» Fighter: Kazushi Sakuraba

As I surf the internet bouncing from one mixed martial arts(MMA) site to the next a reoccurring theme occurs. The discussion of Pride Fighting Championships, the fighters, the rules and now a select number of fights being show on Spike TV. This brought back fond memories for me and made me think about the current state of MMA and what made Pride stand out from the crowd.

Read More About Best of Pride on Spike TV: Fond Memories Never Fade…

Fighters.com’s tenth-ranked middleweight “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-1) and MMA legend “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (23-13-1) will probably matchup at Bitetti Combat 6 in Brasillia February 25 according to Filho’s trainer, Josuel Distak, in Tatame.

Read More About Report: Paulo Filho Versus Kazushi Sakuraba at Bitetti Combat 6…

Croatian middleweight “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (8-3) will fight Japanese MMA hero “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (22-13-1) at DREAM.12 in Osaka October 25, DREAM officially announced Monday.

Sakuraba was originally scheduled to fight “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-5-1), but Manhoef bailed with an injury.

Read More About DREAM 12: Zelg Galesic To Fill-In Versus Kazushi Sakuraba…

Fighters on DREAM.11’s card weighed-in in Yokohama Monday in advance of Tuesday night’s fight card.  All fighters made the weight limits.

Read More About DREAM.11 Weigh-In Results…

“The Contender” reality TV contestant Rubin Williams (0-0) will fight MMA legend and Japanese hero “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (21-13-1) at DREAM.11 in Yokohama October 6, DREAM announced Sunday.

Williams will don four-ounce gloves for the first time versus a 13-year veteran of epic MMA battles and after skidding in six consecutive boxing losses, three by TKO.  It must be noted, however, that the combined record of Williams’s opponents in those six losses was 95-2 – he’s thrown leather under the Queensberry rules with top boxers.

Read More About Boxer Rubin Williams to Fight Sakuraba at DREAM.11…

MMA legend and Japanese hero “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (21-13-1) has been drafted to sure-up DREAM.11 in Yokohama October 6, DREAM announced Saturday.  No opponent was named for Saku’.

Read More About Japanese Hero Sakuraba Added to DREAM.11, WEC Title Challenger Chase Beebe Added to DREAM.12…

Dynamite!!, Fighting and Entertainment Group’s annual year-end event, will take place 31 December at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

FEG President Sadaharu Tanikawa and DREAM president Keiiti Sasahara made the official announcement Saturday.

No matches were announced, but the Dynamite!! card will feature ten to fifteen fights, most of which will be DREAM MMA matches with the remainder being K-1 matches.

At the press conference but not confirmed to fight were Fighters.com’s fourth-ranked lightweight and DREAM Champion “Hellboy” Joachim Hansen (19-7-1), ninth-ranked lightweight “Tobikan Judan” Shinya Aoki (17-3), and “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-11-1).

Fighters.com’s Lightweight Champion “Tobikan Judan” Shinya Aoki (16-2) further expanded the common MMA repertoire Sunday at DREAM.4 when he tapped Katsuhiko Nagata (4-3) in a gogoplata from the full mount at 5:12 of round one.

Adorning his sprayed-on, gaudy long johns, Aoki scored two takedowns, mounting Nagata on the second.  Aoki pounded his victim as Nagata bucked.

Aoki wasn’t going anywhere!

He smothered Nagata and slipped his foot out of nowhere into the pretzel that ended the fight, advancing Aoki to the Lightweight Grand Prix semi-finals.

“If you want to be the legend, you have to kill the legend,” “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) said after slaying “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-11-1) with a kick in the first round and advancing to the Middleweight Grand Prix semi-finals.

“That’s what I did today.”

Manhoef finished the Japanese legend with a knee to Sakuraba’s head from side control followed by hammerfists to his face before the referee ended the fight.

Read More About Aoki Amazes, Manhoef Slays Sakuraba at DREAM.4…

Friday, DREAM released its DREAM.4 Middleweight Grand Prix match-ups to be fought in Tokyo 15 June.

Fighters.com’s ninth-ranked middleweight “Mayhem” Jason Miller (21-5) will fight Brazilian BJJ enigma “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-1).

Fast-rising Gegard Mousasi (21-2-1) will face Korean judoka Dong Sik Yoon (4-4).

MMA legend “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-10-1) is matched versus “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (21-4-1).

Finally, “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (8-3) will fight Taiei Kin (3-2).

“Tobikan Judan” Shinya Aoki (15-2) won a unanimous decision over “JZ” Gesias Calvancante (14-2-1) in a Lightweight Grand Prix bout.

The rest of the card were fights in the Middleweight Grand Prix.

Gegard Mousasi (21-2-1) submitted Denis Kang (29-10-1) in a triangle choke at 3:10 of round one.

Taiei Kin (3-2) won a unaninmous decision over “The Punk” Ikuhisa Minowa (39-28-8).

“Benkei” Zelg Galesic (8-3) submitted Magomed Sultanakhmedov (4-2) by armbar at 1:40 of round one.

“The Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-10-1) sumbitted Andrews Nakahara (0-1) by neck crank at 8:20 of the first round.

“Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-1) submitted Ian Murphy (0-1) by rear naked choke at 3:38 of the first round.

Kiyoshi Tamura (32-14-1) TKO Masakatsu Funaki (38-13-1) in 57 seconds.

Dong Sik Yoon (4-4) won a unanimous decision over Shungo Oyama (7-11).