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Yarennoka!
''Yarennoka!'' () was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event that took place on December 31, 2007 at the Saitama Super Arena in Tokyo, Japan. The event was promoted by the Yarennoka! Executive Committee, composed of former Pride Fighting Championships executives, and held in association with Fighting and Entertainment Group, DEEP, and M-1 Global. The event aired on HDNet and was billed as "Fedor Returns" in the United States; while it was shown on SKY Perfect, a Japanese pay per view network. It was headlined by a fight between former Pride heavyweight champion and 2004 heavyweight Grand Prix champion Fedor Emelianenko and K-1 2007 World Grand Prix Finalist Hong-man Choi. The undercard showcased many top lightweight fighters and was also marked by a marquee matchup of the Pride 2006 Welterweight Grand Prix Champion Kazuo Misaki and the Hero's 2006 Light Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion Yoshihiro Akiyama. The event was a farewell show to Pride fans after their acquisition by the Ultim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yoshihiro Akiyama
, also known as and by his nickname Sexyama, is a Japanese mixed martial artist and judoka who won the gold medal at the 2001 Asian Championships for South Korea and for Japan at the 2002 Asian Games. He is the former K-1 HERO's Light Heavyweight Grand Prix Tournament Champion. Judo career Before his professional mixed martial arts career, Akiyama was a decorated Judoka. He began training in Judo at the age of three. He has also trained karate, boxing, kickboxing, wrestling and also submission wrestling with Greg Jackson. 2001 Asian championships Representing South Korea, Choo won the gold medal at the 2001 Asian Judo Championships. 2002 Asian Games Representing Japan, Akiyama won the gold medal at the 2002 Asian Games defeating Ahn Dong-Jin of South Korea in the finals. 2003 World Judo Championships controversy Akiyama defeated three opponents from France, Mongolia and Turkey to reach the semi-finals of the 81 kg Light Middleweight division. However, all three opp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shinya Aoki
is a Japanese mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and grappler competing in ONE Championship's Welterweight division. He also competes in DDT Pro-Wrestling where he is a former three-time DDT Extreme Champion. A professional competitor since 2003, he is noted for being the DREAM Lightweight Champion, former two time ONE Lightweight World Champion, former WAMMA Lightweight Champion and former Shooto Welterweight Champion. Aoki is an A-class Shootist and BJJ black belt, both under his long-term mentor Yuki Nakai, as well as a black belt Judoka. As of 2008, Aoki, along with DEEP champion Masakazu Imanari, and Sengoku champion Satoru Kitaoka have founded the "Nippon Top Team" as a group of elite Japanese grapplers competing in MMA. As well as his MMA credentials, Aoki has garnered several submission grappling accolades including two All Japan Jiu-Jitsu Championships, a Japan Open Jiu-Jitsu Championship, a Budo Open Championship, and an ADCC Japan Championship. E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko; (born 28 September 1976) is a Russian former professional mixed martial artist (MMA), sambist, judoka and politician. Emelianenko was the PRIDE Heavyweight Champion from 2003 to the organisation's closure in 2007, a four-time combat sambo world champion, a seven-time combat sambo national champion, and two-time Russian national judo bronze medalist, among other championships and accolades. He also competed in RINGS, Strikeforce, M-1 Global, Rizin, and Bellator MMA, and is regarded as the most prominent fighter never to compete in the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship). Emelianenko is widely considered to be one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, consistently ranked as the top heavyweight fighter from 2003 until 2010, and the best fighter of the 2000s. Emelianenko's career helped popularize the sport of MMA in his home country of Russia after gaining attention in Japan, South Korea, the United States, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Murilo Bustamante
Murilo Bustamante (; born 30 July 1966) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Middleweight Champion. He is one of the founders of the '' Brazilian Top Team'' and is the current leader. In addition to competing for the UFC, he has also fought in PRIDE, making it to the Pride Shockwave 2005 Final, and also fought in Yarennoka! Background Bustamante was born in coastal Rio de Janeiro and originally had dreams of professional surfing, but began training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu soon after having his first fight when he was 10 years old. He began officially competing when he was 15, before adding judo, and then began boxing when he was 18. He is a black belt under the renowned Carlson Gracie. He has won numerous world titles in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which includes the World Championships of Jiu-Jitsu. Instructor lineage Kano Jigoro → Tomita Tsunejiro → Mitsuyo "Count Koma" Maeda → Carlos Gracie, Sr. → Carlson Gracie → Murilo Bustamante Spor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hayato Sakurai
(born August 24, 1975) also known as , 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!, Dynamite!! 2008, Dynamite!! 2009, Dynamite!! 2010, and Fight For Japan: Genki Desu Ka Omisoka 2011 events. Sakurai finished second (Silver) in the Absolute Class (no weight limit) ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship in 1999 at just under 77 kg. During the height of his career in 2000 and 2001 he was considered to be one of the top pound for pound fighters in MMA. He is the former Shooto Middleweight Champion. His nickname, " Mach", pronounced ''ma-ha'' in Japanese was taken as a tribute to his childhood professional wrestling hero, Higo Shigehisashi better known as Mach Hayato, the first Japanese professional wrestler to completely embrace the Mexican style of lucha libre and was also among the group of professional ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jung Bu-kyung
