World Victory Road confirmed a couple of widely circulated rumors at their press conference in Tokyo today, first and foremost being that former PRIDE superstar Akihiro Gono (29-14-7) will return to Japan after a nearly three-year absence under the Sengoku banner on August 2nd. Gono - who was released by the UFC in March following consecutive losses to Dan Hardy and Jon Fitch - is set to become the centerpiece of the Sengoku welterweight division, which WVR says will see its first champion crowned on the New Year's "Sengoku No Ran" show. No opponent was announced.

At the presser, Gono joked about statements made by high profile signing Satoshi Ishii last week, telling the assembled reporters: "I decided to participate in Sengoku, though I haven't received a Don Quijote gift certificate from Chairman Yasuda yet." Gono also said he'll have a new entrance routine from his afro'd alter ego "DJ Gozma," who he claims took up sumo wrestling while Gono's been away.

The other major announcement for Sengoku IX was that Blagoi Ivanov (0-0) will indeed make his MMA debut against "Ironhead," Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7). The match, which was first reported in May by Tokyo Sports, could be the beginning of a push to set up a Fedor appearance in Sengoku, since Ivanov notoriously beat the heavyweight kingpin at the 2008 World Combat Sambo Championships. Ivanov is training MMA with SK Absolute, and the Sengoku site lists him at 180cm (5'11"), 112kg (246 lbs).

Also set to return to action on August 2nd is Eiji Mitsuoka (15-6-2), who rebounded from his 2008 Lightweight Grand Prix loss to Satoru Kitaoka by defeating the man who "beat" Gomi, Sergey Golyaev, last New Year's. Mitsuoka is the latest long-time Wajyutsu Keisyukai fighter to leave under hushed circumstances, joining Caol Uno and (presumably) Yushin Okami. He's now training at Yoshida Dojo.

Photo by GBRing.

SENGOKU IX
August 2nd, 2009
Saitama Super Arena
Saitama, Japan

Sengoku Lightweight Title Fight
Satoru Kitaoka (25-8-9) vs. Mizuto Hirota (11-3-1)

Sengoku 2009 Featherweight Grand Prix Semifinals
Hatsu Hioki (19-3-2) vs. Masanori Kanehara (13-5-5)
Michihiro Omigawa (6-7-1) vs. Marlon Sandro (14-0)

Sengoku 2009 Featherweight Grand Prix Final
Hioki/Kanehara vs. Omigawa/Sandro

Sengoku Middleweight Title Eliminator
Kazuhiro Nakamura (13-9) vs. Kazuo Misaki (21-9-2)

Heavyweight Fight:
Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7) vs. Blagoi Ivanov (0-0)

Scheduled Participants
Akihiro Gono (29-14-7)
Eiji Mitsuoka (15-6-2)

Rumored participants include Satoshi Ishii, Hidehiko Yoshida, James Thompson, and Alexandre "Pequeno" Nogueira.