is a Japanese

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

currently competing in the

Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, t ...

division of the Rizin Fighting Federation. A professional competitor since 2005, he appeared in the Japanese MMA event

Dynamite!! 2009 ''Dynamite!! 2009'' was a mixed martial arts and kickboxing events promoted by Fighting and Entertainment Group, held in the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on December 31, 2009. The event included bouts that encompass the DREAM, Sengoku R ...

event and has also competed for

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

Shooto Shooto is a combat sport and mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the ''Shooto Association'' and the ''International Shooto Commission''. Shooto was originally formed in 1985, first as a particular fighting system and then in 198 ...

, and Strikeforce.

Background

Born and raised in Japan, Hirota experienced success as an amateur boxer and sumo, winning All-Japan titles in both disciplines.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Hirota made his professional debut for Shooto, winning his first two fights by TKO and then won his next four fights all by unanimous decision to reach an undefeated professional record of 6–0. Hirota then faced

Takashi Nakakura Takashi Nakakura ( Japanese: 中蔵隆志, ''Nakakura Takashi'', born March 23, 1977) is a Japanese mixed martial artist, and the former Shooto welterweight champion. Nakakura is also a seido kaikan karate and Judo black belt. He took up Judo f ...

for the newly vacated Shooto Pacific Rim Welterweight Championship. Hirota was handed his first professional loss via unanimous decision and then lost his next fight, also by unanimous decision. Hirota then signed with Cage Force, and in his debut, knocked out his opponent 16 seconds into the fight before getting another win via TKO. In his next fight in April 2008, at ''Cage Force 6'', Hirota defeated

Tomonari Kanomata Tomonari Kanomata (born August 4, 1979) is a Japanese mixed martial artist. He competed in the featherweight and lightweight divisions. Mixed martial arts record , - , Loss , align=center, 20-9-7 , Guy Delumeau , Decision (Unanimous) , ...

to win the Cage Force Lightweight Championship.

Sengoku

Hirota then entered the Sengoku 2008 Lightweight Grand Prix where he won his first-round fight by knocking out the last IFL Lightweight Champion,

Ryan Schultz Ryan James Schultz (born July 4, 1977) is an American mixed martial artist who last competed in 2013. A professional since 2003, he has competed in the WEC, IFL, and Japan's World Victory Road. He was the last International Fight League Light ...

, at ''Sengoku 4'' in August 2008. He was then eliminated from the tournament in the semi-finals after losing by unanimous decision against

Kazunori Yokota is a Japanese mixed martial artist and judoka. Yokota became famous fighting in the Japanese MMA promotion DEEP, and eventually debuted WVR Sengoku, his only fight in a cage was his MMA debut, which was on 19 September 2004 against Keita Naka ...

at '' World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku 6'' in November the same year. In February 2009 he defended his Cage Force title when he fought to a draw with multiple-time King of Pancrase, Katsuya Inoue, and in May 2009 he defeated PRIDE veteran

Mitsuhiro Ishida Mitsuhiro Ishida (, born December 29, 1978) is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist who competed in Shooto, Strikeforce, PRIDE, DREAM, and DEEP. A professional competitor from 2001 until 2011, Ishida also participated in the Yarennoka even ...

by knockout at ''Shooto Tradition Final''. On August 2, 2009, at '' Sengoku 9'', Hirota was matched up with the eventual Sengoku Lightweight Grand Prix Champion and the inaugural Sengoku Lightweight Champion,

Satoru Kitaoka , is a Japanese shoot wrestler and mixed martial artist who most recently competed for RIZIN. A professional competitor since 2000, he has also competed for DREAM, Pancrase, DEEP, and World Victory Road. Kitaoka is renowned for his catch wrest ...

. Hirota, who was an underdog going in to the fight, had to defend multiple submission-attempts by Kitaoka during the first round, but came back in the second landing strikes on the feet while stopping Kitaoka's takedown-attempts. In the third, Kitaoka was able to take Hirota down and control him on the ground eventually resulting in a yellow-card inactivity-warning for Hirota as he did not improve his position. The fourth round saw Hirota damage Kitaoka with knee-strikes while on the feet, prompting Kitaoka to shoot in for a takedown. Hirota defended it and continued to land knees to the head of the grounded Kitaoka which forced the referee to step in at 2:50, giving Hirota the TKO victory to become the new Sengoku Lightweight Champion.

Dynamite!! 2009

On December 31, 2009, Hirota faced

DREAM A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...

and WAMMA Lightweight Champion

Shinya Aoki is a Japanese mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and grappler currently competing in ONE Championship's and Rizin Fighting Federation's Welterweight division. He also competes in DDT Pro-Wrestling where he is a former three-time DDT E ...

