Mario Yamasaki Releases Statement on UFC Belem Fiasco

Once again, referee Mario Yamasaki has to explain himself following a bout in which his officiating was called into question. This time, he has released a statement on his role in the beatdown of Priscila Cachoeira at UFC Belem. Yamasaki officiated the…

Once again, referee Mario Yamasaki has to explain himself following a bout in which his officiating was called into question. This time, he has released a statement on his role in the beatdown of Priscila Cachoeira at UFC Belem. Yamasaki officiated the bout between Valentina Shevchenko and Cachoeira. Shevchenko beat her opponent down from pillar to […]

UFC Flyweight Defends Coach For Brutal Belem Beatdown

Several controversial angles emerged from Valentina Shevchenko’s grossly one-sided beatdown of Octagon newcomer Priscila Cachoeira in the co-main event of last Saturday night’s (Feb. 3, 2018) UFC Belem in Brazil, a fight where ‘Bullet’ out-landed her overmatched opponent by a gaping margin of 230-3. The first and most prevalent talking point was the unwillingness of […]

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Several controversial angles emerged from Valentina Shevchenko’s grossly one-sided beatdown of Octagon newcomer Priscila Cachoeira in the co-main event of last Saturday night’s (Feb. 3, 2018) UFC Belem in Brazil, a fight where ‘Bullet’ out-landed her overmatched opponent by a gaping margin of 230-3.

The first and most prevalent talking point was the unwillingness of disgraced referee Mario Yamasaki to stop the fight, which could have easily happened at several junctures as Cachoeira continued to eat huge ground damage without attempting to escape a dominated position. When she finally did tap out from a rear-naked choke, it appeared she had to do so more than once for Yamasaki to stop the fight.

UFC president Dana White quickly called out the highly-criticized referee, but there was also the fact that he and the UFC booked Cachoeira, who had eight MMA bouts going into UFC Belem, in her debut against a former bantamweight title contender who has only lost to current champion Amanda Nunes her entire career. It’s a fair question to ponder.

Finally, there was the issue of Cachoeira’s corner perhaps throwing in the towel, something we almost never see in a toughness-focused sport like MMA. It was never an option, either, as Cachoeira posted on her own Instagram account (translated via MMA Junkie) that she would fight Shevchenko again her coaches know her limits and would never quit for her:

“I will fight any fighter in the world, regardless of her standings. I’d fight Valentina another 10 times without even thinking twice. Those who pick easy battles aren’t true warriors. And the treatment and the intimacy I have with my master… Those on the outside don’t know anything to criticize it. This isn’t master and student. It’s father and daughter. And no one can say how he’s supposed to treat me. As for throwing the towel: This is (team) PRVT, and we’re the ones who know my limits. Throwing the towel, never.”

Fala galera , passando pra dizer que está tudo bem, demorei a falar pois não estava com o cel e estava no hospital…Então… Vamos lá, peço perdão aos meus fãs e amigos e familiares que fizeram uma festa para vê a minha luta.. Peguei uma lutadora duríssima que no qual eu sou fã, e na hora da luta eu não fui a verdadeira Pedrita, Quem me conhece e está presente no meu dia a dia sabe oque eu poderia render..E mesmo tendo lesionado o joelho logo no comecinho da luta fui até o final porque não sei oque é desistir.. Vou ter que fazer cirurgia no ligamento cruzado e menisco… E Tem muita gente falando sobre eu ter lutado contra a top 1 e etc , que o mestre me mandou calar a boca e bla blá kkkk…Vamos lá.. LUTO CONTRA QUALQUER LUTADORA DO MUNDO, NÃO IMPORTA A POSIÇÃO QUE ELA OCUPE… LUTARIA COM A VALENTINA MAIS 10 VEZES SEM PENSAR DUAS VEZES..QUEM ESCOLHE BATALHA FÁCIL NÃO É UM VERDADEIRO GUERREIRO….E O TRATAMENTO E A INTIMIDADE QUE EU TENHO COM O MEU MESTRE ..QUEM TA DE FORA NÃO CONHECE NADA PARA CRÍTICAR ..AQUI NÃO É MESTRE E ALUNA.. É PAI E FILHA ..E NÃO SERA NINGUEM QUE IRA DIZER COMO ELE DEVE ME TRATAR.. E SOBRE JOGAR A TOALHA… AQUI É PRVT, E QUEM CONHECE OS MEUS LIMITES SOMOS NÓS …JOGAR A TOALHA JAMAIS ? OBRIGADO A TODOS PELAS MENSAGENS DE CARINHO E APOIO QUE VENHO RECEBENDO, TENHO CERTEZA QUE GANHEI UMA FAMÍLIA PARA O RESTO DA VIDA ,E QUEM TA CRITICANDO , NÃO TO NEM AI , VOU VOLTAR MAIS FORTE..?."""""""NÃO SERÁ UM MOMENTO QUE IRA APAGAR UMA HISTÓRIA'""""" . . . #ufcbelem #ettosuplementos #canalcombate #prvtnoufc #prvt #prvtgirls #sportv #ufc #ensaio #photography #belem #brasil #riodejaneiro #mma #wmma #pedritanoufc #zombiegirl

A post shared by Priscila Cachoeira (@pedritaprvtufc) on

Her toughness is certainly to be admired, and she’ll get another shot in the still-developing UFC women’s flyweight division after White gave her his respect while flaming Yamasaki.

