is a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

and former

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 ...

Career

A former

Kyokushin is a style of karate originating in Japan. It is a style of stand-up fighting and is rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, discipline, and hard training. Kyokushin Kaikan is the martial arts organization founded in 1964 by Korean-Jap ...

karateka (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

, Sakata trained in professional wrestling at

Animal Hamaguchi is a Japanese retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . During his career he was recognized as a talented tag team wrestler despite his relatively small size for a heavyweight, and today he is recognized as a trainer in both ...

's gym and joined Akira Maeda's Fighting Network RINGS immediately after.

Fighting Network RINGS

Sakata debuted in RINGS in 1994 against Nobuhiro Tsurumaki. Making the transition to mixed martial arts before most of his native colleagues, he started to take part in shootfights the same year of his debut. Over the years, Sakata would develop a rivalry with

Willie Peeters Willie Peeters (born October 26, 1965) is a Dutch mixed martial artist. He competed in the Heavyweight division. Biography Peeters started his career in amateur wrestling at the age of ten, training with famed champion Freddy Winters and winni ...

in a long series of shootfighting bouts. Peeters defeated Wataru by TKO on their first fight On November 16, 1995, and they went to fight a rematch on June 29, 1996. During the latter, Sakata broke late a toehold and injured Peeters, who retaliated by illegally knocking him out with a close-fisted punch. Although the act gave Peeters a red card, he would win by KO due palm strikes. The two met again on August 24, where Sakata was dominated in a grappling contest and defeated by north/south choke. Sakata would face Peeters again under different rules in a RINGS Holland event on February 8, 1998, but although he performed dominantly for the first time, he lost a controversial decision, as the Dutch referee invalidated a finishing hold by Sakata while allowing Peeters to throw illegal strikes. Wataru finally got his revenge on June 27, making Peeters tap out in under a minute by ankle lock. Around this time, Sakata would also get important submissions wins over

Valentijn Overeem Valentijn Overeem (; born 17 August 1976) is a retired Dutch professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer currently signed with United Glory. A professional competitor since 1996, he has previously fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, ...

. In 1999, Sakata participated at the King of Kings MMA tournament, but he was eliminated at the first round by Renzo Gracie, with the Brazilian taking him down and submitting him. Upon returning from the tournament, he faced

Branden Lee Hinkle Branden Lee Hinkle is a retired American professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1998 until 2016, he competed for the UFC, RINGS, Vale Tudo Japan, Pancrase, the WEF, and the International Vale Tudo Championship. Back ...

in a more successful match: the two fighters exchanged armbars before Hinkle got the mount, but Sakata countered with his teammate

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist, submission grappler and professional wrestler who competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor from 1994 till 2022, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships ...

's "TK scissors" reversal and locked a

leglock A leglock is a joint lock that is directed at joints of the leg such as the ankle, knee or hip joint. A leglock which is directed at joints in the foot, is sometimes referred to as a foot lock and a lock at the hip as a hip lock. Leglocks ar ...

that broke Hinkle's knee for the win. The next year, Sakata would face

Pancrase Pancrase Inc. is a mixed martial arts promotion company founded in Japan in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the Ancient Olympic Games. Suzuki and Funaki pr ...

fighter Ryushi Yanagisawa, a natural heavyweight, in a special match. Sakata lost an uneventful decision. Sakata also had part in a controversial moment in RINGS history when he was legitimately attacked by Akira Maeda in front of the cameras, due to Maeda being unsatisfied with Wataru's performance earlier in the event.Backstage Fights
/ref>

Pro Wrestling Zero-One

When RINGS collapsed in 2002, Sakata participated in

PRIDE Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

fights and joined

Pro Wrestling Zero-One (stylized as Pro Wrestling ZERO1), formerly known as Pro Wrestling Zero-One and Pro Wrestling Zero1-Max (stylised in all capital letters) and often referred to simply as Zero1, is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded in 2001. I ...

as a freelancer. His wrestling ventures increased over time, and he finally joined Zero-One full-time. Sakata started teaming up with fellow RINGS wrestler

Hirotaka Yokoi (born June 8, 1978) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. A professional MMA competitor from 2000 until 2007, Yokoi fought for PRIDE, Shooto, RINGS, and DEEP, while in professional wrestling he wrestled mainly fo ...

