ground... The judges disagreed and gave them a draw. Which is hard to argue with, I guess...

"Mike" really showed his stuff in the 1st round, but as is too common... He gassed in the 2nd. He got a draw this time, but he will be back!!! "Mike" will get a win one of these days, it was exciting again today!

In the other BIG fights today, I was surprised how easy the favorites dealt with the issue... Nakakura dominated Casimir and Hioki dominated Rumina.

On another note, there were a couple of famous fighters there, Gomi was enjoying the fights, posing for pictures with fans. Also "Wicky" Akiyo was relaxing before his final in Cage Force next week! Both very nice guys, and "Wicky" is READY!


1. Nobuhiro "Mike" Hayakawa vs. Yuta Nezu DRAW
2. Taisuke Okuno Def. Daisuke "Hunt" Okumiya by Decision 3-0
3. Atsushi Takeuchi Def. Katsuya Murofushi by rear-naked choke Round 2 1:44
4. Yutaka Ueda Def. Jin Kazeta by TKO Round 1 3:23
5. So Tazawa vs. Hiromasa Ogikubo DRAW
6. Takashi Nakakura Def. Bendy Casimir by Rear-naked choke Round 1 4:58
7. Hatsu Hioki Def. Rumina Sato by TKO Round 1 3:32
8. "Lion" Takeshi Inoue Def. Hideki Kadowaki by decision 3-0

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11/29 Shooot Tradition 04 - Weigh-!n - Tazawa misses weight?

The weigh-in for today's Shooto event happened yesterday. So Tazawa had 2 attempts at making weight, but was over both times. He should have another shot at it, but I dont know the result.

Anyway, here are the rest of the weigh-in results:

Hideki Kadowaki 65.0 kg
"Lion" Takeshi Inoue 65.0 kg

Hatsu Hioki 64.9 kg
Rumina Sato 65.0 kg

Takashi Nakakura 70.0 kg
Bendy Casimir 70.4 kg → 70.0 kg

So Tazawa 60.2kg → 60.1kg → X
Hiromasa Ogikubo 59.9 kg

Jin Kazeta 69.6 kg
Yutaka Ueda 69.7 kg

Atsushi Takeuchi 52.2 kg → 52.0 kg
Katsuya Murofushi 52.0 kg

Taisuke Okuno 75.8 kg
Daisuke "Hunt" Okumiya 75.1 kg

Nobuhiro "Mike" Hayakawa 59.8 kg
Yuta Nezu 59.8 kg

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11/29 Shooot Tradition 04 - Warm-Up

Shooto is putting on a really good event tomorrow. The mix of stars and talent should make this one of the better Shooto events this year.

If you want to see what a professional thinks of this event, you should read Jordan Breen's preview on this event here. There is no doubt this will be a good event.

Anyway, here is what I expect from the main card at tomorrow's event. I will be there taking pictures, so might be a bit late with the results...

So Tazawa 8-3-2 vs. 5-0-1 Hiromasa Ogikubo
I am really looking forward to watching Hiromasa Ogikubo, he is still undefeated, Training under Ryota Matsune and Hiroshi Tsuruya in Paraestra Matsudo. He will be a force in the Shooto featherweight division. This time he is facing his toughest opponent yet in So Tazawa.

So Tazawa has been in there with the best of them and he still has a good record. I still think Ogikubo will be too strong on the ground.

Predicition: I am sort of bias in this, as Ogikubo is from my gym, so there is no surprise who I am picking in this fight. I see Ogikubo taking the fight to the ground and getting a decision win.

Hiromasa Ogikubo:
vs. Hiroyuki Tanaka
vs. Yasuhiro Kanayama
vs. Kazuya Tamura

So Tazawa:
vs. Masakatsu Ueda Part 1
vs. Masakatsu Ueda Part 2
vs. Masakatsu Ueda Part 3

Takashi Nakakura 10-2-1 vs. 16-4-2 Bendy Casimir
This could very well end up being fight of the night, both these guys are Shooto champions (Nakakura world champion, Casimir european champion) but there is no title on the line. Maybe because I am used to this in Japan, but I dont care. This is a fight I want to see, even if its not a title fight.

