The Past and Future 04.06.09: Hatsu Hioki
Posted by Robert Steele on 04.06.2009
This week a profile of top ranked featherweight Hatsu Hioki. We look at his past fights, his current progress in the Sengoku GP, and his future in MMA.
As a TKO Featherweight Champion, Hatsu Hioki has earned some respect in North America. A Grand Prix win in Sengoku would only help to build his resume and add to his worldwide recognition.
The Past:
Fighting out of Nagoya, Japan, Hioki has built a name for himself mostly in Japan. He trains out of Alive with Daisuke Sugie, the Shooto fighter who fought Josh Thomson with PRIDE back in 2005.
His MMA career began at the All Japan Amateur Shooto Championships where he took third. From there he transitioned to the professional level in 2002, winning his first three fights in Shooto, all by stoppage.
His first loss came in his fourth fight against Hiroyuki Takaya. He would show durability, however, taking the fight to a decision.
He would go on to win five more fights, three of which by decision, before fighting American fighter Bao Quach. Quach, with his wrestling background, was able to put Hioki to draw. This draw did much to elevate Quach, but was considered a bit of a setback for Hioki. The draw may have been due to Hioki attempting to showcase more of his striking rather than going for his clinch takedown to win by submission. Hitherto he had been known only for his strong grappling.
After his fight with Quach, Hioki left Japan to fight in Montreal, Canada at TKO 25. He fought the well-rounded Mark Hominck for the TKO Featherweight title. He went in with his usual patient offence and take downs before getting a triangle choke victory to win the title.
In a rematch at TKO 28, Hominick would prove that he could win another way. While he was not able to get a KO, and he had his nose busted in the process, he was able to demonstrate his striking ability enough to eek out another win in his title defence.
In the interim he fought a few times again with Shooto. He hit, for the first time in his career, a rough patch, where he lost back-to-back close split decisions to Antonio Carvalho and Jong Man Kim. The Carvalho fight was a ground battle, each getting their own turn of mounted strikes.
He would bounce back with a few more wins and a draw in Shooto before another TKO title defence at TKO 35. Against "The Surgeon" Thierry Quenneville, Hioki looked in trouble early. Soon after the start of the fight, Quenneville landed a quick hook, knocking Hioki down. Hioki was able to pull guard and gain position from the top. To Quenneville's credit, he was able to escape much of Hioki's submission attempts, but eventually Hioki would sink in a triangle and retain the title.
In his most recent fight for the Sengoku Featherweight Grand Prix, Hioki dominated his fight with Chris Manuel, winning by using a kimura attempt to gain top position, then mounted strikes to Manuel, and then a transition to an armbar for the win.
The Future:
He is known sometimes as "Iron Broomstick" due to his durability and favortism toward the sweep. His repertoire is consistent in most fights. This may seem predictable, but he does so with such perfection that it works.
Here is a typical Hioki fight. He works carefully from stand-up, using a push kick whenever possible to create distance or cause his opponent to be put off balance. Then he looks to find a good opportunity to clinch. From the clinch he hooks a leg in a sweeping motion for a takedown. Since he controls the sweep, usually he ends up in a dominant top position where he can work some striking or go for a submission.
Hioki isn't afraid to showcase his striking, however, as was seen especially in his fight with Quach and his second fight with Hominick. He has noted in interviews that his daily training consists of all aspects of MMA -- ground, grappling and cardio.
He is a likely favorite to win the Sengoku Grand Prix. His next fight in the GP will be May 2nd against Ronnie Mann. Mann sports a 16-1 pro record, with the majority of his wins by submission or decision. Hioki may stand with him.
Of all others in the tournament, Nam Phan would be a good opponent to see Hioki face. Phan, the King of the Cage and Strikeforce veteran won his last fight in the tournament by trading strikes with Hideki Kadowaki. It would be interesting to see whether a fight between Hioki and Phan would be a showcase of each other's striking or a ground battle. But we'll have to see how the GP plays out.
Hioki has made it his goal to be the top ranked featherweight in the world, and a GP win would certainly help him climb the ladder.
