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, incorp ...

, currently competing in the strawweight division of ONE Championship. He is currently ranked #5 in the ONE Championship strawweight rankings. A professional competitor since 2008, he is the former ONE Strawweight Champion and former Shooto World Flyweight (114lbs) Champion.

Personal life

Saruta was born in Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan. Saruta was active in extracurricular activities in his youth, and had a focus on

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...

. He wanted to become an Olympic athlete for his country. When he was 18, Saruta saw

Norifumi Yamamoto was a Japanese mixed martial artist and kickboxer who competed in the bantamweight division of the UFC. He quickly gained popularity in the Shooto organization due to his aggressive, well-rounded style and controversial persona. He moved on to K ...

on television and decided to begin training in mixed martial arts. He is married.

Martial arts career

Shooto

Saruta made his professional MMA debut on January 26, 2008 at Shooto: Back to Our Roots 7 against Kota Funaki. He would lose the bout by TKO. On August 9, 2009, Saruta got his first professional victory over Takahiro Kohori at Shooto: Gig Saitama 1 by first-round TKO. Between August 2011 and April 2013, Saruta had his first-ever winning streak. He won five consecutive bouts in Shooto with two submissions and a knockout during the run. During this run, he won the Shooto Infinity Bantamweight tournament, with a majority decision win over Masumi Tozawa. This would earn him a title shot versus Ryuichi Miki. Their first bout ended in a draw, and their second in a unanimous decision loss for Saruta. After early failed attempts at winning Shooto titles, Saruta moved to

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 ...

and changed camps to begin training with Wajutsu Keishukai Hearts. After an up-and-down stretch that saw Saruta go 3-4-1, the Japanese fighter began another five-match unbeaten streak that would lead to a flyweight title shot against Ryuto Sawada. On October 15, 2017, Saruta defeated Sawada by knockout in the fourth round to capture the Shooto flyweight championship. Following that, he achieved a decision win over

Kiyotaka Shimizu 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, ...

and defended his title against Itchaku Murata, winning by way of TKO.

ONE Championship

On December 7, 2018, Saruta made his ONE Championship debut against former strawweight champion, Alex Silva. He won by unanimous decision. The victory in his ONE Championship debut earned Saruta a title shot against

Joshua Pacio Joshua Felix Pacio (born January 10, 1996) is a Filipino mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division of ONE Championship. He is the former ONE Strawweight World Champion. From April 2016 to July 2016, he was ranked at the #8 S ...

. On January 19, 2019, Saruta edged out Pacio by split decision to win the ONE strawweight world championship. Yosuke Saruta would fight a rematch with

at ONE: Roots of Honor. Saruta lost the bout, after being knocked out by a knee in the fourth round. At ONE Century, Saruta bounced back with a KO victory over the

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 ...

strawweight champion

Daichi Kitakata is a Japanese mixed martial artist, currently competing in the strawweight division of Pancrase, where he is the former Strawweight King of Pancrase. As of January 3, 2022, he is ranked as the second best strawweight in the world by Fight Matr ...

, stopping his opponent in the first minute of the second round. Saruta next faced

Yoshitaka Naito Yoshitaka Naito (born February 17, 1984) is a Japanese mixed martial artist from Inzai, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. He is a former two-time ONE Strawweight World Champion. Naito is furthermore a former Shooto World Flyweight (114 lb) Cham ...

at Road to One 3: Tokyo Fight Night on September 10, 2020. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Saruta faced

in a trilogy match for the ONE Strawweight Championship at ONE Championship: Revolution on September 24, 2021. He lost the bout via TKO in the first round. Saruta was expected to face Gustavo Balart at ONE: Bad Blood on February 11, 2022. Saruta withdrew from the bout, after testing positive for COVID-19 on the day of the event. The fight was rescheduled for

ONE 156 ''ONE 156: Eersel vs. Sadiković'' was a Combat sport event produced by ONE Championship that took place on April 22, 2022, at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Background The event will be headlined by a ONE Lightweight Kickb ...

on April 22, 2022. Saruta lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

ONE Championship ONE Championship (formerly ONE Fighting Championship) is a Singaporean combat sports promotion. Founded on 14 July 2011 by entrepreneur Chatri Sityodtong and former ESPN Star Sports senior executive Victor Cui, its events have featured mixed ...

