9/23 Sengoku 10 - LIVE results

Been sick as a dog for a week now, and hence very few updates. Hopefully I can do something about that today, at least I will give you the live results from Saitama Community Centre.

It is a very good card, and the main event should draw a lot of judo fans to the arena. Hiroshi Izumi is making his debut.

The fight between Nick Thompson and Dan Hornbuckle should be very interesting, just to name one fight.

Opening fights:
1. Bantam: So Jee Hyun Def. Ryosuke Komori by Decision 3-0
2. Feather: Shigeki Osawa Def. Kim Ki Hyun by Decision 3-0
3. Light: Ikuo Usuda Def. Baek Woo Hyun TKO Round 1 by 4:59

Main-Card:
4. Light: Maximo Blanco Def. Tetsuya Yamada by TKO Round 2 1:12
5. Middle: Joe Doerksen Def. Takenori Sato by TKO Round 2 4:27
6. Welter: Dan Hornbuckle Def. Nick Thompson by TKO Round 2 1:30
7. Light-Heavy: Fabio Silva Def. Ryo Kawamura by TKO Round 1 2:28
8. Light: Kazunori Yokota Def. Ryan Schultz by KO Round 1 2:21
*Big KO, I hope Schultz is ok. Yokota should be on his way to a title fight and a re-match with champion Hirota

Sengoku 11 Participants announced:
Michihiro Omigawa vs. Hatsu Hioki
Jorge Santiago
Akihiro Gono

Sengoku will go head to head with Dynamite! on NYE. First fight announced:
Satoshi Ishii vs. Hidehiko Yoshida

9. Welter: Makoto Takimoto Def. Jae Sun Lee by Decision 2-0
10. Heavy: Antonio Silva Def. "Big" Jim York by arm-triangle Round 1 3:51
11. Light-Heavy: Antz "notorious" Nansen Def. Hiroshi Izumi by KO Round 1

Read more...

9/23 Sengoku 10 - Fight Order

Sengoku have made some big announcements today.

First of was the fight order for Sengoku 10, and it is a very good card. The addition of Hiroshi Izumi to this card should attract some main stream attention. But there are some very good fights on this card, standing out to me is the fight between Nick Thompson and Dan Hornbuckle, also the lightweight bettle between Kazunori Yokota and Ryan Schultz should make sure that this is an event worth the ticket prices.

Hiroshi Izumi gets to fight in the main event, he is takeing on the Kiwi Antz Nansen. The co-main event has been given to the heavyweights former EliteXC champion Antonio Silva is taking on "Big" Jim York.

In the opening fights we will see the winners of the Japanese and Korean "rookie" tournaments face eachother in 3 fights that should be very good. I hope we get to see them.

11. Light-Heavy: Hiroshi Izumi (debut) vs. Antz "notorious" Nansen
10. Heavy: Antonio Silva 12-1-0 vs. 11-2-0 "Big" Jim York
9. Welter: Makoto Takimoto 5-5-0 vs. 5-4-0 Jae Sun Lee
8. Light: Kazunori Yokota 9-2-3 vs. 20-11-1 Ryan Schultz
7. Light-Heavy: Ryo Kawamura 10-4-2 vs. 11-5-0 Fabio Silva
6. Welter: Nick Thompson 38-11-1 vs. 18-2-0 Dan Hornbuckle
5. Middle: Takenori Sato 9-6-4 vs. 42-12-0 Joe Doerksen
4. Light: Maximo Blanco 3-2-1 vs. 3-1-0 Tetsuya Yamada

Opening fights:
3. Light: Ikuo Usuda 5-0-0 vs. 1-0-0 Baek Woo Hyun
2. Feather: Shigeki Osawa 3-0-0 vs. Kim Ki Hyun
1. Bantam: Ryosuke Komori 4-1-0 vs. So Jee Hyun

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9/23 Sengoku 10 - Izumi's Opponent Announced

WVR have announced the opponent for Hiroshi Izumi's MMA debut, the Judoka will take on the New Zealand kickboxing and Muay Thai champion Antz "Notorious" Nansen. As far as I know both these fighters are making their MMA debuts, but it should be an interesting mix of styles.

The other fights announced today are Makoto Takimoto aginst Korean Sprit MC veteran, Jae Sun Lee. And Antonio Silva will take on "Big Jim York.

Added:
Hiroshi Izumi (debut) vs. Antz "notorious" Nansen
Makoto Takimoto 5-5-0 vs. 5-4-0 Jae Sun Lee
Antonio Silva 12-1-0 vs. 11-2-0 "Big" Jim York

Previously Announced:
Light-Heavy: Ryo Kawamura 10-4-2 vs. 11-5-0 Fabio Silva
Middle: Takenori Sato 9-6-4 vs. 42-12-0 Joe Doerksen
Welter: Nick Thompson 38-11-1 vs. 18-2-0 Dan Hornbuckle
Maximo Blanco 3-2-1 vs. 3-1-0 Tetsuya Yamada
Kazunori Yokota 9-2-3 vs. 20-11-1 Ryan Schultz

Opening fights:
Light: Ikuo Usuda 5-0-0 vs. 1-0-0 Baek Woo Hyun
Feather: Shigeki Osawa 3-0-0 vs. Kim Ki Hyun
Bantam: Ryosuke Komori 4-1-0 vs. So Jee Hyun

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9/23 Sengoku 10 - Fights Announced

Sengoku have announced 3 more fights for their 10th (actually 11th) event. It is looking like another strong card, and they are really starting to build momentum. Already 5 fights announced for the main card, and they are looking really good.

