RIZIN will present its second “LANDMARK” event on Sunday evening, showcasing five matchups between MMA and kickboxing rulesets.
In the main event, former K-1 Japan kickboxer Ren Hiramoto will search for his first MMA win when facing Chihiro Suzuki. Here’s a full preview of the event.
Main Card (5:00AM EST / 7:00PM JST) (RIZIN Live / Live-Now)
Bout 1: CORO (17-17-5) vs. Takuma Masuda (6-1) (139 lbs) (MMA Bout)
A rising name and a veteran will meet in the first bout. To kick off the show, CORO and Takuma Masada will fight.
Masuda is a rising prospect in Japan’s bantamweight scene. He has strung together six wins since 2017, mostly competing on cards in Osaka. He fought twice last year, scoring two wins on DEEP Impact cards.
CORO is an experienced fighter of over 30 pro appearances. He is getting his first RIZIN bout after a strong 2021 in DEEP Impact, scoring two submission wins in that time.
Bout 2: Uoi Fullswing (23-10-5) vs. Kuya Ito (10-8-1) (134 lbs) (MMA Bout)
Riding the momentum of a recent win, Uoi Fullswing will face Kuya Ito in the second bout.
Fullswing scored a finish win on a RIZIN card in November 2021, stopping Shian in the first round of a bout with strikes. This was a long-overdue victory for him, as he had developed a four-fight losing streak in MMA along with a recent loss in kickboxing before then.
Ito is returning to RIZIN in hopes of scoring his first win for them. He lost his promotional debut in June 2021, losing in the opening round of the RIZIN Bantamweight Grand Prix to Kintaro. He has since lost again on a Grachan card as well.
Bout 3: Yoshinari Nadaka vs. Yusei Shirahata (116 lbs) (Kickboxing Bout)
In the sole kickboxing fight of the card, young Muay Thai prospect Yoshinari Nadaka will battle Yusei Shirahata.
Nadaka has been showcasing his skills in RIZIN since 2020. He has now appeared in the promotion four times, winning in each appearance. His last fight was a rather quick performance, stopping Naoki Ishikawa in the first round with strikes.
Shirahata has competed in local Muay Thai promotions REBELS and KNOCK OUT. He is coming off a loss that he took in September 2021.
Bout 4: Shoji (19-5-1) vs. Hiroaki Suzuki (1-1) (146 lbs) (MMA Bout)
Veteran Shoji will face experienced striker Hiroaki Suzuki in the next bout.
Shoji will be fighting to turn things around, having lost three of his past five fights. His most recent win was at RIZIN 30 last year, where he pulled off a shocking 20-second knockout win against Chihiro Suzuki.
Shoji suffered a doctor stoppage loss in his last bout, losing to Kyohei Hagiwara in the main event of a RIZIN “TRIGGER” card.
Suzuki, a former kickboxer, won his pro-MMA debut in October 2021 against pro wrestler Keisuke Okuda. Two months later, he dropped a fight on New Year’s Eve to Kyohei Hagiwara via unanimous decision.
Bout 5: Chihiro Suzuki (6-3) vs. Ren Hiramoto (0-1) (146 lbs) (MMA Bout)
Prolific kickboxer-turned MMA fighter Ren Hiramoto will search for his first pro win in the main event, facing Chihiro Suzuki.
Hiramoto brings a large audience with him to this fight, as his previous success as a K-1 Japan kickboxer and his outspoken presence online make him an intriguing figure to many. While he has supporters, there is also a fair amount of people who find interest in him as an anti-hero of sorts.
Hiramoto had a disastrous MMA debut on New Year’s Eve 2020, as ground and pound from Kyohei Hagiwara took him out of the fight in the second round. That was now over a year ago, and Hagiwara has spent the time since then training to become a more well-rounded fighter. He most notably went on an excursion to the United States, where he trained at the Roufusport gym along with names like Sergio and Anthony Pettis.
In his second MMA fight, Hiramoto will face a fellow striker in Suzuki. The kickboxing vet returned to the win column in November 2021, fighting to a decision victory over Sora Yamamoto. That was only his second MMA appearance since 2018, although he had spent all of that time in-between fighting on kickboxing and Muay Thai cards.
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