5/29 DREAM 14 - RESULTS

Dream has another one in the books. A strong card, but without any heavyweights or light-heavyweights (now that the GP was scratched).

Lots of strong featherweights on the card though. Add to that the legends of "Mach" Sakurai, Sakuraba and Minowa, what more can you ask for?

Spoilers if you read on.

Gracie broke the curse when he won the judges decision, he was simply the better man on the ground. Sakuraba had his chances though, and what the ref was thinking when he in the last round tried to pull up Ralek's pants I have no idea. Still a deserved victory.

Nick Diaz proved too strong on the ground for the legend "Mach" Sakurai, meaning that 2 of the really big Japanese stars lost on this card.

Other Japanese fighters made sure that the home crowd had plenty to cheer for though. "Kid" looks to be back on track with a quick KO win, and Minowa is staying on track with a submission win in the 1st round.

Hiroyuki Takaya has secured his spot at the #1 featherweight contender as he got a strong KO win over Joachim Hansen.

Osawa and Miyata edge out split decision wins

8. Welter: Nick Diaz Def. Hayato "Mach" Sakurai by armbar Round 1 3:54
7. 88kg: Ralek Gracie Def. Kazushi Sakuraba by Decision 3-0
6. Feather: Hiroyuki Takaya Def. Joachim Hansen by KO Round 1 4:27
5. Feather: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto Def. Federico "Kiko" Lopez by KO Round 1 1:41
4. Feather: "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura Def. Hideo Tokoro by KO Round 1 2:10
3. Feather: Kazuyuki Miyata Def. Takafumi Otsuka by Decision 2-1
2. Feather: Kenji Osawa Def. Yoshiro Maeda by Decision 2-1
1. Open: Ikuhisa Minowa Def. Imani Lee by rear-naked choke Round 1 4:16

Discuss in the FORUM

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5/29 DREAM 14 - Weigh-in

FEG held the weigh-in for the 14th DREAM earlier today, broadcast live on their website.

Lots of good fights on the card, and Minowaman is giving up 70kg in this fight! Can he do it again?

If you, like me, are wondering about the difference in weight for the featherweights. Nightmare of Battle has the answer:

"As you can see from the weigh-in results everything isn’t as it should. All Featherweight fights on the card are contracted at different weights.

KID/Lopez is at 60kg
Takaya/Hansen is at 65kg
Tokoro/Wicky is at 63kg
Miyata/Otsuka is at 64.5kg
Maeda/Osawa is at 61kg
Mach/Diaz is at 76.6kg

As you can see, it appears that Kiko Lopez missed weight, I am not sure if he weighed in again though. Also, I am sure the fight would still be on.

Main-event:
8. Welter: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai (76.5kg) 35-10-2 vs. 21-7-0 (76.0kg) Nick Diaz

7. 88kg: Kazushi Sakuraba (86.5kg) 26-12-1 vs. 2-0-0 (87.4kg) Ralek Gracie
6. Feather: Joachim Hansen (65.0kg) 19-9-1 vs. 12-8-1 (65.0kg) Hiroyuki Takaya
5. Feather: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto (59.8kg) 17-3-0 vs. 4-2-0 (62.0kg?) Federico "Kiko" Lopez
4. Feather: Hideo Tokoro (63.0kg) 26-21-1 vs. 10-5-1 (62.8kg) "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura
3. Feather: Kazuyuki Miyata (64.2kg)8-7-0 vs. 10-4-1 (64.4kg) Takafumi Otsuka
2. Feather: Yoshiro Maeda (60.7kg) 26-8-2 vs. 15-9-2 (61.0kg) Kenji Osawa
1. Open: Ikuhisa Minowa (88.0kg) 45-30-8 vs. 1-2-0 (150.0kg) Imani Lee

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Fight Order for 5/29 DREAM 14 and 5/30 The way of Shooto 03

This weekend there will be 2 HUGE events in Japan! Shooto have put together an awesome card for Sunday, and of course the DREAM event on Saturday will be huge.

Lots of great fights on both cards, and here are the fight orders:

DREAM is putting on some awesome featherweight matchups, and add to that some true legends in Japan and this should be an interesting event. "Kid" will be desperate for a KO win here, and former lightweight champion Joachim Hansen will be looking to put his mark on the Dream featherweight division. Of course the crowd will be looking for a show and FOTN performance from Tokoro again.