IMO the most interesting of these matchups is the Thompson vs. Hornbuckle fight. After his crushing win over Akihiro Gono in his last fight, it will be interesting to see if Hornbuckle can build on that in this fight.

Announced:
Light-Heavy: Ryo Kawamura 10-4-2 vs. 11-5-0 Fabio Silva
Middle: Takenori Sato 9-6-4 vs. 42-12-0 Joe Doerksen
Welter: Nick Thompson 38-11-1 vs. 18-2-0 Dan Hornbuckle

Previously announced:
Maximo Blanco 3-2-1 vs. 3-1-0 Tetsuya Yamada
Kazunori Yokota 9-2-3 vs. 20-11-1 Ryan Schultz

Opening fights:
Light: Ikuo Usuda 5-0-0 vs. 1-0-0 Baek Woo Hyun
Feather: Shigeki Osawa 3-0-0 vs. Kim Ki Hyun
Bantam: Ryosuke Komori 4-1-0 vs. So Jee Hyun

Participants:
Hiroshi Izumi (debut)
Makoto Takimoto 5-5-0
Antonio Silva 12-1-0

Read more...

9/23 Sengoku 10 - The Fresh King of Pancrase fighting

The newly crowned King of Pancrase has been added to the upcoming Sengoku card, Maximo Blanco have always been a very talented fighter his problem has been containing his enthusiasm. This time he will take on the very talented Tetsuya Yamada, who was very impressive in his loss in the featherweight GP. He is still very young, and weight gain is natural he will move up to lightweight and his first fight will be a tough one.

There are also 3 opening fights added, these are the winners of the Sengoku G tournamnets in Japan and Korea taking eachother on.

This looks to be another very interesting event from Sengoku, to be held in Saitama Community Arena. They seemed to have settled on a format of very talented fighter forming the opening fights, and I think it is a very good way of giving these young fighters invaluable experience.

Added:
Maximo Blanco 3-2-1 vs. 3-1-0 Tetsuya Yamada
Kazunori Yokota 9-2-3 vs. 20-11-1 Ryan Schultz

Opening fights:
Light: Ikuo Usuda 5-0-0 vs. 1-0-0 Baek Woo Hyun
Feather: Shigeki Osawa 3-0-0 vs. Kim Ki Hyun
Bantam: Ryosuke Komori 4-1-0 vs. So Jee Hyun

Participants:
Hiroshi Izumi (debut)
Makoto Takimoto 5-5-0
Antonio Silva 12-1-0
Joe Doerksen 42-12-0

Read more...

9/23 Sengoku 10 - Participants announced

Yesterday Sengoku had their 9th event, they also introduced a judging system where the judge can chose the fighter they like. I have to say I hate the way they developed the "must" system. It allowes the judge to chose the fighter, if they rule it a draw.

Anyway, the card was solid, Kanehara vs. Hioki was fight of the night, and Sengoku got their Japanese champion.

Anyway, looking forward to Sengoku 10, there are some very interesting fighters announced. I just hope they dump the "must" system. They have really signed some very good fighters, and managed well they can attract a lot of new fans.

Announced for this event are:
-Athen Olympics judo silver medalist, Hiroshi Izumi.
-Sydney judo gold medalist, Makoto Takimoto.
-The fighter that knocked the new Sengoku lightweight champion out of the tournament, Kazunori Yokota.
-Former EliteXC heavyweight champion, Antonio Silva.
-Former IFL lightweight champion, Ryan Schultz.
-Former WEC title contender, Joe Doerksen.

Participant:
Hiroshi Izumi (debut)
Makoto Takimoto 5-5-0
Kazunori Yokota 9-2-3
Antonio Silva 12-1-0
Ryan Schultz 20-11-1
Joe Doerksen 42-12-0

Read more...

5/2 Sengoku 8 - Live Results

The event has just started in Yoyogi Gymnasium, Tokyo. The fights today are very interesting, there is a very good mix of talented fighters facing experienced fighters.

Stanislav Nedkov vs. Travis Wiuff and Kei Yamamiya vs. Xande Ribeiro are very good examples of this. It will be interesting to see how the new fighters take on these experienced veterans. Both the newcomers will probably want to take this to the ground.

Also look for Maximo Blanco to entertain the crowd.

Opening Fight:
1. Feather: Hirotoshi Saito Def. Yoshitaka Abe by arm-bar Round 1 2:52
2. Feather: Shigeki Osawa Def. Kota Ishibashi by Decision 3-0

Non-Tournament:
3. Light: Akihiko Mouri Def. Maiximo Blanco by DQ Round 1 4:20
Maximo Blanco got too excited again, and treats the crowd to a soccer kick. Again he risks a DQ/NC in a fight he had won. This is a lesson Blanco should have learned a LONG time ago, he just gets too excited...

4. Light-Heavy: Stanislav Nedkov 5-0-0 vs. 54-12-0 Travis Wiuff
Wiuff looks bigger than the Bulgarian, but the Sumo Ozeki, Kotooshu, is there supporting his countryman. Wiuff have been hit low twice, but is still getting up and wants to continue. We are now counting 3 low blows and Nedkov has received 2 red cards (point deductions) in round 1 and he has to win by stoppage now.

In round 2 Wiuff is able to get the takedowns and wins this round by being on top. Not much damage done though.

Nedkov drops Wiuff early in round 3 and doesnt let up, he gets the TKO win! Round 3 0:42

5. Welter: Makoto Takimoto 4-5-0 vs. 9-4-0 Michael Costa
Costa tries a flying knee and the fight goes to the ground. Takimoto is on top and works his way to an arm-bar attempt. Costa defends well, and Takimoto transitions into a leg-lock. It took a few attempts, and Takimoto gets the win with a heel-hook. Round 1 3:31.

