Tag: Yushin Okami

UFC 134 Fight Card: Yushin Okami to Anderson Silva: "I’m Not Chael Sonnen"

UFC 134 storms into Rio de Janeiro at the HSBC Center on Saturday, Aug. 27. Highlighting the night’s action is a middleweight championship bout between the current king, Anderson “The Spider” Silva, and Japanese star Yushin “Thunder” Okami.Silva is han…

UFC 134 storms into Rio de Janeiro at the HSBC Center on Saturday, Aug. 27. Highlighting the night’s action is a middleweight championship bout between the current king, Anderson “The Spider” Silva, and Japanese star Yushin “Thunder” Okami.

Silva is hands down the greatest mixed martial artist on the planet. With legendary striking prowess and the ability to knockout the greatest of fighters, Silva is on a 13-fight win streak and has not been defeated since a disqualification defeat to the very same Okami back in 2006.

Okami is also riding a wave of momentum coming into Rio. Not the same magnitude of dominance exhibited by Silva, but Okami is 10-2 inside the UFC. 

Both Silva and Okami have challenged the grappler Chael Sonnen in the past. Silva defeated Sonnen with a triangle choke in the fifth round of their matchup. Whereas, Okami was defeated by Sonnen by unanimous decision in their only bout.

Speaking to Tatame.com, Okami discussed Silva’s matchup with now training partner Chael Sonnen as well as his fight with “The Spider” this Saturday.

Surprised by Sonnen’s success against Silva, Okami told Tatame, “I was expecting that Chael will be able to take Silva down, but never thought he will overwhelm by using his mixed technique of boxing and wrestling,” Okami said.

Understanding that he is a different fighter than Sonnen, Okami followed up that statement by stating, “that looked really effective and it is great reference, but I’m not Chael so I should use my own skill and technique which will be able to use my physical effectively.”

Silva has developed as a fighter since their initial matchup in 2006. According to Okami, “the biggest change is his experience of defending his title several times at UFC. That must give him a lot of confidence, which I could see from his recent fights. He has atmosphere that controls opponent’s performance.”

Also developing since their initial fight, “Thunder” stated that he “improved almost everything, especially physical.”

A physically strong competitor with a black belt in judo, Okami is a solid grappler inside the Octagon. Ever improving on his stand-up skills, “Thunder” is confident in his abilities to defeat Silva on Saturday.

Understanding that he will need to capture the belt from Silva in his home country, Okami stated, “I always feel the pressure, but this time is a Championship, a lot of fans are cheering for me. It’s giving me a lot of power to prepare for the fight and I’m highly motivated. I want to change all of the expectations to positive pressure. I must not compromise in any point and prepare for Aug. 27. I want all of my fans to enjoy the fight and my peak performance.”

Okami will have his chance this Saturday to dethrone the king and take over as the current UFC middleweight champion. Tune in to the fight to see if Okami’s confidence comes to fruition.

I welcome your comments.

“Like” me on Facebook and Follow me on Twitter 

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 134 Silva vs. Okami: Main Card Weigh-In Results and Analysis

UFC 134 weigh-ins took place earlier today with all 22 fighters stepping on the scale and successfully making weight. UFC middleweight champion and pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva and Yushin Okami each made the 185-pound limit. Mauricio “Shog…

UFC 134 weigh-ins took place earlier today with all 22 fighters stepping on the scale and successfully making weight.

UFC middleweight champion and pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva and Yushin Okami each made the 185-pound limit.

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Forrest Griffin appeared in tremendous shape for the rematch, which will be the night’s co-main event.

Additionally, the six remaining main card fighters looked sharp and charged up for the organizations return to Brazil.

Who were the biggest winners and losers at weigh-ins? Follow inside to learn who has the edge heading into tomorrow night’s action.

Begin Slideshow

UFC 134 Weigh In Results: Anderson Silva (184) vs. Yushin Okami (183)

Here we go folks! It’s time for the main event.
Can Yushin Okami pull off one of the biggest upsets in MMA history?
Without Chael Sonnen, Yushin Okami comes out, and he gets more boos than any fighter yet. He weighs in at an extremely lean 183-pounds.
…

Here we go folks! It’s time for the main event.


