Author: Daniel Herbertson

Doo Ho Choi Obliterates Nobuhiro Obiya at Deep Cage Impact

Filed under: JapanThe Deep cage returned to Tokyo on Saturday night for Deep Cage Impact 2011 in Tokyo, a mammoth 23-fight two-part event at Differ Ariake.

In the first of the evening’s two main events, former Deep lightweight champion Katsunori Kikun…

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The Deep cage returned to Tokyo on Saturday night for Deep Cage Impact 2011 in Tokyo, a mammoth 23-fight two-part event at Differ Ariake.

In the first of the evening’s two main events, former Deep lightweight champion Katsunori Kikuno scored a superb counter reverse punch KO over Korean slugger Kwang Hee Lee following an unfortunately sub-par performance. The karate-stylist continues to abandon the style that secured him a Deep title and his former status as Japan‘s top prospect.

In the second main event, relatively unknown Korean prospect Doo Ho Choi thoroughly trounced stiff opposition in former Deep lightweight champion Nobuhiro Obiya. Choi, who aside from an undercard bout in Sengoku has only featured in much smaller events, destroyed the legs and face of Obiya with laser guided strikes before finishing the fight with a flying knee only 15-seconds into the final round. Choi came into the bout as a late replacement for the injured Won Sik Park but turned in one of the most impressive performances of the year in Japan.

Also among the winners for Deep’s return to the cage: UFC and Pride veteran Ryo Chonan, Deep light-heavyweight champ Yoshuyuki Nakanishi, Sengoku Featherweight GP finalist Kazunori Yokota and Amanda Lucas, daughter of Star Wars creator George Lucas.

Former Deep lightweight champion Katsunori Kikuno got back on the winner’s list after recently losing his strap to Mizuto Hirota, but he has still not learned from past mistakes. The karate-stylist once again employed his no-defense counter punch style, continuing to abandon the hourglass karate stance and crescent kick that brought him so much success in DREAM and Deep.

The finish came for Kikuno late in the first, landing three beautiful counter reverse punches to drop an over-matched Kwang Hee Lee but by the end of the short bout, Kikuno was badly cut above the eye and had taken a plethora of heavy blows cleanly on the jaw. Kikuno should have easily handled his foe but his choice to employ this simply insane style made things much more difficult for him. Desipte the the win, one of Japan’s brightest stars continues to fade and it is hard to see Kikuno reaching the upper echelons again while fighting like this.

We knew that Korean featherweight Doo Ho Choi was good, we just didn’t realize how good. Up until this point Nobuhiro Obiya had proven impossible to finish with even Gilbert Melendez and Katsunori Kikuno unable to put the hardy slugger away.

Choi absolutely decimated the former lightweight kingpin though, the entire audience wincing in sympathy with every cutting low kick, perfectly placed punch and finally the fight-ending flying knee. The entirely one sided 10-minute and 15-second affair certainly ranks among the most impressive performances of the year in Japanese MMA.

UFC and Pride veteran Ryo Chonan battled through exhaustion to take a hard fought decision over kickboxing convert Naoki Samukawa. Chonan dominated proceedings early, using his significant cage experience to pin the J-Network, M-1 and WKO champion down and batter him with elbows and soccer kicks. Samakawa became more accustomed to the cage in the second, avoiding significant damage and in the final period, traded blows with a spent Chonan to take the round. Samukawa’s efforts to sway the judges came too late however and all three judges ruled in favor of Chonan.

Deep light-heavyweight champion Yoshiyuki Nakanishi steamrolled AACC wrestler Yusuke Masuda, brutalizing Masuda with punches, knees and finishing the job with three sickening soccer kicks to the head midway through the second. This marks the second consecutive bout that Nakanishi has finished with devastating soccer kicks.

The bout got off to an unfortunate start, but former Sengoku star and former Deep ace Kazunori Yokota brought the highlight ending as he pounded and soccer kicked Katsuya Toida into a corner stoppage only 25-seconds into round two.