Featherweight GP 2nd Round:
6. Marlon Sandro 13-0-0 vs. 7-0-0 Nick Denis
The fight between 2 undefeated fighters. Denis wants this fight standing, Sandro will look to take it down.
Sandro knocks Denis down and follows up with strong gnp. The fight is over in 19 seconds, and its Sandro that finishes the fight with punches!

7. Masanori Kanehara 12-5-5 vs. 6-0-0 Jung Chan Sung
The fighters are feeling eachother out. Kanehara gets a takedown as Jung moves forward. Kanehara is moving into half guard and trying to get side control. The ref gets the fighters up and warns Jung for stalling. Kanehara takes Jung down again, in Jung's guard, more action this time and Jung gets up. Lots of action as round 1 ends, I think Kanehara has round 1.

Kanehara still going for takedowns, Jung denies and the exchange wild punches. Kanehara gets Jung down. Jung has dangerous upkicks and Kanehara is unable to break the guard. Jung has the arm and it looks tight, but Kanehara escapes. What a fight! Jung has a dangerous guard and Kanehara is having trouble improving his position. Just as the bell rings Kanehara has a heel-hook. A very close round.

Kanehara takes the fight to the ground again, and for the first time it looks like he is able to get sidecontrol. Jung is able to get the guard back and then is able to get up. The pace has slowed a little as the fighters are getting more tired. Jung's upkicks and knees are dangerous, Kanehara desperately trying to keep Jung down. 1 minute left and Jung is on top, this fight ends and it will be close. Fight of the night so far (and it will be hard to beat)!

Kanehara gets the decision 3-0 (30-29, 30-29, 29-28)

Non-Tournament:
8. Light-Heavy: Keiichiro Yamamiya 34-23-9 vs. 1-0-0 Xande Ribeiro
I am really looking forward to this fight. Yamamiya is very hard to take down, and it will be interesting to see how Ribeiro approaches this challenge.

The fighters are feeling eachother out, and Ribeiro goes for the takedown. Yamamiya defends well and Xande is unable to get it down. The ref breaks it up and the takedowns will be key. Xande gets the fight down and is in Yamamiya's guard now. 2 minutes left and Xande is in mount. Yamamiya turns to get away from the punches and Ribeiro gets his back with a minute left of the round. Xande has an arm-bar, but is unable to force the tap before the bell. Ribeiro gets round 1.

Round 2 starts much like round 1, Yamamiya defending a takedown attempt. Ribeiro is working hard at it, but Yamamiya gets up. The ref restarts in the middle and again Ribero goes back to working the takedown. Ribeiro looks like he is getting tired after the takedown attempts and Yamamiya is going forward now. A flying knee gives Ribeiro the chance he has been waiting for. The bell rings as Ribeiro moves to mount.

Ribeiro comes out swinging and Yamamiya is happy to return the punches. Ribeiro drops Yamamiya with a right and the Japanese fighter goes down. Ribeiro follows up and the ref stops it early in the 3rd round.

9. Light: Kazunori Yokota 8-2-3 vs. 6-2-0 Leonardo Santos
Santos with a reach advantage and probably the better fighter on the ground, Yokota is a very good and well rounded fighter though. Santos goes for the takedown and gets Yokota's back. Yokota is able to defend well and is in Santos' guard. Yokota is doing well with punches in the guard, but it is dangerous. The bell sounds and Yokota might get the nod in a close round.

Santos attempts a flying knee, Yokota catches it and takes Santos down. Santos works his way to Yokota's back and eventually to mount. This round Yokota is forced to defend more submissions than in the 1st round. Both fighters are tired as the bell ring, this round was for Santos IMO.

Yokota is able to close the distance and looks for the takedown. Santos has other plans and turns it. His turn to go for takedowns now. The ref breaks it up. The fighters are looking tired, Yokota goes for a takedown that Santos reverses. Yokota has half guard and Santos working his way into mount. Yokota is able to get into Santos' guard and the time is running out. It will be a close decision.

Yokota gets a split decision 2-1! (30-28, 30-29, 28-29)

Featherweight GP 2nd Round:
10. Michihiro Omigawa 5-7-1 vs. 15-5-0 Nam Phan
Michihiro is an underdog again, lets see if he can pull of another upset.

Nam Phan gets taken down but tries a heel-hook and ends up on top. Omigawa works his way to a guillotine and shows a bit of Judo. Omigawa is dominating, doing a good job controlling the head. Phan is able to get out. Standing Phan is showing some skills, but Omigawa is doing a good job avoiding the punches. Omigawa is throwing wild punches and Phan looks in trouble. Omigawa takes it to the ground and continues to throw punches. The ref jumps in with seconds left! This GP is getting very interesting.

11. Hatsu Hioki 18-3-2 vs. 17-1-1 Ronnie Mann
Hioki is the Japanese favorite, but he is facing a very good opponent.

Hioki usually has a reach advantage and its the case here too. Good takedown defense from Mann early, but eventually it goes to the ground. Hioki is going for an anaconda choke but Mann defends well. Hioki ends up in mount and goes for a triangle choke and it looks tight. Mann taps and Hioki proves why he is the favorite in this tournament.

The only non-Japanese in the semi-finals is Marlon Sandro, who I have as my favorite.

Read more...

5/2 Sengoku 8 - Weigh In

Fighters are on weight for the Sengoku event tomorrow. This card is looking very good and I have very high expectations for the main event and the Sandro vs. Denis fight.

