Sengoku 11: Drowned out in a Strikeforce Weekend
Here is the Tapology Sengoku 11 buzz preview in its entirety below. Source is here. A Strikeforce Challengers event buzz preview can be found here and a Strikeforce Fedor vs Rogers event buzz preview can be found here. Feedback or questions? Give it!
World Victory Road’s “Sengoku 11″ event takes place this Saturday in Tokyo, Japan featuring a main event pitting featherweights Hatsu Hioki and Michihiro Omigawa. Unfortunately, with the majority of focus on Strikeforce’s CBS card, the Sengoku event stands to be overlooked by most North American fans. The lack of star power and the difficulty of marketing an event that airs in the middle of the night will result in Sengoku 11 continuing to be relegated to second tier status in the states.
Sengoku has consistently focused on sport over spectacle for its shows, and as a result has become a favorite of serious MMA fans. Main event participant Hatsu Hioki is a grappling prodigy that has gone undefeated in his run with the promotion and may be capable of taking on some of the elite competitors globally in his weight class. As evidenced by Hioki’s buzz ranking of 465 among MMA fighters, however, Sengoku has a marketing problem in the U.S. that it has thus far been unable to solve. Co-main event participant Jorge Santiago currently generates the most buzz among U.S. fans, ranking 186th in the most recent rankings.
With 11 bouts on this weekend’s card that are difficult to rank or prioritize in their importance, it may be time for Sengoku to consider adopting a more Americanized style of building an event. A focus on establishing legitimate champions in each of its weight classes and having one high-profile title defense per event may go a long way in drawing in more fans and interest. Rather than dispersing attention among 11 different fights, focusing the U.S. marketing on a single title fight would help give Sengoku an identity for the fans to recognize and remember. Until then, Sengoku will continue to put on great fights for the hardcore American fans yet remain drowned out by promotions like Strikeforce and the UFC.
| Fighter | Latest Buzz Rank | Peak Buzz Rank | Peak Month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jorge Santiago | 186 | 98 | Jan 2009 |
| Hatsu Hioki | 465 | 224 | May 2009 |
| Michihiro Omigawa | 483 | 162 | May 2009 |
| Mamed Khalidov | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Average | 378 | 121 |
The FanPosts are solely the subjective opinions of Bloody Elbow readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Bloody Elbow editors or staff.
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it’s all about the DVR and rise n’ shine sengoku for me
eggs, toast, coffee, and omigawa is a classic combination
www.tapology.com | twitter.com/tapology
Sengoku XI is clearly...
The more superior event in totality. It’s an absolutely stacked card of solid match-ups. Strikeforce’s best match-up is Shields vs. Miller IMO. Fedor vs. Rogers has potential to be a blowout, Silva vs. Werdum is decent, and Mousasi vs. Sokoudjou should be a easier win for Mousasi. It’s tough to gauge who will win on the Sengoku card in some of those fights.
Follow me on Twitter @lelandroling
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Yeah, it’s not bad.
Follow me on Twitter @lelandroling
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
by Leland Roling on Nov 5, 2009 3:45 PM EST up reply actions
The more superior event in totality. It’s an absolutely stacked card of solid match-ups.
and yet nobody is talking about it. something must be done!
www.tapology.com | twitter.com/tapology
I already did my service to the card… my preview and I got HDNet behind it as well in promoting the preview to all its avenues. It’s a damn shame it doesn’t get more hype, that’s for sure.
Follow me on Twitter @lelandroling
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
by Leland Roling on Nov 5, 2009 9:09 PM EST up reply actions

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