Can Yushin Okami pull off one of the biggest upsets in MMA history?


Without Chael Sonnen, Yushin Okami comes out, and he gets more boos than any fighter yet. He weighs in at an extremely lean 183-pounds.


UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva comes out with his son, and as expected, he’s a major crowd favorite. It looks like he left his white mask at home for this bout.


“I’m going to do my best, and I’m going to take home the belt,” contender Yushin Okami told UFC commentator Mike Goldberg at the weigh-ins. “Don’t miss it. I’m going to be here with my all, and I’m going to win.”


Goldberg makes his way over to Silva, and the champ seems confident and thankful for the opportunity to fight in his native land.


“Thank you everyone for coming. I hope everyone comes here and watches this great event because it’s Brazil versus the rest of the world.”

UFC 134 Weigh In Results: Luiz Cane (204) vs. Stanislav Nedkov (203)

Stanislav Nedkov isn’t getting any love in his UFC debut. He’s enemy No. 1 against Brazilian Luis Cane, who is a standout light heavyweight.
He weighs in at a considerably light 203-pounds.
Cane comes out to a loud pop and hits his mark at 204-pounds. …

Stanislav Nedkov isn’t getting any love in his UFC debut. He’s enemy No. 1 against Brazilian Luis Cane, who is a standout light heavyweight.


He weighs in at a considerably light 203-pounds.


Cane comes out to a loud pop and hits his mark at 204-pounds. Despite a multitude of experience, Cane hasn’t really fought a solid wrestler, and it’ll be interesting to see how he handles the powerful takedowns of Nedkov.

Brazilian Fighters Basking in Warm Reception, but Foreigners Resigned to Boos

Filed under: ,

Anderson Silva squares off with Yushin Okami at the UFC 134 weigh-ins.RIO DE JANEIRO — The good news for the Americans on the UFC 134 fight card is that at least one of them got through the pre-fight weigh-ins on Friday without getting booed. That would be Ian Loveland, who fights Canadian Yves Jabouin in the first bout of the night, also known as the only fight on the card that doesn’t feature at least one Brazilian.

When Loveland and Jabouin stepped on the scales, the crowd at the HSBC Arena could hardly be bothered to pay attention, which, in a way, let both fighters off the hook. The other foreigners on the card weren’t so lucky.

“Vai morrer! Vai morrer!” the crowd chanted at American fighters like Dan Miller, Brendan Schaub, and Forrest Griffin. Translation: You’re going to die.

Say what you will about this crowd’s sensitivity, but you can’t knock their passion.


Not that this reception should surprise any of the non-Brazilian fighters. When you’re fighting someone like Mauricio “Shogun” Rua or Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in Rio, and you’re a gringo from the USA, you can’t exactly expect a warm reception.

As Griffin put it at Thursday’s press conference when it was suggested that he, Schaub, and Yushin Okami would have the entire world against them on Saturday night: “It’s not the whole world; it’s just Brazil.”

But for many of the Brazilian fighters, facing off against a series of foreigners in their own backyard in the first UFC event in Rio is a little like taking on the rest of the world, or at least taking on the responsibility for an entire nation, as Anderson Silva explained.

“It’s like Brazil vs. Argentina in Macarana Stadium,” he said, putting it in soccer terms any Brazilian would understand. As he added later, “A lot of idols come and go, but we’re fighting to reach our place.”

The Brazilians on the card certainly had the fans at the weigh-ins firmly behind them, even if the loudest boos were saved for Chael Sonnen, who only appeared via the giant video screen during one of the pre-fight promo packages.

The most half-hearted boos? Those were aimed at Bulgarian Stanislov Nedkov and Englishman Ross Pearson, who are slated to take on Brazilians Luiz Cane and Edson Barboza, respectively.

But even then, it felt more like a perfunctory habit than anything else. Pearson very nearly managed to turn the crowd around by stepping off the scale and rehydrating with help from a coconut and a straw. At least to some degree, it worked. The boos died down, and the crowd lost the urge to inform him of his impending death.

Well played, Mr. Pearson. It might take slightly more to bring about a change of heart toward Sonnen, however.