, but his greatest highlights came from his solo career, winning the Tenka-Ichi Junior Tournament after big wins over

Ikuto Hidaka (born August 5, 1972) is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently performing for Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah). Hidaka was the regular partner of Minoru Fujita, with whom he has held the Zero1-Max International Lightweight Tag Team and Intercon ...

Low Ki Brandon Silvestry (born September 6, 1979) is an American professional wrestler of Italian and Puerto Rican descent, better known by his ring name Low Ki. He is known for his time with Impact Wrestling, Ring of Honor and Major League Wrestlin ...

Dick Togo , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler. Togo is currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a member of the Bullet Club stable, and its sub-group House of Torture. Togo has spent the majority of ...

and

Naohiro Hoshikawa is a retired Japanese professional wrestler. Hoshikawa competed extensively in Michinoku Pro Wrestling, Osaka Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Zero1 until he was forced to retire after suffering a career-ending brain injury in 2004. Hoshikawa al ...

. The tournament gained him the vacant WORLD-1 Junior Heavyweight Championship, and he later defeated Low Ki again for the NWA/UPW/Zero-One International Junior Heavyweight Championship, which solidified his status as the new junior ace of the company. However, after retaining his double championship before

Jun Kasai (born September 9, 1974) is a Japanese professional wrestler, primarily competing for Pro Wrestling Freedoms. Dubbed the for his violent and often self-harmful style of hardcore wrestling, Kasai is considered a breakthrough talent in Japanese ...

, Hidaka and

Homicide Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...

, he shocked pundits by vacating it and moving up to heavyweight division. Though a tough perspective, it wasn't fruitless, as Sakata won the NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship with Masato Tanaka from

Shinjiro Otani is a semi-retired Japanese professional wrestler and the current acting president of Pro Wrestling Zero1 (Zero1). He is currently inactive from pro-wrestling competition due to a cervical spine injury substained in April 2022. A product of the ...

and

Takao Omori is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), where he is a one-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion and seven-time World Tag Team Champion. He is also part of the All Japan Board of Directors. He ...

Hustle

In 2004, Sakata started appearing in off-beat wrestling "opera" federation Hustle due to its business relationship with Zero-One. After a match in his home promotion, Sakata was approached by Private Shimada and offered a place in Generalissimo Takada's villainous Monster Army, but Wataru rejected the offer and gave Shimada a tombstone piledriver, announcing he was going to join

babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

faction Hustle Army instead. As part of this faction, Sakata was placed in matches against fellow MMA fighters from the Monster Army like

Kevin Randleman Kevin Christopher Randleman (August 10, 1971 – February 11, 2016) was an American mixed martial artist, professional wrestler, and former UFC Heavyweight Champion. Randleman's background was in collegiate wrestling, in which he became ...

and

Dan Bobish Daniel Emerson Bobish ( ; born January 26, 1970) is a retired American mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. He was competing in the Super Heavyweight (no limit) division. He is a former King of the Cage Super Heavyweight Champion. ...

, sometimes teaming up with Shamoji Fujii. However, Sakata was later put in a hair vs. hair match against Umanosuke Anjo and was defeated, being forced to shave his head, which took its toll on his morale. Declaring himself to be unworthy of the Hustle Army, he ran away from the stable and instead worked to be accepted in Monster Army, but he was rejected after losing to

Toshiaki Kawada (born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese semi-retired professional wrestler best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), whom he worked for from his debut in 1982 up until 2008. In All Japan, he was a 5 time Triple Crown Heavyweight ...

in his entrance test. Now free, Sakata teamed up with other unaligned wrestlers like

Mark Coleman Mark Daniel Coleman (born December 20, 1964) is an American retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and amateur wrestler. Coleman was the UFC 10 and UFC 11 tournament champion, the first UFC Heavyweight Champion, and the Pride ...

, Takehiro Murahama and

Ryoji Sai (born Choi Young-ii June 3, 1980) is a Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and promoter who currently owns and operates Pro Wrestling Land's End, where he is a former All Asia Heavyweight Champion. He is best known for working fo ...

, which he called unofficially "Sakata Army". His team grew stronger, winning the Hustle Tag Team Championship from Genichiro Tenryu and

Tadao Yasuda is a Japanese retired sumo wrestler (''rikishi''), professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. He competed in sumo from 1979 to 1992 under the ''shikona'' of Takanofuji Tadao, achieving the rank of ''komusubi'', and afterwards turned to prof ...

and later adding Tenryu himself when Sakata lost a match to him and asked him to be the stable's advisor. Wataru also gained the support of Yuko Aoki as his

valet A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "vale ...

for a time after saving her from a beatdown by general manager

Hiroko Suzuki , née , (born 1974) is a Japanese politician, professional wrestling valet, occasional professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter best known in the United States for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment on its '' SmackDo ...

. However, his momentum came to an end after Sakata received a knee injury (kayfabe) by Kawada, which stunted his performance; this made them lose the titles against Erika and Margaret, as well as the finals of the Hustle King Memorial tournament. Enraged for the loss, Tenryu turned against him and left Sakata Army to join Monster Army, leaving the stable further depowered. In order to recover from those failures, Wataru introduced himself as a candidate to the new general manager job, which he shockingly won after a fan poll, and also enlisted the help of former GM assistant RG. However, Sakata was then challenged by

Tokyo Gurentai is a professional wrestling stable, currently made up of Fujita, Kikuzawa, Mazada, and Nosawa Rongai. The group was formed in 2000 by Kikuzawa, Mazada and Nosawa and has since appeared for Japan's four biggest promotions; All Japan Pro Wrest ...

and their associate

Minoru Suzuki (born June 17, 1968) is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist, currently working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as a freelancer. In NJPW, Suzuki has held the IWGP Intercontinental Championship as well as twice hol ...

, who defeated Wataru and his group in Hustlemania 2006. Again, the loss made Sakata and RG break up, and they feuded with each other for some time with the help of Suzuki. In early 2007, after being repeatedly beaten down by

Tiger Jeet Singh Jagjeet Singh Hans (born April 3, 1944) is an Indo-Canadian semi-retired professional wrestler, known better by his ring name Tiger Jeet Singh. He was known for his elaborate ring entrances, and generally performed as a heel. He wrestled in Japan ...

, Wataru finally came to his senses and re-joined the Hustle Army, bringing Ryoji Sai with him. Right after Sakata's return to the Hustle Army, its leader Naoya Ogawa was bribed by Generalissimo Takada into turning heel and joining him, so Sakata and HG worked to replace him. The same year, Sakata married to

Eiko Koike is a Japanese actress. Biography Koike starred in Kunitoshi Manda's film '' The Kiss''. She appeared in Kiyoshi Kurosawa's 2012 television drama '' Penance,'' and co-starred in Junji Sakamoto's ''A Chorus of Angels'' with Sayuri Yoshinaga. S ...

, who was also introduced to Hustle as "Hustle Yosei". Sakata' and HG's first effort was put into their feud with "Fire Monster" ACHICHI, the evil version of Shinjiro Otani, as well as Giant Vabo,

Scott Norton Scott Norton (born June 15, 1961) is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in World Championship Wrestling and New Japan Pro-Wrestling, in which he was a member of the New World Order (professional wrest ...

and the rest of Monster Army's gaijin mercenaries. However, Sakata's greatest moment would be when he volunteered to fight The Esperanza at the next Hustlemania. Although Wataru got outclassed and was about to be finished off, his wife Eiko intervened and weakened Esperanza with her magic powers, which allowed Sakata to hit him with a superkick and pin his foe. Wataru became the first Hustle Army member to defeat The Esperanza after HG and TAJIRI had failed in do so, thus solidifying himself as Hustle's top face. In 2008, Sakata participated in the Hustle Grand Prix, in which the winner could ask a wish inside the company, in order to wish for the disbandment of the Monster Army. Despite beating TAJIRI,

Shiro Koshinaka is a Japanese professional wrestler who has competed in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and Wrestle Association "R" (WAR) during the 1980s and 1990s. He was also the first IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion. Career ...

and even the huge Bono-kun, he lost in the finals to

. Depressed, Sakata left the company and secluded himself in a

nattō , spelled as natto in standard English language use, is a traditional Japanese food made from whole soybeans that have been fermented with ''Bacillus subtilis'' var. ''natto''. It is often served as a breakfast food with rice. It is served wi ...

field in order to meditate, later returning as a masked

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

-like character named Nattoman. He started to intervene in matches, trying to help Hustle army members yet often causing them trouble by accident, until he was identified as Sakata and forced to return to his former self. Sakata stayed with the company until its closure in 2009.

Personal life

Sakata was married to

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

on August 29, 2007. They have one child together.

Championships and accomplishments

* Hustle :* Hustle Super Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with

Ryouji Sai (born Choi Young-ii June 3, 1980) is a Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and promoter who currently owns and operates Pro Wrestling Land's End, where he is a former All Asia Heavyweight Champion. He is best known for working fo ...

NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship The Intercontinental Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promoting Pro Wrestling Zero1, typically reserved for (but not exclusive to) heavyweight (>) wrestlers. It was created on June 14, 2001, three month ...

( 1 time) - with Masato Tanaka :*

Zero1 International Junior Heavyweight Championship The International Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title in Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling Zero1 (formerly Pro Wrestling Zero-One and Pro Wrestling Zero1-Max) and formerly sanctioned by the Wrestling Superstars Live ...

( 1 time) :*

Tenkaichi Jr. ''Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi'' (released in Japan as ) is a series of fighting games developed by Spike based on the ''Dragon Ball'' manga series by Akira Toriyama. The series was published by Namco Bandai Games under the Bandai brand nam ...

(2002) *Pro Wrestling World-1 :*World-1 Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 11–14 ,

Hayato Sakurai also known as , born August 24, 1975, is a Japanese mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 1996, he has formerly competed for the UFC, PRIDE, DREAM, Shooto, Vale Tudo Japan, DEEP, and participated in the Yarennoka!, Dynamit ...

, TKO (punches) , Rizin World Grand-Prix 2016: Final Round , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 12:37 ,

Saitama, Japan is the capital and the most populous city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Ōmiya, Yono and Iwatsuki. It is a city designated by government ordinance. Being in the Greater Tokyo Area and lying ...

, , - , Loss , align=center, 11–13 ,

Daniel Gracie Daniel Simões, known professionally as Daniel Gracie, is a Brazilian former mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and practitioner of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He is cousin to Renzo Gracie, Ralph Gracie, Charles Gracie and Ryan Gracie. Biog ...

, Submission (armbar) , Pride FC - Shockwave 2003 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 7:12 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–12 ,

Mario Sperry is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the '' Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his c ...

, Decision (unanimous) , UFO - Legend , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 11–11 , Toro Irison , Submission (armbar) , Deep - 4th Impact , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:05 ,

Nagoya, Aichi is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most pop ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 10–11 , Kosei Kubota , TKO (punches) , Deep - 3rd Impact , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:05 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 9–11 , Adrian Serrano , TKO (eye injury) , Deep - 2nd Impact , , align=center, 1 , 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 To ...