Former olympic wrestler Kazuyuki Miyata will take on another wrestler when he faces DEEP champion Takafumi Otsuka.

Main-event:
8. Welter: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai 35-10-2 vs. 21-7-0 Nick Diaz

7. 88kg: Kazushi Sakuraba 26-12-1 vs. 2-0-0 Ralek Gracie
6. Feather: Joachim Hansen 19-9-1 vs. 12-8-1 Hiroyuki Takaya
5. Feather: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto 17-3-0 vs. 4-2-0 Federico "Kiko" Lopez
4. Feather: Hideo Tokoro 26-21-1 vs. 10-5-1 "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura
3. Feather: Kazuyuki Miyata 8-7-0 vs. 10-4-1 Takafumi Otsuka
2. Feather: Yoshiro Maeda 26-8-2 vs. 15-9-2 Kenji Osawa
1. Open: Ikuhisa Minowa 45-30-8 vs. 1-2-0 Imani Lee

Shooto is putting on no less than 3 title fights! Not only that, but the return of Ryota Matsune. There are good fights from the opening bell on this one too!

Lightweight World Title Fight:
8. "Lion" Takeshi Inoue 18-3-0 vs. 20-4-2 Hatsu Hioki

Welterweight World Title Fight:
7. Willamy "Chiquerim" Freire 15-2-0 vs. 13-3-2 Yusuke Endo

Bantamweight World Title Fight:
6. Yasuhiro Urushitani vs. Ryuichi Miki

5. 62kg: Rumina Sato 25-14-2 vs. 15-1-1 Ryota Matsune
4. Feather: Akitoshi Tamura 14-8-2 vs. 10-1-2 Masakatsu Ueda
3. Feather: Eduardo "Dudu" Dantas 8-2-0 vs. 6-1-2 Hiromasa Ogikubo
2. Welter: Kotetsu Boku 16-6-2 vs. 14-3-1 Yoshihiro Koyama
1. Light: Shintaro Ishiwatari 6-3-3 vs. 16-9-3 Wataru Miki

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5/29 DREAM 14 - "Kid" Yamamoto Added

FEG have announced the addition of Japanese star "Kid" Yamamoto to Dream 14. His opponent will be Team Quest's Federico "Kiko" Lopez. This fight was supposed to be on the Strikeforce undercard, but has been moved to the Dream 14 event. Both fighters are coming of 2 straight losses, "Kid" losing to "Kiko"'s team-mate, Joe Warren. No doubt that "Kid" will be the crowd favorite here, but both fighters will be eager to start another winning streak. It will be interesting to see what Warren has been able to teach his team-mate.

Picture from GBRing.com


Added:
Feather: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto 17-3-0 vs. 4-2-0 Federico "Kiko" Lopez

Previously Announed:
Feather: Joachim Hansen vs. Hiroyuki Takaya
Feather: Hideo Tokoro vs. "Wicky" Akiyo Nishiura
Feather: Kazuyuki Miyata vs. Takafumi Otsuka
Feather: Yoshiro Maeda vs. Kenji Osawa
88kg: Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Ralek Gracie
Welter: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai vs. Nick Diaz

Discuss in the FORUM

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10/6 DREAM 11 - Results

A very strong card from DREAM, and with 2 title fights it might be the best they have put on so far.

On the weigh-in yesterday Miyata turned some heads as the muscular former lightweight turned up with close to no bodyfat.



One of the highlights of this card is the return of DREAM champion Joachim Hansen. He is returning to defend his title, and it will be his first title defence and his first fight since winning the title in July last year.



The DREAM featherweight title holder will also be deceided today in a tournament that is looking very interesting.

Results will be updated as they become available.

Main-Event - Featherweight GP Final:
9. Bibiano Fernandes Def. Hiroyuki Takaya by decision 2-1
Very good fight to end the night!!

Lightweight Title Fight:
8. Shinya Aoki (challenger) Def. Joachim Hansen (champion) by armbar Round 2 about 4:40
Aoki gets grounded by an upkick, the ref stops the fight and gives Aoki time to recover. The judge is staying it was a groin kick first...

