Sandwiched between Strikeforce's Challengers card and their network-televised CBS card featuring Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brett Rogers, Sengoku XI took place in the wee hours of Saturday morning on HDNet and provided the hardest of the hardcore fans with some interesting match-ups that produced some surprising results. The card featured a main event featherweight tilt between UFC veteran Michihiro Omigawa and the Brazilian jiu-jitsu mastery of Hatsu Hioki with supporting bouts that included a middleweight match-up between Eastern European up-and-comer Mamed Khalidov and UFC veteran Jorge Santiago. Kevin Randleman, Jorge Masvidal, former lightweight champion Satoru Kitaoka, Eiji Mitsuoka, Kazunori Yokota, and Marlon Sandro were also involved in bouts on the card.

The most shocking outcome of the evening came during the middleweight match-up between Jorge Santiago and Mamed Khalidov. Khalidov's dominating record against lesser competition over the past couple of years was the swaying vote in why Khalidov came into the match-up as the clear underdog, but he proved that he could hang with one of the best middleweights in the world by defeating Santiago via TKO at 1:45 of the first round.

Strangely, Santiago was stunned by a hammerfist while working from top control. Santiago immediately dropped on top of Khalidov in a daze, and Khalidov quickly worked his way to the top to finish Santiago. It was a stunning upset from a blow that seemed unassuming, but the win should vault Khalidov into most MMA rankings' top ten list at middleweight.

Khalidov's win wasn't the only surprising result of the evening. By most accounts, Michihiro Omigawa didn't do enough to defeat Hatsu Hioki in their featherweight main event showdown. Hioki dominated the first round with an advanced ground game, half-guard strikes, and a near armbar submission while the third round likely went to Omigawa as he peppered Hioki with strikes. The second round was the closest round of the three rounds, but most watchers scored it for Hioki as he beat Omigawa with jabs and countered nearly everything Omigawa threw.

Unfortunately for Hioki, the judges saw it differently as Michihiro Omigawa was given the win via split decision. Interestingly enough, Omigawa commented in the ring that he felt he didn't win. It's nice to see a fighter with some honesty after such a controversial victory.

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The international spice in this weekend's tasty Strikeforce sandwich eminates from Tokyo on Saturday as World Victory Road presents its final "Sengoku" event, before the switch to "Sengoku Raiden Championships" on New Year's Eve.

It's also the last big Japanese MMA event of the year until the dueling December 31st mega-shows, so won't you join us here at BloodyElbow.com for some live play-by-play and discussion? The show starts on HDNet at 2 AM Eastern / 11 PM Pacific, shortly after Strikeforce's "Challengers" event wraps up on Showtime.

Quick Results
Michihiro Omigawa def. Hatsu Hioki via split decision
Mamed Khalidov def. Jorge Santiago via KO (punches) R1
Jorge Masvidal def. Satoru Kitaoka via KO (punches) R2
Tomoaki Ueyama def. "Bull" Konno via technical submission (rear-naked choke) R1
Kazunori Yokota def. Eiji Mitsuoka via unanimous decision
Stanislav Nedkov def. Kevin Randleman via split decision
Akihiro Gono def. Yoon Young Kim via unanimous decision
Marlon Sandro def. Yuji Hoshino via KO (punches) R1
Dave Herman def. "Big" Jim York via KO (upkicks) R1
Ronnie Mann def. Shigeki Osawa via unanimous decision
Ryota Uozomi def. Yuichiro Yajima via submission (armbar) R2

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Sengoku 11 airs live from Tokyo at 2 AM Eastern / 11 PM Pacific tonight (right after Strikeforce Challengers) on HDNet. Be sure to join myself and the Bloody Elbow Night Crew for live results and discussion of the final major J-MMA event of the year before NYE.

