(born May 10, 1974) 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 ...

competing in the

welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify the ...

division. A student of 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 ...

competitor

Noboru Asahi is a Japanese retired mixed martial artist, a designer, and an owner of MMA gym. He was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan on January 5, 1968, as . Mixed martial arts career A former amateur wrestler, Asahi was trained in Satoru Sayama's Supe ...

, he has competed in

, Cage Force, and the

UFC 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 ...

. On December 1, 2007, he became the first Cage Force welterweight tournament winner.

Career

Early career

In 2007, Yoshida was entered into a Cage Force welterweight tournament sponsored by the Worldwide Cage Network. In the opening round of the tournament, Yoshida defeated two-time interim

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 ...

champion Katsuya Inoue by knockout. He went on to defeat Matt Cain in the quarterfinals and former Shooto champion

Akira Kikuchi is a Japanese retired mixed martial artist and a former Shooto Welterweight (76 kg) Champion. He trained alongside Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto with the ''Killer Bee'' team. Career After a background in judo, Kikuchi began his mixed martial arts ca ...

in the semi-finals of the tournament. In the finals, Yoshida defeated

Dan Hardy Daniel Mark Hardyhttp://boxing.nv.gov/2012%20Results%20Web/05-26-12%20MMA.pdf (born 17 May 1982) is an English former mixed martial artist who fought in the welterweight division. During his professional MMA career, which began in 2004, Hardy ...

by disqualification after being struck by a kick to the groin, becoming the first Cage Force welterweight tournament winner.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

After the tournament's closing, Yoshida was offered a contract with the

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 ...

. It was originally speculated that the winners of the Cage Force tournaments were to be selected to compete in the UFC's active roster. Yoshida made his debut in the UFC at ''

UFC 84 ''UFC 84: Ill Will'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on May 24, 2008, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The card featured the return of Sean Sherk, who was suspended and ...

'', choking ''

The Ultimate Fighter 6 ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra'' was the sixth season of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter'', and premiered on September 19, 2007 on Spike TV, after ''UFC Fight N ...

'' contestant Jon Koppenhaver unconscious by

Anaconda choke Arm triangle choke, side choke, or head and arm choke are generic terms describing blood chokeholds in which the opponent is strangled in between their own shoulder and the practitioner's arm. This is as opposed to the regular triangle choke, whi ...

submission. He was scheduled to meet

Karo Parisyan Karapet "Karo" Parisyan ( hy, Կարապետ Փարիզյան; born August 28, 1982) is an Armenian-American mixed martial artist, who last competed in the welterweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 1999, Parisyan is a ...

in September at UFC 88 but Parisyan pulled out of the bout only two hours before the weigh-ins citing an injury. Yoshida then faced

Josh Koscheck Edinboro Fighting Scots Josh D. Koscheck (born November 30, 1977) is an American retired mixed martial artist who fought at Welterweight for the UFC and Bellator MMA. Koscheck made his debut with the UFC on the first season of the realit ...

at UFC: Fight for the Troops on December 10, 2008, a fight which he lost by 1st round knockout. Unfortunately for Yoshida, the first knockout punch from Koscheck occurred with Yoshida's back against the cage, preventing Yoshida from falling down, allowing Koscheck to land another devastating haymaker on Yoshida's jaw, sending him crashing to the canvas in a motionless heap. UFC reported, "Yoshida, who remained on the canvas while being tended to by commission doctors, was removed from the Octagon on a stretcher as a precautionary measure. He was later treated and released from a local hospital for a concussion". Yoshida then fought

Brandon Wolff Brandon W.K. Wolff (born October 18, 1975) is an American mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and former United States Navy SEALs, Navy SEAL, who is perhaps best known for his short stint in the Welterweight (MMA), Welterweight division of t ...

at UFC 98: Evans vs. Machida on May 23, 2009 and won the bout by guillotine choke in the first round. Yoshida's fought against Anthony Johnson at

UFC 104 ''UFC 104: Machida vs. Shogun'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Background As with UFC 103, the UFC announced a portion of the preliminary card would ...

