Fletch Blog: Thomson Bout Could Be Career Revival for Kawajiri the Crusher

Published on various sites, December 21st 2010

Tatsuya Kawajiri is an elite fighter.

There are many fans of MMA out there who have never seen Kawajiri perform, I would wager. There are many in the western world who would compile their top 10 rankings and not give The Crusher a thought. Well, that is their problem; Tatsuya Kawajiri is a top lightweight, and he still has plenty left in his tank. And if the rumoured bout with Strikeforce challenge and former champion Josh Thomson comes to fruition, the former Shooto champion and Pride star has a very good shot at a dramatic career upswing.

Kawajiri has been labelled by some hardcore fans – unfairly – as a bridesmaid. The reasoning being that while he was the reigning Shooto champion, he was unable to emerge victorious in the Pride Lightweight Grand Prix, nor in his fight against fellow top 5 ranked fighter Gilbert Melendez at Shockwave 2006, nor could he win the Dream Lightweight Grand Prix in 2008, and most recently in his attempt to remove the Dream championship from around Shinya Aoki’s waist, he suffered ankle injuries after refusing for quite some time to submit to the heel hook that Aoki managed to secure on him early in the bout. These factors combine to add fuel to the fire of detractors, who say quite simply; Kawajiri is the bridesmaid, never the bride.

Against Thomson, this could all change. One has to feel that with one big win, Crusher will redeem himself and launch himself back onto the world map; a map that some feel he hasn’t entirely left as it stands anyway.

I feel Kawajiri is much better than he is viewed. The man is a warrior; a ground’n'pound style wrestler, who dominated a K-1 veteran in Kozo Takeda, and shows great thai-boxing abilities and a willingness to stand and trade. He was indeed once widely considered the #1 ranked lightweight in the world for a time – something that the aforementioned detractors vehemently disagree with – when he won the Shooto welterweight (154lbs) championship, beating elite lightweight Vitor “Shaolin” Ribiero. A title defence in Shooto later, and two wins in Pride Bushido events, and DreamStage Entertainment matched the top 2 ranked lightweights in the world up, in their Lightweight Grand Prix; Kawajiri, and the Fireball Kid, Takanori Gomi.

Gomi would emerge victorious, via chokeout in round 1, but the bout was deemed Fight of the Year by most MMA outlets at the time. The two went to war, it was an exceptional showing by both men, and while Kawajiri would never again be considered the #1 to this day, he has never slipped from the top 10, and always shows up to put on a show.

Tainted victory over a legend came next, as Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen was disqualified after only eight seconds for a low blow. On paper, this set Crusher back in motion, as Hellboy was another member of that Golden Generation from Shooto, and is the only man to beat Gomi, JZ Calvan, Caol Uno, Rumina Sato and three years after this point, Shinya Aoki. Kawajiri rolled over Charles Krazy Horse Bennet, and two wins later earned a high profile fight with the-then undefeated #2 ranked lightweight and p4p listed Gilbert Melendez, on Pride’s Shockwave 2006 card.

Again, misfortune struck. After a very close fight between the two elite combatants, Melendez got the nod unanimously from the judges; a decision that many feel should have gone Kawajiri’s way. This win would have solidified Kawajiri firmly in the top 3, and potentially earned him a rematch with Gomi for the Pride belt and the bragging rights of Japan. As it was, any momentum he may have had was once again depleted, and Kawajiri was the contender; not the champion. The bridesmaid; not the bride.

It was a year before Crusher fought again; outpointing capable Chute Boxe fighter Luis Azeredo on the Yarennokka card that was essentially a farewell to PrideFC. Then, he signed for Fighting Entertainment Group, in the fledging successor to Pride and its amalgamation of sorts with the existing Hero’s; DREAM.

Two Grand Prix wins later, and Kawajiri stood facing the American Eddie Alvarez for a shot at Aoki in the finals. With Gomi at this stage in decline, the Crusher was the clear cut #2 lightweight in Japan behind Aoki, who was consensus #1 after an incredible resume in that weight class over the last three years. It was Crushers chance to not only reclaim (or to finally earn) the #1 ranking and Japanese bragging rights, but to earn his first major championship outside of the Shooto belt. And in this consensus Fight of the Year for 2008…. he was stopped, late in round 1.

