Filed under: SengokuA Sengoku 15 fight card that was short on big names and short on fireworks and probably would have been quickly forgotten will instead be remembered for the Japanese judges giving an absolutely ridiculous decision to a Japanese figh…
A Sengoku 15 fight card that was short on big names and short on fireworks and probably would have been quickly forgotten will instead be remembered for the Japanese judges giving an absolutely ridiculous decision to a Japanese fighter in the main event.
That main event featured Englishman James Zikic opening a cut over Hiroshi Izumi‘s right eye early in the fight and controlling the bout standing up most of the rest of the way, and it appeared that Zikic would win an easy unanimous decision. Instead, when the judges’ scorecards were announced, Izumi had won a split decision.
Sengoku has tried hard to push Izumi, who has a great background, but the truth is he’s just not that good. Zikic beat him handily, and it’s absurd that the judges handed Izumi the victory.
(The whole fight is worth watching, but if you’re in a hurry just go ahead and start at 6:30 for the good stuff. VidProps: MegaVideo)
When you have a name as epic as Maximo Blanco I guess you really have no choice but to be the kind of fighter …
(The whole fight is worth watching, but if you’re in a hurry just go ahead and start at 6:30 for the good stuff. VidProps: MegaVideo)
When you have a name as epic as Maximo Blanco I guess you really have no choice but to be the kind of fighter who throws hands with reckless abandon and racks up highlight reel knockouts like they’re going out of style. If you fight primarily in Japan, it’s also OK to have your nickname be “Maxi” and your fighting exploits described as “Maxi Time!” despite what we in the west might see as the uncomfortably close proximity of that name to a certain brand of feminine hygiene products. Regardless, Blanco’s blockbuster knockout of Kiumu Kunioku from Sengoku 15 over the weekend is definitely a worth a watch.
The fight moves along at a pretty good clip for the first six-and-a-half minutes, until Blanco abruptly decides that it’s fuckin’ MAXI TIME. The current lightweight King of Pancrase drops Kunioku with a punch and follows it with a soccer kick that causes the Japanese veteran to snatch desperately for a single leg. Blanco spins free of it (doing sort of an atomic butt drop on Kunioku in the process) and then absolutely crushes him with an uppercut as he tries to stand. You know the rest: Strikes on the ground until the ref stops it while Michael Schiavello yells, “He almost decapitated him! It’s good night freaking Irene!” For once, the play-by-play shouter’s histrionics seem to fit the situation nicely.
A Sengoku 15 fight card that was short on big names and short on fireworks and probably would have been quickly forgotten will instead be remembered for the Japanese judges giving an absolutely ridiculous decision to a Japanese fighter in the main event.