. In the first round Aoki caught Hirota in a hammerlock. When Hirota refused to submit, Aoki broke Hirota's arm and won the fight. On March 7, 2010, Hirota announced during ''Sengoku 12'' that he would be vacating his belt due to his injuries sustained at

DEEP

A year after he officially vacated his Sengoku Lightweight Championship belt, Hirota began fighting for

DEEP Deep or The Deep may refer to: Places United States * Deep Creek (Appomattox River tributary), Virginia * Deep Creek (Great Salt Lake), Idaho and Utah * Deep Creek (Mahantango Creek tributary), Pennsylvania * Deep Creek (Mojave River tributary), ...

. Hirota's debut for the organization was against Katsunori Kikuno for the DEEP Lightweight Championship and Hirota won via unanimous decision, and then defended his belt against

Seichi Ikemoto is a Japanese mixed martial artist. He is a veteran of Shooto, PRIDE and DEEP. His specialty is a "double punch", in which he puts his hands together and throws them at his opponent. Biography and career Ikemoto is a former holder of the DEE ...

, winning again via unanimous decision. Hirota then vacated his title in April 2012.

Strikeforce

On May 29, 2012, it was announced that Hirota would make his United States debut for Strikeforce in July 2012 against Pat Healy. In a back and forth bout, Hirota showcased technical boxing and some take down defense, but Healy was able to land more during the clinch. Hirota lost the close battle by unanimous decision (30-27, 29–28, 29–28). Strikeforce commentator and former UFC Middleweight Champion

Pat Miletich Patrick Jay Miletich (; born March 9, 1966) is a retired American mixed martial artist and former sports commentator. He is known for his fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he became the first UFC Welterweight Champion and UFC ...

stated the decision was affected by the home town favoring their own fighter. Hirota was next scheduled to face

Jorge Gurgel Jorge Valente Gurgel (; ; born January 25, 1977) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight division. A professional competitor from 2002 to 2014, Gurgel is best known as a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter 2 and ...

on September 29, 2012, but the event was cancelled before the company ceased operations. Hirota was signed along with many other Strikeforce competitors to compete in the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Hirota faced

Rani Yahya Rani Ahmad Yahya (born September 12, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and BJJ practitioner. He won the 66 kg division of the prestigious ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship in April 2007. He currently fights in t ...

on March 3, 2013, at

UFC on Fuel TV 8 ''UFC on Fuel TV: Silva vs. Stann'' (also known as ''UFC on Fuel TV 8'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on March 3, 2013, at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Background The main event was a li ...

. The fight was Hirota's first fight as a

. After losing the first two rounds, Hiroto was able to keep the fight standing in the third, but it was not enough under the scorecard and he lost his debut via unanimous decision. In his second UFC fight, Hirota faced

Rodrigo Damm Rodrigo Damm (; born 3 February 1980) is a Brazilian retired professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Lightweight division of the UFC. A professional since 2004, he also competed for World Victory Road, Strikeforce, Jungle Fi ...

at UFC on Fuel TV: Nogueira vs. Werdum on June 8, 2013. He lost the back-and-forth fight via split decision and was subsequently released from the promotion following the loss.

Road to UFC: Japan

In June 2015, Hirota was announced as one of the eight featherweights competing on ''Road to UFC: Japan'', a show in the style of ''

The Ultimate Fighter ''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...

''. On the show he faced Nobumitsu Osawa in the quarter finals and won by decision. He then faced

Daiki Hata is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist and the former DEEP Bantamweight Champion. He is also an occasional kickboxer. Mixed martial arts career Japanese career Daiki began his professional MMA career in July 2004 for the Pancrase prom ...

in the semifinals and again won by decision. Hirota ultimately faced

Teruto Ishihara Teruto Ishihara (born July 23, 1991) is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist who previously competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2011, he has formerly competed for S ...

in the finals at

UFC Fight Night 75 ''UFC Fight Night: Barnett vs. Nelson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 75'') was a mixed martial arts event held on September 27, 2015, at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Background The event was the fourth that the organization has ho ...

. Post-fight the UFC announced that Hirota and Ishihara would both be awarded contracts. Hirota was expected to face

Cole Miller Cole Miller (born April 26, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial artist, who most recently competed in the featherweight division in the UFC. His nickname "Magrinho" means "skinny" in Portuguese. Mixed martial arts career Before giving ...

on October 15, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 97. However, the promotion announced on October 6 that they had cancelled the event entirely. In turn, the fight was rescheduled and eventually took place on December 17, 2016, at

UFC on Fox 22 ''UFC on Fox: VanZant vs. Waterson'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 22'') was a mixed martial arts event promoted by the Ultimate Fighting Championship and held on December 17, 2016, at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. Background After pr ...

Hirota won the bout by unanimous decision. Mizuto Hirota faced

Alexander Volkanovski Alexander Volkanovski (born 29 September 1988) is an Australian mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Featherweight Champion. He is al ...

on June 10, 2017, at

UFC Fight Night 110 ''UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Hunt'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 110'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on 11 June 2017 at the Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand. Background The event was ...

. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. Hirota was expected to face

Charles Rosa Charles Rosa (born August 24, 1986) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Charles is of Italian descent and, the son of Chucky and ...

on September 23, 2017, at

UFC Fight Night 117 ''UFC Fight Night: Saint Preux vs. Okami'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 117'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on September 23, 2017 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Background The ...

. After struggling with the weigh-in, Hirota was forced to pull from the event due to health concerns. He was deemed unfit to compete by the UFC medical team. Hirota faced Ross Pearson in a lightweight bout on February 11, 2018, at

UFC 221 ''UFC 221: Romero vs. Rockhold'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on February 11, 2018, at Perth Arena in Perth, Western Australia. Background While the UFC has hosted 11 previous events ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Hirota faced

Christos Giagos Christos Giagos (born January 23, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Giagos was born and raised in Southern California. Giagos co ...

on December 2, 2018, at

UFC Fight Night 142 ''UFC Fight Night: dos Santos vs. Tuivasa'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 142'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on 2 December 2018 at Adelaide Entertainment Centre in Adelaide, Sou ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Rizin

After being released from the UFC after three straight losses, Hirota signed with Rizin Fighting Federation and is expected to face Roberto de Souza at Rizin 17 on July 28, 2019. He lost the bout in the first round via knockout.

Championships and accomplishments

* Cage Force ** Cage Force Lightweight Championship (One time) *

** DEEP Lightweight Championship (One time) **One Successful Defense *

Sengoku The was a period in Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the feudal system of Japan under the Ashikaga shogunate. Various ...

** Sengoku Lightweight Championship (One time, final) *

** Road to UFC: Japan Featherweight Tournament Co-Winner (Drew with

)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 18–11–2 , Roberto de Souza , KO (punches) , Rizin 17 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:05 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–10–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: dos Santos vs. Tuivasa , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, Australia , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–9–2 , Ross Pearson , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, Australia , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–8–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Hunt , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

, New Zealand , , - , Win , align=center, 18–7–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fox: VanZant vs. Waterson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, United States , , - , Draw , align=center, 17–7–2 ,

, Draw (split) , UFC Fight Night: Barnett vs. Nelson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 17–7–1 , Kyu Hwa Kim , TKO (soccer kick and punches) , DEEP: Dream Impact 2014: Omisoka Special , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:33 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 16–7–1 ,

Masakazu Imanari is a Japanese former professional wrestler and current mixed martial artist currently competing in the Bantamweight division of Rizin Fighting Federation. A professional competitor since 2000, he is a veteran of ONE Championship, DEEP, ZST, Pa ...

, TKO (punches) , DEEP: 69 Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:38 ,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 15–7–1 , Daisuke Nakamura , Decision (unanimous) , DEEP: 66 Impact , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–7–1 ,

, Decision (split) , UFC on Fuel TV: Nogueira vs. Werdum , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Fortaleza, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–6–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fuel TV: Silva vs. Stann , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–5–1 , Pat Healy , Decision (unanimous) , Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Kennedy , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–4–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , DEEP: 57 Impact , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 13–4–1 , Katsunori Kikuno , Decision (unanimous) , DEEP: 55 Impact , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–4–1 ,

, Technical Submission (hammerlock) , Dynamite!! The Power of Courage 2009 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:17 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 12–3–1 ,

, TKO (knees) , World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku 9 , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 2:50 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 11–3–1 ,

, TKO (punches) , Shooto: Shooto Tradition Final , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:33 ,

, Japan , , - , Draw , align=center, 10–3–1 , Katsuya Inoue , Draw , GCM: Cage Force EX , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–3 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku 6 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 ,

, KO (superman punch) , World Victory Road Presents: Sengoku 4 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:25 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 ,

, TKO (punches) , GCM: Cage Force 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Johnny Frachey , TKO (punches) , Cage Force EX Eastern Bound , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:08 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Do Gi Sin , KO (punches) , Cage Force 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:16 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–2 , Ganjo Tentsuku , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Shooting Disco 2: The Heat Rises Tonight , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Back To Our Roots 1 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of T ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Jin Kazeta , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: The Devilock , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Danilo Cherman , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: The Victory of the Truth , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Kabuto Kokage , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: 12/17 in Shinjuku Face , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Yoshihiro Koyama , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: 9/23 in Korakuen Hall , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Komei Okada , TKO (punches) , Shooto: 6/3 in Kitazawa Town Hall , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:56 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Masaaki Yamamori , TKO (punches) , Shooto: 2/6 in Kitazawa Town Hall , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:27 ,

, Japan ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hirota, Mizuto Living people 1981 births Japanese male mixed martial artists Japanese male boxers Japanese male judoka Japanese sumo wrestlers Lightweight mixed martial artists Featherweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Mixed martial artists utilizing Sumo World Victory Road champions Deep (mixed martial arts) champions Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters