Author: Daniel Herbertson

Gary Goodridge Still Not Paid for 2009 New Year’s Eve Bout

Filed under: DREAM, K1, News, JapanK-1 and DREAM promoter Fighting Entertainment Group are starting to fall apart at the seams, and Gary Goodridge is the latest in a long line of fighters to come forward and confirm that.

Bibiano Fernandes, Andy Souwe…

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K-1 and DREAM promoter Fighting Entertainment Group are starting to fall apart at the seams, and Gary Goodridge is the latest in a long line of fighters to come forward and confirm that.

Bibiano Fernandes, Andy Souwer, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and others on and off the record have stated over the past twelve months that they have not been paid in a timely fashion for fights under the FEG banner and although Goodridge first made his situation known back in August , he claims that he has still not received his compensation.

“It’s been almost a year since I fought Mousasi at FEG’s NYE show in Japan. I want my money. I stayed quiet because I thought they were going to pay me but I still haven’t seen a penny. I have bills I have to pay. I worked for the Japanese people for over a decade, and I never thought they would treat me like this.”

Buakaw Por. Pramuk, Kazunori Yokota and Others Added to Soul of Fight

Filed under: Sengoku, News, JapanSengoku Raiden Championship promoter World Victory Road announced six fights on Thursday for its end of year “Soul Of Fight” event to be held at the Ariake Colosseum in Tokyo on December 30th.

Recently crowned Shoot B…

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Sengoku Raiden Championship promoter World Victory Road announced six fights on Thursday for its end of year “Soul Of Fight” event to be held at the Ariake Colosseum in Tokyo on December 30th.

Recently crowned Shoot Boxing S-Cup Champion and two time K-1 World MAX Champion Buakaw Por. Pramuk will take on 2010 K-1 MAX Japan tournament finalist Hiroki Nakajima in a kickboxing bout while Grabaka’s Kazunori Yokota will try to claim revenge for former team mate Akihiro Gono when he faces Team Asashoryu’s Jadamba Narantungalag under MMA rules.

Also announced were kickboxing bouts, muay thai bouts and “jacket” matches (which are likely to be essentially combat sambo bouts) featuring the likes of Flyweight King Of Pancrase Kiyotaka Shimizu, WBC Muay Thai Bantamweight Champion Arashi Fujiwara and New Japan Kickboxing Flyweight Champion Mutsuki Ebata.

Buakaw Captures Shoot Boxing S-Cup, Toby Imada Upsets Andy Souwer

Filed under: News, Japan2004 and 2006 K-1 World MAX Champion Buakaw Por. Pramuk could be slowly returning to the form that once saw him dominate the K-1 ranks as he captured the Shoot Boxing S-Cup at JCB Hall in Tokyo, Japan on Tuesday. Buakaw’s possib…

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2004 and 2006 K-1 World MAX Champion Buakaw Por. Pramuk could be slowly returning to the form that once saw him dominate the K-1 ranks as he captured the Shoot Boxing S-Cup at JCB Hall in Tokyo, Japan on Tuesday. Buakaw’s possible return to form is noteworthy but what really raised eyebrows was the performance of two-time Bellator tournament finalist Toby Imada.

Imada, best known for his 2009 submission of the year – an inverted triangle on Jorge Masvidal, is a grappling specialist with 17 submissions to his name but in his Shoot Boxing debut he took out the best Shoot Boxing has to offer – 2002, 2004 and 2008 S-Cup Champion and 2005, 2007 K-1 MAX Champion Andy Souwer.

Imada first knocked out Japanese Super-Welterweight Champion Takaaki Umeno in the final second of their bout, then took a split decision over Souwer before finally falling to leg kicks of Buakaw in the S-Cup finals.

Andy Souwer Possibly Herniated Disc Before Loss to Toby Imada

Filed under: News, JapanAndy Souwer’s first loss in over four years in the Shoot Boxing ring to new-comer Toby Imada may have come with good reason as he revealed post-fight that he carried a possibly severe back injury into Tuesday’s S-Cup semi-final …

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Andy Souwer‘s first loss in over four years in the Shoot Boxing ring to new-comer Toby Imada may have come with good reason as he revealed post-fight that he carried a possibly severe back injury into Tuesday’s S-Cup semi-final bout.

Team Souwer’s personal physician is yet to perform a full diagnosis on the three-time S-Cup and two-time K-1 MAX champion but suspects that Souwer suffered a herniated disc in his quarter final KO victory over WMC Welterweight Champion Bovy Sor Audomsorn.

“(I had back pain) in the first round in the first fight. I didn’t know what exactly the problem was or what the reason was that I had the pain. I don’t want to make excuses but I think it was a big reason why I was not able to fight my own game (against Imada). I’m not saying that I lost because of an injury but I can tell you that I didn’t even warm up because of the pain,” Souwer revealed in a post fight interview.

Toby Imada Credits Judo for Shoot Boxing Win Over Andy Souwer

Filed under: interview, JapanDespite Andy Souwer’s injury claims, Toby Imada’s defeat of the Shoot Boxing great in Imada’s debut exceeded all expectations, including his own.

“This was a huge achievement for me. A big accomplishment. It’s the first ti…

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Despite Andy Souwer‘s injury claims, Toby Imada‘s defeat of the Shoot Boxing great in Imada’s debut exceeded all expectations, including his own.

“This was a huge achievement for me. A big accomplishment. It’s the first time I’ve competed in Shoot Boxing, especially with this calibre of fighters. It’s completely new to me. I won my first match and it was a good fight and I was very impressed with myself. And Andy Souwer… well, I didn’t expect it but this is what I do. I go out and I fight and I don’t give up,” Imada stated post fight.

Imada wouldn’t be at the top of the list for successful kickboxing converts as he is primarily a grappler but with Shoot Boxing allowing throws and standing submissions, Imada believes his grappling roots gave him the edge.

K-1 Koshien King of Under 18 – Results and Prospect Report

Filed under: K1, JapanK-1’s Koshien King of Under 18 nationwide highschool tournament concluded at Differ Ariake in Tokyo on Saturday with a massive 32 man one day tournament which was won by 16 year old newcomer Shoei Hareyama.

The Koshien program wi…

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K-1’s Koshien King of Under 18 nationwide highschool tournament concluded at Differ Ariake in Tokyo on Saturday with a massive 32 man one day tournament which was won by 16 year old newcomer Shoei Hareyama.

The Koshien program will prove to be instrumental for the promotion in building new fans and expanding K-1 on that backs of Japanese fighters rather than foreign freaks but it also gives fans a sneak peak at Japan’s top kickboxers years before we would normally get to see them.

After the break we take a look at the fallout from this years Koshien tournament final and look at who will be making waves post-highschool.