Again, he bounced back. After choking out Ross Ebanez to get back in the winners circle, Kawajiri faced off against the former K-1 Hero’s champion and still-top ranked fighter Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante. And in the fight itself, Crusher defied the tag of “bridesmaid” by dominating the fight with both his ground and pound, ground control, and in winning the striking exchanges on the feet. He proved his superiority over a champion, and once more put his name back among the very best few 155lbs fighters in the world.

He defeated Sengoku contender Kazunori Yokota at Dynamite 2009 to further solidify his standing as Japan’s #2, and waited patiently until June, when he finally got his shot; a match against former (and future) training partner and friend, Japan’s premier fighter, the Dream and WAMMA lightweight champion, Shinya Aoki.

Many felt that this was finally Kawajiri’s time. They pointed out that Melendez, whom Crusher had arguably beaten, comfortably dealt with Aoki’s takedown attempts in Aoki’s stateside cage debut, and that Melendez and Kawajiri were well-matched skillwise. They pointed out that Kawajiri could be deemed to have superior submission defence to Eddie Alvarez, also a powerful wrestler-striker, whom Aoki had surprised with an unorthodox takedown into a heel hook. The odds were even; many felt that it was Kawajiri’s time to shine.

What transpired that night, would be the worst night of his career. In a fight reminiscent of the Alvarez/Aoki fight, the Dream champion used the same leg grapevine takedown into a heel hook early in the fight, and though Crusher bravely held out for a minute, eventually the fight was called off. Kawajiri was dominated; embarrassed, and injured.

But don’t write him off. Back training with Aoki, this man has the potential to beat ANY lightweight in the world on his best day. And he isn’t done yet.

The rumour mill is swirling, and apparently Josh Thomson could be next in line to face the Crusher at Dream’s Dynamite card on New Years Eve. This fight could be perfect for Tatsuya to bounce back. Thomson just beat JZ Calvan; he is a former Strikeforce champion with excellent wrestling and decent standup. But is his wrestling any better than a motivated Kawajiri’s? Is his standup on par with a man who destroyed a K-1 veteran in Takeda, and went two rounds with the legendary K-1 MAX champion Masato?

This could be THE fight in which Crusher bounces back into the title mix, and earns a shot at the elites. He is 32; there is time yet. His last fight against Aoki aside, Kawajiri is not yet a wartorn, battle-scarred old veteran, slowing down and at the end. He is still an elite, dangerous warrior who could give any lightweight on the planet fits. And after the Aoki embarrassment, he will be more dangerous than ever. He is on the ropes, and defeat now would be disastrous. This is his time to make a statement.

If this fight goes down, look for a Kawajiri win from softening Thomson up on the feet before ending it with ground’n'pound.

At least, this Crusher fan hopes so…. it is time he became all that he could be.

And that equates to one word; champion.

Fletch

K-1/Dream Dynamite Finally Shaping Up: Fights Announced

Published on various sites, December 2010

You can’t stop rock’n'roll, and you cant stop JMMA either.

Even though they may be on the verge of death, lets hope that FEG plan on going down swinging. The Dynamite card has looked disastrous, with only one fight booked less than a month prior to the card. Now, the filler is being arranged around the FW title fight, and fingers crossed, it will be another memorable end of year card and a solid addition to what is actually my favourite event in all of fightsports.

Last year saw the anticipation of a Dream vs Sengoku head to head theme, at least on the Mixed Martial Arts side of the card. Aoki vs Hirota in particular drew much speculation, as some pondered whether or not the mercurial Dream champ had FINALLY met his kryptonite at lightweight, a powerful boxer-wrestler. While it was not to be, as Aoki promptly snapped Hirota’s arm in a copper-lock (it would be Aoki’s next fight against Gilbert Melendez that finally saw the JMMA juggernaut toppled), the anticipation for the card was fever pitch, despite Overeem and Mousasi booked in what were ostensibly “squash matches”… which proved to be the case.

This year, due to their obvious financial perils, the affair and build up seems a tad more subdued. But now, FINALLY, there seems to be some momentum and focus.

Surpassing what appeared to be main-event in Bibiano vs Takaya II – a rematch of the FW Grand Prix final, with the belt at stake – is the reported Welterweight title match-up, as returning Grand Prix winner Marius Zaromskis makes his first divisional defence of the title against former MW, LHW and Open Weight legend Kazushi Sakuraba, who drops down to welterweight for the first time, after a career that includes victories over UFC openweight, heavyweight, and light heavyweight champions alike.