FW: Hatsu Hioki -660 (64.9kg / 143 lbs) vs. Michihiro Omigawa +400 (64.9kg / 143 lbs)

MW: Jorge Santiago -275 (83kg / 182.9 lbs) vs. Mamed Khalidov +215 (82.4kg / 181.6 lbs)

LW: Satoru Kitaoka -160 (70kg / 154.3 lbs) vs. Jorge Masvidal +130 (70kg / 154.3 lbs)

LW: Kazunori Yokota -150 (69.7kg / 153.6 lbs) vs. Eiji Mitsuoka +120 (70kg / 154.3 lbs)

LHW: Stanislav Nedkov -200 (92.5kg / 203.9 lbs) vs. Kevin Randleman +160 (92.1kg / 203 lbs)

WW: Akihiro Gono -500 (76kg / 167.5 lbs) vs. Yoon Young Kim +300 (75.8kg / 167.1 lbs)

FW: Marlon Sandro -800 (65kg / 143.3 lbs) vs. Yuji Hoshino +500 (65kg / 143.3 lbs)

HW: Dave Herman -550 (108.7kg / 239.6 lbs) vs. Jim York +350 (116.3kg / 256.3 lbs)

FW: Ronnie Mann -260 (64.6kg / 142.4 lbs) vs. Shigeki Osawa +200 (64.8kg / 142.8 lbs)

"Fight of the Soul" (Intermission) - Featherweight - 2R x 5 min.
Tomoaki Ueyama -260 (64.7kg /42.6 lbs) vs. Hirokazu "Bull" Konno +200 (64.8kg / 142.8 lbs)
 
Opening Bout - Bantamweight - 2R x 5 min.
Ryota Uozomi -275 (56.8kg / 125.2 lbs) vs. Yuichiro Yajima +215 (56.8kg / 125.2 lbs)

November looks to be a fantastic month for fight fans with a number of major promotions stepping forward to put on a few top notch cards that will appeal to casual fans and hardcore fans alike. This weekend begins the torrid month of action with Strikeforce holding Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Evangelista on Friday night, World Victory Road promoting Sengoku XI on Saturday morning, and the weekend's action ending in spectacular fashion with Strikeforce's CBS card featuring a heavyweight tilt between Fedor Emelianenko and Brett Rogers. Be sure to participate in the FightMetric/BloodyElbow.com Tournament Pick 'Em game to maximize your enjoyment of all the great action this month.

World Victory Road's Sengoku XI is the first event in a long list of previews this month that we'll cover. The card will take place on Saturday morning at 2 AM EST airing LIVE on HDNet from Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan. As we've normally seen from World Victory Road in the past , the event features some solid matchmaking with a featherweight tilt between Hatsu Hioki and Michihiro Omigawa, a middleweight war between Mamed Khalidov and Jorge Santiago, and a lightweight showdown between former champion Satoru Kitaoka and Bellator veteran Jorge Masvidal.

In main event action, top Japanese featherweight Hatsu Hioki (20-3-2) will battle Sengoku Featherweight Grand Prix runner-up Michihiro Omigawa (7-8-1) in a bout that should have taken place in the Sengoku Featherweight Grand Prix final. Unfortunately, Hioki had sustained injuries during his battle with Masanori Kanehara in the Grand Prix's semifinals, thus being unable to continue. Kanehara was allowed to continue and upset Omigawa in the Grand Prix final. Oddly enough, Omigawa was an underdog throughout the tournament bracket, defeating both LC Davis and Nam Phan in impressive fashion to advance.

This will once again be an uphill battle for Michihiro Omigawa as he'll be taking on a very lengthy grappler in Hatsu Hioki. Hioki's past troubles usually came from poor gameplans and the propensity to be sucked into slugfests, but Hioki seems to be a much more aware fighter these days as he's easily been able to outgrapple his opponents on the ground on the way to victory. The only real problem for Hioki is that he lacks the power to finish his opponents if he can't find a means to a submission. Kanehara was a perfect example of that, and it could become a blueprint for Omigawa to upset the giant.

Omigawa will need to keep this fight standing and connect combinations to put Hioki into any kind of danger. The ground will be Hioki's world, and his lengthy frame only makes it a tougher prospect for opponents. While Omigawa has shown deceptive power as he's used the weight cut to featherweight to his advantage, Hioki's grappling acumen should prevail over power in this showdown.

Poll

Who will win?

15%

Omigawa over Hioki, Santiago over Khalidov

47 votes

56%

Hioki over Omigawa, Santiago over Khalidov

166 votes

9%

Omigawa over Hioki, Khalidov over Santiago

27 votes

18%

Hioki over Omigawa, Khalidov over Santiago

56 votes

296 votes | Poll has closed

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Make sure to join us at Bloodyelbow.com early Saturday morning for World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku 11 LIVE on HDNet Sat. Nov. 7th at 2:00 AM EST.

