Tag: RIZIN News

Gabi Garcia Calls Out Kayla Harrison: ‘Why Not Fight Me?’

Gabi GarciaGabi Garcia has called out PFL star and world Judo champion Kayla Harrison, claiming that she absolutely wants to fight her. Garcia, who competes as a heavyweight, claimed in an interview with AG Fight that she does indeed want to fight Harrison, as Harrison has been speaking a lot about Garcia on the internet. Garcia […]

Gabi Garcia

Gabi Garcia has called out PFL star and world Judo champion Kayla Harrison, claiming that she absolutely wants to fight her.

Garcia, who competes as a heavyweight, claimed in an interview with AG Fight that she does indeed want to fight Harrison, as Harrison has been speaking a lot about Garcia on the internet. Garcia claims she is now stepping up to the plate, but that Harrison is now attempting to avoid her instead.

“Kayla (Harrison) came on the internet to talk shit, Julia Budd (ex-Bellator champion) too. I accepted all these fights, but she (Kayla) always said that I was an easy fight. That I had no technique to fight her. But the Gabi of yesteryear is not the same as Gabi (today). Then I came to my manager and said: ‘Look, she is challenging me, I want to fight with her. What does she want to fight with me? ‘ Then it starts: ‘I fight in any category, I fight open weight’. I said: ‘No, it will arrive on time and it will not be like this’. Then: ‘No, I want a test at Gabi, I want this, I want that’. All right then! Let’s go! Do you want to test me all the time? What you want? Do you want me to hit how much weight? I talked to my doctor, (to find out) what the minimum weight I could get. Everything she was asking for. (But) in reality, she doesn’t want to fight ”,

“So, she comes to say, ‘I’m number one.’ You are the number one of the PFL, who put you in (good) fights and made an event for you, as Rizin also put up a good fight for me,” Gabi Garcia added. “Only she does not come to say that she is number one, because there is Amanda (Nunes), well, there is Cris (Cyborg). She is far from being … So if I am a very easy fight, why not fight me? Her last opponent seems to have 11 losses. I come from seven victories. So then. Kayla, I want to fight you. First time I challenge someone. She challenged me, we have been talking for two years now, and I say: ‘What do you want to be able to fight with me? Do you want the test, the (anti) doping? Do you want me to hit the weight? What you want?’. Because (just) challenging me is easy. So, that’s my goal. I want to fight with her. I don’t know when that will happen,

Ultimately though, there are a lot of issues to this fight ever even happening. The main issue is, of course, the weight disparity between Garcia and Harrison. Harrison, of course, competes in the 155lb division in the PFL, whilst, as outlined, Garcia competes in RIZIN as a heavyweight. Even a catchweight fight would most likely be either too much weight for Harrison to move up to and too much weight for Garcia to move down. Garcia naturally carries a massive frame anyway, so there is a limit to how much weight she could cut. Harrison would also lose a lot of her natural explosiveness and speed moving up too much weight either.

This does not even consider the fact that the two women compete in two different promotions. Harrison competes in the U.S. based PFL, whilst Garcia competes in Japan with RIZIN. Under normal circumstances, the logistics of this fight would have been difficult, but even more so now with COVID-19 remaining at large globally, it is extremely unlikely that this fight would happen any time soon.

Do you want to see Gabi Garcia vs. Kayla Harrison?

Gabi Garcia Calls Out Kayla Harrison: ‘Why Not Fight Me?’

Gabi GarciaGabi Garcia has called out PFL star and world Judo champion Kayla Harrison, claiming that she absolutely wants to fight her. Garcia, who competes as a heavyweight, claimed in an interview with AG Fight that she does indeed want to fight Harrison, as Harrison has been speaking a lot about Garcia on the internet. Garcia […]

Gabi Garcia

Gabi Garcia has called out PFL star and world Judo champion Kayla Harrison, claiming that she absolutely wants to fight her.

Garcia, who competes as a heavyweight, claimed in an interview with AG Fight that she does indeed want to fight Harrison, as Harrison has been speaking a lot about Garcia on the internet. Garcia claims she is now stepping up to the plate, but that Harrison is now attempting to avoid her instead.

