MMA Legacy 07.06.10: Shinya Aoki
Posted by Bill Wannop on 07.06.2010
MMA Legacy is back, this week focusing on the DREAM lightweight champion, Shinya Aoki! From dominating victories early in his career to his breaking the arm of Mizuto Hirota and his disappointing showing against Gilbert Melendez. Join us as relive his career Shinya Aoki!
Each and every week MMA Legacy shines the spotlight on a MMA legend. The legends may be retired or may be still actively competing. The column will begin with a bio on the selected legend following his career throughout its highs and lows. With DREAM 15 set to take place this Saturday, MMA Legacy will look at the career of the current DREAM lightweight champion, Shinya Aoki!
Early Life
Shinya Aoki was born on May 9, 1983 in Shizuoka City, Japan. He has studied martial arts his whole life, having earned a black belt in BJJ under Yuki Nakai as well as a black belt in Judo. He also continued the learning of martial arts by becoming an instructor in Paraestra Tokyo head school, and he was given the nickname ‘Tobikan Judan' which means master of the flying submissions.
Early MMA
Shinya made his MMA debut competing the in the DEEP organization, where he first faced off against Dai Okimura whom he quickly submitted via armbar. Shinya would submit two other opponents in the organization in 2003, before suffering his first loss of this career at DEEP: 16th Impact. Shinya is more of a submission fighter and was woken up to the world of MMA by Jutaro Nakao when he was knocked him out with a huge punch near the end of the first round.
That would be Shinya's lat fight in the DEEP organization as after the loss he moved onto the Shooto organization. He got back to the winning ways by defeating Keith Wisniewski by submission due to an armlock, then won by DQ due to a low blow(I don't know if you would call that a victory) over Shigetoshi Iwase. Aoki would then lose a decision to Hayato Sakurai at Shooto: Alive Road 2005 before he went on a two fight win streak.
PRIDE
Following the two victories Aoki would make his debut in PRIDE at PRIDE: Bushido 12 when he faced Jason Black. The fight was pure Aoki style as he clinched with Black, pulled guard, and managed to lock in a triangle before Black even knew what was happening. Aoki would then take on current UFC fighter Georges Sotiropoulous at Shooto: Champion Carnival, but as has become the norm for Shinya Aoki fights later in his career, the fight had some controversy as Sotiropoulous was disqualified due to hitting Aoki with a groin strike.
Aoki would go back to PRIDE and defeat Clay French before facing off against Joachim Hansen at PRIDE: Shockwave 2006. Hansen, who is good on the ground, was simply dominated by Aoki whom managed to lock in a gogo plata in the first round and get the tap out. This was the first time that the gogo plata had been used successfully on a big MMA stage, as the announcers did not even realize that it was a submission hold, until Hansen tapped!
Aoki would continue his dominance at PRIDE34: Kamikaze against Brian Lo-A-Njoe in what would be the final show for PRIDE after the UFC buyout. It was a disappointing way to end the PRIDE run as Aoki was matched up with a nobody on this card. Anyway, Lo-A-Njoe would attempt some flying knees that would just get him taken down and arm barred in quick fashion to put Aoki's MMA record to 13-2.
DREAM
Aoki would debut in the newly formed DREAM organization at DREAM 1 taking part in the lightweight grand prix. His opponent in the first round would be JZ Calvancante. In the fight JZ played it smart and stayed on his feet, not getting pulled into the guard of Aoki. Aoki would attempt a takedown only to be elbowed in the shoulder. The ref would stop the fight however as Aoki claimed the elbow hit him in the head, which is illegal in DREAM. The replay would show conclusively that the elbow hit the shoulder, but the fight would be stopped and ruled a no-contest as Aoki could not continue. This is the sort of stuff that would plague Aoki's career in the future.
The two would have a rematch at DREAM 2 to determine who would advance in the grand prix. The rematch was completely different from their original meeting, as Aoki was able to get JZ on the ground and out grapple him, attempting and Achilles lock, and finally getting the back of JZ. He would attempt to lock in a rear naked choke, but JZ would defend it well. Into the second round and it is still all Aoki who would attempt several submissions including an oma plata and an armbar before the fight would finally end in a decision. The judges would all give the fight to Aoki advancing him to the semi finals.
The second round of the tournament would take place at DREAM 4 where Aoki would take on Katsuhiko Nagata. In the fight Aoki again dominated in the clinch and on the ground, getting mount easily. From here Aoki would sit in mount for about 3 minutes while he attempted to set up a submission. He would finally lock in a gogo plata from the mount position, forcing Nagata to tap and advancing in the tournament.