. The fight became a catchweight bout of 176 when Johnson missed weight by six pounds, Yoshida (weighed in at 170 lb) agreed to fight at catchweight. Yoshida lost by first round TKO. Yoshida then faced

Mike Guymon Michael Kevin Guymon (born September 17, 1974) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist who formerly competed in Bellator's Lightweight division. He has also competed for the UFC, as an alternate for the Tucson Scorpions in the IF ...

on May 8, 2010 at

UFC 113 ''UFC 113: Machida vs. Shogun 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on May 8, 2010, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Background UFC 113 featured the rematch between Lyoto Machida and Mauríci ...

. Yoshida lost to Guymon by unanimous decision, losing all three rounds. After losing to Guymon and dropping his UFC record to 2-3, Yoshida was released from the UFC.

Bellator Fighting Championships

Yoshida made his debut for

Bellator Fighting Championships Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media conglomerate Paramount Global. ...

on September 30, 2010 against

Chris Lozano Chris Lozano (born September 14, 1982) is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. A professional since 2008, he has fought for Bellator, and was a competitor on Fight Master: Bellator MMA. Background Lozano began wrestling w ...

. He lost via corner stoppage between rounds 2 and 3 due to a severely swollen eye.

ONE Championship

On July 18 it was announced that Yoshida would be facing

Pride FC 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 ...

Elite XC Elite Xtreme Combat, also known as EliteXC, was a United States-based mixed martial arts (MMA) organization owned and operated by ProElite. It was founded as a partnership between Showtime Networks and ProElite and officially announced on Decembe ...

Strikeforce Strike Force may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * ''Strike Force'' (video game), a 1991 arcade game *'' Commandos: Strike Force'', a 2006 video game *'' Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce'', a 2009 video game *''Marvel Strike Force'', ...

and

veteran

Phil Baroni Philip George Baroni (April 16, 1976) is a retired American mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and former kickboxer. A professional MMA competitor since 2000, Baroni has competed for the UFC, PRIDE, Strikeforce, Cage Rage, DREAM, Elit ...

at ONE Fighting Championship: Champion vs. Champion at the

Singapore Indoor Stadium The Singapore Indoor Stadium, known exonymously as the Indoor Stadium, is an indoor arena located in Kallang, Singapore. It is within walking distance of the Singapore National Stadium, and collectively form a part of the wider Singapore Spor ...

on September 3. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

BAMMA

Yoshida was expected to face

Nate Marquardt Nathan Joel Marquardt (born April 20, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the middleweight and welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 1999, he is a former Strikeforce W ...

in the main event of BAMMA 9 to determine an Inaugural World Welterweight Champion. However, on January 13, 2012, Marquardt was released from his contract with BAMMA officially due to the promotion pushing back BAMMA 9, and therefore his promotional debut, to March 24, 2012. Sources close to the situation believe that the release was due to the promotion not being able to afford the fighter's contract.

Titan Fighting Championship

Yoshida was expected make his

Titan Fighting Championships Titan Fighting Championship (Titan FC) is an American mixed martial arts promotion based out of Pompano Beach, Florida. Their shows were originally run in and near Kansas City and have since expanded to include venues all over North America and e ...

debut against Mike Ricci for the vacant Titan FC Lightweight Championship at Titan FC 31 on October 31, 2014. However, Ricci failed to make weight prior to the fight. Both men agreed to fight in a non-title 157 lb catchweight fight instead. However, Titan FC's Chief Operating Officer, Lex McMahon, announced that Yoshida was refusing to fight just hours before the event, forcing the cancellation of the fight entirely. Yoshida was immediately released from the promotion.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 18–9 , Yoshiyuki Katahira , Decision (split) , Deep: Cage Impact 2016: Deep vs. WSOF-GC , , 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, 18–8 , Kimihiro Eto , TKO (punches) , Deep: 73 Impact , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:19 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–8 , Kota Shimoishi , Decision (unanimous) , Deep: Osaka Impact 2015 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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 , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–7 ,

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 ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Deep - Dream Impact 2014: Omisoka Special , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , For Deep Lightweight Title , - , Win , align=center, 17–6 , Shigetoshi Iwase , Decision (unanimous) , Deep: 65 Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 16–6 , Won Sik Park , Submission (rear-naked choke) , DEEP: Cage Impact 2013 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:46 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 15–6 , Niko Puhakka , Submission (guillotine choke) , Fight Festival 32 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, N/A ,

Helsinki, Finland Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city' ...

