If you stayed up late, or got up early, then you were probably one of a select few to watch World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku Raiden Championship 15 live on HDNet early Saturday morning. And reading the reviews, you were probably disappointed that you got up to watch.
SRC 15 took place at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan and aired live on HDNet at 2AM EST in North America.
The main highlight from the entire event was Maximo Blanco’s knockout of Kiuma Kunioku near the end of the first round (check out the KO Gif after the jump). Blanco put Kunioku to the mat and as the Japanese fighter leaped back to his feet, Blanco dropped him with a devastating uppercut.
Another bout of note was the main event matchup between Brit James Zikic and Olympic Judo Silver medalist Hiroshi Izumi. Izumi put in a poor performance, choosing to stand with Zikic throughout the entire fight instead of taking the fight to the mat. Most critics scored the bout as a unanimous decision for Zikic, but the Japanese judges awarded Izumi with a split decision, leaving many shaking their heads.
World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku Raiden Championship 15 – Quick Results
Hiroshi Izumi def. James Zikic via split decision (30-29, 29-30, 30-29)
Brian Cobb def. Kazunori Yokota via split decision (28-28, 29-30, 28-28)*
Maximo Blanco def. Kiuma Kunioku via KO (punches) R1, 4:26
Kazuo “Yoshiki” Takahashi def. Chang Seob Lee via submission (armbar) R1, 2:28
SRC Welterweight Grand Prix 2010 Semifinals
Keita “K-Taro” Nakamura def. Takuya Wada via submission (punches) R1, 3:30
Yasubey Enomoto def. Taisuke Okuno via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-25, 30-25)
SRC Asia Bantamweight Tournament 2010 Quarterfinals
Taiyo Nakahara def. Shintaro Ishiwatari via split decision (19-20, 19-19, 20-20)**
Akitoshi Tamura def. Shoko Sato via split decision (19-18, 19-20, 20-19)
Shunichi Shimizu def. Wataru Takahashi via unanimous decision (20-19, 20-18, 20-18)
Manabu Inoue def. Jae Hyun So via unanimous decision (20-19, 20-18, 20-18)
* Two judges scored the bout a draw, with both giving the “must decision” to Cobb, awarding him the win by split decision.
** Two judges scored the bout a draw, with both giving the “must decision” to Nakahara, awarding him the win by split decision.
HT: BloodyElbow.com for the results and GIF
Check out the Maximo Blanco KO GIF after the jump