7. Middle: Kazushi Sakuaba Def. Rubin Williams by Kimura Round 1
*Sakuraba still wearing a bandage on his left underarm, looks like he is still suffering from the broken arm he suffered against Manhoef.

There is a break and some Dream 12 participants are announced and asked to say a few words (quick translation):
Yoshiro Maeda - "I will take Chase Beebe's head off"
Kuniyoshi Hironaka - "I am the Cage Force champion and I have a lot of experinence in a cage. " "If I win in impressing fashion I would like a shot at the title"
Koichi Kikuno - "I am the DEEP champion and it will be an exciting fight".

6. Light: Tatsuya Kawajiri Def. Melchor "Barracuda" Manibusan TKO Round 1

Super-Hulk Semi-Finals:
5. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Def. Bob Sapp by TKO Round 1
4. Ikuhisa Minowa Def. Hong Choi Man by heel-hook Round 2

The winners will meet on NYE at the FEG Dynamite! event

DREAM Featherweight GP Semi-Finals:
3. SF2: Bibiano Fernandes Def. Joe Warren by arm-bar round 1 (very early)
Warren is saying he didnt tap, Bibiano showes him the middle finger and leaves the ring.

2. SF1: Hiroyuki Takaya Def. Hideo Tokoro by TKO Round 2
1. Reserve: Kazuyuki Miyata Def. Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata by Decision 3-0

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10/6 DREAM 11 - Sakuraba Added/Fight Order

This video started the speclations around wether Sakuraba will be fighting in DREAM 11. Sakuraba has not fought since Dynamite! on NYE, and even then he didnt look 100% after breaking his arm against Melvin Manhoef in June 2008.



It has now been confirmed that Sakuraba will take on American pro-boxer Rubin Williams.

This video have also been released. To me the most interesting thing here, except from the fact that "Hellboy" is fired up, is that he seems to be working with Hayato "Mach" Sakurai for this fight (and we all remeber what he did to Aoki...).



Fight Order:
Main-Event - Featherweight GP Final:
9. Winner Tokoro/Takaya v. Winner Fernandes/Warren

Lightweight Title Fight:
8. Joachim Hansen (champion) 19-7-1 vs. 21-4-0 Shinya Aoki (challenger)

7. Middle: Kazushi Sakuaba 24-12-1 vs. Rubin Williams
6. Light: Tatsuya Kawajiri 24-5-2 vs. 2-2-0 Melchor "Barracuda" Manibusan

Super-Hulk Semi-Finals:
5. Ikuhisa Minowa 42-30-8 vs. 2-2-0 Hong Choi Man
4. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou 6-4-0 vs. 10-5-1 Bob Sapp

DREAM Featherweight GP Semi-Finals:
3. SF2: Joe Warren 2-0-0 vs. 5-2-0 Bibiano Fernandes
2 SF1: Hideo Tokoro 22-16-1 vs. 11-6-1 Hiroyuki Takaya

1. Reserve: Kazuyuki Miyata 7-7-0 vs. 11-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

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10/6 DREAM 11 - Lightweight Title Fight Official

This is hardly a surprise announcement, but now it is official. Joachim Hansen will defend his lightweight title against Shinya Aoki. I guess you could question wether Aoki should be the first to get the title shot, but Aoki has defeated Eddie Alvarez and Vitor Ribeiro since losing the final last year.

Joachim Hansen suffered an injury before his fight on New Years Eve last year, and this will be his first fight in over a year.

There are rumors that a middleweight titlefight featuring Paulo Filho is in the works too. A surprise considering it was expecting to be another re-match of "Jacare" and "Mayhem".

Announced:
Lightweight Title Fight:
Joachim Hansen (champion) 19-7-1 vs. 21-4-0 Shinya Aoki (challenger)

DREAM Featherweight GP Semi-Finals:
Hideo Tokoro 22-16-1 vs. 11-6-1 Hiroyuki Takaya
Joe Warren 2-0-0 vs. 5-2-0 Bibiano Fernandes
Reserve: Kazuyuki Miyata 7-7-0 vs. 11-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

SuperHulk Semi-Finalists:
Ikuhisa Minowa 42-30-8
Hong Choi Man 2-2-0
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou 6-4-0
Gegard Mousasi 25-2-1

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10/6 DREAM 11 Featherweight GP Finals - Fights Announced

DREAM have announced the featherweight GP semi-finals lineup. It is looking very good, the fights for the semi-finals have been rumored and known for a while. However, there is a very interesting reserve fight here. Kazuyuki Miyata, considered the king of take-downs in the Japanese media (after pulling out some spectacular suplexes in his last couple of fights), will take on a guy that is very hard to take down, DJ Taiki. DJ Taiki should of course have been in this GP, he had to give up his spot due to an injury, and Hideo Tokoro took his place.

