The Sprawl And Brawl Video Review: M-1 Global - Yarennoka
Posted by Randy Harrison on 01.08.2008
The Sprawl and Brawl looks into the recent past this week to take an in-depth look at the Pride farewell show put on by M-1 Global, "Yarennoka". Did it live up to the hype? Did it give Pride the proper farewell it deserved? Would Hong Man Choi survive the pre-fight instructions against Fedor? All these answers and more in this week's Sprawl and Brawl Video Review!!!
The Sprawl and Brawl is back children, and it's time to head to Japan for our first international edition of the S & B. This week we're going to be looking all the way back to December 31 of 2007 for M-1 Global's Yarennoka show. The headliner, of course, is Fedor Emelianenko making his triumphant return to Japan to face the behemoth Hong Man Choi. Shinya Aoki, Gilbert Melendez, and Hayato Sakurai fill out a very nice card and it's all brought to us in glorious HD by HDNet as per their special arrangement with M-1 Global. We all know the history surrounding the promotion, we all know about this show being a "Farewell to Pride" being put on by many of the former employees and fighters of the once-great Japanese MMA giant, and we all know the implications this show could have on the world of MMA in 2008 and beyond. I won't bore you with all of those details and I won't stall any longer because it's fight time from TOKYO!!!
M-1 Yarennoka
Video package to start out, with Fedor being touted as the pound-for-pound best in the world and playing up his opponent, Hong Man Choi's size. Fedor says that he is sure of himself and his team, and that he's going to do everything he can to win. They bill the show as Fedor Returns rather than Yarennoka. We're outside the Saitama Super Arena and then we're thrown in LIVE to the Arena with Kenny Rice and Frank Trigg (gag) and they're talking about the importance of New Year's Eve in Japan and how Fedor has taken that to heart and travels extensively including a 12 hour train ride to get to the airport, just so he can be in Japan for the New Year's Eve show. They talk about how he looks like a normal regular guy that's a total ass-kicker. Trigg mentions that he thinks that Couture is the #1 guy but that he's biased because he's friends with Randy. They talk about Choi and his lack of experience but that he's making it up in terms of his size and reach and that if he can land some punches on Fedor he might be able to cut him and win the fight.
The announcers talk about Fedor/Couture and they throw it to an interview with Randy Couture from the HDNet Fights show in Dallas. Couture talks about how the downside is that Fedor signed elsewhere and that he now has to wait for his UFC contract to expire before he can sign to fight Fedor and settle who the best heavyweight in the world really is.
Rice and Trigg start to talk up the undercard fights including Melendez/Ishida as well as Akiyama/Misaki. Trigg talks about fighting Misaki in Pride and then he mentions that Akiyama is a guy that none of the Japanese fighters like and that Akiyama is a bit of a talker and that he's talked rather badly to the media about Misaki and the fight is very personal.
A quick rundown of the rules as they are a modified version of the Unified Rules. The round structure is 10 minutes for the first round and 5 minutes for the second round. The fights are judged as a whole rather than round by round and there are still three judges scoring the fight. Knees to the head and face are legal, except during the Fedor/Choi fight, and soccer kicks and stomps to the head of a downed opponent are illegal.
Rice and Trigg speak to the showmanship of the Japanese MMA cards and that the videos and music add to the excitement of the crowd, and Trigg talks about six weeks ago there was no card and no anything and that in six weeks to be able to pull 20,000 people in the Saitama Super Arena and the various celebrities and things is pretty remarkable. They talk of the huge thirst for MMA in Japan on New Year's Eve and reference the Sapp/Akebono fight and the monster viewership for that particular fight in 2003.
The drums make their usual New Year's Eve appearance from Japan and the crowd is clapping like mad and cheering for it like old times. For whatever reason the camera angle is from about a million miles away from the stage. Takada pulls off the top of his coveralls and for a moment I'm afraid of seeing some man-thong again but thankfully not. They finish with the drums and the rock music kicks in (Rage Against The Machine, bitches), and we have FIREWORKS!!! FIGHTER INTRODUCTIONS!!! CRAZY PRIDE LADY!!!!! It's like we've been taken back in a time machine! Sadly we have to hear Ron Kruck jabbering away rather than seeing the fighter introductions until they finally switch feeds and we get to see the fighters making their way to the stage. The people go crazy for Hayato Sakurai during his introduction and absolutely come unglued for Shinya Aoki. Aoki looks overwhelmed by the whole experience, almost in tears as he makes his way to the stage. The roof comes off for Fedor Emelianenko and he looks almost humbled by the response.
Match One
Michael Russow (6-1, 1 NC) vs. Roman Zentsov (16-11)
Zentsov fights with Fedor Emelianenko's Red Devil team and to me is the epitome of an inconsistent fighter. He can put together a 24-second knockout over someone the likes of Pedro Rizzo while in the midst of a seven-fight win streak, or he can lose to a guy like Michael Knaap while losing four in a row. Trigg points out that he is coming in off a loss to Brandon Lee Hinkle where he didn't just lose, but got beaten badly, and that there is definitely something for him to prove in this fight. Russow is best remembered for his fight with Sergei Kharitonov at Pride 33 where he complained about the stoppage, claiming he didn't tap while stuck in a deep armbar. Trigg talks about how agile Russow is for being 250 + pounds and that this is a big test for him, with a win moving him into the next level in the heavyweight division.
Round One
Zentsov rushes off the bell and flicks out a jab a couple of times before Russow grabs a deep double-leg and lifts him up for a BIG slam. Russow starts to work from Zentsov's half-guard and presses him against the ropes to land a couple of looping punches that Zentsov mostly blocks. Russow extends Zentsov's legs and uses them to slingshot past guard right into side control and almost into a north/south position. Russow rides on a really high side control, attempting a north/south choke, almost into an anaconda but Zentsov slowly works his way out of it, landing a shot or two from underneath while he does so. Russow lets go of the choke and works side control, trying to get into north/south again but Zentsov fights it off.
Russow lands a right hand as Zentsov tries to regain his feet and pushes him back down to the mat. Russow back into side control and he lands a couple of HARD knees to the body, the sound echoing through the Saitama Super Arena. Russow moves over to the north/south again from side control and gets ahold of the head, cinching in that north/south choke again and Zentsov looks like he panics for a moment, allowing Russow to sink that choke in completely and draw the tapout. Trigg speculates that Zentsov might not be ready for the attention that comes with being a teammate of Fedor and that this loss looked to be more based on anxiety rather than a lack of skills. I might possibly be inclined to agree with him (as much as I hate agreeing with Frank Trigg), based on the panic flops Zentsov pulled out at the end of the fight while in the choke.
Winner: Michael Russow, submission (north/south choke) at 2:58 of Round One
Match Two
Tatsuya Kawajiri (19-4-2) vs. Luiz Azeredo (11-6)
Azeredo is out first and he's billed by Trigg as being a "rising, up-and-comer in the Chute Boxe team". I guess when you've lost all of your top talent, any guy would be an up-and-comer but I digress. Azeredo is coming in off a year-long layoff and there's bound to be a little rust there. Azeredo does a bit of a dancing, high-kick deal all the way down to the ring, throwing about twenty high-kicks, which I have to question as you run the risk of emptying the tank a little with a stunt like that. They talk about Azeredo's losses to Gomi and Hansen and make them seem not as bad as they looked. Kawajiri comes out and they start talking about him always being favored when he fights in Japan. Trigg brings up the level of Kawajiri's stand-up but mentions that the thing that people fear most about Kawajiri is being under him and taking his ground-and-pound, which Trigg says is top three in the world. Both guys are doing the ring rust thing with Kawajiri last fighting before this on New Year's Eve 2006 against Gilbert Melendez in Pride. I'm immediately a Kawajiri fan based on him coming to the ring with some kind of Japanese thrash-punk song and we're in the ring and set to get the action underway.
Round One
The crowd roars for Kawajiri and he fires out a quick leg kick starting out. As an aside, it's great to see Yuji Shamada refereeing this fight as he was always one of my favorite officials from the old Pride days. Back into the action now with them trading punches and Azeredo landing the harder shots, with a nice uppercut before they clinch against the ropes. Azeredo with a knee to the body and Kawajiri gets a leg-trip takedown into half-guard, almost passing into side control before getting pulled back into the full guard of Azeredo. Kawajiri lands a hard right hand that causes the crowd to roar and pops in a couple of hammerfists as well. They stop the action to move them back to the center and this crowd is hot as they roar again.
Kawajiri landing short lefts and rights at will to the head of Azeredo, each drawing the telltale "HEY!" from the corner and the crowd. Kawajiri scores with a couple of hard rights and Azeredo looks to throw up a high guard but there's nothing there. Kawajiri keeps pounding away and Azeredo tries for head control but can't keep it for any length of time on the stronger Kawajiri. Kawajiri stands up an postures to land some harder punches though he eats a bit of an up kick. Azeredo tries to throw up an armbar attempt but he can't lock it up and throws another hard up kick that lands before Kawajiri closes the distance. More lefts and a few hard right hands and hammerfists from close range as Azeredo ties up both of Kawajiri's hands.
Both guys take a breather and Kawajiri postures back up for a few more hard punches as Azeredo has no answer for it. Kawajiri is totally dominating at this point, continuing to work from the top position, doing enough to flurry and rest to keep the top position and not get stood up. Azeredo still moving his hips and ducking his head but he's still taking a ton of punishment from the bottom, with more rights and lefts finding their way through. Six or seven straight right hands and hammerfists find their way through and after almost six minutes Yuji Shamada stands them up and yellow-cards Azeredo. They're back standing and Kawajiri throws a combination and rushes in for a clinch against the ropes, turning it into a single-leg before taking a bodylock and using the trip to score another takedown on Azeredo.
Back on top, Kawajiri lands some more punches this time working body-head-body and Azeredo again looks overwhelmed on the bottom. Rice brings up the fact that perhaps Azeredo might have been better served with a warm-up fight and, of course, as soon as he says that, Azeredo ends up reversing out from under Kawajiri and takes his back. Azeredo sinks the hooks in and is trying to slip an arm under the neck for a rear naked choke. Kawajiri working good hand control and Azeredo tries to switch to an armbar but Kawajiri turns into it and avoids it, peppering Azeredo's face with hammerfists and we're back to Kawajiri in full guard, pounding away. Kawajiri whipping his ASS, landing about twenty unanswered punches in fairly short succession. Azeredo with a hammerfist from the bottom and Kawajiri postures up to try to land just as the bell rings to end round one.
Holy SHIT, was that a beating. They weren't kidding talking about Kawajiri's ground and pound as he dominated that ENTIRE round, minus about thirty seconds or so. Not scoring the round since it's the fight as a whole, but Azeredo has a HUGE uphill climb if this fight goes to the scorecards, getting beaten up and also receiving the yellow card.
Round Two
The bell rings for round two and they circle with Kawajiri landing a couple of kicks and shooting in for the clinch, taking Azeredo down again, although this time he manages to stand right back up, grabbing a single-leg on Kawajiri in the corner. Kawajiri defends well and lands a knee to the head of Azeredo and Shamada seperates them from the corner and they're back in the middle. Azeredo with a body kick that glances off of Kawajiri and Kawajiri responds with a great one-two combination and a shot in for a double-leg. Kawajiri scores the takedown AGAIN, in the corner and they stop the action to move them out of the corner into the center. Azeredo somewhat reluctant to get back down on the mat, and frankly I would be too after this ass-kicking. Kawajiri posturing up to his feet and landing a flurry of lefts and rights, and Azeredo is now opened up on the side of his left eye.
Lots of blood flowing into the eye of Azeredo and Kawajiri picks up the pace, peppering him with hammerfists to the injured eye. Azeredo also develops a sense of urgency, trying desperately for an armbar but Kawajiri is having none of it, landing some more lefts and a couple of HARD right hands to the cut before Kawajiri gets it back to full guard and gets his arm out of trouble. Azeredo looks overwhelmed and beaten already. Rice speculates the punch count would be 30 to 1 or 50 to 1 and they joke about Azeredo's punches coming from when he was shadow-boxing on his way to the ring. Kawajiri with another couple of back hammerfists to the cut and a right hand that lands hard. Kawajiri tries to pass into side control but gets out of it, back into guard. Azeredo peppers some shots from the bottom but that is FAR too little, too late. Kawajiri punishing him with more lefts and rights, and Azeredo rolls for a kneebar attempt that misses and Kawajiri ends the fight with a flurry of punches as the bell rings.