Only 10-seconds into the featherweight contest Yokota landed a brutal kick below the belt, Toida taking a full five minutes to recover before the bout was restarted. After receiving a yellow card for his misplaced kick Yokota wasted no time, chasing Toida with strikes and at one point coming close with a surprising kimura. In the second stanza, Yokota turned up the heat, dropping the grappler with a punch and then finnishing the tob with a torrent of punches and a soccer kick.

In a thrilling battle of armbar experts, Daisuke Nakamura‘s blindingly fast hitman-style jab softened up judoka Chang Hyun “Armbar” Kim, leading to predictable armbar finish midway through the last stanza.

In the first period, Nakamura and Kim proved to relatively even on the canvas, Nakamura having an advantage but Kim being good enough to avoid armbar, toe hold and knee bar attempts. Nakamura dramatically swung the bout in his favor in the second though, grinding Kim’s face up with his jab and right straights. With Kim a bloody mess going in to the final round, Nakamura had a much easier time securing the fight-ending armbar.

Earlier in the evening, Amanda Lucas, daughter of Star Wars creator George Lucas, picked up her second win in Deep for the year, submitting an over-matched Hari with a rear naked choke late in round one. Despite her relative lack of experience in MMA, Lucas is bringing plenty of attention to Deep in Japan, earlier this month featuring on a prime time comedy show where she grappled with comedians.

Deep Cage Impact 2011 in Tokyo – Oct. 29, 2011 at Differ Ariake in Tokyo, Japan
1st Round
Katsunori Kikuno def. Kwang Hee Lee by TKO (Punches) – Round 1, 4:59
Kazunori Yokota def. Katsuya Toida by TKO (Soccer Kicks and Punches) – Round 2, 0:25
Daisuke Nakamura def. Chang Hyun Kim by Submission (Armbar) – Round 3, 3:19
Shoji Maruyama def. Yusuke Kagiyama by Unanimous Decision
Tomohiko Hori vs. Yoshiki Harada – Unanimous Draw
Amanda Lucas def. Mika Harigai by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) – Round 1, 4:32
Hideto Tatsumi def. Kenji Nagai by TKO (Punches) – Round 1, 2:13
Juri Ohara def. Luiz Andrade I by TKO (Punches) – Round 1, 4:27
Hirotaka Miyakawa def. Sakae Kasuya by KO (Punch) – Round 1, 2:52
Hideto Kondo def. Yutaka Kobayashi by Submission (Guillotine Choke) – Round 2, 0:55
Shun Yoshioka def. Makoto Sato by TKO (Punches) – Round 1, 4:25

2nd Round

Doo Ho Choi def. Nobuhiro Obiya KO (Flying Knee) – Round 3, 0:15

Ryo Chonan def. Naoki Samukawa Unanimous Decision

Hiroshi Nakamura def. Yoshiro Maeda by Majority Decision

Yuya Shirai def. Yoshitomo Watanabe by Unanimous Decision

Yoshiyuki Nakanishi def. Yusuke Masuda by TKO (Soccer Kicks) – Round 2, 0:33

Shunsuke Inoue def. Bernard Ackah by TKO (Punches) – Round 1, 2:30

 

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UFC Japan Will Be PPV Event; Doubleheader Plans Abandoned

The UFC’s long-awaited return to Japan on Feb. 26, 2012 will be a full pay-per-view level event, sources have confirmed to MMA Fighting as initially reported by Dave Meltzer. Zuffa has thus abandoned its controversial plan to have the UFC Japan event a…

The UFC’s long-awaited return to Japan on Feb. 26, 2012 will be a full pay-per-view level event, sources have confirmed to MMA Fighting as initially reported by Dave Meltzer. Zuffa has thus abandoned its controversial plan to have the UFC Japan event act as a free-to-air lead-in to a Las Vegas PPV event.