The semi-finals will have an all Japanese semi-final between Hiroyuki Takaya and crowd favorite Hideo Tokoro. The other semi-final will see the former dark-horse, now favorite in many eyes, Joe Warren, take on BJJ genious Bibiano Fernandes.

I just have to say that I would love to see Miyata vs. Warren, but for now there are some awesome matchups and the tournament is wide open. I think Joe Warren might be the favorite in my book, but honestly, anyone can take this. And dont forget, the fighters in the reserve fight are still in this! As always, the final will be on the same night.

On the card might Japanese stars "Kid" Yamamoto and Tatsuya Kawajiri. Nothing official, but Dream promoter Sasahara has mentioned that he would like to have them on the card. Of course, whats also rumored are 2 title fights (light- and middleweight).

What will be on the card is the SuperHulk tournament semi-finals. This card should be awesome!

DREAM Featherweight GP Semi-Finals:
Hideo Tokoro 22-16-1 vs. 11-6-1 Hiroyuki Takaya
Joe Warren 2-0-0 vs. 5-2-0 Bibiano Fernandes
Reserve: Kazuyuki Miyata 7-7-0 vs. 11-5-3 Daiki "DJ Taiki" Hata

SuperHulk Semi-Finalists:
Ikuhisa Minowa 42-30-8
Hong Choi Man 2-2-0
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou 6-4-0
Gegard Mousasi 25-2-1

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6/30 DEEP Impact 42 - Results

As I am writing this the event is going on in Korakuen Hall. It is a very iteresting card, expecially considering the connection DEEP have with DREAM. I think we can expect to see a few of the fighters here on DREAM cards in the near future.

The main event is the DEEP Middleweight title fight between the defending champion Yuichi Nakanishi and the challenger Riki Fukuda.

Also keep an eye on the co-main event here, as DREAM veterans Kazuyuki Miyata and Takeshi Yamazaki square off.

Read on for spoilers! There will be delays in my updates.

1. 58kg: Ryota Uozomi Def. Pat Uncangco by Decision 3-0
2. 62kg: Tomoya Miyashita Def. Hiryu Okamoto by Guillotine Choke Round 1 1:34
3. 83.9kg: Hiroko Def. Kenji Nagai by Decision 3-0
4. 77.1kg: Shigetoshi Iwase Def. 泰舗 "Goten" Okuno by Decision 3-0
5. 77.1kg: ぺ・ミョンホ (?) Def. Yusaku Tsukumo by Decision 3-0
6. 70.3kg: Toshikazu Iseno Def. Kleber Koike by Decision 3-0
7. Open: Koji Kanechika Def. Kazuhisa Tazawa by Decision 3-0
8. 87kg: Young Choi Def. Bernard Ackah by Decision 2-0
9. 83.9kg: Ryuta Sakurai vs. Hiromitsu Kanehara Draw
10. 65.8kg: Kazuyuki Miyata Def. Takeshi Yamazaki by Decision 2-0

Main-Event: DEEP Middleweight Title Fight:
Riki Fukuda Def. Yuichi Nakanishi by Decision 2-1

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6/30 DEEP 42 Impact - Fight Order

On Tuesday Deep will hold their next Impact event in Korakuen Hall. The main event is the middleweight title fight between the champion Yuichi Nakanishi and Riki Fukuda. Fukuda has had star potential for a long time, and he proved that in his last fight against Murilo Rua.

But this card has more than 1 interesting fight, Miyata and Yamazaki will battle in the featherweight division. I promise that this fight means a lot for both fighters, there are rumors of a DEEP title shot, but I have a feeling that this fight might also serve as a qualifier to DREAM as well. I have the same feeling about Bernard Ackah's fight here, a win might secure him a fight on an upcoming DREAM or Sengoku card.