Gee, I wonder who won that one? HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAA. Wow, Kawajiri looked like an absolute BEAST in this one as Azeredo had no answer for him for 15 minutes and just laid there taking shot after shot. Incredibly dominant showing by Kawajiri, who looked like he just stepped right back into the fight game with no rust whatsoever. Azeredo, not so much.
Winner: Tatsuya Kawajiri, Unanimous Decision
We get thrown to the back with Ron Kruck and he's with the victorious Michael Russow. He asks about what Russow's plan and Russow says his gameplan was to take him down and finish him on the mat as Zentsov has heavy hands. Russow feels like it's a great win for his confidence and that he wants to get back in the gym and train harder for his next opponent. He gets asked about the atmosphere and says that it's awesome with hearing the drums and the pre-fight excitement and how quiet it gets once the bell rings and that once the bell rings he goes into a zone and he doesn't hear anything. According to Russow, whatever Monte Cox (Russow's manager), wants him to do is what he will do in terms of fighting next. Trigg talks about Monte Cox and they talk about how he's working so hard to make the M-1 Global thing work and to get the fight shown on HDNet.
Match Three
Murilo Bustamante (14-6-1) vs. Makato Takamoto (3-3)
Murilo Bustamante makes his way to the ring now, the former UFC Middleweight Champion and current Brazilian Top Team member. Rice slips up saying cage instead of ring, and Trigg tries to cover it by saying that it doesn't matter and that a ring or a cage, the fight is the same. Word, Frank? You think so? I would beg to differ "Twinkletoes". Busta is 41 and is trying to prove that his best days are not behind him just yet, attempting to rekindle past glories that saw him beat Matt Lindland, and avoid the types of fights that saw him lose to just about everyone else of note. Takamoto is a veteran of Pride with every fight in his career previous to this one happening for the defunct Japanese promotion. He's seemingly a bit of a non-descript fighter and is going to look to make Bustamante the biggest win of his career. Takamoto is from the Yoshida dojo so he's going to be working throws and trying to stay on top of Bustamante for the most part.
Round One
They touch gloves and Takamoto misses a leg kick wildly before hitting a solid one. Bustamante throws a combination and rushes into a clinch and they're clinched against the ropes and Takamoto is trying for a takedown and they stop the action to give Bustamante a yellow card for holding onto the ropes. They come out of it swinging with Bustamante landing a couple of HARD combinations and Takamoto swinging and landing some shots of his own, swinging so hard at one point that he ends up slipping, but he pops right back up and they're back to the clinch. Bustamante tries for a trip takedown but ends up on the bottom, using his full guard to try to nullify Takamoto. Bustamante lands a shot or two from the bottom and explodes into an armbar attempt and Takamoto is defending it well, fighting out of it and avoiding the submission.
Bustamante holds onto it and tries to close it up but Takamoto throws him over and gets it back to Bustamante's full guard. Takamoto postures up and stands above Bustamante, landing some punches but eating an up kick or two at the same time. Bustamante with a GREAT leg sweep, takes Takamoto back down to the mat and Bustamante gets on top of him, posturing above him before almost taking his back. Takamoto takes advantage and reverses out of that, sweeping back into top position and landing some hammerfists to the face of Bustamante, who is trying again for the armbar from the bottom. That reverses positions again as after the armbar attempt Bustamante is on top, in Takamoto's half-guard.
Bustamante moves to mount and Takamoto rolls, giving up his back and Bustamante tries to get the hooks in, but Takamoto is able to stand up out of it and scores a bit of a head throw on Bustamante. Bustamante ends up back on top out of that though, throwing a good left-right combination that lands and Bustamante is back on top of Takamoto in side control now. Knee to the body by Bustamante and he moves to mount again and takes it with Takamoto again giving up his back. Takamoto tries to sneak out the back door and does but slips out of it right into a kneebar and the crowd lets out an "ooooooooooooh" for the slick transition. Takamoto gets out of the submission but ends up underneath Bustamante and mounted.
Bustamante works punches to the body and a couple more good shots to the head, forcing Takamoto to roll again. Takamoto avoids giving up his back and they're back up to the standing position. Bustamante lands a glancing uppercut and Takamoto responds with a good right hook to the side of the head. Leg kick from Takamoto and they're back to trading with Bustamante landing some shots and Takamoto swinging off-balance again to end up on the mat, slipping down again. Bustamante gets back on top in half-guard and works some right hand hooks to the face of Takamoto. Bustamante tries to pass the guard and almost does it but he ends up moving into side control before getting pushed off by Takamoto.
The referee stands them back up and they trade again with Bustamante landing the better shots it looks like including a BIG left hand that forces Takamoto to try for the head throw again. He misses it and ends up on the bottom with Bustamante working from side control, landing a good right hand. Bustamante stands above him, waving him back up to his feet as the round closes out.
A really even first round, but Takamoto spent more time on his back and ended up caught in three or four submission attempts. Bustamante was winning the stand-up battle and had top position for most of the round so things are going to have to change for Takamoto rather quickly if he wants to pull this one out of the fire.
Round Two
They touch again to start the second round and circle a bit before Takamoto fakes a rush in and lands a leg kick. Bustamante lands another couple of hard punches and Takamoto is throwing more of his wild shots, throwing himself off balance as he misses. Takamoto ends up clinching and Bustamante tries for the leg trip but it scrambles out to Bustmante ending up on top where he wanted to be, in a half-guard situation. Bustamante postures up and lands a couple of good right hands before standing above Takamoto and the referee comes in and stops the action for a moment, standing them back up.
Takamoto misses a big uppercut but lands a leg kick and Bustamante responds with a combination of his own. Takamoto catches Bustamante with a HUGE left hand shot, knocking him down and PUMMELING him with punches from the standing guard and side control. Bustamante is holding on and Takamoto starts landing some knees to the body now as well and the crowd is roaring with every knee. Takamoto is in side control, locking down one of Bustamante's arms into the crucifix and peppering him with short right hands. Takamoto lets go of the crucifix and lands more knees to the body and Bustamante lands a HARD knee to Takamoto's head from the bottom.
Takamoto tries to mount but Bustamante bucks him back into half-guard and then full guard and the action slows for a moment. Bustamante tries for another armbar from the bottom, coming REALLLLLY close to sinking it in, but Takamoto keeps his hands locked and Bustamante gives it up to take the mount and Takamoto's back and he ends the round on top, scoring some shots on Takamoto as the bell rings.
