Hatsu Hioki Vacates Shooto Title, Will Attend UFC 131
by Tim Burke on May 31, 2011 5:00 PM EDT
in UFC News
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One of the best featherweights in the world might be free and clear to sign with a major North American organization soon. At least that's what all the signs are pointing to. Hatsu Hioki, who until yesterday was the Shooto lightweight champion along with the Sengoku featherweight champion, is apparently a free agent now and will be attending UFC 131.
A few days ago, Bloody Elbow's Forrest Lynn stated on the BE Radio show that Hioki had been released from Sengoku and was negotiating with the UFC. This has not been reported anywhere else. However earlier today, Nightmare of Battle reported that Hioki had vacated his Shooto title. And just a little while ago. Robert Sargent of MMA Rising tweeted this:
Shu Hirata says that Hatsu Hioki will be in attendance at UFC 131 in Vancouver on June 11th.less than a minute ago via web 
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Robert Sargent
MMARising
Hioki is 11-1-1 in his last 13 fights, with his only loss being an extremely controversial decision that he dropped to Michihiro Omigawa in late 2009. He picked up the biggest win of his career with a sound decision victory over Marlon Sandro at Sengoku: Soul of Fight on December 30th, 2010, and is currently the number 2 featherweight in the world according to the USA Today/SBN Consensus Rankings.
Could the best non-Zuffa featherweight out there be close to signing with the UFC? I certainly hope so.
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Fuck yeah.
Hioki vs. Omigawa rematch IMO. Maybe Hominick since he’s more recognizable.
Xtreme Couture- The best never rest! The girl in my av is Kari Sweets (you're welcome).
"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates
Didn’t stop them from making Rampage-Wandy III
Sergio Non,
MMA writer, USA TODAY
http://mma.usatoday.com
http://twitter.com/usatmma
by Sergio Non on May 31, 2011 5:19 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Different context
Wandy was no longer a contender, Hioki is definitely a contender.
www.hottopicwithphil.com
by Worldisart on May 31, 2011 5:20 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Their second fight was very close,
and many people thought Hominick deserved the nod.
Xtreme Couture- The best never rest! The girl in my av is Kari Sweets (you're welcome).
"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates
by ElliotMatheny on May 31, 2011 7:06 PM EDT up reply actions
Last I saw Hominick he was barely recognizable
;)
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:06 PM EDT up reply actions 5 recs
That was far from a serious injury, just gross, he’s probably all clear now.
by mmablitzkrieg on May 31, 2011 5:46 PM EDT up reply actions
Have him fight Mendes at 133
Instead of Rani Yahya. A much more interesting fight.
Let the fighters fight, let the referees ref, but dear God, don't let the judges judge.
I’m always in favor of more high-level Featherweights under the Zuffa banner. If the UFC passes him up which would be a huge mistake and I don’t think they’ll do that, then they have to know that Bellator will probably try to get him.
Check out the C&D Channel on YouTube for MMA reviews, predictions, analysis, and other MMA related content.
Fuck. Yes.
If Derek Jeter clubbed a baby seal on earth day while wearing a mink coat and crocodile skin boots while burning tires on an iceberg, the reaction would be "Its OK Derek, you’re a Yankee." -First mammal to wear pants
by Tonley on May 31, 2011 5:08 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
YUS CARTWHEELS
"I can be friends with anybody. Man. Woman. Cat. Dog. Fish..... Alien." -Rampage
by Charles Awad on May 31, 2011 5:09 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
why not give him an immediate title shot
aldo’s free and mendes is already taking a fight
casual fans dont know who any of the 145ers are anyway so fuck it, lets roll with this
"I have smoked weed with alot of UFC champions" - Joe Rogan
"Você ta fudido. Se vai levar muita porrada, ta ligado?" - Anderson Silva
this is a good idea.
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:10 PM EDT up reply actions
it shouldnt
"I have smoked weed with alot of UFC champions" - Joe Rogan
"Você ta fudido. Se vai levar muita porrada, ta ligado?" - Anderson Silva
Florian getting another opportunity to shit the bed in a title fight will make me a sad panda
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:14 PM EDT up reply actions
i dont think he makes it past nunes
although i really have no idea, noone has ever seen diego nunes fight
but i think kennys gonna miss his left leg at 145
"I have smoked weed with alot of UFC champions" - Joe Rogan
"Você ta fudido. Se vai levar muita porrada, ta ligado?" - Anderson Silva
man
you are really only as good as your last fight around here.
the last time kenny lost back to back fights in the UFC was never. he’s the most recognizable FW and will get a shot quickly – if only to get destroyed by aldo to build him up.
Kenny Florian is a choke artist.
There is absolutely nothing that can convince me he won’t do the same if he gets a FW Title shot.
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:19 PM EDT up reply actions
Is he really a choke artist or was he simply not good enough to be champion at 155?
I was carried to Ohio in a swarm of bees, I'll never marry but Ohio don't remember me.
by Anthony Pace on May 31, 2011 5:20 PM EDT up reply actions
He blew it against Gray also.
Rendering him not even good enough to be #1 Contender @ LW, hence the drop.
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Is he a choke artist though?
Or is he simply losing to better fighters? Kenny is great, still at top 5 LW if he wants to fight there, but Maynard is a nightmare matchup for anyone and may well be the number 1 LW in the world.
www.hottopicwithphil.com
That’s what I’m thinking. Choking, to me, is being as good as or better than your opponent, but succumbing to the occasion and not living up to your talent. I think he’s just been bested by better fighters.
I was carried to Ohio in a swarm of bees, I'll never marry but Ohio don't remember me.
by Anthony Pace on May 31, 2011 5:24 PM EDT up reply actions
Maybe choke artist is a little harsh.
He resembles Frank Mir to me in that he will beat most guys in the top 20-8 but will never be anything dominant in the upper echelon of the division.
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:25 PM EDT up reply actions
I would rank him above Mir
Which is weird since Mir’s actually been held the belt twice and Kenny never has. He’s more consistent than Mir though…
by mthom on May 31, 2011 8:41 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
The problem with Kenny is and always has been
he is not explosive or athletic enough to translate his skills into victory against the elites of the sport. He just isn’t as good of an athlete as the Sherks, Penns and Maynards he has lost too.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 10:20 PM EDT up reply actions
A little of both
He really had the skill to beat Maynard, but looked horrible (choke) vs. getting smacked around by Bj (lack of skill)
Let the fighters fight, let the referees ref, but dear God, don't let the judges judge.
you're living up to your name there dude
i just think Kenny lost to some guys who are better than him. BJ Penn is the man and so is Gray Maynard. I don’t like his chances against Aldo. That doesn’t mean that Kenny is a “choker.” It means he’s not as good as those other guys.
kenny is a great lw
i dont think he has another 10 to drop though
"I have smoked weed with alot of UFC champions" - Joe Rogan
"Você ta fudido. Se vai levar muita porrada, ta ligado?" - Anderson Silva
James Irvin impression forthcoming
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:26 PM EDT up reply actions
Looks like a homeless dude there
Let the fighters fight, let the referees ref, but dear God, don't let the judges judge.
Florian has like no top ten victories to his credit
for a top contender, he sure has tip toed around the most dangerous fighters besides title fights…
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 10:18 PM EDT up reply actions
Joe Stevenson
Learn JiuJitsu, it's fun.
We can put a man on the moon, build the Great Wall, scale Everest, but we can't fire Cecil Peoples.
I don't remember him being ranked at that time
But even if he was that is splitting hairs though as Joe Stevenson has really proved unable to compete at the highest levels and isn’t a big feather in the cap anymore.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on Jun 1, 2011 1:52 AM EDT up reply actions
It was at the time.
Joe was 5-1 as a LW in the UFC and 7-2 in the UFC overall, a former number 1 contender.
It doesn’t matter what Joe has gone on to do, at the time he was a stud, his deline after the fact should have no bearing on his ranking when they fought.
Learn JiuJitsu, it's fun.
We can put a man on the moon, build the Great Wall, scale Everest, but we can't fire Cecil Peoples.
I dont think he was a sherdog top ten
which in 2008 is what mattered, but I could be wrong I suppose. I get that revisionism shouldn’t factor into the rankings at the time, similarly to how people retcon AA or Timmeh into can fights for Fedor, but I don’t know if Joe declined as much as was severely over valued.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on Jun 1, 2011 12:39 PM EDT up reply actions
bitching!
having said that – a pretty darn good chance that he meets the same fate as omigawa or kid yamamoto.
I respond to your comment with disdain.
Utter disdain.
by Brent Ducharme on May 31, 2011 5:11 PM EDT up reply actions
hmmm
sorry
my post was supposed to also say:
“why are you confident hioki will be different?”
it looked kind of dickish as it was
To be fair, most would agree Yamamoto hasn’t been the same for years and as for Omigawa, he still did extremely well against the #2 guy in his first fight back in the UFC. I’d say Hioki is different because he’s used to fighting overseas (he beat Hominick twice in his hometown), is just now hitting his prime, and he has the tools to give Aldo a run for his money.
"Referees, be sure to step in and stop the fight on time tomorrow, because I might get carried away in the moment and my many punches may end up destroying my opponent." - Tatsuya "CRUSHER" Kawajiri
Omigawa was great against Mendes
Really? What the fuck was I watching then???
Anderson Silva, Edson Barboza, Jose Aldo, Charles Oliveira, Thiago Alves = Muay Thai wrecking machines!
by SentientAndroid on Jun 1, 2011 10:23 AM EDT up reply actions
I was mostly just playing around.
At this point, I wouldn’t be too surprised by any fighter struggling to transition.
Similar to what Andrew said though, I believe he has some qualities about him that are unique. His grappling and height are of course the most immediate ones on that list.
by Brent Ducharme on May 31, 2011 5:39 PM EDT up reply actions
So awesome! To those not familiar with him, look up his great matches on YouTube. His fight with Sandro is probably his greatest performance considering the level of talent that Sandro has.
That photo is from one of my favorite moments of the Hioki-Sandro fight. Hioki locked in an awesome tight hammerlock right after sprawling. He used it to get a north-south position to reign down knees, then transitioned that hammerlock into a kimura, then used that to transition into a mount and so forth. So slick on the ground, Hioki outgrappling a Nova União BJJ Black Belt shows how world class Hioki is on the ground in MMA.
"Caol Uno was like Mutoh. He developed into a star overseas and then returned to his home country a much bigger deal. Dokonjonosuke Mishima is like Kobashi because they both do moonsaults. Don Frye is like Stan Hansen because they are both fat dumb rednecks with mustaches." - Jonathan Snowden
by RagingNoodles on May 31, 2011 5:11 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
Fantastic!
Wonder who’ll they’ll give him for his debut.
has there ever been a japanese ufc champion?
"I have smoked weed with alot of UFC champions" - Joe Rogan
"Você ta fudido. Se vai levar muita porrada, ta ligado?" - Anderson Silva
Nope
Caol Uno came the closest drawing Penn.
Bob Arum thinks I'm a white Nazi skinhead even though I'm a brown grad student (with hair)
i expect that to continue
but its still interesting
"I have smoked weed with alot of UFC champions" - Joe Rogan
"Você ta fudido. Se vai levar muita porrada, ta ligado?" - Anderson Silva
Yushin Okami something something
No, I guess not.
"With gold thou boughtest Gýmir's daughter,
and so gavest away thy sword:
but when Muspell's sons through the dark forest ride,
thou, unhappy, wilt not have wherewith to fight."
~ Lokasenna
Actually, there has been one...
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 11:25 PM EDT up reply actions
Awesome...
hopefully this is a done deal very soon.
*yawn*
What is so exciting about yet another JMMA fighter? How did Kid do? Didn’t Aoki get beat by Melendez? Didn’t Santiago have almost an identical record over in Japan and got his ass whipped by Brian Stann a couple days ago?
Why, a vast majority of MMA fans are still clinging tenaciously to Shooto/Pride/Sengoku I will never understand. Haven’t we established the level of competition absolutely isn’t reflected in fighter records?
