Hero's was a Japanese
mixed martial arts promotion operated by
Fighting and Entertainment Group, the parent entity behind
kickboxing
Kickboxing is a combat sports, combat sport focused on kicking and punch (strike), punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is pract ...
organization
K-1
K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...
. Grown from and branched off of K-1's earlier experiments in MMA, including the ''K-1 Romanex'' event and various MMA fights on its regular K-1 kickboxing cards, it held its first show on March 26, 2005. The promotion was handled by former
Rings head
Akira Maeda
(born Go Il-myeong (Hangul: 고일명, Hanja: 高日明), January 24, 1959) is a Japanese mixed martial arts promoter, writer and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist of Korean descent. Maeda was also known by the ring name K ...
. At a press conference on February 13, 2008, FEG announced that they discontinued Hero's and were creating a new mixed martial arts franchise,
Dream, in collaboration with former Pride FC executives from
Dream Stage Entertainment.
History
Although not as popular worldwide as the
Ultimate Fighting Championship or the now defunct
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 ...
, Hero's was very recognizable in the Japanese mixed martial arts scene, thanks in large part to the visibility and resources of
FEG and K-1. Hero's events were sometimes co-sponsored and broadcast on the
TBS national television network in Japan.
In contrast to PRIDE and the UFC, Hero's promoted only three weight classes: middleweight (-70 kg/-154 lbs), light heavyweight (-85 kg/-187 lbs) and heavyweight (+85 kg/+187 lbs)
United States
On March 27, 2007, FEG (the Fighting Entertainment Group) held a press conference at