After dropping a two-round decision to "Flash" Bibiano Fernandes (5-1) in the DREAM Featherweight Grand Prix last March, Takafumi Otsuka (5-3) didn't let another 145-pound title slip through his fingers Sunday at DEEP 43 Impact in Tokyo. Otsuka won a three-round decision over former UFC lightweight Dokonjonosuke Mishima (18-7-2) to snag Mishima's DEEP featherweight belt. In a battle between former UFC welterweights and all-time DEEP legends, “Piranha” Ryo Chonan (16-10) won a three-round decision over Jutaro Nakao (22-13-4). Chonan broke the two-fight losing streak ending his 1-3 run in the Octagon last April DEEP bantamweight champ “Ashikan Judan” Masakazu Imanari (16-7-1) defended his title from Tomohiko Hori (6-5-2) in another three-round decision. ...

While most of the MMA world tuned-in to Las Vegas for UFC 84 last weekend, three of Japan's noblest promotions put on shows in Osaka, Tokyo, and Sapporo respectively. Pancrase Results Pancrase held its fourth iteration of its 2008 Shining tour in Azelea Taisho Hall in Osaka Sunday. In the main,  event, "13" Daisuke Hanazawa (9-9-5) scored his first "w" of 2008 with a two-round UD over Takefumi Hanai (2-4-2), Hanai's third consecutive loss. Featherweight Soyu Tanabe (4-3-1) knocked out Pancrase regular Kenji Takeshige (4-7-1) at 3:44 of the first round. Middleweight Masahiro Toryu (5-3-3) denied Shuji Morikawa (0-2-1) his first "W" by submitting him in a guillotine choke at 3:36 of round one. In other fights, Kenji Shimada (4-2) knocked out Takashi Hasegawa (3-6-3) at 1:58 of round one. "Strasser" Kiichi Kunimoto (5-2) won a two-round UD over "Yuushi Edaori" Yu Shiori (5-1). Isao Hirose (2-0) also scored a decision unanimously over "Punch" Nobuhiro Yamauchi (4-3). ...