With a 10 a.m. local start time, the possibility that the Feb. 26, 2012 Japanese UFC event would act as a lead-in to a Las Vegas pay-per-view event, and the lack of local network TV deal, many were quick to criticize the first Japanese UFC event of the Zuffa era.

Although Japanese fans will still be forced to make the morning commute to Saitama Super Arena, MMA Fighting has learned that significant progress has been made towards ensuring the success of the first UFC event in Japan since Dec. 2000 as along with the elevation to PPV for the UFC Japan event, Zuffa has signed a marketing and promotional deal with local advertising giant Dentsu Inc. and a lucrative broadcast deal is currently being negotiated.

In an effort to breach the notoriously difficult Japanese market, Zuffa has acquired a significant ally as MMA’s leading promoter has signed an undisclosed deal with Dentsu Inc., Japan’s leading advertising agency, to assist with ticket sales, marketing, sponsorship and acquiring a larger TV deal in Japan.

Currently UFC content is only broadcast in Japan on WOWOW private satellite TV or through NTT Plala’s Hikari TV. History has shown though that these relatively small subscription TV audiences have not been enough to support even the most popular local MMA promotions. For the UFC to grow a significant fan base in the East, a mass distribution TV deal is required.

Although a deal is yet to be reached, Zuffa and Dentsu have recently made significant strides towards securing wider TV coverage, possibly paving the way for more lucrative sponsorship options and most importantly, local news and talk show coverage.

Bouts and ticketing information for the Feb. 26 UFC Japan event are scheduled to be announced in late November.

 

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ONE FC Announces Three Events in Three Countries for Early 2012

Filed under: ONE FCAfter an impressive first showing back in early September the self-proclaimed “Asian major leagues”, ONE FC, has been dormant. The upstart Singapore-based promotion broke their silence on Monday evening however, announcing an ambitio…

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After an impressive first showing back in early September the self-proclaimed “Asian major leagues”, ONE FC, has been dormant. The upstart Singapore-based promotion broke their silence on Monday evening however, announcing an ambitious schedule of three events in three countries over three months for early 2012.

Jakarta will host Indonesia’s first large-scale MMA event on Feb. 11, 2012 as ONE FC heads to the 4000-capacity Kelapa Gading Sports Mall. On Mar. 31 the promotion will return to the home of the debut ONE FC event in September: the 12,000-capacity Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore. Finally, ONE FC will also host Malaysia’s first large-scale MMA event on Apr. 27 as the promotion heads to the 10,000-capacity Stadium Negara in Kuala Lumpur.

Although no bouts have been announced for the upcoming events, the promotion is expected to announce a number of new signings in the coming week. ONE FC has been publicly quiet since their debut event on Sept. 3 but behind the scenes the young promotion has been hastily forming alliances across the continent – recently forging relationships with South Korea’s Road FC, the Philippines’ Ultimate Reality Combat Championship and Thailand’s Dare FC.

Although no broadcast details have been announced, the upcoming ONE FC events are expected to air on ESPN Star Sports in Asia and via an online stream.

 

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After Years of Problems, Kazuyuki Miyata Has Had Enough of FEG

Filed under: DREAM, K1, JapanFighting and Entertainment Group, the Japan-based K-1 promoter and co-promoter of DREAM, is falling apart at the seams.

As if Simon Rutz’s claims of bankruptcy earlier this week were not enough, top DREAM featherweight Kaz…

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Fighting and Entertainment Group, the Japan-based K-1 promoter and co-promoter of DREAM, is falling apart at the seams.

As if Simon Rutz‘s claims of bankruptcy earlier this week were not enough, top DREAM featherweight Kazuyuki Miyata also spoke publicly against Japan’s leading fight-sport promoter this week, claiming in a blog post that after two and a half years of patience, he has had enough of the dishonesty and problems surrounding FEG.

Speaking exclusively to MMAFighting.com, the recent DREAM title contender detailed his problems with FEG, his plans for the future and gave his thoughts on the UFC‘s 2012 Japan return.