Also look for Stanislav Nedkov to make it on the big stage. Travis Wiuff should be a very tough opponent, and I am really looking forward to that fight too.

Other than that, the additions of Xande Ribeiro and Leonardo Santos makes this a very interesting card and a sign of things to come from Sengoku.

For American fans, this will air on HDNet, live!

Main-Event - Featherweight GP 2nd Round:
Hatsu Hioki 65.0kg
Ronnie Mann 64.7kg

Michihiro Omigawa 64.7kg
Nam Phan 64.8kg

Non-Tournament:
Kazunori Yokota 69.9kg
Leonardo Santos 69.9kg

Keiichiro Yamamiya 92.0kg
Xande Ribeiro 90.3kg

Featherweight GP 2nd Round:
Masanori Kanehara 64.8kg
Jung Chan Sung 65.0kg

Marlon Sandro 64.9kg
Nick Denis 64.6kg

Non-Tournament:
Makoto Takimoto 75.4kg
Michael Costa 75.9kg

Stanislav Nedkov 91.9kg
Travis Wiuff 92.9kg

Maiximo Blanco 69.9kg
Akihiko Mouri 69.9kg

Read more...

5/2 Sengoku 8 - Fight Order

WVR have announced the fight order for the 8th Sengoku event, this will be held in the Yoyogi 2nd Gymnasium on May 2.

To me the Sengoku card are looking better and better for every event. They have added a fight that I am really excited about as an opening event here too. Look out for the 2008 Pancrase Neo-Blood tournament winner, Hirotoshi Saito. From his record it might look like he is a boring fighter, but he is the opposite (look at his picture gallery). I am very happy to see him get a shot here against Paraestra Matsudo's Yoshitaka Abe.

The main event will the the big fight in the tournament, Hatsu Hioki will take on Ronnie Mann. After the 1st round Hioki is the Japanese favorite in this tournament, but he is taking on a very experienced opponent.

My personal favorite for the GP is Marlon Sandro, I think he will be very difficult to beat here, but he has not got an easy opponent. Two of the ubeaten fighters in the GP, Marlon Sandro and Nick Denis, will square off and it should be a battle. The way I see it, Denis has his chance early in this fight otherwise Sandro will grind out a win.

Main-Event - Featherweight GP 2nd Round:
11. Hatsu Hioki 18-3-2 vs. 17-1-1 Ronnie Mann
10. Michihiro Omigawa 5-7-1 vs. 15-5-0 Nam Phan

Non-Tournament:
9. Light: Kazunori Yokota vs. Leonardo Santos
8. Light-Heavy: Keiichiro Yamamiya vs. Xande Ribeiro

Featherweight GP 2nd Round:
7. Masanori Kanehara 12-5-5 vs. 3-0-0 Jung Chan Sung
6. Marlon Sandro 13-0-0 vs. 7-0-0 Nick Denis

Non-Tournament:
5. Welter: Makoto Takimoto vs. Michael Costa
4. Light-Heavy: Stanislav Nedkov 5-0-0 vs. 54-12-0 Travis Wiuff
3. Light: Maiximo Blanco 2-1-1 vs. 6-6-1 Akihiko Mouri

Opening Fight:
2. Feather: Shigeki Osawa 2-0-0 vs. 0-3-0 Kota Ishibashi
1. Feather: Hirotoshi Saito 2-1-1 vs. 2-2-1 Yoshitaka Abe

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5/2 Sengoku 8 - Fights Announced

Sengoku have added another 2 fights to the card on May 2. Both the fights will include one of their "training players". This really proves the commitment Sengoku has to these fighters, and we will get to see more of them in the future.

Maximo Blanco had a very good wrestler and is very entertaining to watch. His record so far showes that he wins quick, or not at all. If he is able to overpower his oppoennt, he will. He is lacking submission skills though, but I am sure he is working on that too. In Sengoku 8 he will fight the much more experienced Akihiko Mouri.

The other Sengoku training player is Shigeki Osawa, also a wrestler. He has only had 2 fights, and will be in the opening fight in this event. He is taking on Kota Ishibashi.

Announced:
Non-Tournament:
Light: Maiximo Blanco 2-1-1 vs. 6-6-1 Akihiko Mouri

Opening Fight:
Feather: Shigeki Osawa 2-0-0 vs. 0-3-0 Kota Ishibashi

Previously Announced:
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:
Light-Heavy: Stanislav Nedkov 5-0-0 vs. 54-12-0 Travis Wiuff
Welter: Makoto Takimoto vs. Michael Costa
Light: Kazunori Yokota vs. Leonardo Santos
Light-Heavy: Keiichiro Yamamiya vs. Xande Ribeiro

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5/2 Sengoku 8 - Fight Announced

Nightmare of Battle is writing that the YAMMA champion and Sengoku and UFC veteran Travis Wiuff will take on Bulgarian Stanislav Nedkov.

I saw Nedov fight in Pancrase in December last year. After the event I thought we might see him in Sengoku, and we will. Nightmare of Battle has a link to the fight in the article I referenced above. For those who are lazy: Stanislav Nedkov vs. Masayuki Kono

Nedkov is still undefeated and he is taking on the very experienced Travis Wiuff, who is coming off a surprise loss to the then unknown "King Mo".

The card is looking very good!

Announced:
Light-Heavy: Stanislav Nedkov 5-0-0 vs. 54-12-0 Travis Wiuff

Previously Announced:
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...

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...

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...

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...

11/1 Sengoku 6 - LIVE Results

I will do live results today, but remember what happened last time! It should be fixed now, but due to visitors etc. I will only be posting results (might change my mind), maybe some short comments. The fights start at 4PM Japan time (the Japan time shows in the bottom right.