“Kayla (Harrison) came on the internet to talk shit, Julia Budd (ex-Bellator champion) too. I accepted all these fights, but she (Kayla) always said that I was an easy fight. That I had no technique to fight her. But the Gabi of yesteryear is not the same as Gabi (today). Then I came to my manager and said: ‘Look, she is challenging me, I want to fight with her. What does she want to fight with me? ‘ Then it starts: ‘I fight in any category, I fight open weight’. I said: ‘No, it will arrive on time and it will not be like this’. Then: ‘No, I want a test at Gabi, I want this, I want that’. All right then! Let’s go! Do you want to test me all the time? What you want? Do you want me to hit how much weight? I talked to my doctor, (to find out) what the minimum weight I could get. Everything she was asking for. (But) in reality, she doesn’t want to fight ”,

“So, she comes to say, ‘I’m number one.’ You are the number one of the PFL, who put you in (good) fights and made an event for you, as Rizin also put up a good fight for me,” Gabi Garcia added. “Only she does not come to say that she is number one, because there is Amanda (Nunes), well, there is Cris (Cyborg). She is far from being … So if I am a very easy fight, why not fight me? Her last opponent seems to have 11 losses. I come from seven victories. So then. Kayla, I want to fight you. First time I challenge someone. She challenged me, we have been talking for two years now, and I say: ‘What do you want to be able to fight with me? Do you want the test, the (anti) doping? Do you want me to hit the weight? What you want?’. Because (just) challenging me is easy. So, that’s my goal. I want to fight with her. I don’t know when that will happen,

Ultimately though, there are a lot of issues to this fight ever even happening. The main issue is, of course, the weight disparity between Garcia and Harrison. Harrison, of course, competes in the 155lb division in the PFL, whilst, as outlined, Garcia competes in RIZIN as a heavyweight. Even a catchweight fight would most likely be either too much weight for Harrison to move up to and too much weight for Garcia to move down. Garcia naturally carries a massive frame anyway, so there is a limit to how much weight she could cut. Harrison would also lose a lot of her natural explosiveness and speed moving up too much weight either.

This does not even consider the fact that the two women compete in two different promotions. Harrison competes in the U.S. based PFL, whilst Garcia competes in Japan with RIZIN. Under normal circumstances, the logistics of this fight would have been difficult, but even more so now with COVID-19 remaining at large globally, it is extremely unlikely that this fight would happen any time soon.

Do you want to see Gabi Garcia vs. Kayla Harrison?

Kyoji Horiguchi Stops Kai Asakura In RIZIN FF 26 Rematch

HoriguchiRedemption for bantamweight standout, Kyoji ‘The Typhoon’ Horiguchi. Returning from a debilitating knee injury which forced him to vacant his Bellator MMA bantamweight crown, the 30-year-old headlined RIZIN FF 26 this morning in Saitama, Japan — stopping two-time foe, Kai Asakura to reclaim the promotion’s world championship. Horiguchi, a former UFC flyweight title challenger suffered […]

Horiguchi

Redemption for bantamweight standout, Kyoji ‘The Typhoon’ Horiguchi. Returning from a debilitating knee injury which forced him to vacant his Bellator MMA bantamweight crown, the 30-year-old headlined RIZIN FF 26 this morning in Saitama, Japan — stopping two-time foe, Kai Asakura to reclaim the promotion’s world championship.

Horiguchi, a former UFC flyweight title challenger suffered a nasty knee injury in October of last year, ultimately forcing him to vacate the Bellator title he lifted via a unanimous decision win over Darrion ‘The Wolf’ Caldwell, the following month.

Unbeaten in his next thirteen outings since dropping a buzzer-beating armbar loss to ONE Championship tournament victor, Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson, Horiguchi battled with the above mentioned, Asakura in a non-title matchup, dropping a stunning first-round knockout defeat. 

Sixteen months later, Horiguchi returned to action against two-time foe, Asakura, and after expertly finding his mark with calf kicks over and over again in the opening exchanges, Horiguchi countered a jumping knee from his compatriot to stun and subsequently drop him with a barrage before continued ground-and-pound strikes before the three-minute mark ended Asakura’s reign. 

Rounding off a sixteen fight card, the promotion also fielded former PRIDE FC great, Takanori Gomi who claimed a majority decision win over Koji Tanaka. In a kickboxing bout, renowned striker, Tenshin Nasukawa managed to grab a unanimous judging victory over Kumandoi Petcharoenvit. Opening the card, Ayaka Hamasaki was crowned the super atomweight champion via a stunning head-scissors submission victory over Miyuu Yamamoto in a vacant title matchup. 

With Horiguchi’s win, the American Top Team trainee now improves to 29-3 professionally, adding Asakura to a staggering list of talent already featured on his win column. Prior to this morning’s win, Horiguchi had twice bested the above mentioned, Caldwell, as well as grabbing victories over Ben Nyugen, Hiromasa Ougikubo (x2), Ian McCall, Manel Kape, Ali Baugautinov, Neil Seery, and Louis Gaudinot to name a few. 