Although foreign fighters have been vocal about their problems with FEG, Kazuyuki Miyata became the first Japanese fighter to publicly speak out against the troubled Japanese promoter this week, stating in a blog post that his contract with FEG has been “irreparably damaged due to payment issues” and “dishonesty” and that he will not continue to work with them.

“Well, as it has already been known or [at least] rumored by most in the industry for some time now, and recently has come to light in the world media, certain fighters, such as myself, have not been paid either in full, and/or at all by FEG for quite some time now… a couple of years actually, in my case,” said Miyata to MMAFighting.com.

“In the beginning, Mr. Tanikawa and FEG where very good to me. They treated me very well and I was on a good contract,” said the former Olympic wrestler. “Before going any further, let me take this opportunity to state how much I sincerely appreciate those initial stages of my relationship with FEG and Mr. Tanikawa, The opportunities [I received due to that contract] helped me, my family and my career during those initial stages.”

Although falling victim to the incredibly difficult matchmaking during the early stages of his career, Miyata received almost unparalleled support from FEG at the height of the Japanese fight-sport bubble. In addition to the exceptional purses up for grabs in the Japanese fight scene during the mid 2000s, Miyata also received a monthly salary and support for his family during training camps.

With the collapse of PRIDE in 2007 however, the fight-sport bubble was burst and Miyata, Alistair Overeem, Ray Sefo, Jerome LeBanner, Peter Aerts and many more have been chasing payments for years now. While Miyata declined to reveal how much is owed by FEG, if it is in line with his others who have gone public against FEG, it is likely to be a significant amount.

“It is for the reasons above that I trusted Mr. Tanikawa and FEG and continued to be patient with the ongoing promises of being paid in full for as long as I did,” said Miyata.

Although Miyata has been able to survive financially due to sponsor support, after not receiving fight payment for so long, one may wonder where the recent DREAM featherweight title contender gets his motivation to compete. Removing money from the equation though has actually brought surprising clarity to Miyata’s career.

“Japanese events used to be on network TV and more mass media exposure. Being in the public eye really inspired and motivated me, but in recent times the events have been aired really late at night, edited down to only an hour or so, and eventually not aired on free to air at all,” explained Miyata. “But now with events not being shown on network TV and without as much media exposure, it has made me realize my real passion for the sport and why I evolve and compete. [Fighting] has been my life for many years and I appreciate the opportunity to do what I love professionally. That’s what really inspires and motivates me now.”

Despite his problems with FEG while fighting for DREAM, Miyata does intend to continue fighting and will fight in Japan’s leading MMA promotion, at least for the time being.

“Of course I am planning to continue competing,” said Miyata. “My contract with FEG was completed at the end of last year and it was from that time forward that I negotiated a fight-by-fight contract with DREAM [co-promoter] Real Entertainment. I am very interested in the UFC and potentially entering that realm but at present, I have my sights set on the end of year show here in Japan [but] will consider my options after that, sometime early next year.”

Miyata mentioned in a blog post earlier this week that Real Entertainment, the company formed by ex-PRIDE FC employees who partnered with FEG to co-promote DREAM, is financially “healthy.” Although DREAM still lacks TV support and sponsors, fighters who have been directly contracted to Real Entertainment (i.e. those who didn’t extend their contracts from the former FEG-run K-1 Heroes promotion) have not publicly complained of payment issues.

Whether or not the UFC can be successful in Japan with their Feb. 26 Saitama Super Arena daytime event is a hot topic among pundits. For Miyata though, rather than speculate on the possible failures of a Japanese UFC event, he is more interested in finally seeing the evolution of MMA in Japan.

“I’m no expert on [promotion], but what I can say is that I am very interested in seeing firsthand the top fighters the UFC has to offer on Japan soil. I’m much more interested in the new and exciting evolution of the sport, rather than continually seeing ex-Pride fighters perform.”