Main-Event: DEEP Middleweight Title Fight:
Yuichi Nakanishi 9-8-3 vs. 14-4-0 Riki Fukuda

65.8kg: Kazuyuki Miyata 6-7-0 vs. 14-9-2 Takeshi Yamazaki
83.9kg: Ryuta Sakurai 18-15-4 vs. 17-22-1 Hiromitsu Kanehara
87kg: Bernard Ackah 2-2-0 vs. 10-5-1 Young Choi
Open: Kazuhisa Tazawa 4-0-1 vs. Jae Young Kim (?)
70.3kg: Toshikazu Iseno 6-5-2 vs. 1-0-0 Kleber Koike
77.1kg: Yusaku Tsukumo 6-3-0 vs. ぺ・ミョンホ (?)
77.1kg: Shigetoshi Iwase 7-11-3 vs. 泰舗 "Goten" Okuno
83.9kg: Hiroko 2-0-1 vs. 5-8-2 Kenji Nagai
62kg: Tomoya Miyashita 10-5-5 vs. 3-1-1 Hiryu Okamoto
58kg: Ryota Uozomi 3-1-0 vs. Pat Uncangco

Future Fights:
70kg: Motoki Awaji 0-2-0 vs. 3-0-0 Tomoya Kato
62kg: Yasuhiro Yamazaki vs. Yusuke Kadoyama
70kg: Tatsumitsu Wada 0-5-0 vs. 3-2-0 Tatsuya Tsuchida

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6/30 DEEP Impact 42 - Miyata vs. Yamasaki Announced

Saeki and DEEP have announced an awesome match-up for their next DEEP impact event. 2 DREAM veterans will face eachother, this time Miyata will go down to featherweight though. Miyata's opponent is Shooto, DEEP and DREAM veteran Takeshi Yamazaki. Yamazaki is coming off 2 losses, both fighters needs this win to get back onto the main stage of DREAM. Maybe there will be a DEEP title fight for the winner of this one too.

The card is looking very good, and the addition of Miyata vs. Yamazaki will make this a very good event! A total of 14 fights are announced and I think this card should be just about complete now.

In the future fights, Outsider standout Tomoya Kato will make his DEEP debut.

Announced:
Kazuyuki Miyata 6-7-0 vs. 14-9-2 Takeshi Yamazaki
Toshikazu Iseno 6-5-2 vs. 1-0-0 Kleber Koike
Yusaku Tsukumo 6-3-0 vs. ぺ・ミョンホ (?)
Shigetoshi Iwase 7-11-3 vs. 泰舗 "Goten" Okuno

Future Fights:
Motoki Awaji 0-2-0 vs. 3-0-0 Tomoya Kato
Yasuhiro Yamazaki vs. Yusuke Kadoyama
Tatsumitsu Wada 0-5-0 vs. 3-2-0 Tatsuya Tsuchida

Previously Announced:
DEEP Middleweight Title Fight:
Yuichi Nakanishi 9-8-3 vs. 14-4-0 Riki Fukuda

Ryuta Sakurai 18-15-4 vs. 17-22-1 Hiromitsu Kanehara
Bernard Ackah 2-2-0 vs. 10-5-1 Young Choi
Kazuhisa Tazawa 4-0-1 vs. Jae Young Kim (?)
Hiroko 2-0-1 vs. 5-8-2 Kenji Nagai
Tomoya Miyashita 10-5-5 vs. 3-1-1 Hiryu Okamoto
Ryota Uozomi 3-1-0 vs. Pat Uncangco

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5/24 ZST 20 - RESULTS

ZST had their ZST 20 in Differ Ariake on Sunday. On the card was a title fight and a very some very interesting fights. On the card were UFC, DREAM and Sengoku veterans.

ZST has some interesting rules and it leads to some very high paced grappling fights, and without the judges a fighter is urged to finish the fight. This eliminates fighters that tend to stay on top and waiting for the judges decisions to go their way.

I am sure a lot of fans made their way to Differ Ariake for the tag-team fight. From what I have seen, it was a spectacular fight with lots of "air" inn the takedowns.