At the end of the guy, this guy is going to ether get ground out by American wrestling…or complain about his “UFC jitters/fighting in a cage vs. a ring” for a lackluster split decision over a guy with a 6-3 record.
he owns wins over like 5 dudes in the top 25!
Didn’t Rampage and Shogun and Nog win UFC gold? Isn’t Anderson Silva the greatest fighter ever? Isn’t…. whatever, I’m done.
I was carried to Ohio in a swarm of bees, I'll never marry but Ohio don't remember me.
by Anthony Pace on May 31, 2011 5:28 PM EDT up reply actions 4 recs
You and your reasons!
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." .....cut to a couple months later....... "You can alter that sig now. I spoke with someone I know on the phone and she repeatedly addressed me as a female. Fuck." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on May 31, 2011 5:30 PM EDT up reply actions
No, maybe I'm the one that's crazy.
I did sit in a suit and a cap and gown for like 4 hours today in sweltering humidity, so I probably had heat stroke.
Hatsu Hioki is a total scrub!
I was carried to Ohio in a swarm of bees, I'll never marry but Ohio don't remember me.
by Anthony Pace on May 31, 2011 5:36 PM EDT up reply actions
maybe
but to write off any fighter who has made a career in japan is ignorant (for a lack of a better word). no insult intended. are you not familiar with hioki? I don’t think it’s about clinging to the past or whatever you are saying, it’s more ‘this fighter has achieved a lot of success, let’s see him in the US where the competition is more difficult’
we mutha fuckin thug life riders westsiiiide till we die
by cosmic fist technique on May 31, 2011 5:31 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Weird examples
Yes, how did Kid do? The 1-2 fighter before entering the UFC going up against one of the best BW fighters of the division? Didn’t Aoki lose to Melendez? The same Melendez that sharpened his game in Japan, and who has roots in Shooto?
Hioki is for real, having absolutely tooled ADCC veterans on the ground (Baret), and with the length to be a difficult fight for most FW’s on the feet, as he’s shown against Sandro, and Hominick: the hematoma faced Canadian who just gave Aldo some trouble. I don’t think Hoki beats Aldo, but he’s more deserving of that chance than anyone else right now.
Follow me at Head Kick Legend
by David Castillo on May 31, 2011 5:50 PM EDT up reply actions
Verdict is still out on Kid.
Demetrius Johnson is for real, apparently.
"It is unlikely that anyone has ever read Nietzsche or Derrida and has been inspired to open a soup kitchen"
I know this is old news now...
But I went back and watched the fights I could find. The dude is good…REALLY good. I make no claim to be an expert on JMMA…(my reason is very juvenile…I can’t keep all the names straight). I do watch whatever happens to come on HDNet…for what that is worth.
But it’s not like my statement is completely shooting from the hip. How did Gomi do? Obviously Kid was ground down. New blood in the UFC? That is great, especially in for the 145 guys!
However…this has been the case over, and over again. If I had the time at work today, I would go back and look for as many articles on the “Latest and Greatest from Japan” coming to the UFC…and the followup article about his crushing defeat. It’s almost like being a Bear/Cubs fan…every time the season starts…things look great. Then, the better teams just beat them.
Anyways, I do feel this guy (based on what I saw) could make it. But I just can’t shake the fact he has almost identical records as Santiago (outside of the UFC) and he had his jaw caved in.
Demetrius Johnson was actually the guy I could see him fighting first…and if that is the case, I would bet on Might Mouse with complete confidence.
hioki vs chan sung jung
we mutha fuckin thug life riders westsiiiide till we die
by cosmic fist technique on May 31, 2011 5:32 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
hmmm very instresting
Zombie’s actually got a bit of star power and a win over Hioki makes a compelling argument for a title shot. Vice versa, good why to introduce a potential top contender with a fan favorite.
by squaresphere on May 31, 2011 5:36 PM EDT up reply actions
This is why it's dumb for Mendes to give up his shot
I’d bet, if the times match out, then Hioki will probably get an instant title shot.
Talent wise, he absolutely should.
I refuse to believe the UFC would let him get an instant shot when he’s less recognized than Shields, and he had to fight Kampmann first.
"Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness... give me truth."
Chris McCandless A.K.A. Alexander Supertramp
1968-1992
I don't think recognition had anything to do with it. Or rather, not in that way.
White wanted to make it seem like Shields title in Strikeforce didn’t mean much because Strikeforce was their major competitor. “Hell no he can’t just come from Strikeforce and get a title shot!” but a guy coming from overseas, etc? That’s instant title shot material with no danger of promoting another brand.
And then God created Saturn ... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it. ... Always a ninja
SaberCats Examiner | SB Nation Bay Area | Niners Nation | Twitter
Yay?
He’ll get wrestle-humped and booted out of the UFC. Sorry folks, but JMMA wins don’t mean much now
Twitter = tpears86
Hioki's the last exception
He actually has wins over currently ranked FWs competing in the States.
When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are in a confederacy against him. - Jonathan Swift
Editor, HeadKickLegend.com
Still Subo at Fightlinker.com
by Derek Suboticki on May 31, 2011 5:55 PM EDT up reply actions
The correct term is wrestlefucked. One word.
When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are in a confederacy against him. - Jonathan Swift
Editor, HeadKickLegend.com
Still Subo at Fightlinker.com
by Derek Suboticki on May 31, 2011 5:59 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
That maybe true for the other divisions that have been in the UFC for years and have had time to build and draw talent from everywhere with the chance at some real big paydays. For the lighter weight classes a lot of the upper tier guys have only recently started to come to north america due to the UFC money that they can get now. Also, many of the problems that Japanese fighters have had and are having (Okami being the exception) is the fat they don’t really cut weight and always fight dudes who cut 10 to 20 lbs.
WIth FW and BW i think thats where the fight Japanese champ will be crowned, unless Okami pulls off the win in Rio.
I’d rather just climb this fridge
Whats the pay like in Sengoku compared to what he might stand to make with the UFC?
"It is unlikely that anyone has ever read Nietzsche or Derrida and has been inspired to open a soup kitchen"
I’d imagine Significantly higher I’ll let this agent explain:
"The top purse on DREAM these days is something like $30,000 in American dollars," the agent says. "Sakuraba might get something like $50,000 or $70,000. They just don’t have the money to bring in the big names and if they can’t do that they will not win the fans back. They just aren’t interested."
http://unintelligentdefense.blogspot.com
by MattParker117 on May 31, 2011 6:19 PM EDT up reply actions
YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!
Matt Janecek
MBA Candidate, 2011
An MBA on MMA: mixed martial arts thru the lens of business
mba-mma.blogspot.com
Hioki Should
Have a face off with and fight the winner of Florian/Nunes after their fight at UFC 131
www.ninjasplace.com
I dont like throwing new Asian talent directly into the deep end.
"It is unlikely that anyone has ever read Nietzsche or Derrida and has been inspired to open a soup kitchen"
Why not?
If a guy is highly ranked, he should be fighting highly ranked fighters. His nationality should not matter.
Not in your debut
UFC jitters and whatnot
unless you’re trying to kill his momentum….
Learn JiuJitsu, it's fun.
We can put a man on the moon, build the Great Wall, scale Everest, but we can't fire Cecil Peoples.
this
Japanese fighters need a fight or two to acclimate to the cage and speed of American fighting.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 8:43 PM EDT up reply actions
Remeber when rampage fought Marvin Eastman?
by TrueTillDeath on Jun 1, 2011 4:05 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Which time?
They fought twice.
Learn JiuJitsu, it's fun.
We can put a man on the moon, build the Great Wall, scale Everest, but we can't fire Cecil Peoples.
...
Learn JiuJitsu, it's fun.
We can put a man on the moon, build the Great Wall, scale Everest, but we can't fire Cecil Peoples.
I wish I lived in a world where the reaction from MMA fans was more “Hioki is a stylish, very exciting fighter who could have tons of great mach-ups in the UFC” instead of “he’s going to lose to the wrestlers at the top of the division! He can’t hang with Aldo! Japanese fighters never win in the UFC!”