Predicition: Be careful not to underestimate Bendy Casimir in this fight. Nakakura is the favorite and I see him getting the decision, but Casimir was very good in his last fight in Japan.

Takashi Nakakura:
vs. Ray Cooper
vs. Yusuke Endo Round 1
vs. Yusuke Endo Round 2
vs. Yusuke Endo Round 3
vs. Ganjo Tentsuku Part 1
vs. Ganjo Tentsuku Part 2
vs. Mizuto Hirota Round 1
vs. Mizuto Hirota Round 2
vs. Mizuto Hirota Round 3

Bendy Casimir:
vs. Juri Ivlev
vs. Ian Jones
vs. Shinji Sasaki Part 1
vs. Shinji Sasaki Part 2

Hatsu Hioki 16-3-2 vs. 24-12-2 Rumina Sato
This is a fight between 2 of them most popular Shooto fighters. This will really get the crowd going and it should be a good fight. Personally, I would like to see Rumina Sato get this win, but I dont think he will.

Rumina Sato took most of 2006 off to start his own gym, since coming back he has a record of 1-2, in his last 5 he is 1-4. Hioki on the other hand is undefeated in his last 5.

Prediction: As much as I want Rumina Sato to win, I cant see it happening. Hioki will take it, but dont count Rumina off completely.

Rumina Sato:
vs. Charles Taylor
vs. Bao Quach
vs. Augusto Frota
vs. Katsuya Toida
vs. Antonio Carvalho
vs. Ali Mihoubi
vs. Rafael Cordeiro

Hatsu Hioki:
vs. Antonio Carvalho Part 1
vs. Antonio Carvalho Part 2
vs. Antonio Carvalho Part 3
vs. Baret Yoshida
vs. Joe Pearson
vs. Hideki Kadowaki

Hideki Kadowaki 13-7-2 vs. 14-3-0 "Lion" Takeshi Inoue
Hideki Kadowaki is the champion, and in some ways he had a sudden rise to the belt. He is a very experienced fighter, but before he pulled out a "Kadowaki Special" on Rumina Sato I was not expecting to see him in a title fight. Then pieces fell his way, he had some luck and got the title shot. He won a deserved victory against Akitoshi Tamura.

Even if Kadowaki is the defending champion coming in, I think he is also viewed as the underdog here. "Lion" Takeshi has only had 3 losses in his career, he lost he last fight though. "Lion" would like to keep this fight standing, Kadowaki wants "Lion" Takeshi on his back.

Prediction: I am really torn on this, I see it either as an exciting fight where "Lion" picks Kadowaki apart standing OR a fight that goes the distance ending in a draw or decision win to Kadowaki. I am leaning towards a decision to Kadowaki, actually changed my mind since I started writing.

Hideki Kadowaki:
vs. Akitoshi Tamura Part 1
vs. Akitoshi Tamura Part 2
vs. Akitoshi Tamura Part 3
vs. Hatsu Hioki
vs. Naoya Miyamoto
vs. "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura Part 1
vs. "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura Part 2

"Lion" Takeshi Inoue:
vs. Antonio Carvalho
vs. Navid Yousefi
vs. Katsuya Toida
vs. Akitoshi Tamura Part 1
vs. Akitoshi Tamura Part 2
vs. Savant Young Part 1
vs. Savant Young Part 2

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11/29 Shooot Tradition 04 - Fight Order

Shooto have announced the fight order for their event on Saturday. No big surprise that the title fight between Champion Hideki Kadowaki and "Lion" Takeshi take that honor.

It is a very good card with a mix of very talented fighters, such as Ogikubo and Ueda mixed with a lot of established stars.

Again, I hope that "Mike" Hayakawa adds to his win. I think he deserves it, as he is better than his record shows.