Main-Event: ZST Bantamweight Title fight:
Keisuke Fujiwara Def. Yuichiro "Yukito" Shirai by TKO Round 2 4:37

Co-Main event 2x5min.:
Kuniyoshi Hironaka Def. Naoyuki Kotani by neck-lock Round 2 2:43

Lightweight Tag-Team Fight:　
Masayuki Okude/Tetsuya Yamada vs. Katsuhiko Nagata/Kazuyuki Miyata DRAW

Shuichiro Katsumura Def. Hiroyuki Yamashiro by twister Round 1 2:56
Kenichi Ito Def. Takumi Yano by DQ (3 yellow cards)
Osami Shibuya Def. Ichiro Kojima by arm-bar Round 1 2:37

I have not been able to find the results for the undercard:

SWAT! Bout 2x5min.:
15. Feather: Shunichi Shimizu 14-4-5 vs. 6-3-0 Kohei Kuraoka
14. Welter: Shingo Matsuda 4-8-1 vs. 2-0-1 Teruhiko Higashitani
13. Bantam: Ichiro Sugita 8-2-5 vs. 3-1-1 Tetsuya Fusano
12. Bantam: Takeaki Miyakawa 6-4-1 vs. 4-7-2 Toshihiro Shimizu
11. Feather: Takayuki Kishi 1-2-2 vs. 0-0-1 Yasuo Munakata
10. Welter: Yoichiro Toriyama vs. 2-5-0 Takaya Asano

SWAT! Bout 2x5min. GT-F (Grappling Rule):　
9. Female Minimum: Miki Aiba vs. Yoko Milano
8. Female Minimum: Ayumi Funakoshi vs. Miyoko
7. Welter: Hiroyuki Ota vs. Takamichi

Genesis Bout 1x5min.:
6. Feather: Takeshi Otaki 0-0-3 vs. Hayato Sawai
5. Feather: Masamitsu Nakamura 1-0-0 vs. Takahide Kobayashi
4. Bantam: Masatoshi Kondo 0-2-1 vs. 0-1-0 Kengo Okubo
3. Light: Shobu Ono vs. Hisashi Ito

Genesis Bout 1x5min　GT-F (Grappling Rule):
2. Feather: Masato Arai vs. Shinya Irei
1. Light: Kazuto Nakamura vs. Toshihisa Shinomiya

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5/24 ZST 20 - Fight Order

HEROs veteran Katsumura returning to the ring after almost 2 years away, he is taking on Yamashiro in his return to the ZST ring, this fight is a celebration of his 10 year career.

The main event is the ZST bantamweight title fight between Keisuke Fujiwara and Yuichiro Shirai. In this sort of fight the ZST rules come into play, there are no judges and the fight goes until a winner is deceided.

Also look out for the tag-team pairing of Sydney Olympic wrestlers Katsuhiko Nagata and Kazuyuki Miyata. They are taking on the team of ZST fighters in Masayuki Okude and Tetsuya Yamada.

In total there are 21 fights on the card and it should be a good day of fights in Differ Ariake.

Main-Event: ZST Bantamweight Title fight:
(5 minute rounds until a winner is deceided)
21. Keisuke Fujiwara 6-1-2 vs. 4-6-4 Yuichiro "Yukito" Shirai

Co-Main event 2x5min.:
20. Welter: Naoyuki Kotani 18-8-6 vs. 12-6-0 Kuniyoshi Hironaka

Lightweight Tag-Team Fight:　
19. Masayuki Okude/Tetsuya Yamada vs. Katsuhiko Nagata/Kazuyuki Miyata

18. Feather: Shuichiro Katsumura 8-7-3 vs. 2-3-0 Hiroyuki Yamashiro
17. Light: Takumi Yano 9-8-3 vs. 4-3-2 Kenichi Ito
16. Middle: Osami Shibuya 37-32-15 vs. 6-5-3 Ichiro Kojima

SWAT! Bout 2x5min.:
15. Feather: Shunichi Shimizu 14-4-5 vs. 6-3-0 Kohei Kuraoka
14. Welter: Shingo Matsuda 4-8-1 vs. 2-0-1 Teruhiko Higashitani
13. Bantam: Ichiro Sugita 8-2-5 vs. 3-1-1 Tetsuya Fusano
12. Bantam: Takeaki Miyakawa 6-4-1 vs. 4-7-2 Toshihiro Shimizu
11. Feather: Takayuki Kishi 1-2-2 vs. 0-0-1 Yasuo Munakata
10. Welter: Yoichiro Toriyama vs. 2-5-0 Takaya Asano