I have had a poll going for both of the GP's and there are some clear results. In the Middleweight GP, the final should be between Nakamura and Santiago. The Lightweight tournament, the winner of Kitaoka and Mitsuoka should be the favorite.

Here is the breakdown of the poll:

Middleweight GP
Jorge Santiago 21 votes
Kazuhiro Nakamura 19 votes
Siyar Bahadurzada 9 votes
Yuki Sasaki 4 votes

Reserves:
Joe Doerkson 4 votes
Izuru Takeuchi 0 votes

Lightweight GP
Eiji Mitsuoka 36 votes
Satoru Kitaoka 21 votes
Mizuto Hirota 13 votes
Kazunori Yokota 1 vote

Reserves:
Jorge Masvidal 3 votes
Bang Seung Hwan 2 votes

To read the results, click "Read More"


Quick Results:
GP Finals:
11. LW Final: Satoru Kitaoka Def. Kazunori Yokota by Decision 3-0
10. MW Final: Jorge Santiago Def. Kazuhiro Nakamura by KO Round 3 0:41

Non-GP Fights
9. LW: Sergey Golyaev Def. Takanori Gomi by decision 2-1
8. LHW: "King Mo" Muhammed Lawal Def. Fabio Silva by TKO Round 3
7. LHW: Antonio Rogerio Nogueira Def. Moise Rimbon by Decision 3-0

GP Semi-Finals (Middle and Lightweight) and Reserve Fights
6. LW GP Res.: Jorge Masvidal Def. Bang Seung Hwan by Decision 3-0
5. MW GP Res.: Joe Doerksen Def. Izuru Takeuchi by TKO Round 3 4:13
4. LW GP: Satoru Kitaoka Def. Eiji Mitsuoka by Heel-Hook Round 1 1:16
3. LW GP: Kazunori Yokota Def. Mizuto Hirota by Decision
2. MW GP: Kazuhiro Nakamura Def. Yuki Sasaki by Decision 3-0
1. MW GP: Jorge Santiago Def. Siyar Bahadurzada by Heel-Hook Round 1 1:10

GP Semi-Finals
Fight order:
1. MW GP: Jorge Santiago 18-7-0 vs. 14-3-1 Siyar Bahadurzada
Round 1
Santiago has Siyar's back. Santiago gets a heel hook, and Siyar taps, a quick submission win. JZ was in Santiago's corner.

2. MW GP: Yuki Sasaki 22-14-1 vs. 12-8-0 Kazuhiro Nakamura
Round 1
Sasaki is dancing around, Nakamura in the middle. Nakamura tries to take Sasaki down, puching him to the ropes. Exchanging some good punches, Nakamura with a slight advantage at the moment. Round 1 has been mostly fighters feeling eachother out, but looks like Nakamura has control. Sasaki is in this though.

Round 2
This is developing into a standing fight. Nakamura is trying to get Sasaki down, but Sasaki's knees are hitting the body in the clinch. Nakamura hits with a good left hand, and goes for the take down. Sasaki is able to turn and Nakamura has his back to the ropes now. Finally, Nakamura gets Sasaki to the ground, he has side control but Sasaki gets guard. The round ends with Nakamura in Sasaki's guard.

Round 3
Sasaki is keeping good distance. Sasaki is puching Nakamura into the corner and trying knees to the body. Not sure how much damage they are doing though. Nakamura gets an easy take down. Nakamura is in Sasaki's guard, attempting GNP, but spends a lot of energy with minimal results. Sasaki is bleeding from the nose, as Nakamura's puches are starting to hit the target. The bell rings and the decision should go to Nakamura.

Nakamura gets the decision 3-0, but he is very tired and has to fight again tonight. Santiago was no more than a minute in the ring...

3. LW GP: Kazunori Yokota 7-1-3 vs. 10-2-0 Mizuto Hirota
Round 1: I have to say I am excited about Hirota, he is a nice guy and I want to see him do well.
Fighters are in the ring. Yokota goes forward behind punches and goes for the takedown, doesnt get it and keeps his distance so far. Hirota is cut over his right eye. Hirota gets Yokotas back and fires of knees to the back of his thighs. Yokota gets a hold of Hirota around the neck and throws him down, for a second it looks like he has a choke, but Hirota is able to get up. Slight advantage to Yokota, he had a good take down and I think it might have gotten him the round.

Round 2
Yokota hit with a good knee to the cup, Hirota fires one back, straight to the cup. Yokota recovers and gets the takedown straight from the restart. Hirota has guard and is able to get up again. Round 2 would go to Yokota as well, I think Hirota needs to pull a KO out of the bag...

Round 3
Yokota is the more agressive and gets a takedown, but Hirota ends up on top. They stand back up and Hirota is swinging. Nothing really hits though... Yokota locks up Hirota's head in the corner and Hirota again with knees to the back of his thighs. Lots of punches back and forth, then Yokota gets the take down and is Hirota's guard. Hirota gets a leg and looks like he might get a heel hook, Yokota is able to turn it, and Hirota is able to get top position. Round ends, and this decision should go to Yokota. Yokota will feel his legs though.

Yokota gets the decision 3-0

4. LW GP: Satoru Kitaoka 21-8-9 vs. 14-5-2 Eiji Mitsuoka
Round 1
Time for what might be fight of the night. Mitsuoka needs to keep this fight standing though.

Kitaoka goes for the take down and gets it! Kitaoka tries a leg lock and with the second attempt gets a heel hook!!! Again, Kitaoka barely breaks a sweat, Mitsuoka has problems getting up though.