Main-Event - Shooto Lightweight World Title Fight:
8. Hideki Kadowaki 13-7-2 vs. 14-3-0 "Lion" Takeshi Inoue

7. Light: Hatsu Hioki 16-3-2 vs. 24-12-2 Rumina Sato
6. Welter: Takashi Nakakura 10-2-1 vs. 16-4-2 Bendy Casimir
5. Feather: So Tazawa 8-3-2 vs. 5-0-1 Hiromasa Ogikubo
4. Welter: Jin Kazeta 8-8-2 vs. 5-1-1 Yutaka Ueda
3. Fly: Atsushi Takeuchi 4-4-2 vs. 3-3-0 Katsuya Murofushi
2. Middle: Taisuke Okuno 6-2-1 vs. 2-2-1 Daisuke "Hunt" Okumiya
1. Feather: Nobuhiro "Mike" Hayakawa 1-4-2 vs. 5-2-0 Yuta Nezu

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11/29 Shooto - Tradition 04 - Nakakura fighting Casimir

After a quiet week there has been a lot of announcements today, Shooto have announced another fight for their event on November 29. I am so happy I got my tickets for this one!

Shooto World Welterweight chamption, Takashi Nakakura is taking on Shooto's European Champion, Bendy Casimir. This is a non-title fight, but it will be awesome! Both these fighters have been undeteated since 2005!! Casimir is 12-0-1 (12 figtht winning streak) since then, Nakakura is 4-0-1. This will be a fight with a LOT of pride at stake!

Added:
Welter: Takashi Nakakura 10-2-1 vs. 16-4-2 Bendy Casimir

Previously Announced:
Shooto Lightweight World Title Fight:
Hideki Kadowaki 13-7-2 vs. 14-3-0 "Lion" Takeshi Inoue

Light: Hatsu Hioki 16-3-2 vs. 24-12-2 Rumina Sato
Feather: So Tazawa 8-3-2 vs. 5-0-1 Hiromasa Ogikubo
Welter: Jin Kazeta 8-8-2 vs. 5-1-1 Yutaka Ueda
Middle: Taisuke Okuno 6-2-1 vs. 2-2-1 Daisuke "Hunt" Okumiya
Fly: Atsushi Takeuchi 4-4-2 vs. 3-3-0 Katsuya Murofushi
Feather: Nobuhiro "Mike" Hayakawa 1-4-2 vs. 5-2-0 Yuta Nezu

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11/29 Shooto Tradition 04 - Two More Fights Added

Shooto has announced 2 more fights for their Tradition 04 card. This is another awesome card and the tickets are selling fast for this one (there are still tickets left though).

Added today is an interesting middleweight fight between Shooto ranked #2 Taisuke Okuno and Daisuke Okumiya.

The other fight added is "Mike" Hayakawa, who I think is better than his record and I hope he gets another win. Yuta Nezu should be a challenge though, Nezu lost in the Shooto Rookie Tournament this year, but was dominating the fight until being caught in a bulldog choke.

Added:
Middle: Taisuke Okuno 6-2-1 vs. 2-2-1 Daisuke "Hunt" Okumiya
Nobuhiro "Mike" Hayakawa 1-4-2 vs. 5-2-0 Yuta Nezu

Previously Announced:
Shooto Lightweight World Title Fight:
Hideki Kadowaki 13-7-2 vs. 14-3-0 "Lion" Takeshi Inoue

So Tazawa 8-3-2 vs. 5-0-1 Hiromasa Ogikubo
Jin Kazeta 8-8-2 vs. 5-1-1 Yutaka Ueda
Hatsu Hioki 16-3-2 vs. 24-12-2 Rumina Sato
Atsushi Takeuchi 4-4-2 vs. 3-3-0 Katsuya Murofushi

Participating:
Takashi Nakakura 10-2-1

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11/29 Shooto Tradition 04 - Rumina vs. Hatsu Hioki Announced

Shooto have added 2 fights to their Tradition 04 card. This will be held in Korakuen Hall November 29 and should be an awesome event.

The card is looking very good already and today they added the fight between Rumina Sato and Hatsu Hioki, two of their biggest stars, but also 2 fighters that need to get back to the sort of form we are used to seeing them in.

Despite having average form lately (winning "only" 4 of his last 7), Hioki coming off a win in TKO 35 and a draw in his last Shooto fight, and is still ranked #5. Rumina Sato has lost 4 of his last 5, but is still ranked #6. He has never been the Shooto world champion, but win the Shooto Pacific Rim belt in 2005. Rumina is definitely one of the biggest stars in Shooto.