Jung Bu-kyung ( born 26 May 1978) is a South Korean judoka and professional mixed martial artist. Judo career Jung began judo at the age of eleven under the instruction of his father. He won a gold medal at the 1998 World University Judo Championships in Prague. Two years later, he won a silver medal at the -60 kg category of the 2000 Summer Olympics. In the final, he lost to three-time Olympic champion Tadahiro Nomura by ippon only fourteen seconds into the match. After graduation from Korea National Sport University in 2001, he continued to train with the KRA Judo Team. He moved up in weight to the 66 kg class, and won a gold medal at the 2003 Asian Judo Championships in Jeju. However, Jung failed to qualify for the 2004 Olympic Games by losing to Bang Gui-man in the national qualification match. Mixed martial arts career Jung made his MMA debut on 31 December 2007 against Japanese grappler Shinya Aoki at Yarennoka!. Jung was replacing American Top Team's Ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 event in the Saitama Super Arena in Japan. Background Originally from the Ibaraki Prefecture in Japan, Ishida was a talented wrestler, ranking in the top five nationally during his high school years for the Greco-Roman category. Mixed martial arts career Early career Ishida's professional debut was on July 6, 2001 at Shooto: To the Top 6 against Daisuke Sugie where he lost via unanimous decision. He then went on to win his next four fights. On February 17, 2006 he defeated Kenichiro Togashi to become the Shooto Pacific Rim Welterweight Champion. PRIDE Ishida won his first four fights in the PRIDE organization, defeating fighters such as Marcus Aurelio and Cristiano Marcello. At PRIDE Shockwave 2006 he lost to Takanori Gomi in a non-titl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gilbert Melendez
Gilbert Melendez (born April 12, 1982) is an American mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a two-time Strikeforce Lightweight Champion and a former WEC Lightweight Champion. He also competed in PRIDE FC, Shooto and Rumble on the Rock. Melendez was nicknamed after the El Niño storm, it was given to him by a Japanese broadcaster describing his fight-style and the manner in which he stormed through the Shooto Lightweight division. Background Melendez is from Santa Ana, California, of Mexican descent. He wrestled at Santa Ana High School. Melendez always enjoyed combat sports and competition, but did not start training in MMA until after college when he was introduced to the sport by his good friend and MMA fighter Jake Shields. Melendez attended San Francisco State University and was studying in liberal arts, he anticipated becoming a teacher but did not finish his college education and get a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Choi Hong-man
Choi Hong-man (; born October 30, 1980), often anglicised to Hongman Choi, is a South Korean kickboxer, mixed martial artist, and former ssireum wrestler. In Asia, he is called "Che Man", "Techno Goliath", "Korean Monster" and "Korean Colossus". He won the 2005 K-1 Seoul Grand Prix beating Kaoklai Kaennorsing in the finals. He stands and weighs . Career Ssireum (until 2004) At the 2003 Ssireum Championships, he won the title against his long-time rival Kim Young-hyun (often anglicised to Younghyun Kim). A year later, he reached the final again, where he was defeated by Kim. Across all Combat sport styles, there has never been anywhere a fight of such physical proportions between two athletes. Choi weighed standing tall, Kim weighed standing tall. This even surpasses the WBA heavyweight championship between Nikolay Valuev ( at ) and Jameel McCline ( at ), which is considered a record in boxing in terms of physique. Valuev and McCline brought together and , Choi and Kim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saitama Super Arena
is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Chūō-ku, Saitama, Chūō-ku, Saitama (city), Saitama, Saitama Prefecture, Japan. It opened preliminarily on May 5, 2000, and then was officially opened on September 1 of the same year. Its maximum capacity is 36,500. The main arena capacity is between 19,000 and 22,500. The arena was designed by Dan Meis, who at the time was working for architecture firm Ellerbe Becket, together with Nikken Sekkei. Meis's design was selected as a result of an international design competition. The arena features a gigantic movable section of seating which can reduce capacity for smaller events and create a more intimate setting. It is a favorite venue for puroresu (Japanese professional wrestling) and mixed martial arts (MMA). It has also hosted other sports events such as boxing, basketball, volleyball, tennis, ice hockey, and gymnastics. It is the only Japanese arena equipped especially for American football. It formerly housed the John Lennon Museum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Makoto Takimoto
is a Japanese retired judoka and mixed martial artist from Nihon University. He won a gold medal at the Half Middleweight category of the 2000 Summer Olympics. __TOC__ Judo career Takimoto was relatively unknown entering the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia with his biggest victory before 2000 coming in the 1995 Asian Games. He recorded a Sode tsurikomi goshi and two Yukos in the gold medal match vs. In-Chul Cho. Throughout his career, Takimoto defeated many notable judoka, including Olympic medalists Djamel Bouras, Bertrand Damaisin and Flávio Canto. Mixed martial arts career Takimoto began to consider a career in MMA after attending Pride 28 on October 31, 2004 and seeing his friends and fellow judoka have success in the sport. He announced on December 7, 2004 that he would make his debut at Pride Shockwave 2004 against any fighter at any weight, as long as it was a "non-judo fighter." He got his wish and made his debut vs. former Sumo Maegashira Henry Mille ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fighting And Entertainment Group
Fighting and Entertainment Group (FEG) was the leading Japanese combat sport promoter founded on September 3, 2003. Its last president was Sadaharu Tanikawa and it was the parent company behind the now-defunct mixed martial arts series Dream and formerly, the largest kickboxing promotion in the world, K-1. FEG was founded in order to administrate K-1 after its founder and president Kazuyoshi Ishii was arrested for money laundering. Sports journalist and Ishii's acquaintance Sadaharu Tanikawa was his successor and created FEG as a holding company for K-1, eventually including other events under its umbrella, such as MMA promotions Rumble on the Rock, Hero's and Dream, as well doing co-productions with Dream Stage Entertainment, the parent company of PRIDE Fighting Championships. Financial crisis On December 31, 2010, after the Dream event Dynamite!! 2010, Tanikawa announced a three-month hiatus for FEG, stating, "2011 is a comeback year for us. We will restructure the compan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