Speculation has already begun to mount as to what’s next for Horiguchi, with a bantamweight title challenge against recently minted Bellator best, Juan Archuleta already floated, as well as a potential return to the UFC to tackle either flyweight champion, Deiveson Figueiredo, or a bantamweight siege against Petr Yan. 

RIZIN Bantamweight Champ Kai Asakura Talks Kyoji Horiguchi & Bellator Title

This year has no doubt been a test for everyone worldwide, but thankfully, for MMA fans, RIZIN FF will still send the year off with one of their epic New Year’s Eve shows. Headlining RIZIN 26 is a bantamweight title clash that sees defending champion Kai Asakura taking on Kyoji Horiguchi. This fight will be […]

This year has no doubt been a test for everyone worldwide, but thankfully, for MMA fans, RIZIN FF will still send the year off with one of their epic New Year’s Eve shows.

Headlining RIZIN 26 is a bantamweight title clash that sees defending champion Kai Asakura taking on Kyoji Horiguchi. This fight will be the second meeting between the pair after Asakura defeated Horiguchi, who was the then Bellator and Rizin FF champion, in the opening round of their non-title clash at RIZIN 18.

The 27-year-old Asakura is one of RIZIN’s biggest stars and is coming into this fight on the back of two first round stoppage wins. He is confident that his skills have improved immensely since he and Horiguchi last fought back in August of 2019.

“I’ve put on some muscle, so adjusting my weight cut has been a challenge, but I think I have it figured out. Everything about me has gotten better, and I want to show that in my fight. I will make a statement in this fight,” Asakura said, speaking to media ahead of his fight.

Since his loss to Asakura, Horiguchi has not fought. This is mostly due to him undergoing surgery on his right knee. The recovery time took longer than expected, and it was during this enforced layoff that he decided to vacate both his Bellator and RIZIN championships.

“I started sparring and training fully in July. I feel like I am close to 100%. I’ve been adding new stuff to my original style during this period. I never think about the fight until right before the fight, so things are as usual. My absence from the ring really doesn’t affect me,” Horiguchi said.

Horiguchi went on to say that once he reclaims the RIZIN bantamweight title, he will set his sights on recapturing the Bellator strap. However, Asakura feels that he will have the answer to whatever questions his 30-year-old opponent poses when they meet.

“I’m not worried if Horiguchi is back 100%,” Asakura said.

“He can’t change his style that easily. I know what he’s capable of doing, I can adjust to any changes that he may bring to the fight. I think this fight will be seen by many top fighters, so this is a great opportunity for me to show what I can do.”

One fighter who should be watching tonight’s matchup is Bellator’s current bantamweight champion, Juan Archuleta. Asakura, like Horiguchi, has designs on competing for the Bellator strap.

“I plan to defend my belt against Horiguchi and then go after the Bellator belt,” Asakura exclaimed.

For MMA fans the Asakura-Horiguchi rematch is shaping up to be the perfect way to see out what has been the most challenging year in the sports history.

RIZIN 26 will be held on December 31st at the Saitama Super Arena. The event will stream internationally with English commentary by Frank Trigg and Joe Ferraro from the following link. 

RIZIN 26: Full Card & PPV Details

RIZIN FF is known for putting on epic New Year’s Eve events, and the forthcoming RIZIN 26 appears set to continue that tradition.The 16-fight card, which will take place inside the Saitama Super Arena, will feature 2 title fights and the return of kickboxing superstar Tenshin Nasukawa. The Japanese promotion has officially released the full […]

RIZIN FF is known for putting on epic New Year’s Eve events, and the forthcoming RIZIN 26 appears set to continue that tradition.The 16-fight card, which will take place inside the Saitama Super Arena, will feature 2 title fights and the return of kickboxing superstar Tenshin Nasukawa.

The Japanese promotion has officially released the full card, which sees Kai Asakura defending his bantamweight strap against Kyoji Horiguchi in the main event. The pair have faced off previously, with Asakura demolishing Horiguchi inside the opening minute of their 2019 bout at RIZIN 18. Asakura comes into this fight on the back of two straight wins, while Horiguchi will be making his first appearance under the RIZIN banner since his shock loss to Asakura.

In the co-main event, kickboxing sensation Tenshin Nasukawa takes on Thailand’s Kumandoi Phetjaroenvit in a 58.5 kg catchweight bout. The 26-year-old Phetjaroenvit has racked up over fifty Muay Thai bouts and won multiple titles.