** ONE Strawweight Championship (One time; former) *

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 ...

** Shooto World Flyweight (114lbs) Championship (One time) *** One successful title defense ** 2012 Infinity Bantamweight Tournament **2018 Fighter of the Year *eFight.jp **Fighter of the Month for January 2019 **Fighter of the Month for October 2019

Mixed martial arts record

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Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

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, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 17–7–3 , Itchaku Murata , KO (punches) , Shooto: Shooto Professional 5/13 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 0:45 ,

Kawasaki, Kanagawa is a Cities of Japan, city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, one of the main cities of Greater Tokyo Area and Keihin Industrial Area. It is the second most populated city in Kanagawa Prefecture after Yokohama, and the List of cities in Japan, eight ...

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, Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Shooto Professional 1/28 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 15–7–3 , Ryuto Sawada , KO (punches) , Shooto: Shooto Professional10/15 , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 2:37 ,

Urayasu, Chiba 260px, old Urayasu is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 170,533 in 81,136 households and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Urayasu is best known as the home of the Tokyo ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 14–7–3 , Koha Minowa , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Shooto Professional 4/23 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Draw , align=center, 13–7–3 ,

Junji Ito is a Japanese horror manga artist. Some of his most notable works include ''Tomie'', a series chronicling an immortal girl who drives her stricken admirers to madness; ''Uzumaki'', a three-volume series about a town obsessed with spirals; and ...

, Draw (majority) , Shooto: Shooto Professional 1/29 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 13–7–2 , Luis Gonzalez , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Shooto Professional 7/17 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 12–7–2 , Teppei Maeyama , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Shooto Professional 3/21 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 11–7–2 , Hiroshi Roppongi , KO (punch) , Shooto: Shooto Professional 1/11 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:18 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–7–2 ,

Hiromasa Ougikubo Hiromasa Ougikubo (born 1 April 1987) is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently competing as a flyweight in the Rizin Fighting Federation. A professional since 2006, he has also competed for Shooto, Vale Tudo Japan, and The Ultimate Fighte ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Professional Shooto 11/29 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–6–2 , Hayato Suzuki , Decision (unanimous) , Grandslam MMA 2: Way of the Cage , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–5–2 , Mamoru Yamaguchi , TKO (doctor stoppage) , Vale Tudo Japan: VTJ 6th , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:25 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 9–4–2 , Shunichi Shimizu , Decision (unanimous) , Grandslam MMA 1: Way of the Cage , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 8–4–2 , Masaaki Sugawara , Decision (majority) , Shooto: Gig Tokyo 16 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–4–2 , Ryuichi Miki , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: 5th Round 2013 , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Draw , align=center, 7–3–2 , Ryuichi Miki , Draw (split) , Shooto: 3rd Round 2013 , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 7–3–1 , Kentaro Watanabe , KO (punches) , Shooto: Border: Season 5 - First , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:52 ,

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, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5–3–1 , Yuki Nishigo , Technical Submission (guillotine choke) , Shooto: Gig Tokyo 11 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:26 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4–3–1 , Hiroshi Osato , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Gig Tokyo 9 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–3–1 , Akinobu Watanabe , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Shooto: Gig Tokyo 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–3–1 , Tatsuya Nakashima , TKO (arm injury) , Shooto: Shooting Disco 11: Tora Tora Tora! , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:54 ,

, Japan , , - , Draw , align=center, 2–2–1 , Nozumi Otsuka , Draw (split) , Shooto: The Rookie Tournament 2009 Final , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2–2 , Jun Nagasoe , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: Gig Tokyo 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1–2 , Takahiro Kohori , TKO (punches) , Shooto: Gig Saitama 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:06 ,

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References

External links

Yosuke Saruta
at ONE {{DEFAULTSORT:Saruta, Yosuke 1987 births Living people People from Kawaguchi, Saitama Japanese male mixed martial artists Strawweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Japanese practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Sportspeople from Saitama Prefecture ONE Championship champions