An amazing performance by Kitaoka!! Mitsuoka tried to avoid the takedown, but Kitaoka was just too strong.

5. MW GP Res.: Izuru Takeuchi 25-9-6 vs. 40-12-0 Joe Doerksen
Round 1
The fight has started and the fighters come out swining. Takeuchi has his wrestling shoes on and we have seen a lot of leg locks today. Doerksen has guard, but Takeuchi gets side control. Doerksen gets up and looks like he has a guilotine but Takuechi ends up on top agian. Doerksen is able able to turn and looks like he might get a good position, but Takeuchi is very experienced and gets on top again.

a very close round, would probably go to Takeuchi.

Round 2
Doerksen puching Takeuchi to the ropes but is unable to get him down. Takeuchi is pushing Doerkesen back and gets Doerksen down. Takeuchi is in Doerksen's guard, but is not looking comfortable. Doerksen gets in some upkicks, but Takeuchi is able to continue pushing forward. Doerksen gets up. Doerksen lost his mouth guard, but it was another very close round. I would give it to Doerksen, he had the submission attempts, but Takeuchi was on top and the judges might go that way.

Round 3
Takeuchi is finding his range on the feet. Doerksen get Thai clinch and looks like one knee hits the target. But Takeuchi is able to get him down again. So far Takechi's wrestling has been too strong for Doerksen. Doerksen turns in and gets mount. Not able to do much from mount so far, but he is staying on and some punches are hitting the target, 2 min left. Doerksen is able to raise up and Takeuchi gives his back. Takeuchi is turning and its back in Mount. Takeuchi is lookeing very tired and the ref steps in. A string TKO win to Doerksen!! Doerksen was patient and showed experience when he got mount, a good fight.

6. LW GP Res.: Bang Seung Hwan 5-2-0 vs. 14-3-0 Jorge Masvidal
Round 1
Both fighters very careful in the start. Masvidal is pushing forward, but Bang is able to fight back and the fight stays on the feet. Masvidal hits with a good punch! Bang is in serial trouble, but is able to recover. It was a very close call and now Bang looks angry! He does not like being punched. The bell rings and the round would go to Masvidal, he hit with a knee that had Bang in real trouble.

Round 2
Round 2 starts like round 1, both fighters are very careful. It is stand up war now, but hard to say who has the upper hand. Bang might have the upper hand in this round, but the damage done is minimal. It is a very close round, but I would give it to Bang and the fight should be 1-1.

Round 3
Bang is coming out swinging power punches, but dosent seem to hit much. Bang got a take down at the end and I have a close decision to Bang.

The judges score it for Masvidal. I think the knee in the 1st made the difference.

Non-GP Fights
7. LHW: Moise Rimbon 13-7-3 vs. 14-3-0 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Sick child is making me give up play by play so i will only be posting results :)

Nogueira get the decision 3-0

There is a break: and Kazuo Misaki and Hideki yoshida enteres the ring.

Misaki is saying he will win the fight againt the winner of the GP by KO, he wants the Sengoku belt!

Yoshida is wishing Misaki good luck, and encouraging the crowd to come back for the Sengoku NYE event.

8. LHW: "King Mo" Muhammed Lawal 1-0-0 vs. 11-4-0 Fabio Silva
Round 1: King Mo has the best enterance so far... It might take Genki Sudo to beat him...

King Mo is dominating with GnP so far.

Round 2:
It is really King Mo all over this... He takes Silva down and punishes him. Silva tries to work submission, but is never really close... I am just amazed that Silva is in there, he is showing a lot of heart.

Round 3:
King Mo takes Silva down again, and punishes him. The ref has to step in to save Silva. A very strong TKO win!

9. LW: Takanori Gomi 29-3-0 vs. 10-6-0 Sergey Golyaev
Round 1
Gomi is sitting in his face and going for a Kimura, Golyaev gets out, but Gomi gets mount. Gomi goes for an armbar and the bell rings!! Round 1 Gomi all the way!

Round 2
Golyaev is defending well, but Gomi has the upper hand. Gomi is hitting with his punches and is the beter fighter on the ground. Golyaev is seriously rocked by a counter!!! He is in real trouble and Golyaev does not follw up!! Gomi is recovering, but Golyaev is not following up!

The slow motion showes Gomi folding after a left jab. It is strange that Golyaev didnt follow up! Round 2 to Golyaev, clearly!

Round 3
Gomi was hesitant in the start, but he recovers. He gets mount and is pounding, but I smell a rat... Golyaev had 5 minutes to finish him off... Golyaev didnt punch much at the end of this fight, but he looked like the fresher fighter. He is just jabbing.

Gomi is not happy! He would be lucky to win this...

Golyaev gets the decision!!! 2-1
My faith is restored. It was an impressive performace though! He hit Gomi with a jab and it changed the fight. Now Sengoku has Gomi meeting the GP finalist, but he lost the previous fight... Exactly why I would have liked to see Gomi in the GP...

GP Finals
10. MW Final: Jorge Santiago vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura
Round 1
The finalists are in the ring and the anthems are being played.

Nakamura takes Santiago down and has side control. Lets see if he can do anything with it. Trying an armbar and Santiago gets up. The round ends with the fighters on their feet. Santiago had a good knee in the round. It was a close one, but will probably go to Nakamura.

Round 3
Nakamura gets hit by a HARD right and he goes down. Santiago is following up with good punches on the ground and the ref has to step in. A good win by Santiago!!! My readers were right on with this one!!