"He's like Elvis in Korea! They love him there." - Mike Goldberg on Denis Kang
You'd have to live in a world where Japanese fighters actually won in the UFC
and didn’t routinely get bounced out of the cage by wrestlers then. Look, when Omigawa and Kid were signed, I still had a glimmer of hope that things may go different than they did with the LW division. Omigawa is one of my favorite fighters. Turns out they didn’t though.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 8:43 PM EDT up reply actions
Youre acting like Omigawa or Kid were world-beaters before they cam over. Kid had dropped 2 of 3 and Omigawa is almost .500 on his career.
"It is unlikely that anyone has ever read Nietzsche or Derrida and has been inspired to open a soup kitchen"
Omigawa was a different fighter entirely during his recent run and the decisions Kid lost were both some bullshit
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 9:27 PM EDT up reply actions
Hioki isn’t Omigawa or Kid. He has good striking and a great triangle. His height and length can compensate somewhat for lacking lbs. It’s silly to write-off an entire nation of fighters because of a couple losses to top competition.
"He's like Elvis in Korea! They love him there." - Mike Goldberg on Denis Kang
I am basing this on the entire history of the sport
Japanese nationals typically struggle in the US, especially at first. This is no great secret.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 9:25 PM EDT up reply actions
There is still no reason to base opinions more on Hioki’s nationality than his abilities as a fighter.
"He's like Elvis in Korea! They love him there." - Mike Goldberg on Denis Kang
It is kind of a white man can't jump thing
I wish I could find those comments from Ishida, makes me wonder if a lot of this is mental. The rules, differences in fighting style, the cage, the way the shows are promoted and even the fans react, the fact fighters in US promotions are typically a weight class bigger almost all factor into it.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 10:13 PM EDT up reply actions
I don’t expect Hioki to be the champion, but some suggest that he’s not good enough to be in the UFC and that’s dumb. His two fights against Hominick, and outstriking him for much of the second match, makes me like his chances against most of the division. Kawajiri is another example of a guy that I think could be a legitimate top ten in North American MMA, but he was tossed into the deep end too soon and his stock plummeted.
"He's like Elvis in Korea! They love him there." - Mike Goldberg on Denis Kang
doesn't feel like Japanese fighters are under some curse
Melendez vs Kawajiri II happens in Japan instead and it is a back and forth barn burner for five rounds, guaranteed.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 11:17 PM EDT up reply actions
I hope Okami wins the MW title by the way
In addition to some of these other fighters finding success. I’d like to see an invasion of Japanese fighters in the coming years. Maybe if someone like Okami can break the barrier then the flood gates will open.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 10:17 PM EDT up reply actions
Japanese natonals didn’t compete in the US when that country’s fighters were peaking. Its a silly point to make.
"It is unlikely that anyone has ever read Nietzsche or Derrida and has been inspired to open a soup kitchen"
For a reason.
I couldn’t find it now but I remember Ishida talking about the differences between the US and Japan. I don’t know if it is mental, physical/technical, the rules or the cage or what it is, but fighters from Japan have always had a tough time here. The last Japanese fighter to win a major title in the UFC was Sakuraba…in Japan.
And let me be clear, I think that American and international fighters going over to Japan lose much of these advantages(not all, even Pride had a notable dearth of Japanese nationals as champions) but what ever the reason is, Japanese fighters and other talent that spends time on the Japanese circuit have a tremendously difficult time adjusting.
I want to exclude Pride from this, as many Pride fighters have gone on to have success in all the top US promotions such as the WEC, UFC, EliteXC and Strikeforce. All of those promotions had at least one former Pride fighter as a champion since 2007. Pride > UFC foreva!!!
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
by Urijah Bieber on May 31, 2011 10:11 PM EDT up reply actions
The reality is ;
He will lose to bigger and stronger American wrestlers. Japanese nationals have had no success at the top levels in the UFC. Mendes, Aldo, Nunez, Florian, Manny and any number of other fighters either decision or finish him. I really liked Sengoku and Dream too, but this is just the way it is.
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
Did you just say Manny?
As in, Manny Gamburyan? You’ve got to be kidding.
by TrueTillDeath on Jun 1, 2011 4:09 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
The best part of this news is we won't have to waste top five votes on him when tabulating rankings much longer
The return of The Dragon is at hand.
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