In the other fight added today, Atsushi Takeuchi will take on Katsuya Murofushi. Both these fighters lost against Noboru Tahara in their last fight, Takeuchi in an awesome fight (worth a watch if you havent seen it). This should be a very good fight.

Already on the card is the Lightweight title fight between Hideki Kadowaki and "Lion" Takeshi.

Added:
Hatsu Hioki 16-3-2 vs. 24-12-2 Rumina Sato
Atsushi Takeuchi 4-4-2 vs. 3-3-0 Katsuya Murofushi

Previously announced:
Hideki Kadowaki 13-7-2 vs. 14-3-0 "Lion" Takeshi Inoue
So Tazawa 8-3-2 vs. 5-0-1 Hiromasa Ogikubo
Jin Kazeta 8-8-2 vs. 5-1-1 Yutaka Ueda

Participating:
Takashi Nakakura 10-2-1

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11/29 Shooto Tradition 04 - First fights announced

Shooto announced a few things relating to this card yesterday, and already it looks good. Most likely the main event will be the world lightweight title fight between Hideki Kadowaki (champion) and "Lion" Takeshi Inoue. Takeshi is coming off a loss to Savant Young in Tradition 01, but is getting a shot at the world title. Kadowaki has built a lot of comfidence with his 2 last fights, submitting Rumina Sato and getting a decision win over Akitoshi Tamura to claim the title belt. This will be his first defence and it should be a very good fight.

Shooto also announced the participation of two of their biggest stars, Rumina Sato and welterweight champion Takashi Nakakura, to face a yet to be named opponents. Also on the card, Tazawa So will take on the rising star Hiromasa Ogikubo in what is sure to be a very good fight.

Announced:
Hideki Kadowaki 13-7-2 vs. 14-3-0 "Lion" Takeshi Inoue
So Tazawa 8-3-2 vs. 5-0-1 Hiromasa Ogikubo
Jin Kazeta 8-8-2 vs. 5-1-1 Yutaka Ueda

Participating:
Takashi Nakakura 10-2-1
Rumina Sato 24-12-2

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7/18 Shooto - Tradition 02 - Wicky Akio Participating

Shooto have added to their Tradition 02 card. I have made a comment earlier about value for money in these events, and as an audience I have to say that this card looks like very good value, with a ringside seat costing 10,000 yen!

Today it was announced that Wicky Akiyo will be participating. Earlier it has been announced that "BJ" Kojima is fighting also, so this should be a very good event if you add that to the fights that are already announced.

Shinji Sasaki 6-2-0 vs. 8-7-2 Jin Kazeta
Takehiro Harusaki 5-3-0 vs. 4-0-1 Shinya Murofushi
Teriyuki Matsumoto 5-2-0 vs. 4-4-1 Takahiro Hosoi
Akihiro Yamazaki 9-2-1 vs. 1-0-0 Naoko Hirayama
Naohiro Mizuno 2-1-0 vs. 1-0-0 Daiki Tsuchiya

Rookie Tournament Round 2:
Daiki Tsuchiya 1-0-0 vs. 2-1-0 Naohiro Mizuno
Yuta Nezu 4-1-0 vs. 1-0-0 Haruo Ochi

Participating:
Shinichi "BJ" Kojima 8-3-4
"Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura 7-2-1

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7/18 Shooto - Tradition 02

Shooto has announced some fights for the 2nd Tradition event, this is to celebrate their 20th anniversary and they put on some very good fights in the first event. For this, the ticket prices are cheaper, but the fights announced look interesting. Personally I am looking forward to seeing Murofushi, I believe this will be his first Class A fight and I think he has been very good in his previous fights.

Shinji Sasaki 6-2-0 vs. 8-7-2 Jin Kazeta
Takehiro Harusaki 5-3-0 vs. 4-0-1 Shinya Murofushi
Teriyuki Matsumoto 5-2-0 vs. 4-4-1 Takahiro Hosoi

Rookie Tournament Round 2:
Daiki Tsuchiya 1-0-0 vs. 2-1-0 Naohiro Mizuno
Yuta Nezu 4-1-0 vs. 1-0-0 Haruo Ochi

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