Hatsu Hioki [No. 4] (20-3-2) vs. Michihiro Omigawa [No. 19] (7-8-1)

Jorge Santiago [No. 6] (21-7) vs. Mamed Khalidov (19-3-1)

Satoru Kitaoka (25-9-9) [No. 17] vs. Jorge Masvidal (18-4)

Kazunori Yokota (10-2-3) vs. Eiji Mitsuoka (16-6-2)

Kevin Randleman (17-13) vs. Stanislav Nedkov (7-0)

Akihiro Gono (29-15-7) vs. Yoon Young Kim (12-4)

Marlon Sandro (14-1) vs. Yuji Hoshino (16-7-7)

Dave Herman (15-1) vs. Jim York (11-3)

Shigeki Osawa (3-0) vs. Ronnie "Ushiwaka" Mann (16-2-1)

Yuichiro Yajima (9-9-1) vs. Ryota Uozomi (9-2-2)

Hirokazu "Bull" Konno (1-3) vs. Tomoaki Ueyama (2-3)

 

During a Katsunori Kikuno public workout at Alliance-Square Gym today (video below), DREAM announced a pair of middleweight bouts for its "white cage" show on October 25th in Osaka.

First up is FEG standby Melvin Manhoef (23-6-1), who'll make a typically quick turnaround to take on the returning Zelg Galesic (9-4). Manhoef was just eliminated from the K-1 2009 World Grand Prix by Remy Bonjasky at the end of September and has fought a total of six times already in 2009 (after "retiring" late last year, no less). Galesic hasn't fought since September of '08 - when he was armbarred by "Jacare" in the DREAM MWGP semifinals - thanks to myriad injuries and health problems. Neither man lacks cage experience, having both competed for now-defunct UK promotion Cage Rage in the past.

Also on the slate: Paulo Filho's (18-1) strange odyssey continues as he faces Korean judoka Dong Sik Yoon (4-7). Since his infamous loss to Chael Sonnen last November, Filho has made quick work of Manhoef at DREAM.10 and cage-humped Alex Schoenauer to a unanimous decision victory at last month's Bitetti Combat show. Yoon is just 1-3 in DREAM after losing his last three straight, most recently injuring his foot one minute into his DREAM.10 match with Jesse Taylor. The former WEC middleweight champ will have a distinct advantage when it comes to the fighting surface, having contested four bouts inside a cage to Yoon's zero.

* * * * *

Not to be left out, Sengoku also added a pair of matchups to its November 7th card in Tokyo today.

In the promotion's burgeoning heavyweight division, "Big" Jim York (11-3) will look to rebound from his submission loss to Antonio Silva when he runs up against 25-year-old prospect Dave "Pee-Wee" Herman (15-1). The formerly home-trained Herman demonstrated his notoriously bad cardio in his last Sengoku bout, which saw him blown up by Korean heavyweight Mu Bae Choi in the second round. Since then, he's notched an impressive TKO win in Bellator, and last month dispatched of Don Frye in under a minute down in Texas.

Meanwhile, in the lightweight set, the rumored title eliminator between Eiji Mitsuoka (16-6-2) and Kazunori Yokota (10-2-3) has been officially announced. The winner of this one is likely to be new champion Mizuto Hirota's first opponent at Sengoku Raiden Championship on New Year's Eve.

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With the promotion's understated-yet-important tenth show still a few weeks off, World Victory Road has officially announced the addition of three big names to the bill for its "Sengoku 11" event at the Ryogoku Kokugikan on November 7th.

Jorge Santiago (21-7) will appear to the Sengoku ring for the first time since January, when the American Top Team product captured the vacant middleweight title with a dramatic come-from-behind submission of Kazuo Misaki. A rematch with the "Grabaka Hitman" would have welcomed Santiago back from his layoff - which was due to myriad arm and shoulder troubles - but Misaki was suspended immediately after his August win over Kaz Nakamura thanks to a well-documented run-in with a Tokyo traffic cop. Thus, Santiago's paper thin division is left without an immediate challenger, though the Joe Doerksen/Takenori Sato scrap at Sengoku 10 could change that. After the longest inactive period of his fighting career, maybe a tune-up fight wouldn't be such a bad thing for Santiago anyway.

PRIDE veteran and current Strikeforce signee Kevin Randleman (17-13) will also make a return to Sengoku, having not fought for the promotion since its second event in May of last year. Talk emerged on Thursday that the "Monster" could face the undefeated "King Mo" Lawal (5-0), a fellow former NCAA wrestling champion.