SWAT! Bout 2x5min. GT-F (Grappling Rule):　
9. Female Minimum: Miki Aiba vs. Yoko Milano
8. Female Minimum: Ayumi Funakoshi vs. Miyoko
7. Welter: Hiroyuki Ota vs. Takamichi

Genesis Bout 1x5min.:
6. Feather: Takeshi Otaki 0-0-3 vs. Hayato Sawai
5. Feather: Masamitsu Nakamura 1-0-0 vs. Takahide Kobayashi
4. Bantam: Masatoshi Kondo 0-2-1 vs. 0-1-0 Kengo Okubo
3. Light: Shobu Ono vs. Hisashi Ito

Genesis Bout 1x5min　GT-F (Grappling Rule):
2. Feather: Masato Arai vs. Shinya Irei
1. Light: Kazuto Nakamura vs. Toshihisa Shinomiya

Tickets:
SRS 10,500
SS 8,500
S 6,500
A 5,500円
Doors Open: 14:00

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5/24 ZST 20 - Fights Added

ZST really has plans to put on a a big show on May 24 in Differ Ariake. They have previously announced the tag team combination of Kazuyuki Miyata and Katsuhiko Nagata.

Today they have added some very interesting additional fights. Most likely the main-event will be the bantamweight title fight between Keisuke Fujiwara and Pancrase veteran "Yukito".

It is also interesting to see Kuniyoshi Hironaka on this card. He was meant to be in the Cage Force main event a few weeks back, you can read about what happened there in the comments here.

It also seems that ADCC veteran, Takumi Yano is making a return on this card.

Added:
Bantamweight Title Fight: Keisuke Fujiwara 6-1-2 vs. 4-6-4 Yuichiro "Yukito" Shirai
Welter: Naoyuki Kotani 18-8-6 vs. 12-6-0 Kuniyoshi Hironaka
Light: Takumi Yano 9-8-3 vs. 4-3-2 Kenichi Ito
Middle: Osami Shibuya 37-32-15 vs. TBA
Feather: Shunichi Shimizu 14-4-5 vs. TBA

Previously Announced:
ZST Lightweight Tag-Team:
Kazuyuki Miyata/Katsuhiko Nagata vs.
Masayuki Okude/Tetsuya Yamada

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5/24 ZST 20 - Sydney Olympians Tag Team

2 Japanese Olympians from the Sydney games are are teaming up for a ZST tag team fight in ZST 20. ZST are really bringing out some of their most popular fighters for this tag-team fight.

The fight will see the Kazuyuki Miyata/Katsuhiko Nagata pairing take on ZST stars Masayuki Okude and Tetsuya Yamada. This should be a fight the fans will come to watch, and as it is in Differ Ariake this time there is room for more fans than what is normal at the ZST events. I am sure there will be a lot more fights added to this card.

ZST Lightweight Tag-Team:
Kazuyuki Miyata/Katsuhiko Nagata vs. Masayuki Okude/Tetsuya Yamada

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4/16 DEEP 41 - RESULTS

An action packed event in Korakuen Hall earlier today. The main event was for the DEEP lightweight title between Katsunori Kikuno and Koichiro Matsumoto. Alliance's Kikuno won a decisive victory by KO.

Kazuyuki Miyata returned to the ring and also won got a good win in his fight.

The female fight of the night lasted only 21 seconds, a front kick and knees to the body secured the win for the DEEP female lightweight champion.

Main-Event - Lightweight Title Fight:
11. Katsunori Kikuno Def. Koichiro Matsumoto by KO Round 1 4:32

10. Miku Matsumoto Def. Nicdali "The Nightqueen" Calanic by TKO Round 1 0:21
9. Kazuyuki Miyata Def. Jae Hyun So by Guillotine choke Round 1 2:31
8. Ryuki Ueyama Def. Kousei Kubota by Decision 3-0
7. Hiromitsu Kanehara Def. Kenji Nagai by TKO Round 2 3:02
6. Yuji Sakurai Def. Minoru Kato by KO Round 2 0:59
5. Toshiaki Kitada Def. Joe Taimanglo by Guillotine choke Round 1 1:29
4. Seigo Mizuguchi Def. WakaArashi by necklock Round 1 0:19
3. Tomoya Miyashita Def. Crazy Hiru by Spinning choke Round 1 2:39
2. Baek Won Sik (?) Def. Naoki Matsushita by TKO (doctor stop) Round 1 3:59