The winners reward is 5,000,000 yen. or 50,000 USD. Nakamura is not getting up though, the ref was slow stopping this, Nakamura is carried out on a streacher and its the same ref that has stopped fights early before!!! Good win by Santiago, bad move by the ref...

11. LW Final: Satoru Kitaoka vs. Kazunori Yokota
Round 1
This fight will be awesome! Kitaoka was VERY strong in his semi-final and he comes in fresh, this should be Kitaoka!

Kitaoka looks very intense.

Kitaoka dives in and Yokota is keeping himself up by the ropes. Kitaoka is trying again and has Yokota's back, Yokota tries to use the ropes to escape every time, but this is getting emnbarrasing.

Finally, Kitaoka has Yokota on his back. This is not where Yokota wants to be! Kitaoke is not able to take advantage though and the round runs out.

Round 2
Kitaoka gets control again, Yokota gets up though. This is a fight where Kitaoka is in TOTAL control so far. It is getting frustrating though, Yokota is continuing to use the ropes and gets warned by the ref. Kitaoka is controlling this out, Kitaoka has Yokota in the crusifix now. Kitaoka is going crazy now! Stomps are not legal in Sengoku, but I have seen several fighters do it today. CLEAR round to Kitaoka agian!

Round 3
Yokota is jumping out of the ropes now, thats been his defence so far. Kitaoka tries something different and gets on his back. Yokota has an armlock, but Kitaoka defends well. A Yokota knee is close. But Kitaoka catches it and the ref breaks it. Kitaoka goes for the spinning backfist, but it doesnt hit.

Yokota is spending the fight running for the ropes, and its getting predictable. Yokota is hit and almost KOed. This should be Kitaoka!!! I am very happy! Yokota tried to beat him by using his experience, but today Kitaoka was too good!

Decision Kitaoka 3-0!!!

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11/1 Sengoku - Odds

The Sengoku 6 odds are out, and there are some BIG favoties in this one. If you are looking for good value, Eiji Mitsuoka would be one. He will have a tough fight against Satoru Kitaoka, but deserves better odds than what he has at the moment. Other fights I think there might be good value is Jorge Santiago and Siyar Bahadurzada, I thi it will be tighter than that. The same goes for Jorge Masvidal and Hwan Sung Pang

Otherwise, Gomi and Nogueira are huge favorites (not unexpectedly). Even though I think Moise Rimbon might create an upset here.

Either way, it is only good value if you manage to pick a winner. Tomorrow we will see if there are any upsets.

Middleweight GP
Jorge Santiago -345
Siyar Bahadurzada +275

Kazuhiro Nakamura -345
Yuki Sasaki +275

Izuru Takeuchi +130
Joe Doerksen -160

Lightweight GP
Kazunori Yokota +175
Mizuto Hirota -215

Eiji Mitsuoka +175
Satoru Kitaoka -215

Jorge Masvidal -515
Hwan Sung Pang +365

Non-GP Fights
Sergey Golyaev +600
Takanori Gomi -800

Fabio Silva +215
Muhammed Lawal -275

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira -750
Moise Rimbon +550

Thanks to:
http://combat-hooligans.com/2008/10/30/sengoku-6-odds-and-latest-ufc-lines/
http://www.betwwx.com/ufc-odds/

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11/1 SENGOKU GP Finals - Fight order

This shoule be the best event so far by Sengoku. There are 11 good fights on the card, and the GPs should bring lots of excitement.

Other than the GPs, Antonio Rogerio's return to Japan will be a highlight and his fight with Moise Rimbon should be a good one. It will also be interesting to see if "King Mo" can follow up his impressive debut.

For the GPs, it is very hard to tell who is the favorite. Personally, I think Siyar Bahadurzada should have a good chance in the Middleweight GP, but I am not sure he is back to 100% after his injury.

The lightweights are almost impossible to tell. My personal favorites are Satoru Kitaoka and Mizuto Hirota. But Eiji Mitsuoka is probably the most rounded fighter of the semi-finalists. Kazunori Yokota is also very strong, so this GP I would not write off anyone.

GP Finals:
11. LW Final: Winner Fight 3 vs. Winner Fight 4
10. MW Final: Winner Fight 1 vs. Winner Fight 2

Non-GP Fights
9. LW: Takanori Gomi 29-3-0 vs. 10-6-0 Sergey Golyaev
8. LHW: "King Mo" Muhammed Lawal 1-0-0 vs. 11-4-0 Fabio Silva
7. LHW: Moise Rimbon 13-7-3 vs. 14-3-0 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

GP Semi-Finals (Middle and Lightweight) and Reserve Fights
6. LW GP Res.: Bang Seung Hwan 5-2-0 vs. 14-3-0 Jorge Masvidal
5. MW GP Res.: Izuru Takeuchi 25-9-6 vs. 40-12-0 Joe Doerksen
4. LW GP: Satoru Kitaoka 21-8-9 vs. 14-5-2 Eiji Mitsuoka
3. LW GP: Kazunori Yokota 7-1-3 vs. 10-2-0 Mizuto Hirota
2. MW GP: Yuki Sasaki 22-14-1 vs. 12-8-0 Kazuhiro Nakamura
1. MW GP: Jorge Santiago 18-7-0 vs. 14-3-1 Siyar Bahadurzada

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11/1 Sengoku - Nogueira Signing Confirmed

Sengoku have announced the last fight on their November 1 card today, and it is "Minotoro" Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Moise Rimbon.

This should be a huge signing for Sengoku! Also a good addition to this card.

It looks as though Josh Barnett will not participate though, I am a little dissapointed about that. Still a very good card.