In the semi-finals of the tournament at DREAM 5 Aoki would take on grappler Caol Uno to determine who would compete in the finals later that evening against Eddie Alvarez. The fight was no stop submission attempts from Aoki, who simply out grappled Uno. Aoki transitioned beautifully from armbar to leg lock, heel hook, and triangle, and a bunch of times it looked as though Uno was not going to survive. Uno was able to hold on, but ultimately would lose the fight by decision to put Aoki through to the finals.
Earlier in the even Alvarez would defeat Tatsuya Kawajiri however in the victory he was damaged pretty badly on his eye, and the doctors would not let him continue. He would be replaced by Joachim Hansen who had defeated Kultar Gill earlier in an alternate bout. In the fight Aoki would look to get the fight to the ground and would almost lock in another gogo plata (which he locked in on Hansen in their previous meeting), but Hansen would escape. He would then land a leaping downward punch that lands right on the button of Aoki, stunning him. From here Aoki would cover up as Hansen would just drop bombs, to get the tap out from Aoki and the title!
Aoki would get an easier fight next, taking on Todd Moore at DREAM 4 and dismantling him by quickly getting a neck crank for the tap out. Aoki would then face off against Eddie Alvarez for WAMMA lightweight title at Dynamite!! 2008. In typical Aoki fashion, he latched on to Alvarez and would not let go, He would wrestling Alvarez to the ground and would lock in an Achilles lock that would force Alvarez to tap out in just 1:32 of the first round!
Aoki would go back to DREAM where he would face another lower level fighter in David Gardner. Aoki would easily dominate Gardner but in one of the most bizarre situations in MMA, when Aoki got the back of Gardner, Gardner instead of defending the choke, simply raised his arms and yelled out ‘Hello Japan', allowing Aoki so cinch in the choke for the submission.
Aoki would then enter the Dream welterweight tournament, with the opening round being at DREAM 8 where he drew first round opponent Hayoto Sakurai, which would be a rematch from early in his career, when Sakurai defeated Aoki by unanimous decision. Once the bell rang, Sakurai would charge toward Aoki only to be taken to the ground. Sakurai would surprise everyone by sweeping Aoki, and landing some hard knees to his head, putting him outcold for the stunning upset!
Aoki would have a highly anticipated matchup with fellow grappling great, Vitor Ribeiro at DREAM 10, however this fight would be very disappointing to fight fans, as instead of giving us a great grappling contest, we got a crappy kickboxing contest, with Aoki edging out the boring decision victory. The victory would grant Aoki a rematch against Joachim Hansen and at shot at his light weight title at DREAM 11. Aoki would predictable get the takedown and look to pass the guard of Hansen, Hansen would be able to land some up kicks to Aoki which seemed to hurt Aoki, however the referee jumps in to stop the fight, claiming that Aoki got hit in the back of the head.
Aoki milks it for all it is worth, however the replay shows no kick to the back of the head at all (there was an apparent groin strike however). Aoki is given an eternity to recover Aoki would stay in control on the ground for the rest of the fight and would lock in an armbar with seconds left to go to get the submission victory and the title.
Aoki would next fight the Sengoku lightweight champion Mizuto Hirota, Aoki stated that he felt insulted at all the short notice changes in his opponent, and he took it out on Hirota, breaking his arm in a hammerlock in the first round. Aoki then proceeded to stand over Hirota and flip him the bird.
Aoki would next compete against Gilbert Melendez at Strikeforce: Nashville due to the cross promotion with the two companies. Gilbert was the Strikeforce light weight champion and this was an interesting matchup. This fight looked much better on paper, as Aoki was unable to get a takedown on Melendez and was completely outclassed on his feet only landing 18 total strikes the whole fight (and this was a 5 round title fight for the Strikeforce lightweight title). Aoki would do nothing at all the entire fight and lose a unanimous decision.
Future Outlook
Shinya Aoki will next compete at DREAM 15 on July 10, 2010 when he defends his lightweight title against Tatsuya Kawajiri. Kawajiri is on a 5 fight win streak, and will look to utilize his kickboxing and ground and pound to defeat Aoki. With his recent defeat at the hands of Gilbert Melendez, many people believe that Aoki has been exposed, and perhaps is much more beatable then people think. It really is an interesting matchup to truly see where Aoki should be ranked.
Shinya Aoki has had an up and down career. He has an MMA record fo 23-5-0(1) and has defeated some big name fighters. However, the level of competition in Japan, may not be at the same level as that in North America. Aoki was brutally exposed when he faced Gilbert Melendez in Strikeforce, and I would have a hard time picking him against any of the top lightweight fighters in the UFC. If he truly wants to be the #1 ranked lightweight in the world, then he must work his standup. Landing only 18 strikes in 5 rounds is pathetic, and while his grappling is top notch, he needs to have a more complete MMA game if he is to defeat other top level fighters.