%VIRTUAL-Gallery-131832%

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: ,

Anderson Silva squares off with Yushin Okami at the UFC 134 weigh-ins.RIO DE JANEIRO — The good news for the Americans on the UFC 134 fight card is that at least one of them got through the pre-fight weigh-ins on Friday without getting booed. That would be Ian Loveland, who fights Canadian Yves Jabouin in the first bout of the night, also known as the only fight on the card that doesn’t feature at least one Brazilian.

When Loveland and Jabouin stepped on the scales, the crowd at the HSBC Arena could hardly be bothered to pay attention, which, in a way, let both fighters off the hook. The other foreigners on the card weren’t so lucky.

“Vai morrer! Vai morrer!” the crowd chanted at American fighters like Dan Miller, Brendan Schaub, and Forrest Griffin. Translation: You’re going to die.

Say what you will about this crowd’s sensitivity, but you can’t knock their passion.


Not that this reception should surprise any of the non-Brazilian fighters. When you’re fighting someone like Mauricio “Shogun” Rua or Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in Rio, and you’re a gringo from the USA, you can’t exactly expect a warm reception.

As Griffin put it at Thursday’s press conference when it was suggested that he, Schaub, and Yushin Okami would have the entire world against them on Saturday night: “It’s not the whole world; it’s just Brazil.”

But for many of the Brazilian fighters, facing off against a series of foreigners in their own backyard in the first UFC event in Rio is a little like taking on the rest of the world, or at least taking on the responsibility for an entire nation, as Anderson Silva explained.

“It’s like Brazil vs. Argentina in Macarana Stadium,” he said, putting it in soccer terms any Brazilian would understand. As he added later, “A lot of idols come and go, but we’re fighting to reach our place.”

The Brazilians on the card certainly had the fans at the weigh-ins firmly behind them, even if the loudest boos were saved for Chael Sonnen, who only appeared via the giant video screen during one of the pre-fight promo packages.

The most half-hearted boos? Those were aimed at Bulgarian Stanislov Nedkov and Englishman Ross Pearson, who are slated to take on Brazilians Luiz Cane and Edson Barboza, respectively.

But even then, it felt more like a perfunctory habit than anything else. Pearson very nearly managed to turn the crowd around by stepping off the scale and rehydrating with help from a coconut and a straw. At least to some degree, it worked. The boos died down, and the crowd lost the urge to inform him of his impending death.

Well played, Mr. Pearson. It might take slightly more to bring about a change of heart toward Sonnen, however.

%VIRTUAL-Gallery-131832%

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Watch the UFC 134 Weigh-Ins Right Here, Starting at 3 p.m.


(Image via soldierforever)

UFC 134 weigh-ins are scheduled to kick off at 3 p.m. today at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. You can watch all the staredowns (and potential scale-fails) live in the video player after the jump, and we’ll update the numbers below when they’re official. And remember to swing by CagePotato.com tomorrow night for our “Silva vs. Okami” liveblog!


(Image via soldierforever)

UFC 134 weigh-ins are scheduled to kick off at 3 p.m. today at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. You can watch all the staredowns (and potential scale-fails) live in the video player after the jump, and we’ll update the numbers below when they’re official. And remember to swing by CagePotato.com tomorrow night for our “Silva vs. Okami” liveblog!

Main Card (PPV, 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT)
Anderson Silva ( ) vs. Yushin Okami ( )
Maurício Rua ( ) vs. Forrest Griffin ( )
Brendan Schaub ( ) vs. Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira ( )
Edson Barboza ( ) vs. Ross Pearson ( )
Luis Cane ( ) vs. Stanislav Nedkov ( )

Spike TV Prelims Live (8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT)
Thiago Tavares ( ) vs. Spencer Fisher ( )
Rousimar Palhares ( ) vs. Dan Miller ( )

Facebook Prelims (6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT)
Paulo Thiago ( ) vs. David Mitchell ( )
Raphael Assunção ( ) vs. Johnny Eduardo ( )
Erick Silva ( ) vs. Luis Ramos ( )
Yuri Alcantara ( ) vs. Felipe Arantes ( )
Ian Loveland ( ) vs. Yves Jabouin ( )