Kanagawa is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–11 , Ryushi Yanagisawa , Decision (split) , Rings: King of Kings 2000 Final , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–10 ,

Dave Menne David Jeremy Menne (born July 29, 1974) is an American mixed martial artist. He was the first ever UFC Middleweight Champion and has also competed for Cage Rage, Bellator, Shooto, ADCC and RINGS. Background Menne was born in Minneapolis, Mi ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Rings: King of Kings 2000 Block A , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–9 ,

Gustavo Machado Gustavo Machado da Silva (born May 17, 1975) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist who has competed for the International Fight League, Shooto, Deep (mixed martial arts), DEEP, RINGS, Pancrase and King of the Cage promotions. Machado ...

, TKO (cut) , Rings: Battle Genesis Vol. 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:35 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 8–8 , Mansour Heidari , Decision (unanimous) , WEF 9 - World Class , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 4:00 ,

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–8 ,

, Submission (leg lock) , Rings: Millennium Combine 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 7:23 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–8 , Renzo Gracie , Submission (armbar) , Rings: King of Kings 1999 Block B , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:25 ,

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 6–7 , Chris Watts , Submission (achilles lock) , TFKRG 5 - Total Fight KRG 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 6:53 ,

Buckinghamshire, England Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–7 ,

Hiromitsu Kanehara ) is a former Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler of Korean descent. A professional MMA competitor from 1998 until 2012, he found success in Fighting Network RINGS, gaining notable victories over Valentijn Overeem, Alexan ...

, Decision (lost points) , Rings: Rise 5th , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, , - , Win , align=center, 5–6 ,

Borislav Jeliazkov Borislav Jeliazkov ( bg, Борислав Желязков) is a Bulgarian mixed martial artist. He competed in the Heavyweight division. Mixed martial arts record , - , Loss , align=center, 5-6 , Mikhail Ilyukhin , Submission (armbar) ...

, Submission (armbar) , Rings: Rise 4th , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 6:49 ,

, , - , Loss , align=center, 4–6 ,

, Submission (scarf hold) , Rings: Rise 1st , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 8:28 ,

, , - , Loss , align=center, 4–5 ,

Sean Alvarez Sean Alvarez (born July 14, 1971) is an American retired mixed martial artist. He competed in the Heavyweight division. An accomplished grappler, Alvarez won gold medals at the Brazilian jiu-jitsu World Championships and the Pan Americ ...

, Decision , Rings: Final Capture , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, , - , Win , align=center, 4–4 ,

Dick Vrij Dick Vrij is a retired Dutch professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1995 until 2003, he competed in the Heavyweight division for RINGS and It's Showtime. Professional wrestling career A former bodybuilde ...

, TKO , Rings: World Mega Battle Tournament , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:29 ,

, , - , Win , align=center, 3–4 ,

, Submission , Rings: Fourth Fighting Integration , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:45 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–4 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Rings Holland: The King of Rings , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, Netherlands , , - , Win , align=center, 2–3 ,

, Submission (ankle lock) , Rings - Extension Fighting 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:16 ,

, , - , Win , align=center, 1–3 , Sean McCully , Submission , Rings - Budokan Hall 1997 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 19:41 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–3 ,

, Submission (neck lock) , Rings - Maelstrom 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 18:31 ,

, , - , Loss , align=center, 0–2 ,

Mikhail Ilyukhin Mikhail Ilyukhin (born November 21, 1966) is a retired Russian mixed martial artist and professional wrestler who competed in the light heavyweight division. He competed in both Fighting Network Rings, and Pride Fighting Championships, and was ...

, Submission , Rings - Budokan Hall 1996 , , align=center, N/A , align=center, N/A ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 ,

Tsuyoshi Kosaka is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist, submission grappler and professional wrestler who competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor from 1994 till 2022, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, ...

, Submission , Rings - Budokan Hall 1995 , , align=center, N/A , align=center, N/A ,

, Japan ,

References

External links

Professional MMA record
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sakata, Wataru 1973 births Japanese male professional wrestlers Japanese male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Kyokushin kaikan Mixed martial artists utilizing shootfighting Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Living people People from Inazawa Sportspeople from Aichi Prefecture Japanese male karateka