Opening Fight:
1. Yasuhiro Kawasaki Def. Shun Yagi (?) by TKO Round 1 3:02

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4/16 DEEP 41 - Fight Order

It will be a very interesting event in Korakuen Hall on Thursday. For me, I am looking forward to seeing Miyata returning to the ring, but there are other very good fights on the card.

The main event is the DEEP lightweight title fight, fighting for the vacant title are Katsunori Kikuno and Kichiro Matsumoto. It should be a very good fight.

The female fight on the card is between DEEP champion Miku Matsumoto, who is taking on Nicdali Calanic. The Japanese media has had a bit of focus on this fight, and I expect it to be a good fight for the fans of female MMA.

To get you a bit more excited about the event GoForkYouself have put together this preview of this event:



Main-Event - Lightweight Title Fight:
11. Katsunori Kikuno 10-1-1 vs. 7-1-0 Koichiro Matsumoto

10. Miku Matsumoto vs. 5-2-0 Nicdali "The Nightqueen" Calanic
9. Kazuyuki Miyata 5-7-0 vs. 2-5-0 Jae Hyun So
8. Ryuki Ueyama 9-11-4 vs. 24-29-10 Kousei Kubota
7. Hiromitsu Kanehara 16-22-1 vs. 5-7-2 Kenji Nagai
6. Yuji Sakurai 9-14-1 vs. 2-6-1 Minoru Kato
5. Toshiaki Kitada 7-4-2 vs. 5-3-0 Joe Taimanglo
4. Seigo Mizuguchi 4-4-0 vs. 2-3-0 WakaArashi
3. Tomoya Miyashita 9-5-5 vs. Crazy Hiru
2. Naoki Matsushita 9-10-9 vs. Baek Won Sik (?)

Opening Fight:
1. Yasuhiro Kawasaki 1-0-1 vs. Shun Yagi (?)

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4/16 DEEP 41 - Fights Added

DEEP have announced 3 more fights for their DEEP 41 card, and the card should be close to final now.

The most interesting addition is the fight between Toshiaki Kitada and Joe Taimanglo. Taimanglo is following the trend of exchanges between Japanese organizations and PXC, the Guam based organization.

Also added is Kenji Nagai to face Hiromitsu Kanehara and Crazy Hiru to face Tomoya Miyashita.

Crazy Hiru is a fighter I know from Shoot Boxing and it will be interesting to see how he does in DEEP. I am not sure that this is his MMA debut, as Crazy Hiru is obviously not his real name...

Added:
Hiromitsu Kanehara 16-22-1 vs. 5-7-2 Kenji Nagai
Toshiaki Kitada 7-4-2 vs. 5-3-0 Joe Taimanglo
Tomoya Miyashita 9-5-5 vs. Crazy Hiru

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

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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

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Kazuyuki Miyata opens his gym - "BRAVE"!

I know this is something Miyata has been working to do for a while now, and the time has come!!

I mentioned this when I posted his training pictures, and now it is a reality. I went along to the gym opening today, but it was too crowded and I was unable to get inside (maybe there will be an oppurtunity later).



Anyway, the gym is located 5 min walk from Kita-Senju station, and it is a pretty convenient location if you're coming to Tokyo. I know Miyata speaks English and he is a very nice guy, so this might be an option for someone coming from overseas.

The price is pretty standard, JPY10,500 to join, and the same in monthly fee. There is an option for visitors to pay JPY2,500 for 1 time.



This is the gym home-page: K.Miyata - Brave
From the site, it looks like the classes will start February 1.
Instructors include: Kazuyuki Miyata, Hiroshi Tsuruya and Masutatsu Yano.
This should secure world class training in wrestling and jiu-jitsu.

Good luck to Miyata! I really hope the gym becomes a big success!!

Japanese media is reporting that Miyata has asked to participate in the featherweight GP at the gym opening today! We will have to wait and see if he gets his chance.

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