A VERY close fight to score, especially with the system of scoring the fight as a whole. Will the knockdown at the end of the fight negate the first round that Bustamante essentially dominated or will it be a situation where it wasn't enough to turn the tide in Takamoto's favor? Will the hometown crowd play a part in the judging with Takamoto getting a nod for fighting in his native country? Possibly the closest fight to date in the Sprawl and Brawl, and I have no idea who is going to win this one. Rice and Trigg both think that Takamoto takes this one, with Trigg going so far as to say that Bustamante had the fight but threw it away with the knockdown.
Winner: Makoto Takamoto, Split Decision
You could see it in Bustamante's face that if it was split after the first two judges that he knew he was going to lose the decision. It seemed a little like the old Pride days in that the Japanese fighter ends up a little favored as I thought that Bustamante controlling for 12 1/2 minutes of the fight with his submission attempts was going to be enough to negate the 2 1/2 minute flurry that Takamoto mounted at the end, but I suppose that with that flurry being fresh in the judge's minds I can see how they would go that way. Not a terrible decision by any means, but definitely one that could have gone the other way.
Gilbert Melendez joins us now in a pre-taped interview, talking about fighting in Japan for the past couple of years and how he's trying to hold it down for the US overseas and how prestigious it is to fight in Japan, especially on New Year's Eve. He talks about how the ring is blessed just for Fedor having a fight in it. He feels like it's been a great ride from fighting in the smaller shows to here and he feels fortunate to be able to stand next to fighters like Bustamante, Kawajiri, Sakurai, Fedor and the rest of the great card. He talks about his fighting style and how it's a relentless and higher-paced style, and that he's well-rounded with skills in every aspect. He talks about his opponent, Mitsuhiro Ishida, and how his last fight was against Takanori Gomi and that he respects Ishida's skills. He brings up Ishida's aggressive wrestling but that with a ton of decisions on his record, he's probably not as aggressive and doesn't do a lot of damage. Melendez calls Ishida one-dimensional with his wrestling and that he's going into this fight to try to nullify that wrestling and he predicts a high-paced fight and a "fight of the night" and that he's going to win.
Match Four
Mitsuhiro Ishida (15-3-1) vs. Gilbert Melendez (13-0)
Melendez comes out to some reggae and Trigg talks about how much he likes Melendez and how mean he is as a fighter in the ring, and how nice he is outside of the ring. He talks about how most fighters don't get along with him but that him and Melendez get along VERY well. Trigg wonders if they take him off of meds or something before the fights because it's really a night and day difference in Melendez' personality. Ishida comes out to some My Chemical Romance and impresses me by not cutting himself or screaming about his girlfriend leaving him for his best friend on the way to the ring. Ishida comes out to a huge round of applause and Trigg talks about how he has the same style as Melendez has in terms of fighting high-paced, action fights. This one should be good.
Round One
They touch em up and circle to start out and Ishida lands a body kick as Melendez is pacing him down and trying to cut the ring off. Ishida shoots in for a single-leg and scores the takedown off of a suplex momentarily, taking Melendez' back standing, but Melendez does a good job of regaining his feet rather quickly. Melendez turns into a takedown attempt of his own but Ishida catches his arm into a crucifix from behind, landing a couple of punches to the side of the head. Ishida switches to a front-facelock and they seperate and push away to the center of the ring. Melendez misses with a WILD right hand that draws an "Ohhhhh" from the crowd and they exchange with both missing some wild shots. Ishida hits a leg kick and gets on his bicycle, circling around Melendez until he gets cut off in the corner.
Melendez moves in to try to throw some punches but Ishida shoots under for a single-leg and gets the takedown again. Ishida working to get up on top and Melendez stands up out of the takedown, taking Ishida's back up against the ropes. Melendez gets the back with hooks in but loses it and they're back to their feet. Melendez flicking out the jab and scoring a good shot but Ishida gets the takedown again into back control for a moment with his hooks in. Melendez stands with Ishida on his back and just drops forward, slamming Ishida's head into the mat and reversing to the top position. Melendez grabs a guillotine but ends up having to let it go rather quickly and Ishida is on top now, scoring some punches from the top and moving into side control. Melendez comes out of it and tries to move back to his feet but Ishida moves back to that crucifix position before they stand up again.
Melendez lands a hard knee to the body and they push off. Ishida is back to circling and backpedalling and Ishida shoots in to take him down again, grabbing a body lock from behind on Melendez. Ishida powers him up and slams him onto his neck and shoulders in the corner of the ring. Ishida on top now and trying to isolate one of Melendez' arms, possibly for a kimura but Melendez breaks free from it and they're back to standing with Ishida holding a front facelock. Ishida shoots down again and scores another takedown into standing back control before Melendez spins around and tries for a kimura that doesn't take. Ishida with standing back control again and drops for a single-leg again, taking him down for a moment. Melendez tries to reverse and score the takedown of his own but Ishida is doing well to avoid it and they're somewhat stalemated.
Ishida scores another takedown and Melendez lands some shots to the body from the bottom as Ishida ends up in his full guard. Ishida landing a couple of short hammerfists and Melendez tries to roll for a leg, but Ishida pulls out and avoids it, taking the back standing again before trying to get his hooks in. Melendez shrugs him off and they're back standing with Melendez working hard knees to the body and almost throws a combination before Ishida ducks under again and shoots for the takedown. Ishida with a single-leg and Melendez lands some shots from the sprawl, catching one of Ishida's arms and stopping the takedown. Ishida gets a deep single-leg and Melendez peppers him with a combination before giving up the takedown and Ishida grabs a guillotine as the bell rings to end the first round.
Lots of action in the first round but not a lot of damage. Ishida dominated the first round with the takedowns and top position but he didn't do anything damage-wise and he ended up eating some knees. Ishida is in complete control thus far, and Melendez is going to have to find something to do to avoid those takedowns in round two.
