Fedor Fights Goliath to Close Out 2007
Forget the martinis and party hats this year. Get your New Year started proper with Yarennoka, the "Kinda, sorta but not really" revival of PRIDE.
Featuring a card that somehow manages to be simultaneously intriguing and bizarre, we'll get to see Fedor Emelianenko (Pictures) destroy techno music as we know it as well as the return of seemingly the entire Bushido roster.
So read on and discover the sordid details of "Olaygate," along with a breakdown of the fight card we'll be ushering in the New Year with. If you have something better to do, please invite me. I'm a lonely, lonely man.
Fedor Emelianenko (Pictures) vs. Hong Man Choi (Pictures)
After spurning the UFC in favor of M-1 Global, heavyweight kingpin Fedor Emelianenko (Pictures) will cap off 2007 by taking on the goliath of the techno music scene, Adam X.
OK, Fedor is actually taking on the "Techno Goliath" Hong Man Choi (Pictures), but truth be told, it's the same difference. Another fine example of the Japanese market's hunger for semi-amusing sideshows, Choi (1-0) stumbled into combat sports by virtue of making Yao Ming look like Muggsy Bogues.
That isn't to say Choi is without his merits. He did quite well for himself in both K-1 and ssireum -- Korea's own spin on sumo wrestling.
Now that Choi has been given his due, let us all remember that he is taking on the greatest heavyweight in the history of MMA.
Fedor (26-1, 1 NC) cemented that status during his mythic three-year-plus run in PRIDE that included wins over a laundry list of noteworthy heavyweights such as Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (Pictures) and Mirko Filipovic (Pictures). Of late, however, Fedor has been following the Rolling Stones' example of living off past accomplishments.
Besides a match last New Year's Eve against Mark Hunt (Pictures), he has spent the last two years frustrating fans the world over by engaging in glorified sparring sessions with mostly overmatched competition.
Choi hardly represents a change in that trend; the only advantage he holds on Fedor is size. Measuring up at 7-foot-2 and more than 350 pounds, Choi is as awkward as he is large, which will do him no favors against Fedor.
The only real question is whether Fedor will feel compelled to give Choi the dignity of a quick submission or take a more existentialist track by caving in Choi's acromegaly-enhanced noggin.
Count on Fedor being a sportsman by hitting an early clinch takedown and grabbing hold of whatever limb Choi leaves dangling. The only hope the "Techno Goliath" has is inducing a seizure in Fedor by leaving open so many submission opportunities it causes Fedor's neurons to go haywire.
Hopefully Fedor claims Choi's nickname afterward. The title of "Techno Goliath" should be held by Russia's premier fistic export.
Mitsuhiro Ishida (Pictures) vs. Gilbert Melendez (Pictures)
While Fedor's match with the jolly Korean giant will draw the local fans in, the return of Mitsuhiro Ishida (Pictures) against MMA's master of the hula hoop, Gilbert Melendez (Pictures), will keep both hardcore fans and Ritalin vendors happy as these two fight at the speed of amphetamine.
Unfortunately, Ishida (15-3-1) has been stuck on the sidelines lately as one of many quality fighters left in limbo by PRIDE's implosion. Actually a product of Shooto's complex class system, Ishida refined his game in the stalwart Japanese promotion and found his form toward the end of his time in Shooto with wins over Takashi Nakakura (Pictures) and Kenichiro Togashi (Pictures).
Upon moving to PRIDE's Bushido circuit, Ishida distinguished himself by getting off to a 4-0 start that included a win over Marcus Aurelio, who was coming off a first-round strangling of Takanori Gomi (Pictures).
The Bushido ace would turn out to be the one who derailed Ishida, however, as Gomi bulldozed Ishida last New Year's Eve in just more than a minute. The pickings have been nil for Ishida since then, and he's drawn a tough card for his return to arms.
A fellow veteran of PRIDE's Bushido division, Melendez (13-0) was lucky enough to have a home in Strikeforce, which has kept the California native from languishing for the past year like Ishida.