 

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Simon Rutz: K-1 World Grand Prix Canceled, FEG ‘Technically Bankrupt’

Filed under: DREAM, K1, Japan”FEG, the parent company of the former K-1 brand, is technically bankrupt,” comes the message from IT’S SHOWTIME president Simon Rutz via a statement posted to the IT’S SHOWTIME website on Monday.

Adding to the crippling b…

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“FEG, the parent company of the former K-1 brand, is technically bankrupt,” comes the message from IT’S SHOWTIME president Simon Rutz via a statement posted to the IT’S SHOWTIME website on Monday.

Adding to the crippling blow dealt to the sport of kickboxing, Rutz also confirmed the rumors that the 2011 K-1 World Grand Prix will not happen.

Bankruptcy has been long suspected of K-1 promoter and DREAM co-promoter Fighting and Entertainment Group, but Simon Rutz, who was set to play a major part in supporting this year’s doomed K-1 World Grand Prix, is the first high-profile figure to come out with the truth on the record.

With the leading promoter reportedly bankrupt, the biggest event canceled and the biggest stars in Alistair Overeem, Badr Hari and Gokhan Saki all leaving the sport, it is tempting to declare the sport of kickboxing dead however the prominent Dutch promoter did reveal several possibilities for the future of K-1 in his detailed statement.

“The name K-1 lays now at the Japanese company Barbizon. There are two serious parties now, which try to pull the K-1 brand name towards themselves and place this in a new company,” says Rutz in the statement.

Japanese real estate firm Barbizon Co,. Ltd., acquired rights to the vast majority of K-1 trademarks earlier in the year in an undisclosed deal. FEG officials never publicly admitted that Barbizon had acquired the rights although the Japanese trademark database did confirm the transfer.

“The first one to find an investor is FEG’s president, Mr. Tanikawa. He has found a Korean investor who has big plans with the K-1 label,” continued Rutz. “This investor claims to have a verbal agreement with Mr. Ishii and Barbizon regarding the takeover of the K-1 label. Details were already discussed and agreed upon, but the only missing thing is the necessary signature of Mr. Ishii.”

Kazuyoshi Ishii, the founder of K-1, ran kickboxing’s leading promotion up until he was arrested for tax evasion in 2003. During Ishii’s absence, former journalist Sadaharu Tanikawa took the reins of K-1 and also formed parent company Fighting and Entertainment Group. Tanikawa took a more pro wrestling and entertainment-based approach to the promotion but after a boom in popularity peaking on Dec. 31, 2003, Tanikawa’s new approach proved to be unpopular with fans and fighters and K-1 has been on the decline ever since. Due to his criminal past, Ishii has returned to play a powerful although private role at K-1 since being released from prison.

“The second one to find a potential investor is [Golden Glory co-owner] Bas Boon,” said Rutz in the statement. “He has found an American company which also has big opportunities to bring the K-1 brand to high levels. However, also this company needs the signature of Mr. Ishii.”

Bas Boon and business partner Frederico Lapenda have already reportedly acquired some rights to the K-1 video library and have been attempting to seize control of K-1 for quite some time. Boon’s health issues, turmoil at Golden Glory and apparent organizational issues have continued to push the deal back however.

“In the meanwhile, even a third potential investor has reported itself to take over the K-1 label, but this investor has presented itself only a couple of days ago,” says the IT’S SHOWTIME president. “All three companies have big plans to bring the K-1 label back to the place where it belongs and therefore make sure that the brand of K-1 has a healthy future.”

Confirming what many had assumed, Rutz continued on to say that the 2011 K-1 World GP will not happen.

“This year there will be no K-1 Final Elimination and K-1 World Grand Prix Final for the following reasons:

– It’s currently unknown which investor gets Mr. Ishii’s signature.
– There’s not enough time left to organize such a big event.
– The visas for the fighters to travel to China haven’t been arranged and these are essential to be able to fight there.