The undefeated Nasukawa will start as the heavy favorite, but hopefully, Phetjaroenvit will provide a sterner test for the 22-year-old than some of his most recent opponents. The vacant women’s super atomweight title will also be on the line with Ayaka Hamasaki, and Miyuu Yamamoto set to clash for the strap.

JMMA fans can also rejoice at the news that the card will be streamed internationally with English commentary. Frank Trigg and Joe Ferraro will be the men on the mic with the event streaming on LIVENOW.

Here is the full card for RIZIN 26

  • RIZIN Bantamweight Championship: Kai Asakura vs. Kyoji Horiguchi 
  •  (Kickboxing) Catchweight 58.5: Tenshin Nasukawa vs. Kumandoi Phetjaroenvit 
  • Catchweight 68kg: Mikuru Asakura vs. Satoshi Yamasu 
  • Catchweight: Takanori Gomi vs. Kouzi – RIZIN Special Standing bout Rules
  • RIZIN Super Atomweight Championship: Ayaka Hamasaki vs. Miyuu Yamamoto 
  • Bantamweight: Yuki Motoya vs. Naoki Inoue
  • Catchweight 67kg: Kyle Aguon vs. Kleber Koike 
  • Catchweight 68kg: Kyohei Hagiwara vs. Ren Hiramoto
  • Bantamweight: Hideo Tokoro vs. Shinobu Ota 
  • (Kickboxing) Catchweight 50kg: Nadaka Yoshinari vs. Phetmalai Phetjaroenvit 
  • Bantamweight: Ulka Sasaki vs. Kenta Takizawa 
  • Super Atomweight: Kanna Asakura vs. Ai Shimizu 
  • X vs. Shibatar
  • Catchweight 63kg: Kazuma Kuramoto vs. Taiyo Nakahara
  • Heavyweight: Sudario Tsuyoshi vs. Minowaman
  • Catchweight 51kg: Sakura vs. Eru Takebayashi 

Will you be watching RIZIN 26?

Roy Jones Jr. Plans To Box Anderson Silva After Beating Mike Tyson

Jones Jr.Ahead of tomorrow night’s exhibition comeback opposite former heavyweight champion, ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson, decorated former middleweight and light heavyweight titleholder, Roy Jones Jr. has spoken of hopes to finally stand opposite former UFC middleweight champion, Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva in the squared-circle. Jones Jr. – who features opposite Tyson in an exhibition boxing matchup tomorrow […]

Jones Jr.

Ahead of tomorrow night’s exhibition comeback opposite former heavyweight champion, ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson, decorated former middleweight and light heavyweight titleholder, Roy Jones Jr. has spoken of hopes to finally stand opposite former UFC middleweight champion, Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva in the squared-circle.

Jones Jr. – who features opposite Tyson in an exhibition boxing matchup tomorrow night, has been continously linked with a boxing match against the recently released Brazilian striker, Silva, with a bout between the two failing to ever come to fruition. 

The 51-year-old Pensacola, Florida boxer called for a pairing with Curitiba fan-favourite, Silva following his retirement back in December 2017, but as of yet, we’ve yet to see the two stand opposite each other. Given Jones Jr.’s upcoming return and the fact that Silva is no longer under contract with longtime home, the UFC – the possibility of the pairing seems somewhat more likely than maybe previously believed.

Jones Jr.’s callout follows recent, similar welcoming claims from Rizin FF leader, Nobuyuki Sakakiraba, who refused to distance the promotion from a deal to sign the soon to be 46-year-old counter striker, unlike the likes of Bellator MMA, ONE Championship, PFL – and even BKFC.

“I have great memories with Anderson Silva from the PRIDE days and in my personal opinion, I think his career took off in Japan,” Sakakiraba said in a recent statement.”I have heard that Japan has a special part in his heart as well.“

“I do feel that I would like to help him fulfil his wishes out of respect for what he has accomplished and what he has done for our sport. I haven’t talked to him yet but I would be interested to see if we can come up with something that makes sense for him to start his final chapter in Japan.“

For legendary mixed martial artist, Silva, his gleaming run under the UFC’s banner came to a close at UFC Vegas 12 on Halloween, dropping a penultimate-round knockout defeat to fellow striker, Uriah ‘Prime Time’ Hall in a main event tilt. 

While Silva is regarded as one of the most dominant, masterful competitors at the peak of his powers as middleweight champion, Floridian puncher, Jones Jr. is also regarded as one of the greatest boxing talents of all time.

With a 66-9 professional record, Jones Jr. has notably dispatched the likes of Felix Trinidad, Antonio Tarver, Richard Hall, Julio Cesar Gonzalez, Montell Griffin, James Toney, and Bernard Hopkins to name a few.