However, it seemed a perfect storm of factors working against her in her UFC debut Saturday, as the ref, match-making, and corner discussion were all magnified by the fact that she also tore her ACL and meniscus early in the fight, requiring surgery and a lengthy recovery before she can return.

Shevchenko will most likely move on to a title shot versus the also-injured flyweight champ Nicco Montano, but the question will also remain if she should have been fed such an inexperienced fighter who had never competed in the UFC prior to facing arguably the most dominant woman in a new weight class.

What was your take on the scenario?

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Dana White Rips Mario Yamasaki After UFC Belem

UFC President Dana White is not very happy with longtime MMA referee Mario Yamasaki. As seen in the co-main event of Saturday’s (Feb. 3, 2018) UFC Belem event at Arena Guilherme Paraense in Belem, Brazil on FOX Sports 1, former title contender Valentin…

UFC President Dana White is not very happy with longtime MMA referee Mario Yamasaki. As seen in the co-main event of Saturday’s (Feb. 3, 2018) UFC Belem event at Arena Guilherme Paraense in Belem, Brazil on FOX Sports 1, former title contender Valentina Shevchenko won in dominant fashion as she destroyed Priscila Cachoeira. This started […]

Dana White Destroys ‘Incompetent’ Mario Yamasaki After UFC Belem

Former women’s bantamweight title challenger Valentina Shevchenko made a brutally successful flyweight debut by dismantling UFC newcomer Priscila Cachoeira (watch full highlights here) in the co-main event of last night’s (Sat., February 3, 2018) UFC Fight Night 125 from Arena Guilherme Paraense in Belém, Brazil. The win gave ‘Bullet’ the emphatic statement victory she needed to […]

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Former women’s bantamweight title challenger Valentina Shevchenko made a brutally successful flyweight debut by dismantling UFC newcomer Priscila Cachoeira (watch full highlights here) in the co-main event of last night’s (Sat., February 3, 2018) UFC Fight Night 125 from Arena Guilherme Paraense in Belém, Brazil.

The win gave ‘Bullet’ the emphatic statement victory she needed to solidify a 125-pound title shot, a division in which she’s become talked about as essentially the uncrowned champion. She was crisp, precise, and bulldozing with her striking early, and showed a ground game to match when she took Cachoeira down at will and battered her with an endless outpouring of hugely  damaging punches and elbows before mercifully ending the bout with a second-round choke.

Cachoeira’s toughness was to be admired, yet after the fight, longtime referee Mario Yamasaki was highly criticized by many who believed that she had absorbed far too many unanswered strikes while not defending herself, and appeared to tap out at least once before having to do it again to get Yamasakito stop the bout.

Perhaps the most prominent name to do so was UFC president Dana White, who absolutely called Yamasaki out on Instagram after UFC Belem, noting that he has come under intense scrutiny for this exact sort of thing several times before and failed to stop a fight where one of his fighters was outlanded by a gross 230-3 margin:

White put all of his cards on the table regarding Yamasaki, and while he may be rough around the edges concerning many topics of discussion, it’s hard to argue with the UFC’s front man here.

Fighters’ safety is legitimately being put in danger when Yamasaki is refereeing their bouts, as Cachoeira was simply being battered without end even if her fighting spirit would not let her give up. She was in the crucifix eating punches while unable to move or defend herself, and it’s just one of the simplest tenets of mixed martial arts that if a fighter is in that spot, the referee should stop the bout.

Yamasaki did not yet again, however, and it’s no surprise to see White and many others call him out for it.

Let’s hope athletic commissions take heed and decide to stop putting fighters’ health and careers in peril just to have Yamasaki errantly officiate another event on their watch.

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Mario Yamasaki Reacts To Michael Chiesa’s Grappling Challenge

Lightweight Michael Chiesa may have lost the appeal of his submission loss to Kevin Lee in the main event of June 25’s UFC Fight Night 12, but “Maverick” clearly isn’t going to let it go – at least for now. So much so that Chiesa appeared on yesterday’s edition of “The MMA Hour” with Ariel […]

The post Mario Yamasaki Reacts To Michael Chiesa’s Grappling Challenge appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Lightweight Michael Chiesa may have lost the appeal of his submission loss to Kevin Lee in the main event of June 25’s UFC Fight Night 12, but “Maverick” clearly isn’t going to let it go – at least for now.