Indeed, a web banner released by Sengoku this week features Lawal front and center, along with Satoru Kitaoka, Akihiro Gono and Eiji Mitsuoka.

Finally, Yoshida Dojo's Michihiro Omigawa (7-8-1) will attempt to even his record to .500 against an as-yet-unnamed opponent. The cat lover's Cinderella run in the 2009 Featherweight Grand Prix came to a halt when Masenori Kanehara topped Omigawa via unanimous decision in the finals, which Omigawa reached thanks to a highly controversial split with Marlon Sandro in the semifinals earlier that evening.

Other potential bouts for this card include the debut of blue chip prospect Satoshi Ishii, the return of BJJ phenom Xande Ribeiro, and the winner of Sengoku 10's Antonio Silva/Jim York bout taking on Josh Barnett for the company's inaugural heavyweight title.

 

Last year, one of the bigger stories that broke was the announcement that 2008 Beijing Olympic Judo gold medalist Satoshi Ishiiwould enter the sport of mixed martial arts. Following a lengthy courtship by promotions such as DREAM, Sengoku, the UFC, and the now-defunct Affliction, Ishii was leaning toward the UFC at the final hour in 2008. In dramatic fashion, news broke on January 1st of 2009 that Ishii had, in fact, signed with Sengoku instead.

During his courtship and following his signing, Ishii was training with some of the most famous training camps in all of MMA in order to fast track his way into the ring and become a success instantly. He had trained at Xtreme Couture, American Top Team, Lyoto Machida, Fedor Emelianenko, and Gegard Mousasi. It's safe to say that he's been given ample opportunities to increase his level of skill in a short amount of time, but the transition from a judoka who never gets hit in competition to a judoka who uses his skills to submit and punish opponents while being hit is a tough undertaking for any combat sports athlete.

Ishii was scheduled to make his MMA debut on August 2nd, but the fight was strangely postponed to November 7th due to a minor surgery involving a "hernia-related" injury. Interestingly enough, Ishii was at a press conference two days earlier talking about his debut fight, and suddenly the carpet was dragged out from under him with the postponement. Most fans and writers believe Sengoku pulled the plug due to training problems, not enough interest from fans, or his choice of opponents were unsatisfying.

What was the real deal? We'll never know, but it's safe to say that such a coveted signing by WVR has to win and be successful. If he had some sort of deficiencies in training, an injury, or an easier opponent wasn't being offered, it's pretty clear to see why the fight would be pushed back. With Ishii's debut coming in November, there are now some interesting rumors circulating involving potential future opponents that could draw some solid ratings in Japan.

According to Tokyo Sports newspaper (Nightmare of Battle), 2008 Beijing Olympics Judo Bronze medalist Teddy Riner is seeking to battle Ishii, on the judo mat or the MMA ring. Riner won the 2007 European Championships and the 2007 & 2009 World Championships on top of his bronze at Beijing. He won the bronze medal at only 19 years of age. He's also over 6 feet 8 inches tall, a heavyweight, and a judoka. Yeah... imagine that in the ring.

In Beijing, a dream final between him and Satoshi Ishii was hyped beforehand but Riner lost a close match in the quarterfinals. He did go on to win bronze however.

When Ishii was brought up in the Tokyo Sports interview Riner suddenly had a serious look on his face. "I want to fight him again". About punches, Riner says no problem. He got into a lot of fights in his childhood.

Ishii was happy to hear this. "I love Riner. When he came to Japan and was asked if Kosei Inoue is his rival, he said "my rival is Satoshi Ishii". I want to say thanks to him."

What Riner means with wanting to fight Ishii again above (I don’t think they’ve faced each other in an official match yet) is that when the French team visited Japan they went to Kokushikan University’s dojo (Ishii’s university) where Ishii and Riner had practice matches many times over.

"Tell him that I’ll be waiting in the MMA ring." – Ishii

These guys are either going to throw down in 2012 at the Olympics, or Sengoku is going to court Riner into a MMA bout that could actually feed off the rivalry and hype that was evident at the 2008 Beijing Olympics between the two judokas. It's a far-fetched scheme for Sengoku to chase, but there aren't exactly a plethora of low-level heavyweights in their own ranks to take on Ishii. They certainly won't be using Antonio Silva or Josh Barnett any time soon to take on Ishii, and this may be the perfect opportunity for WVR to capitalize on a 2008 judo bout that never happened.