Added:
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira "Minotoro" 14-3-0 vs. 13-7-3 Moise Rimbon

The complete card:
Middleweight GP:
Final: Winner Sasaki/Nakamura vs. Winner Santiago/Bahadurzada

Semi-Finals:
Yuki Sasaki 22-14-1 vs. 12-8-0 Kazuhiro Nakamura
Jorge Santiago 18-7-0 vs. 14-3-1 Siyar Bahadurzada
Reserve Fight: Izuru Takeuchi 25-9-6 vs. 40-12-0 Joe Doerksen

Lightweight GP:
Final: Winner Kitaoka/Mitsuoka vs. Winner Yokota/Hirota

Semi-Finals
Satoru Kitaoka 21-8-9 vs. 14-5-2 Eiji Mitsuoka
Kazunori Yokota 7-1-3 vs. 10-2-0 Mizuto Hirota
Reserve Fight: Bang Seung Hwan 5-2-0 vs. 14-3-0 Jorge Masvidal

Non-GP Fights:
Takanori Gomi 29-3-0 vs. 10-6-0 Sergey Golyaev
"King Mo" Muhammed Lawal 1-0-0 vs. 11-4-0 Fabio Silva
Moise Rimbon 13-7-3 vs. 14-3-0 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

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11/1 Sengoku - Secret Fight Revealed?

Nothing official yet, but Nightmare of Battle has a scoop from Brazil. Is Lil-Nog on his way back to Japan? It certainly looks like it, Portal do Vale Tudo is saying its on. He will be fighting Moise Rimbon and that should complete the card.

With the FEG press-conference tomorrow, I would not be surpriced if the fight is confirmed tomorrow. Either way, I am expecting a Sengoku announcement tomorrow.

IF this is the fight, the card will look like this:

Middleweight GP:
Final: Winner Sasaki/Nakamura vs. Winner Santiago/Bahadurzada

Semi-Finals:
Yuki Sasaki 22-14-1 vs. 12-8-0 Kazuhiro Nakamura
Jorge Santiago 18-7-0 vs. 14-3-1 Siyar Bahadurzada
Reserve Fight: Izuru Takeuchi 25-9-6 vs. 40-12-0 Joe Doerksen

Lightweight GP:
Final: Winner Kitaoka/Mitsuoka vs. Winner Yokota/Hirota

Semi-Finals
Satoru Kitaoka 21-8-9 vs. 14-5-2 Eiji Mitsuoka
Kazunori Yokota 7-1-3 vs. 10-2-0 Mizuto Hirota
Reserve Fight: Bang Seung Hwan 5-2-0 vs. 14-3-0 Jorge Masvidal

Non-GP Fights:
Takanori Gomi 29-3-0 vs. 10-6-0 Sergey Golyaev
"King Mo" Muhammed Lawal 1-0-0 vs. 11-4-0 Fabio Silva
Moise Rimbon 13-7-3 vs. 14-3-0 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

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11/1 Sengoku - Gomi Fighting!

It has been said that Gomi needed to be on this card in order to fill Saitama Super Arena, that might very well be true. Today it was announced that he is fighting, he is facing Sergey Golyaev, a new name for me (even though he fought Hellboy in 2004) and a guy that has not fought since December 2006 (according to Sherdog's fight finder). Most of his fights are in M-1 and it will be interesting to see if he poses a threat to Gomi. He was the Russian Muay Thai champion in 2000/2001 according to the Sengoku information.

Fabio Silva is returning to the ring, he is probably best known (depending on who you ask) as a Wanderlei Silva look alike, but he is a good fighter and against King Mo I would say that anything can happen. Silva has the experience, but the question is if that's enough... I would have favored Wiuff for the same reason... Silva is also giving away a bit of size in this one.

This event is looking very strong, and there is the possibility of an 11th fight. NoB is saying someone familiar to Japan and hasn't fought here (in Japan) for about 2years... There are lots of fighters that fall into that category and I don't want to speculate but there are a few names that stick out from the last couple of Pride events.

Announced today:
Takanori Gomi 29-3-0 vs. 10-6-0 Sergey Golyaev
Middleweight GP Reserve Fight: Izuru Takeuchi 25-9-6 vs. 40-12-0 Joe Doerksen
King Mo 1-0-0 vs. 11-4-0 Fabio Silva

That makes the card look like this:

Middleweight GP:
Final: Winner Sasaki/Nakamura vs. Winner Santiago/Bahadurzada

Semi-Finals:
Yuki Sasaki 22-14-1 vs. 12-8-0 Kazuhiro Nakamura
Jorge Santiago 18-7-0 vs. 14-3-1 Siyar Bahadurzada
Reserve Fight: Izuru Takeuchi 25-9-6 vs. 40-12-0 Joe Doerksen

Lightweight GP:
Final: Winner Kitaoka/Mitsuoka vs. Winner Yokota/Hirota

Semi-Finals
Satoru Kitaoka 21-8-9 vs. 14-5-2 Eiji Mitsuoka
Kazunori Yokota 7-1-3 vs. 10-2-0 Mizuto Hirota
Reserve Fight: Bang Seung Hwan 5-2-0 vs. 14-3-0 Jorge Masvidal

Non-GP Fights:
Takanori Gomi 29-3-0 vs. 10-6-0 Sergey Golyaev
"King Mo" Muhammed Lawal 1-0-0 vs. 11-4-0 Fabio Silva

Yesterday NoB posted some interesting rumors. I have not seen them confirmed anywhere, but would it would be interesting if they were true. KJ Noons vs. Nick Diaz in Japan… NoB is speculating that it will be in Sengoku, I would agree… DREAM would probably put Diaz against Sakurai, as they were intending first. But let’s see.

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