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. ...

Bulgarian wrestler Jordan Radev (13-3), whose UFC career consisted of getting knocked out in 33 seconds by "Massacre" Andrew McFedries (7-3) and losing a UD to "Boogieman" Dean Lister (11-5), will fight Japanese middleweight Yuya Shirai (12-6) as a member of Team World at M-1 Challenge in Korea 29 August. Welterweight Jake Ellenberger (18-4) will return after a successful Team USA debut in July to face Korean Doo Won Seo (1-2) on the card. Lightweight Daisuke Nakamura (16-9) returns to Team Japan versus Berlgian "Moreno" Wim Deputter (18-2) while welterweight Hidehiko Hasegawa (13-10-6) debuts versus American Top Team's Norman Paraisy (4-0). Russian Roman Zentsov (17-12) will headline the event in a rematch versus Korean Sang Soo Lee (8-4). ...

Most noted for renting his cranium as a target to a comeback-bound "Cro Cop" Mirko Filipovic (23-6-2) at DREAM.1 last March, Japanese any weight Tatsuya Mizuno (4-3) tasted the the sweet side of a knockout Thursday night in Tokyo at M-1 Challenge 5. Mizuno dispatched Yoshiyuki Nakanishi (3-1) at 4:13 of round one in the main event. American Jake Ellenberger (18-4) bounced back from a UD loss in Portland 20 June to win a UD over Frenchman "Paco" Farouk Lakebir (2-1) in Ellenberger's Japan debut. Countryman and former TUF contestant Mike Dolce (3-5) was TKO'd at 41 seconds of round two by middleweight "Psycho" Karl Amoussou (7-1-1) of France. It was Dolce's first action since season seven of TUF. ...

Fighters.com tenth-ranked heavyweight Aleksander Emelianenko (13-3) beat Brazilian Silvao Santos (1-1) into the fetal position in the first round at M-1 Challenge in St. Petersburg Thursday. Emelianenko's teammates Amar Suloev (24-7) and Roman Zentsov (17-12) also scored wins for the home team, while Japanese fighters "Andre" Yuta Watanabe (8-1-3) and Ken Hamamura (14-4-4) picked-up victories on foreign soil. In the same kind of Finkelsteinian matchmaking that has kept "The Last Emperor" Fedor Emelianenko (27-1) from meaningful MMA for over two-and-a-half years, li'l brother Aleks was paired with Santos whose only other professional MMA appearance ended in a split decision victory over that notorious gatekeeper to top ten contention, Edson Conterraneo (3-1). Note my sarcasm. The big Brazilian circled Russia's finest before a shot stuffed and swept by Aleks into a textbook uchi mata makikomi toss landing Emelianenko in Santos's half-guard. Strong Santos stood out of Emelianenko's half-mount, but into a near standing guillotine the Russian wrenched like a neck crank. Emelianenko muscled Santos into a corner, released the choke, and hopped into a flying knee that effectively ended the fight. Santos shot forward for a desperate single-leg lunge, but Emelianenko sprawled and pummeled the Brazilian with a series of rights as the referee dove to Santos's rescue. Emelianenko's middleweight Red Devil Sport Club stablemate, Suloev, bounced back from a second round TKO to Chael Sonnen (20-9-1) last July to TKO Jacek Buczko (11-4), who hadn't fought in two-and-a-half years, in the first round. Heavyweight Zentsov also rebounded from an '07 stoppage loss to deal undersized Daniel Tabera (9-1-2) of Spain his first "L" in a two-round decision. DEEP middleweight vet Watanabe dealt Ansar Chalangov (7-4) his fourth consecutive defeat in a first-round rear naked choke.  It was Watanabe's first fight out of country. Welterweight Hamamura also ventured out of the "Land of the Rising Sun" for the first time to TKO Russia's Islam Karimov (5-4-1) in the second round. The event also saw Akhmet Sultanov (2-0) submit multi-promotion veteran Katsuhisa Fuji (8-14-1) in a first-round armbar. Besiki Gerenava (5-0) won a decision over Pancrase vet Yuji Sakuragi (9-10-1). U-File Camp's Daisuke Nakamura (13-9) decisioned Juri Ivlev (4-3). Victor Nemkov (1-0) debuted with a triangle choke submission of fellow rookie Christian Bombay (0-1). Team Scandinavia's Jarno Nurminen (2-1) forced Ji Hoon Kim's (1-6) corner to throw in the towel in the first round. Heavyweight Fin Toni Valtonen (15-7) submitted South Korean Seung Hyun Choi (0-2) in a rear naked choke in the first round. Hyun Gyu Lim (2-1-1) knocked out Brazil's Lucio Linhares (7-3) in the first round. Lightweight Janne Tulirinta (7-2) TKO'd Doo Won Seo (1-2) in round two. Finally, lightweight Niko Puhakka (11-6) of Finland submitted Jong Man Kim (3-5-2) in a triangle choke in round one. ...