, , - , Win , align=center, 14–6 , Jeremy Hamilton , Submission (rear-naked choke) , CFX 33: Minnesota vs. Japan , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:37 ,

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–6 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , ONE Fighting Championship 1: Champion vs. Champion , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Kallang Kallang is a planning area and residential town located in the Central Region of Singapore. Development of the town is centered around the Kallang River, the longest river in Singapore. Kallang Planning Area is bounded by Toa Payoh in the no ...

, Singapore , , - , Win , align=center, 12–6 ,

Ferrid Kheder Ferrid Kheder (born 3 March 1975) is a retired French judo Olympian who placed seventh at the Olympic Games in Sydney(2000) and a former professional mixed martial artist who fought from 2004 to 2013. Judo career Kheder began training judo ...

, TKO (punches) , Fighting Marcou Arena 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:44 , Herault, France , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–6 ,

, TKO (corner stoppage) ,

Bellator 31 2010 in Bellator MMA was the second installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships (Bellator FC)-produced series. It started on April 8, 2010 and ended June 24, 2010. Tournaments were held in the featherweight, lightweight, welterweight and m ...

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

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

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–4 , Anthony Johnson , TKO (punches) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:41 ,

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, United States , , 176 lb. catchweight bout , - , Win , align=center, 11–3 ,

, Submission (guillotine choke) ,

UFC 98 ''UFC 98: Evans vs. Machida'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on May 23, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background A title unification match between the Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir and U ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:24 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–3 ,

, KO (punch) , UFC: Fight for the Troops , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:15 ,

Fayetteville, North Carolina Fayetteville () is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city. Fayetteville has received the All-America C ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 , War Machine , Technical Submission (anaconda choke) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:56 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 ,

, DQ (accidental kick to the groin) , GCM: Cage Force 5 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:04 ,

, Japan , GCM welterweight final , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 ,

, TKO (elbows) , GCM: Cage Force 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:33 ,

, Japan , GCM welterweight semi-final , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Matt Cain , TKO (punches) , GCM: Cage Force EX Eastern Bound , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:59 ,

, Japan , GCM welterweight quarter-final , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Katsuya Inoue , KO (punches) , GCM: Cage Force 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:45 ,

, Japan , GCM welterweight qualifier , - , Win , align=center, 5–2 , Asato Hashimoto , TKO (elbow injury) , GCM: Cage Force 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:35 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4–2 , Hossein Ojaghi , Submission (armbar) , GCM: D.O.G. 7 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:36 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–2 , Luis Santos , TKO (corner stoppage) , Kokoro: Kill Or Be Killed , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2–2 , Mindaugas Smirnovas , TKO (punches) , Shooto: 3/24 in Korakuen Hall , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–2 ,

Keita Nakamura is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist and grappler currently competing in the Welterweight division of RIZIN. A professional competitor since 2003, he has formerly competed for the UFC, World Victory Road, Pancrase, Shooto, DREAM, ...

, Technical Decision (majority) , Shooto: 12/17 in Shinjuku Face , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:06 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Yoshitaro Niimi , Decision (majority) , Shooto: Shooter's Summer , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Akihiro Yamazaki , Decision (unanimous) , Shooto: 2/6 in Kitazawa Town Hall , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , -

Submission grappling record

KO PUNCHES , - style="text-align:center; background:#f0f0f0;" , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Result , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Opponent , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Method , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Event , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Date , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Round , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Time , style="border-style:none none solid solid; ", Notes , - , Loss, , Sotaro Yamada , , Submission (reverse neck crank) , , rowspan=2,

Quintet Fight Night 2 A quintet is a group containing five members. It is commonly associated with musical groups, such as a string quintet, or a group of five singers, but can be applied to any situation where five similar or related objects are considered a single ...

, , rowspan=2, February 3, 2019 , , 1, , 3:51, , , - , Draw, , Daisuke Nakamura , , Draw , , 1, , 10:00, , , -

References and footnotes

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yoshida, Yoshiyuki 1974 births Living people Japanese expatriate sportspeople in the United States Japanese male judoka Japanese male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Sportspeople from Tokyo Welterweight mixed martial artists Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters