Why I Don't Like the Way DREAM Treats Fighters

by Kid Nate on Jun 24, 2009 5:36 PM EDT in News Comment 20 comments

Tatsuya_kawajiri_medium

This Sherdog interview with Tatsuya Kawajiri gets to the essence of it:

Sherdog: Many MMA fans were critical of you fighting under K-1 rules. Did you have doubts?
Kawajiri: I didn’t have doubts because I had no choice. If I had declined, I wouldn’t have fought on New Year’s Eve, and, at the same time, I had no place to run away from the situation. Looking at the reactions from all of my doubters after I won, I knew that I could shut down all the critics like that if I won. I understood that nobody would accept me saying, "I challenged a K-1 fight, but I lost. Sorry." K-1 rules aren’t the best fit for me, and it certainly was a difficult challenge, but I wanted to prove the doubters wrong.

Sherdog: Did you have trouble bringing your senses for MMA back after the K-1 match?
Kawajiri: Definitely. I didn’t grapple at all for a month. Normally when I train twice a day, I mix up striking, grappling and physical training so that I train different areas of MMA during the day. But this time around, I concentrated on grappling. I trained grappling day and night, trying to regain my wrestling, jiu-jitsu and grappling skills.

There's just no reason for this kind of stuff, IMO. Kawajiri is an MMA fighter. He wants to fight MMA. Fighting K-1 is a high-risk, low-reward proposition for him.

My guess is that the FEG management (who run both DREAM and K-1) believes that featuring MMA fighters on their higher-rated K-1 cards will draw attention to the DREAM promotion. It also builds heat between MMA fans and kickboxing fans with the inevitable -- "who is stronger? MMA or K-1?" hype they build around each cross-over fight.

I just think its part and parcel of a lack of seriousness about MMA as a sport on the part of FEG. I far prefer the approach taken by World Victory Road and believe that over time we will see WVR's Sengoku overtake DREAM as the #1 Japanese MMA promotion.

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Comments

They forced him?

That’s bullshit. Shenanigans! I call shenanigans!

Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better. -Samuel Beckett

by themachiavellian on Jun 24, 2009 6:02 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

The idea of pushing a guy into a different sport when he doesn’t want to just to try and pop a rating just doesn’t seem right and it really doesn’t have anything to do with the sport of MMA.

by who me on Jun 24, 2009 6:19 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, I think it’s healthier for MMA in Japan in the long run if WVR is the dominant promotion. Hopefully Ishii puts them over the top.

by An Old Friend on Jun 24, 2009 6:30 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

If they forced him to fight a MMA fight, I would think that is fair.

But to expect him to do things outside his sport is horrible.

by AlwaysRelaxing on Jun 24, 2009 6:53 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Well “fight this guy or else your not on this card” would be pretty crappy even if it was all MMA but that kind of stuff does happen occasionally, now kickbox or else is a new one and speaks volumes about the promotions dedication to MMA.

by who me on Jun 24, 2009 7:53 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Atleast he was mma going to k-1 and not the reverse. Forcing a k-1 into an mma bout would be far worse, but don’t take that as a defense for them. I still think that’s a horrible move.

by CliChe Guevara on Jun 24, 2009 8:47 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Agreed, the reverse situation would of been a real travesty.

by who me on Jun 24, 2009 10:10 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ick

Thank God for WVR.

"I see him beating Anderson Silva. I see him picking him apart. Him at a 131 years old...(trails off)." - Tito on Belfort at Affliction:DOR

by Rundownloser on Jun 24, 2009 7:32 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Good post.

by subo on Jun 24, 2009 7:37 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Sherdog: Going back to New Year’s Eve last year, did fighting under K-1 rules help you?
Kawajiri: I think so. I feel a change inside of me since New Year’s Eve. It really helped me psychologically. I had never been that nervous and scared in MMA before. It was great that I brought out what I had worked on.

Guessing why only a K-1 bout was offered is all well and good. Would it not be better to find out why?

by mtherer on Jun 24, 2009 8:37 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

somehow I don't think that Kawajiri's

personal growth was #1 on FEG’s agenda when they forced him into a K-1 match.

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by Kid Nate on Jun 24, 2009 8:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yea it’s great that he made the best of it but it still doesn’t seem right.

by who me on Jun 24, 2009 10:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Forced?
I don’t know where you got the idea he was forced into this bout – it appears as though a K-1 bout was offered and he accepted as it was the only way to fight on the NYE card.
As to Kawajiri’s Personal growth – would a K-1 bout be that detrimental to his mma career? Would it not help him improve his striking? Is it much more different to fighters competing in ADCC/Sambo?

Surely the point of any Promotion is to put on fights that fans want to see – and I will be looking forward to the Kawajiri vs Masato K-1 bout on July 13.
I do agree with the post by GeeDub – I think to much is being read into what is not there.

Appreciate the reply Kid Nate – I am enjoying watching Kawajiri improve and grow even if it isn’t #1 on FEG’s agenda

by mtherer on Jun 25, 2009 12:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Dynamite isn’t a DREAM card so they have no obligation to have him on it or fight MMA. He still had the option to wait for the next DREAM. I don’t see the big deal here honestly. And the NYE card has always been the biggest show, emphasis on show, of the year.

Where does a 2-1 fighter getting a title shot based on his popularity fit on the spectrum of sport vs spectacle?

by gunranger on Jun 24, 2009 9:12 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

The UFC

or was he 3-1?

by Riney on Jun 24, 2009 9:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Well Brock was also an elite amateur wrestling national champion. Oh and you know who else got their first title fight on their 4th fight, Randy Couture. Lets not forget that Lesnar proved he belonged in that spot when he won the belt too, the very pinacle of the sport is to win the belt.

by who me on Jun 24, 2009 10:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think people are being a little overly critical here. FEG weren’t under any obligation to put him on the card were they?? They clearly had a desire to put a MMA v K1 flavour to their card under K1 rules which I dont have a problem with as many MMA fighters have solid kick boxing backgrounds and abilities……as proven by the Mousasi, Kawajiri and Overeem wins.

So the question is: “Was he forced to fight K1”? Nothing he said suggests he was forced. He says “If I declined” which suggests that he was given a choice to accept the fight or not. They simply wouldnt have had a place for him on the card if he didnt accept. I dont see anything wrong with that. They probably would have picked another MMA fighter who was happy to fight under K1 rules.

As for the whole decision to pit MMA against K1. Again I dont see the need to criticise. I dont have a problem with it at all. Fedor fights Sambo, dozens of MMA fighters participate in BJJ grappling competitions and at Dynamite 2008 a few MMA fighters participated in kickboxing matches. I really dont see the problem here.

by GeeDub on Jun 25, 2009 12:52 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Oh, and for the record….WAR KAWAJIRI!!! His flying knee on NYE helped to make that my favourite event of the year!!!

by GeeDub on Jun 25, 2009 12:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I didn’t have doubts because I had no choice. If I had declined, I wouldn’t have fought on New Year’s Eve, and, at the same time, I had no place to run away from the situation.

What does he mean by “I had no place to run away from the situation”?

by who me on Jun 25, 2009 1:02 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sounds like something was lost in translation. From the context of the comment it sounds like he is trying to say that he couldnt fight for another organisation? So it could have translated to “If I had declined, I wouldnt have fought on the NYE card and there was nowhere else I could go to fight.” How would they force him anyway? He just says ‘no’ and thats it.

If they said to him “Fight K1 on this card or we’ll have the Yakuza deal with your family” or “Fight K1 or you’ll never fight for us again” sure, Id say its wrong. But nothing indicates that to be so.

It seems a tad presumptuous to interpret his comments to mean that he was forced to fight K1.

by GeeDub on Jun 25, 2009 5:43 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs