Tag: Japan

Flashback Friday: Pride 13: Collision Course

The year is 2001, and Pride FC is back for another year of events. Starting their six-event year was "Collision Course." The event was the promotion's second appearance at the recently built Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and featured some of the big names in the promotion. The English broadcast featured commentary from Steven … Continue reading Flashback Friday: Pride 13: Collision Course →

Flashback Friday: Pride 13: Collision Course Play-by-Play

Kicking off their 2001 schedule, Pride FC returned to Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan for the second time, this time presenting Pride 13: Collision Course. The event included lots of the big names in the promotion at the time. Of all of them, the most important one was still clearly Kazushi Sakuraba, who was … Continue reading Flashback Friday: Pride 13: Collision Course Play-by-Play →

Flashback Friday: UFC 29: Defense of the Belts

To finish off their 2000 year, UFC went to Japan once again. Actually in retrospect it’s better put that UFC came to Japan for the last time in the 00’s, as the promotion returned again in 2012. This card, which was stacked for 2000’s UFC standards, was headlined by Yuki Kondo challenging for Tito Ortiz’s … Continue reading Flashback Friday: UFC 29: Defense of the Belts →

Flashback Friday: Pride 11: Battle of the Rising Sun

Heading to the Osaka Castle Hall in Osaka, Japan, Pride FC held their fifth event of the year “Battle of the Rising Sun.” In the main event, promotional star Kazushi Sakuraba faced American fighter Shannon Ritch. The show also saw the return of recognizable names in the promotion like Masaaki Satake, Igor Vovchanchyn, Gary Goodridge, … Continue reading Flashback Friday: Pride 11: Battle of the Rising Sun →

Flashback Friday: Pride 10: Return of the Warriors

After Pride FC held a smaller event called “New Blood,” the promotion returned for another large venue event titled “Return of the Warriors.” The card saw the return of the promotion’s biggest start at the time, Kazushi Sakuraba. In his last appearance, Sakuraba fought an impressive 90-minute battle against Royce Gracie. He gets paired against … Continue reading Flashback Friday: Pride 10: Return of the Warriors →

RIZIN To Not Hold Events Until July, Cancelling RIZIN 22

Japanese MMA promotion RIZIN Fighting Federation has made the decision to cancel April event RIZIN 22, per a press conference on Thursday. Along with the event being cancelled, the promotion said they will not hold another event until July at least. RIZIN 22 was meant to happen on April 22nd from the Yokohama Arena in … Continue reading RIZIN To Not Hold Events Until July, Cancelling RIZIN 22 →

UFC Signs RIZIN Bantamweight Champion Manel Kape

Japanese MMA promotion RIZIN Fighting Federation's bantamweight champion Manel Kape will exit the promotion, signing a deal with UFC. Originally reported by Combate, Kape's gym AKA Thailand announced Monday he signed a four-fight deal. Kape becomes the second RIZIN champion to recently be signed by UFC, with the promotion's former light heavyweight champion Jiri Prochazka … Continue reading UFC Signs RIZIN Bantamweight Champion Manel Kape →

Flashback Friday: Pride 9: New Blood Full Coverage

After Pride FC finished their first grand prix, they returned to a non-tournament event: Pride FC 9. “New Blood” took place from the Rainbow Hall in Nagoya, Japan. The card saw the return of Igor Vovchanchyn, Gary Goodridge, Akira Shoji, and more. Also, the card saw debuts from soon-to-be UFC fighters Vitor Belfort and Gilbert … Continue reading Flashback Friday: Pride 9: New Blood Full Coverage →

Flashback Friday: Pride FC: 2000 Grand Prix Finals

After Pride FC did the first round of their 2000 Grand Prix in January, the promotion returned on May 1st to find the winner of the tournament. From the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan, here’s the Pride Grand Prix 2000 Finals. Original Event Date: 5/1/00 Quick Result: Bout 1: Igor Vovchanchyn def. Gary Goodridge via … Continue reading Flashback Friday: Pride FC: 2000 Grand Prix Finals →