The real storyline behind this fight traces back to Melendez's time in PRIDE, where he won a hotly contested decision over Tatsuya Kawajiri (Pictures) -- Ishida's main training partner. With an angle worthy of a pro wrestling pay-per-view in place, Melendez now has a chance to bookend New Year's Eve wins over the two heads of the T-Blood gym.
Stylistically, these two thrive on gaining the top position and maintaining a frenetic pace with their ground striking and endless cardio. With that in mind, Ishida's slight stature at lightweight may once again prove to be his undoing, as Melendez will enter this fight the physically superior fighter.
Although Gomi was able to run right through a physically overmatched Ishida, Melendez is cut from a different cloth and is more likely to bully Ishida on the ground for most of the bout.
Certainly worthy of his moniker as the "Endless Fighter," Ishida will make it difficult for Melendez every step of the way, but the wear and tear of working off his back against a titanic lightweight will keep him on the losing end of a unanimous decision.
Yoshihiro Akiyama (Pictures) vs. Kazuo Misaki (Pictures)
In a surprising bit of matchmaking, MMA's premier metrosexual, Yoshihiro Akiyama (Pictures), will once again lock horns with a quality middleweight in Kazuo Misaki (Pictures).
Having finally found a home in the middleweight division after originally starting out as a heavyweight, Akiyama (10-1, 1 NC) finds himself on the edge of establishing himself as one of Japan's premier stars.
It's an unlikely role given Akiyama's controversial past, which includes multiple well-publicized greasing allegations. The most recent claim stemmed from his bout with Japanese MMA legend Kazushi Sakuraba (Pictures).
Although Akiyama evaded any punishment when similar allegations were leveled against him in the international judo community, his infamous Oil of Olay defense didn't fool anyone and the bout against Sakuraba was declared a No Contest.
After serving a suspension following "Olaygate," Akiyama proved his worth with a stunning first-round knockout of Denis Kang (Pictures). Immediately thrust into the spotlight of the middleweight division following that unexpected win, Akiyama will jump into the breach once more against the Grabaka Hitman.
Once synonymous with the Pancrase brand, Misaki (18-8-2) actually came into his own competing in the Bushido welterweight division. It was there that he scored a shocking revenge win over Dan Henderson (Pictures) and launched himself into the top 10 of a division that he had spent the last five years competing in.
The good times continued for Misaki even in defeat when he won the inaugural Bushido welterweight Grand Prix despite losing to Paulo Filho (Pictures) in the opening round of competition. With a Grand Prix belt now on his mantle, he promptly put up a lackadaisical performance against Frank Trigg (Pictures) and lost a unanimous decision to the former UFC welterweight contender.
All would be forgiven, however, if Misaki can get past the slippery one. The problem with that is Misaki matches up poorly with Akiyama, who has shown tremendous striking talent for a former judoka and has the ground game to give any middleweight pause.
There is nothing in Misaki's arsenal that he can use to great effect against Akiyama, who is the far more explosive fighter of the two and has the luxury of dictating where this fight goes with his judo. We've seen a bit of a mean streak in Akiyama's past fights, probably because of his chronically dry skin, so expect a brutal stoppage win via strikes from the mount in the first round.
What remains to be seen is if Akiyama's corner has the sense to keep their man from rubbing the lotion on his skin, lest he get the hose again.
Tatsuya Kawajiri (Pictures) vs. Luiz Azeredo (Pictures)
A night of welcome returns includes both Tatsuya "Crusher" Kawajiri and Luiz Azeredo (Pictures) ending yearlong bouts of maddening inactivity thanks to the good folks behind the Yarennoka spectacular.
While Azeredo can at least make his return without the sour taste of defeat in his mouth, Kawajiri (19-4-2) has spent the last year pining for the opportunity to erase the memory of a controversial loss to Gilbert Melendez (Pictures).
A true instant classic, Melendez carved out a place for himself among the lightweight elite at Kawajiri's expense. Disappointment has become a familiar feeling for the "Crusher," who failed to topple Takanori Gomi (Pictures) back in 2005 and took home an unsatisfying disqualification win over Joachim Hansen (Pictures) in 2006.
It feels as though it has been ages since Kawajiri won a fight of note. Against Azeredo (11-6), he has the chance to get his floundering career back on track. Victory never comes without a toll, however, and Azeredo is desperate to add the big win his résumé lacks.
That career-changing win seemed within reach in his bout against Joachim Hansen (Pictures). Azeredo's unorthodox striking style seemed to have Hansen struggling for an answer. Comfortably in the lead seven minutes into the match, a moment's carelessness led to a trademark Hansen knee kick that liberated Azeredo of his senses.
Unlike Kawajiri, Azeredo was able to get back on the horse quickly and scored a unanimous decision over Paul Daley (Pictures) right in the British kickboxer's own backyard. The ring rust has been accumulating ever since then for Azeredo, but in Kawajiri he has an opponent dealing with the same issue.
Predicting how a fighter will respond to a year's worth of inactivity is always a dicey proposition. Don't expect either man to be on top of his game. Given Azeredo's freewheeling style, Kawajiri should have no problem resorting to his bread-and-butter strategy of ground-and-pound.
Just how effective Kawajiri will be is anyone's guess. Azeredo can be difficult to contain on the ground, and should this fight stay on the feet for any period of time, he'll unload his full arsenal of ninja ballerina kicks on Kawajiri.
The idea of Azeredo either knocking out Kawajiri or engaging in enough striking to sway the judges just doesn't seem likely to play itself out, however. Instead, count on Kawajiri scoring a methodical ground-and-pound unanimous decision.
Hopefully these two will do the fans a favor and get off their one-fight-per-year cycle. Personally, I can't go another year without seeing Kawajiri's glorious fashion mullet.
Undercard
While rumors of matches involving Ricardo Arona (Pictures) and Aleksander Emelianenko (Pictures) proved to be just that, the Yarennoka undercard does boast plenty of familiar faces in some altogether unexpected matchups.
First on the itinerary is Shinya Aoki (Pictures) matching wits and fists with MMA neophyte Bukyung Jung. A late replacement for Gesias Calvancante (Pictures), Jung (0-0-0, 0 NC) is an unknown quantity but does come from a strong judo background, having won a silver medal in the 2000 Summer Olympics.
That may sound promising, but Jung competed at 60 kg (132 pounds), which means he'll be giving up a considerable size advantage to Aoki (11-2), who isn't likely to be fazed by Jung's judo. Universally regarded as one of the best grapplers in the game today, Aoki will give Jung a rude introduction to the sport and possibly a broken limb to boot.
Another Japanese superstar will make his way back to the ring when Hayato "Mach" Sakurai (30-7-2) returns to active duty against Hidehiko Hasegawa (Pictures). Entering this fight a heavy underdog and with good reason, Hasegawa (14-8-4) may end up on Sakurai's "And1" mix tape highlight once it's all said and done.
Supremely capable wherever a fight may go, Sakurai is simply too skilled for Hasegawa, who has nothing to offer "Mach" regardless of what shape this fight takes. Watch for Sakurai to give Hasegawa the Agent Smith treatment in scoring a first-round knockout.
Continuing the trend of judokas on the undercard, Makoto Takimoto (Pictures) (3-3) will look to break the .500 barrier against Murilo Bustamante (Pictures) and his Austin Powers-era chest hair. The Brazilian veteran has more to offer than impressive follicle growth, though, as Bustamante's versatile game spells trouble for the Olympic judo medalist.
To put it plainly, Takimoto has yet to show any growth as a mixed martial artist. While Bustamante (14-6-1) has seen better days, he is still capable of dispatching mediocre converted judokas with ease. This particular judoka won't make it past the first round, courtesy of a Bustamante knockout win.
Perhaps the least anticipated of the undercard bouts is the short-notice heavyweight clash between American wrestler Michael Russow (Pictures) and Russian Red Devil Roman Zentsov (Pictures).
It's a critical fight for both men. Zentsov (16-11) was enjoying a career renaissance before a baffling loss to Branden Lee Hinkle (Pictures), and Russow (6-1) is simply in need of a match to launch him out of the minor league MMA circuit.
After getting bullied around by Hinkle, I can't imagine Zentsov faring much better against another equally one-dimensional wrestler. Russow takes an uneventful unanimous decision, and we're left to wonder what happened to the short-lived Zentsov bandwagon.