UFC 116: Lesnar vs. Carwin Analysis
This was a great fight card with every fight being entertaining and no dull moments to speak of
Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin
I believe that there was some ring rust in Brock Lesnar, as his standup in round 1, looked even stiffer then it did against Frank Mir. This allowed Carwin to land a clean uppercut and put Lesnar to the mat. From here Carwin would attempt to finish the fight, but was not able to land many clean strikes. Lesnar did a great job of defending himself on the ground as although Carwin landed a ton of shots, Brock blocked the majority with his arms. Every time that referee Josh Rosenthall asked Lesnar to improve position and to move, Brock either throw some hammer fists from the bottom or pushed Carwin off him. Brock survived the round and regrouped in the second where Carwin was completely out of gas. He was able to easily take him down and get mount. From there he locked in an arm triangle and ended the fight.
Both guys answered a ton of questions in this fight. Brock showed he had heart, and is developing a solid submission game, whereas his standup is still lacking. Brock was able to bounce back from the beating in round two which showed a ton of resilience. His next opponent looks to be Cain Velasquez, and while Velasquez has great cardio and more technical standup I think the size difference will hurt him and will allow Lesnar to be victorious again.
As for Carwin, he really needs to work on his cardio as well as his ground game. He had Brock hurt and was in a dominant position, yet he could not finish him, and it seemed like every time Brock wanted to he was able to push Carwin off of him. Carwin has tons of power, but sometimes always finishing fights in the first round can be detrimental as it was here. He truly needs to work on his cardio as well as defending off of his back in order to build himself back up.
Fight Enjoyment: ***1/2*
Chris Leben vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama
This was another good fight that saw Akiyama stand toe to toe with Leben and survive. I had Akiyama winning the fight until Leben was able to lock in a last second triangle for the submission victory. I think that Akiyama needs some better cardio as the tapout seemed more from fatigue then from him about to go out. It was a great showing from both guys, and a fight that both men can build from. Leben, while he called out Wanderlei Silva, should get back in the cage as soon as possible in order to capitalize on his new found popularity. Perhaps a fight with one of the top middleweights such as Marquardt or Maia would be good.
Fight Enjoyment: ***1/2*
Chris Lytle vs. Matt Brown
Chris Lytle seems to impress me more and more with every one of his fights. Here he traded bombs with Brown, but when the fight went to the ground he simply outclassed Brown, locking in a great armbar, coupled with mounted triangle for the victory. Lytle should take another step up in competition here, perhaps getting a fight with the loser of Alves-Fitch. For Brown he seems to be forever stuck in the gatekeeper position, which is fine by me as he always seems to put on exciting fights.
Fight Enjoyment: ***1/2*
Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Stephen Bonnar
This rematch did not disappoint with both fighters swinging for the fences here. Krzysztof was super aggressive, really taking the fight to Bonnar, who much obliged him and stood swinging. I huge knee from Bonnar would put Krzysztof down where he was able to pound him out for the victory. This win keeps Bonnar relevant in the super thick light heavyweight division, and gets him back on the winning track. While Bonnar has good overall MMA game, he always seems to get pulled into the wild slugfests, and never seems to come into a fight with a great game plan. I cannot see him beating the top fighters in the division, but he always puts on entertaining fights.
As for Krzysztof, he is another fighter who is a solid gatekeeper for the division, and puts on exciting fights, so that role suits him well for the moment.
Fight Enjoyment: ***1/2*
Georges Sotiropoulous vs. Kurt Pelligrino
I never really saw the potential of Pelligrino that many others have, as he is basically a gatekeeper for the light weights. Sotiropoulous was able to beat Pelligrino in every aspect of the fight here, and is very fun to watch whether the fight is standing, or on the ground. Sotiropoulous is on a tear right now, and should get a top lightweight in his next fight potentially with Kenny Florian or perhaps Gray Maynard.
Fight Enjoyment: ***
Overall was a great fight card from top to bottom, probably the best shows of the year.
Well that does it for another edition of MMA Legacy, come back next week when we go over the career of Vladimir Matyushenko in preparation for this meeting with Jon Jones at UFC on Versus 2.
Each and every week MMA Legacy shines the spotlight on a MMA legend. The legends may be retired or may be still actively competing. The column will begin with a bio on the selected legend following his career throughout its highs and lows. With DREAM 15 set to take place this Saturday, MMA Legacy will look at the career of the current DREAM lightweight champion, Shinya Aoki!