So much so that Chiesa appeared on yesterday’s edition of “The MMA Hour” with Ariel Helwani to challenge Mario Yamasaki, the referee who made what many feel was an early call-off of the bout, to a grappling challenge at the Onnit Invitational on September 30 to prove his skills on the mat:

“I would like to test his fifth degree black belt in a friendly grappling match and let’s see if he’s what he says he is. And I’m not saying it in a hostile way, I’m saying, ‘hey, if you’re a fifth degree black belt, you should back up for the decisions you made.’ As a martial artist myself, that’s my open challenge to him, to headline Onnit Invitational on Sept. 30.”

The longtime referee was then contacted by MMA Fighting for a response, and said there was simply no other way to call the fight without allowing Chiesa to go out further:

“I saw the moment he went out. He can complain, but there’s no other way. The athletic commission already reviewed it, there’s nothing more to say. … (The commission) contacted me, I explained what I saw and he explains what he saw and felt. They watched the fight in slow motion and didn’t find anything wrong.

“It would have been a lot easier to let him go out longer, but my job is to defend his integrity when he’s no longer doing it for himself.”

Sean Pokorny-USA TODAY Sports

That’s always going to be for debate, but the most disappointing thing about the situation was that it muddied a signature win for Lee because of a referee’s decision, and that of a referee who has been under heated criticism for the extreme degree of inconsistency he has displayed in stopping high-profile bouts lately.

Thats lead Chiesa – and many others – to call for Yamasaki to stop refereeing top-level MMA bouts, yet for some reason, he still keeps getting the very best high-profile fights. Hopefully he can defend the fighters’ safety on a consistent basis, but as far as the challenge from Chiesa, Yamasaki believes “Maverick” made a silly callout and is just looking for more facetime in the media.

With that said, however, Yamasaki did say he was willing to face Chiesa at one of his 10 academies if given some time to train:

“I’m 53 years old, I don’t train anymore, how am I going to do this?” Yamasaki said. “And what’s the point of him fighting me? What would that change? What does he want to prove? It’s childish. Even if he catches me or if I catch him, that won’t change anything that happened in his fight. What is he trying to prove?

“If he gives me some time to train, I’d grapple with him,” he added. “Tell him to come to my academy, no problem. I have 10 academies in the United States, he can come any time he wants.

“What is he trying to prove? That’s what I wanna know,” the referee said. “What would that change? He wants media, and he already had media.”

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[ARCHIVES] Michael Chiesa Issues Grappling Challenge to Mario Yamasaki

[MMA NEWS ARCHIVES]

Tonight at UFC Vegas 43, Michael Chiesa will have his hands full with 14-0 Sean Brady. Four years ago, he wanted to compete against referee Mario Yamasaki instead. The following article from four years ago details why. It is presen…

Mario Yamasaki Michael Chiesa

[MMA NEWS ARCHIVES]

Tonight at UFC Vegas 43, Michael Chiesa will have his hands full with 14-0 Sean Brady. Four years ago, he wanted to compete against referee Mario Yamasaki instead. The following article from four years ago details why. It is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of the MMA News Archives.

[ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JULY 24, 2017, 7:23 PM]

Michael Chiesa hasn’t gotten over his controversial UFC Fight Night 112 submission loss.

Even though he appeared to be fading in a rear-naked choke applied by Kevin Lee, Chiesa didn’t tap or go limp. Referee Mario Yamasaki saw the hand fighting stop and put an end to the bout.

During a recent appearance on MMAFighting.com’s “The MMA Hour,” Chiesa issued a challenge to Yamasaki:

“Onnit is having an invitational on Sept. 30, so this is my open challenge to Yamasaki. I would like to test his fifth degree black belt in a friendly grappling match and let’s see if he’s what he says he is. And I’m not saying it in a hostile way, I’m saying, ‘hey, if you’re a fifth degree black belt, you should back up for the decisions you made.’ As a martial artist myself, that’s my open challenge to him, to headline Onnit Invitational on Sept. 30.”

He went on to say that Yamasaki may have regressed in his position.

“I know he’s a fifth degree black belt and that’s all fine and dandy, but that doesn’t mean he’s a fifth degree black belt in officiating. I feel like he’s fallen behind a little bit, and I think it’s sad when a referee walks into your room and you and your teammates are looking at each other like, ‘oh shit, we got this guy’. I like the work of Herb Dean, “Big” John, Dan Miragliotta, and I think the best ref in the business is Josh Rosenthal, but unfortunately we can’t have him. It sucks when an official walks into your room and you’re like, ‘crap,’ and it’s just a crappy feeling.”

Continue Reading [ARCHIVES] Michael Chiesa Issues Grappling Challenge to Mario Yamasaki at MMA News.