Round Two
They touch and Melendez sprawls well on the first takedown attempt but ends up giving one up to Ishida anyways, and it's back to Ishida having standing back control and clinching the body in the corner. They're clinche against the ropes and Melendez sprawls again and lands a combination and a HARD knee before Ishida gets the single-leg and takes him down again, working on the back mount again, but Melendez turns into it and slams him, reversing into top position. Ishida controlling Melendez' arms and working a full, closed guard and there's not a lot happening here and the referee moves them back to the center of the ring as they were pushed up against the ropes. Melendez lands some shots to the body and is holding Ishida down well from the top, scoring a couple of hammerfists as well.
Ishida tries to get out from under, but Melendez holds him back down, landing a HARD shot to the face. Ishida gets an reverse armbar and looks to have Melendez in trouble, but there's nothing there and it's back to Melendez on top and landing some left and right hands. Ishida tries for a guillotine but there's nothing there and Melendez is back to throwing some hard right hooks from the top. A good left hand from Melendez lands and he's scoring with shots from the top but it's hard to tell if it's going to be enough. Melendez with some hammerfists and a big left-right-left combination from the top and Ishida lands a few short hammerfists from the bottom and they're both trading a ton of leather with Melendez flurrying a TON of shots at the end of the round.
Honestly I don't think it was enough for Melendez as he gave up too many takedowns in the beginning and looking at the fight as whole, Ishida takes it. It's strange though, as this fight looks to be the exact opposite of the last fight, with Ishida dominating the first and then holding on for the second. If Melendez could have scored a knockdown like Takamoto did, I think he could have turned it in his favor, but ultimately it looks like a win for Ishida.
Winner: Mitsuhiro Ishida, Unanimous Decision
Ishida is over come with emotion, and actually Melendez is as well, running from the ring to the back as Ishida is in the ring addressing the crowd to the cheers of the audience, tears streaming down his face. In the back, Ron Kruck talks about trying to get a word with Gilbert Melendez, but being unable to as he ran through the backstage area, visibly upset. They talk about first losses and how it is the measure of a fighter and if he's going to be able to respond to a loss and come back stronger. Trigg thinks he's going to be able to come back stronger and that he'll be back in the gym ready to fight again before he knows it. They run down the Fedor/Choi fight and do a tale of the tape in the intermission between fights.
Match Five
Kazuo Misaki (18-8-2) vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama (10-1, 1 NC)
Akiyama makes his way down to the ring with some classical music playing in full gi. The crowd is nearly silent until he's announced and then they break into a full roar. A very sedate and quiet entrance for an MMA fighter, and very unusual at that. Akiyama and his entire entourage bow to the crowd and they make their way to the ring holding hands. This seems to be a very spiritual thing for Akiyama and looks to be about that fighting spirit the Japanese love so much. Akiyama is coming off of his huge win over Denis Kang just two months previous and is going to try and keep that momentum going. Trigg talks about the incident between Akiyama and Sakuraba at the K-1 show last New Year's where Akiyama was accused of greasing up before the fight which led to Sakuraba losing the fight.
Misaki makes his way to the ring, having said that after that incident he would never fight on the same fight card as Akiyama and that there is a ton of bad blood between these two over it. Now Misaki has decided to fight him simply to shut his mouth. The crowd goes WILD for Misaki and he's clearly the favorite of the people coming into this one. Misaki runs down the steps and the ramp to the ring and he looks PISSED. Misaki also has a win over Denis Kang but is coming off of a bit of a layoff, having last fought in a unanimous decision loss to Frank Trigg at Pride 33. Well well, who is that behind Misaki in the entourage but Akihiro Gono. DJ GOZMA in the HOUSE BITCHES!! A little trouble during the pre-fight instructions as Misaki barely looks at Akiyama then taps his gloves HARD and turns his back on him before Akiyama can bow. Oh SNAP!!! It's ON!!!
Round One
Misaki is chomping at the bit and comes out jumping and full of energy. A HUGE "Misaki" chant from the crowd and they circle and throw some kicks out at each other with nothing landing. Akiyama throws a high kick that Misaki catches and uses to throw Akiyama to the mat and the crowd roars its approval. They're back to their feet and Misaki sticks a jab in before Akiyama lands a leg kick. Misaki bouncing around and faking kicks with either leg as they trade HARD leg kicks. Akiyama catches him with a jab and they trade front kicks to the body now and they're circling. Rice mentions that if this fight ends quickly, Fedor is going to be moved up the card to fight next, so I'm sure everyone wants this fight over quickly. Heh. More kicks traded and they're still circling with Akiyama taking the center of the ring.
Misaki with a wild combination that misses and they're back to the leg kicks with Misaki landing some good hard ones. Akiyama with a combination that just misses and they trade right hooks that both miss. The only strikes landing are leg kicks and there are a lot of them from both fighters but nothing too damaging is happening at this point. Akiyama gets inside and actually lands a good one-two this time, but Misaki shrugs it off fairly well. Another leg kick from Misaki and a wild combination that misses as they go back to the standing stalemate of leg kicks. More circling and more leg kicks before Misaki lands a good short hook to the face of Akiyama. Akiyama throws a leg kick that Misaki catches and rushes off of, but nothing comes of it and they're back to the middle and trading leg kicks.
A good combination Misaki lands and he's still bouncing around on his legs, jumping back and forth. Akiyama then throws a HUGE straight right hand on the button that just DROPS Misaki, and he's on top of him throwing a ton of shots to try and finish. Misaki is trying to cover himself up and he does it this time and avoids any more damage. Akiyama pressing on top and trying to finish and Miskai gets it back to guard and gets up to his feet. Misaki with a short hook that lands well and he checks an Akiyama leg kick, throwing one of his own. Misaki with a combination that misses and he rushes forward getting pushed off by Akiyama. They trade punches but neither guy really lands anything flush. Misaki lands a left hook to the body and a CRUSHING left hook to the face that puts Akiyama down and he rushes forward with a KICK TO THE FACE and puts Akiyama out cold.
The crowd is going bananas but Trigg rightly points out that it might have been an illegal kick with the modified Unified rules that are in place. Akiyama's face is a bloody mess and they announce Misaki as the winner. Misaki is so happy he doesn't know what to do with himself, falling to his knees, overcome with emotion at the victory. Nobuhiko Takada is in the ring now, speaking to Misaki and congratulating him and again Misaki is in tears from the respect being shown to him by everyone.
Winner: Kazuo Misaki, KO at 8:12 of Round One
Misaki addresses the crowd and looks Akiyama right in the face and says that he feels like Akiyama has betrayed the kids and the fans with his attitude towards fighting and it looks like they're burying the hatchet with Misaki trying to steer Akiyama towards the direction of doing what's right and try to put the Sakuraba incident behind him. They shake and bow on the way out of the ring. Only in Japan, ladies and gentlemen.
Ron Kruck is in the back and now he has tracked down Gilbert Melendez and he feels like his slow start cost him and he feels like he got frustrated with Ishida's wrestling. He brings up that he's pissed off and that if you're in Japan you can't leave it in the judge's hands. He feels like he hit Ishida with more strikes and going for the kill and that the wrestling didn't do any damage to him during the fight. He came to Japan to fight, not to wrestle and he's not one to come to Japan to be a sore loser, he lost the fight in the judge's eyes and he's got to come back stronger. He feels like he hit the harder strikes more often and did enough to win but it just didn't happen. His hand injury from the Strikeforce show in September didn't affect him at all and he's 100% healed up from it. He feels like if the fight had been in the US, he might have been able to win it, but it was in Japan and the Japanese fighter won.
They continue to pimp the Fedor fight all the way through the intermission that is happening for the live crowd in Japan and we get the tale of the tape again between Fedor and Choi and do a little breakdown of the size advantage for Choi and how he might be able to use it to his advantage. They show footage of Choi from the weigh-ins the day before and they talk about how Choi's head from top to chin is bigger than Trigg's torso from his neck to his stomach. They continue to hype the Fedor fight and then reference that if people think that Choi has no chance, that Tokyo was the site for one of the biggest upsets in sports history when Buster Douglas beat Mike Tyson.
The lights come down and we're ready for Fedor/Choi!!
Match Six
Hong Man Choi (1-0) vs. Fedor Emelianenko (26-1)
Choi makes his way to the ring and is, of course, huge. He's going to be relying heavily on his kickboxing background and his size advantage to keep Fedor off-balance and keep the fight on it's feet where he can have the advantage. Choi gets a modest amount of applause from the crowd and makes his way down the ramp and looks perhaps a little intimidated by the scope of the event.
The crowd begins to cheer immediately after the end of Choi's entrance because they know that Fedor is coming. The arena turns a shade of ice-blue and Fedor makes his customary entrance to the ring, complete with the "From Russia, With Love" from the Crazy Pride Lady. The roof comes off as he makes his way down the ramp to the ring and these people are very happy to have Fedor back fighting in Japan again. A graphic comes up that this is Fedor's fifth consecutive New Year's Eve fighting in Japan. It will be interesting to see if Fedor's sambo will be even moderately effective against someone the size of Choi or if he will have to find another way to get it done. The crowd roars again as he steps into the ring and the Saitama Super Arena is electric.
Round One
The bell rings and we're underway and they touch gloves as Fedor shoots in almost immediately, grabbing a bodylock and trying for a takedown but Choi ends up falling on top of Fedor into half-guard. Choi has a hold of Fedor's head and lands a couple of hard strikes from the top before Fedor turns into an armbar. Choi manages to avoid it and pulls loose, landing a couple more punches and Fedor is already welted on the face from the striking power of Choi. Fedor shoots in with a bodylock again and Choi ends up falling on top again, this time in the full guard of Fedor. Fedor throws some strikes from the bottom and Choi postures up to throw a combination and Fedor must have seen something the first time because he grabs Choi's arm again and locks it up this time, drawing the tapout from the huge Korean.
Winner: Fedor Emelianenko, submission (armbar) at 1:54 of Round One
A great transistion from Fedor and a slick submission as he grabbed that arm quickly and locked it up. An impressive performance by Fedor, no doubt, but hopefully the last time we see Fedor fighting against someone who is this far below his skill level. Fedor speaks to the crowd after the fight, promising to fight again in Japan, much to the approval of the huge crowd at Saitama. He thanks the crowd for coming out and appreciates their support through his career and thanks his fans in his home country of Russia.
We're in the back with Ron Kruck who is with Fedor Emelianenko. Fedor looks like he kissed a truck, by the way, but he says that he was ready to have the fight be standing, but he was happy to take the punches he took to gain the armbar. He says that he didn't feel any big punches so he was definitely surprised to see all the bruises on his face after the fight. They ask Fedor what it means to him to win again on New Year's Eve in Japan and he says that he didn't come here as the last Pride champion but that he's here as hopefully the first M-1 Global champion. He says that he will keep fighting and will think about his plans after he finishes his New Year's and says Happy New Year to Ron in English.
Match Seven
Hidehiko Hasegawa (14-8-4) vs. Hayato Sakurai (30-7-2)
We miss most of Hasegawa's entrance to the ring due to the Fedor interview, but he makes his way with his DEEP title belt over his shoulder and he looks ready to fight. He makes his way to the ring with System of a Down blaring over the speakers which makes me a big fan of his right away. Hasegawa is a DEEP star but has no real notable wins on his somewhat spotty record and this is clearly the biggest fight of his career.
Sakurai is going to be trying to continue his winning streak as he comes in with three in a row to the good, and going further back, has won seven of his previous eight fights, with his only loss being to Takanori Gomi at Pride Shockwave 2005. Sakurai is apparently confident in his all-around game and he feels like he has more skills to be able to beat Hasegawa than Hasegawa has to beat him.
Round One
Hasegawa shoots in for a bodylock immediately and throws a punch that misses and Sakurai lands a hard front kick to the body just as quickly. Sakurai lands another hard kick to the body into a Thai clinch but Hasegawa pulls away from it in relatively short order. Sakurai throws a combination that Hasegawa ducks under and shoots in on, and Sakurai scrambles and ends up on top of Hasegawa on the mat, landing a hard combination before backing away and letting Hasegawa back up. Sakurai with another hard body kick that lands before Hasegawa gets the Thai clinch himself and lands some knees to either side of Sakurai's body. Sakurai breaks free of the clinch and throws a hard leg kick before they exchange combinations with neither fighter landing anything of note. Hasegawa lands a bit of a combination to the body and head but ends up on his back with Sakurai on top in half-guard.
The ref stops the action to slide them back towards the center of the ring and Sakurai is trying to pass out of the half-guard as Hasegawa peppers him with short punches from the bottom. Sakurai backs off again and brings the fight back to its feet. Sakurai tries for a knee to the body and Hasegawa catches it and tries for a single-leg but has to let it go and they're back to exchanging in the center of the ring with Sakurai getting the better of it and ending up on top of Hasegawa on the mat. Sakurai in the half-guard again and lands a HARD right hand followed by a couple of lefts as Sakurai works to ground and pound and then stands up to let Hasegawa back to his feet. Sakurai lands a combination and catches Hasegawa with a good left hook before they clinch into the corner with dueling bodylocks.
Sakurai again with the trip into a takedown and starts working more ground and pound against the ropes. They reset the action in the center of the ring and Hasegawa is working head control from the bottom to keep Sakurai under control but Sakurai just backs away and lets Hasegawa back to his feet. Sakurai is just loading up on HUGE punches that are missing and he's ending up off-balance. So far it hasn't cost him because every time he's off-balance he ends up on the mat on top of Hasegawa, this time being no exception. Sakurai lands a couple of shots and then backs off again, with Hasegawa landing a decent knee to the body this time before they're back to exchanging combinations in the center. Another chopping kick from Sakurai and they both seem to be slowing a little with Hasegawa looking to be tiring just a little.
Hasegawa with a good shot to the body and he eats a right hand over the top as Sakurai grabs a Thai clinch and hits a knee to the head. Sakurai pushes him away and we're back to them standing and trading. Hasegawa with a combination that misses and he ends up eating another leg kick from Sakurai before shooting in for a takedown. Sakurai sprawls out of it and lands a solid knee to the top of Hasegawa's head, pushing him over and ending up on top, pounding him against the ropes. They reset again in the center and Sakurai is landing some lefts and rights from the top as Hasegawa tries to defend. Sakurai stands up and lets Hasegawa back up and they work some shots to the body back and forth and Sakurai hits another good knee to the body. Hasegawa pulls guard but ends up eating some hard punches in the corner, getting pressed against the corner pad as the round comes to a close with Hasegawa trying for a rubber guard.
A fairly even first round but Sakurai scored the most takedowns and was on top and controlling the pace so I'd have to give the edge in the fight so far to him, but it's close enough to go either way at this point.
Round Two
Sakurai with a good combination to start the round as Trigg and Rice try to find sporting analogies to explain the slow pace of the first round. They clinch and throw some strikes that miss before Sakurai ends up on top again on the mat. Hasegawa tries for a kimura but Sakurai ends up just pulling free from it and standing back up. GOOD uppercut from Sakurai lands and as quickly as they're up, they're back down on the mat with Sakurai on top in half-guard, pounding some short punches in on Hasegawa. Again, after a few shots, Sakurai just stands up to avoid the ground game of Hasegawa. They exchange and Sakurai lands a good shot that looks like it hurt Hasegawa, as Hasegawa clinches him and Sakurai throws him down to the mat. They're back standing and Sakurai lands that uppercut again and they're just exchanging shots that aren't doing any damage back and forth.
Sakurai to the mat again on top of Hasegawa in side control this time, taking the back as Hasegawa gives it up and tries to roll for a kneebar. Hasegawa to his back and again is trying for the rubber guard, striking to the top of Sakurai's head but Sakurai is just bulling through it and still landing shots from up top. Hasegawa looks to be trying for a triangle but Sakurai just stands out of it and gets the fight back to its feet again. Sakurai with a good combination and they trade with Hasegawa trying a knee to the body and Sakurai catching it into a takedown. Hasegawa working the rubber guard again but Sakurai punches out of it and ends the fight on top working some solid strikes while avoiding the rubber guard or triangle attempt from Hasegawa.
It looks like Hasegawa was overwhelmed and took a beating from the better man for 15 minutes. This was by no means an exciting fight, but Sakurai did enough to get the win.
Winner: Hayato Sakurai, Unanimous Decision
Monte Cox is in the ring now, speaking for M-1 Global and he thanks the loyal Japanese fans for coming out to the event, which draws a round of applause from them. He says that he agrees with Fedor when he says that the Japanese fans are among the best in the world. He says that they can look forward to M-1 Global returning to Japan in 2008. What a kiss-ass.
We're backstage with Ron Kruck who is talking to Hayato Sakurai. Sakurai says that he wanted the KO but Hasegawa was strong and avoided a lot of the big damage. Sakurai keeps saying that he beat the champion, saying that he beat a King of the Cage champion, and now a DEEP champion, and next he wants a Pride champion. Pretty good english on Mr. Sakurai and it's funny to see Kruck look a bit like a deer in the headlights as Sakurai goes off on his rant. He asks what it means to Sakurai to win on New Year's Eve and Sakurai says that it was just a normal fight to him and that it's a big win. He keeps yelling "CHAMPION!! EVERY TIME!!" like he's the Iron Sheik or something and even the interpreter looks stunned. This is an epic trainwreck. Sakurai just keeps JABBERING away and grabs the microphone and this is just..wow..I don't think that the interpreter knew about this. He keeps screaming "CHAMPION" and points at the camera as Trigg points out that Sakurai is dating a porn star in Japan and that she is apparently the Jenna Jameson of Japan. Trigg explains that the whole point of that rambling was that Sakurai wants a rematch with Gomi, the former Pride champion. I'm glad that someone understood it.
Match Eight
Shinya Aoki (11-2) vs. Jung Bu-Kyung (0-0)
Jung is famously making his MMA debut here and is a highly decorated Judokan from South Korea with a 2004 World Cup Gold medal and a Silver medal from the 2000 Olympics. He's making his debut here against Aoki to replace Gesias Calvancante, who had to pull out of this fight with a knee injury. Trigg talks about how Aoki is one of the worst draws to get for an opponent at 155 and that now there is not only the pressure of fighting his first MMA bout, but that he's now in the main event based off of Fedor's fight being moved up for Russian television.
Aoki is next and the place is going nuts for him, clapping in time to his music and he definitely looks happy to be able to fight for his home fans again. He stops to dance on the steps before making his way down the ramp and is loving every moment of getting to be in Saitama again. He shakes hands with all of the friends and training partners behind him and makes his way to the ring now.
Round One
Aoki rocking the gold lame long pants tonight and Trigg explains that he loves wearing them for the traction on the armbar and triangle attempts that Aoki loves to throw up on his opponents. The bell rings and they circle with Aoki flashing out a front kick right from the get-go. Aoki rushes in and scores a bodylock takedown, moving into side control quickly but Jung grabs an arm and tries to lock on an armbar on the master in Aoki. Aoki defends it well, stepping over and keeping his arms locked, pulling out of it and falling back into a leg lock on Jung. They're trading leg lock attempts and neither of them look very deep but Aoki looks closer to sinking one in that could finish. Aoki stands out of them and then falls back into another one before standing above Jung and landing a HARD pair of right hands. Aoki in the half-guard and scoring shot after shot from close range with the right hand.
Aoki shoots past the legs into side control and then pushes back into half-guard, standing above Jung and crushing some HARD punches in on him from the standing position, putting his entire body behind them. Jung pressed in the corner just holding on as Aoki drops for another leg lock but he doesn't have it sunk in too deep at this point. Jung looks for a leg lock of his own and they end up with Aoki back on top in Jung's full guard. The referee stops them and they stand back up with a reset in the middle of the ring. Aoki with more big right hands and hammerfists and he stands above Jung again, moving into side control before dropping back for another leg lock. Aoki with kicks to the face from the leg lock position and anther right hand as Jung tries again for the armbar, this time in a much better position with Aoki on his back and sitting above him.
Jung trying hard to seperate Aoki's hands and pull off the biggest upset possibly in MMA history. Jung working hammerfists to the body to try and soften up Aoki for the armbar attemp and Aoki throws his legs up to catch a hold of Jung's head. They stalemate here for a moment before Aoki fights back and keeps the armbar at bay. Jung is in a great position and is VERY close to sinking this armbar in tight. Jung still landing hard hammerfists to the body and trying to crank that armbar open and sink it in. He extends it and Aoki turns at just the right moment and rolls out of it and back to where he's standing above Jung. A GREAT reversal by Aoki. Aoki with a hammerfist and a hard right hand from the guard and he's starting to pound on Jung a little bit more now. I have to wonder if Jung spent himself on that armbar attempt perhaps.
Aoki again falling back for the leg lock and he pushes away and the fight comes back to its feet. They stop the fight for a moment as Jung looks like he took a strike in the eye. They're back to fighting and Aoki throws a high kick that just misses and lands a hard body kick before Jung lands a good straight right hand and Aoki drops for a leg lock again but it could very well be from that hard right hand on the chin. Aoki trying to sink in an ankle lock but Jung pushes him away and gets out of it, standing and bringing Aoki back to his feet as well. Jung gets caught with a HARD punch that stuns him in his tracks and they end up on the mat with Aoki on top in half-guard. Aoki with a couple of hard shots from the top and Jung is working good body control, keeping Aoki from posturing up for any power punches. Aoki controls one of Jung's arms and peppers him with about eight or nine solid right hands in a row from the top and keeps up the pressure with more shots to the face. The round ends with Aoki on top and resting for another flurry that doesn't get to come.
Wow..that wasn't anything like I thought it was going to be. Jung gave almost as good as he got and although he's losing the fight so far, it's not by very much. Aoki had top position and landed a ton of strikes but Jung came closer to finishing with that armbar and held himself in VERY good company lasting the first ten minutes with Aoki.
Round Two
Jung comes out for round two with his left eye swollen almost completely shut. Aoki fakes a punch and Jung backs off completely, trying to avoid getting hit in his blind spot. They circle for almost a full minute with no action until Aoki shoots in lightning-quick and scores the takedown on Jung. Aoki moves into side control rather quickly and looks like he's trying to set up an armbar from here, moving positionally but not doing much striking before moving quickly into mount, triangling Jung's legs with his own. Jung pushing up on Aoki's head and he got poked in the eye as he stops for a moment before posturing up to land some right hands. Aoki with a couple of hammerfists now too and he starts with openhand strikes to the side of Jung's head, and some shots to the head and body.
Aoki works hand control again and lands a few hard shots to the face of Jung who is unprotected. Aoki takes full mount now and lands a rapid-fire flurry of left and right hands that get mainly blocked but there are a few hard ones that are getting through. Aoki landing lefts and rights and a ton of hard punches and hammerfists to Jung and Jung is just turtling and trying to survive. Aoki rolls over to take the back and is trying to sink the rear naked choke in on Jung, hitting him with more hammerfists and strikes to soften him up and Aoki switches it up to the armbar and Jung is able to pull out of it. Jung is a beaten up, bloody mess as the bell rings for the end of the fight.
Well, minus the two submission attempts, this was Aoki's fight, as can be told from the swelling and bleeding on Jung's face from the ground and pound of Aoki. Jung put on a great showing and even had Aoki in trouble at a couple of points in this fight, and with some seasoning could be a great star in MMA, but Aoki's experience on the mat was just too much for him and it overtook him. A great fight from Jung though, who has nothing to be ashamed of.
Winner: Shinya Aoki, Unanimous Decision
They run through the credits while the camera pulls back to a wide shot and we hear announcements being made in the ring. Trigg and Rice thank everyone for watching and they make a few jokes back and forth as the ring fills with the fighters on the card and Rice wishes us a Happy New Year as they ring in 2008 Japanese-style. They keep the cameras rolling to catch the New Year's celebration and then we get the highlight package after the fights covering the entire night's events and we're out!
That does it for this week's Sprawl and Brawl, and I have to admit that it was a lot of fun to cover a somewhat current event, and that it indeed made me feel a little sad that Pride is no longer around. Hopefully M-1 Global will be able to put on more events like this in the future and apparently there are already plans for Spring of 2008 for another Japanese supershow at Saitama so it looks like Pride may indeed not be dead. Be sure to join me next week as I'll be taking a look into the world of women's MMA with my review of the DVD release Hook N' Shoot: Revolution 3, featuring some of the hardest hitting bouts that women's MMA has to offer. So until then I say as always, in the mean time and in between time, I'll see you all next time for an all-new, all-fight, all-female, Sprawl and Brawl Video Review!!
The 411: It was a great first event from M-1 Global, but the real test is going to be in whether they can fill out their roster of fighters and put on a show of this caliber with all M-1 talent, or if they're going to have to continue to rely on talent sharing and do "supershows" of this nature into the foreseeable future. A very exciting night, minus most of the Sakurai/Hasegawa fight and it was just great to feel the atmosphere of the Japanese crowd again on New Year's Eve in Tokyo.