The decision to not rush into crazy things is a wise one, because severe mistakes that could cause more unnecessary damage to the K-1 label are being prevented.”

Although K-1 does represent IT’S SHOWTIME’s biggest rival, Rutz does intend to assist in the rebuilding of the promotion for the good of the sport.

“From next year there will be a new and healthy company that will work on the worldwide brand of K-1,” stated Rutz. “We from IT’S SHOWTIME support the plans to make the K-1 label a strong brand again, because this is in the best interest of the sport, the fighters and the millions of fans around the world.”

“For the fighters who were already preparing to fight on October 29 in China this will be a hard pill to swallow, but on the other hand, these developments offer enough perspective to positively look ahead to the future.”

FEG are yet to respond to the release from Rutz or officially call off the 2011 K-1 World GP.

It is not yet known how this news will affect the leading Japanese MMA promotion DREAM.

DREAM executive producer Keiichi Sasahara indicated post-DREAM.17 that the traditional New Year’s Eve “Dynamite” event may not actually be called “Dynamite” due to the distinct possibility that K-1 fighters will not be participating at the event. It is highly probable that Sasahara and Real Entertainment will continue to operate DREAM on their own with limited or no involvement from co-promoter FEG.

 

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Sanae Kikuta Dominates Kenichi Yamamoto at Grabaka Live 1st Cage Attack

Filed under: Results, JapanTOKYO – Eleven years after opening its doors, the esteemed Grabaka gym tries its hand at promoting with “Grabaka Live 1st Cage Attack”, a co-promotion with Deep held in front of a packed house at Differ Ariake on Saturday nig…

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TOKYO – Eleven years after opening its doors, the esteemed Grabaka gym tries its hand at promoting with “Grabaka Live 1st Cage Attack”, a co-promotion with Deep held in front of a packed house at Differ Ariake on Saturday night.

2001 88-kg ADCC champion, former King of Pancrase and Grabaka boss Sanae Kikuta put on a dominating display against UFC 23 tournament champion and one-time UFC title challenger Kenichi Yamamoto in the evening’s main event. Kikuta destroying Yamamoto with punches from mount to bring the finish at only 2 minutes, 18 seconds into the first round.

Two former champs made successful returns from long layoffs as former Shooto 115-pound champion and Grabaka striking coach Rambaa “M16” Somdet made a successful comeback from injury, easily besting Ryota Uozumi while former two-division Deep champ Dokonjonosuke Mishima returned from a two-year absence to best Grabaka grappling ace Takeshi Yamazaki by a comfortable unanimous decision.

Also on the card, Sengoku veteran and Grabaka coach Yuki Sasaki snapped a five-fight losing streak, knocking down Hidetaka Monma once in each of the three rounds and controlling the rest of the bout to take an impressive unanimous decision. Two-time Pancrase title contender Kei Yamamiya had his way with Pride veteran Yoshihisa Yamamoto, battering the pro wrestler with straight punches to take a unanimous decision.

In a grappling rules bout, Ikuhisa “Minowaman” Minowa was overpowered and surprising outgrappled by comedian Bobby Ologun, finally giving up mount just as the bell rang to signify the end of the bout. With no judges, the bout was ruled a draw.

Grabaka Live 1st Cage Attack – October 15, 2011 at Differ Ariake, Tokyo, Japan
Sanae Kikuta def. Kenichi Yamamoto by TKO (Punches) – Round 1, 2.18
Yuki Sasaki def. Hidetaka Monma by Unanimous Decision
Dokonjonosuke Mishima def. Takeshi Yamazaki by Unanimous Decision
Kei Yamamiya def. Yoshihisa Yamamoto by Unanimous Decision
Rambaa “M16” Somdet def. Ryota Uozumi by Unanimous Decision
Ryuki Ueyama def. Yutaka Ueda by Unanimous Decision
Tomoaki Ueyama def. Shigeyuki Uchiyama by Unanimous Decision

 

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