Zaromskis is on a two-fight skid, but always dangerous. Sakuraba is more removed from his prime than Hugh Heffner. But regardless, the Gracie Hunter is one of the most entertaining and talented fighters in the history of recorded fightsports, so it is not unfeasible that he could defeat the wounded Zaromskis, a man whose primary skill is striking anyway. A vintage Saku submission? It would take a hardcore Whitemare fan to not wish to see the triumphant goodbye of a legend of the game like Saku, who outside of his skills is truly one of the gutsiest bastards to ever step in a ring.

As I called on IronForgesIron over a month ago (brushes dirt off shoulder)  Tatsuya Kawajiri will face fellow top 10 ranked Strikeforce lightweight and former champion Josh Thomson, who is fresh from defeating former K-1 Hero’s LW champ JZ Cavalcante. See this article for my feelings on that tasty, tasty matchup:  http://ironforgesiron.net/index.php/2010/11/fletch-blog-thomson-bout-could-be-career-revival-for-kawajiri-the-crusher-2/

The annual minor K-1 tourney has been cancelled, but with the reported participation of JLB in an MMA-rules bout (as ever – some things never change) and of course the usual suspects; no, not Todd Hackney, McManus, Fenster, Verbal Kint and Dean Keaton, but Alistair Overeem, Melvin Manhoef and Gegard Mousasi…then perhaps, let us dare to DREAM that this Dynamite card – heavily rumoured to be the last FEG event before financial collapse – can live up to expectations and end the year 2010 on the best note possible.

Banzai, JMMA fans. Dare to DREAM.

Fletch

Wannabe Defector Ishii Rolls Through Another Bizarre Matchup: Shibata Suffers Tenth Loss

Published on various websites, 14 November 2010


Satoshi Ishii was supposed to be the saviour of J-MMA.

Not just of Sengoku, or of Dream. The Olympic Champion Judoka was destined to dazzle adoring Asian audiences and drag the struggling scene out of the doldrums it has found itself in since the demise of Pride. It was nailed on; he was The Chosen One. He challenged Fedor, he was scheduled to fight the green but powerful Lesnar, and when this fell flat he instead ended up headlining the prestigious New Years Eve Dynamite 2009 card with another Japanese Olympic Judo hero, Hidehiko Yoshida….. and he lost.

From there on in, his career has been a circus show; mismanagement and bizarre fights, crazy rumours, and it only continued at the K-1 MAX Grand Prix 2010 card, on which he fought the nights only MMA fight, against late replacement…. puro resu star Katsuyori Shibata.
In all fairness, Ishii’s original opponent Antz Nansen cancelled late, citing poor health. But even so; Ishii’s career began with a very high profile loss against a now-retired, then-post prime Yoshida, and has been hectic since. He was even rumoured to be fighting Jerome LeBanner – under K-1 RULES! Madness. All credit to Shibata for stepping in like the warrior he is, but the tenth defeat of his MMA career was inevitable, and it came courtesy of a kimura three minutes into the first round.

Now, the spectacle continues. Ishii has spurned the chance to fight at FEG’s illustrious Dynamite NYE card, and has called out Tito Ortiz to do battle. Tito is contracted to the UFC; the very org that Ishii declined to sign with nearly two years ago prior to his debut, instead allying himself to Japanese promoters World Victory Road, from whom he defected in turn to FEG.
Whether or not this further defection – this time from JMMA altogether – will go down as Ishii intends, remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure; Ishii’s management have NOT done a bang up job in terms of nurturing the image of their supposed “saviour of JMMA”… an image that is being increasingly tarnished with every crazy rumour, every freak show fight he has against vastly undersized opponents, or every noise that emerges that suggests he now wishes to defect from the very fight scene that he is supposed to help revive.

Fletch

Shinya Aoki, Lightweight Greatness and The Deepest Recent Resume In The Sport

Published by Daniel Fletcher on www.lowkick.com - http://www.lowkick.com/Dream/Fletch-Blog-Shinya-Aoki-Lightweight-Greatness-and-The-Deepest-Recent-Resume-In-The-Sport-9857

Fletch Blog: Shinya Aoki, Lightweight Rankings and the Habit of Overlooking Asian Greatness


Hello… hello… it’s good to be back, it’s good to be back! So sang Liam Gallagher in his dulcet tones, back in the heady days of 1995; the year when his band were the biggest around, and the year in which Ken Shamrock ruled the roost in the UFC. And so sing I, returning in written form to destroy the pitiful logic of some more feeble-minded simpletons, who parrot the USA-centric propaganda propagated by the larger Mixed Martial Arts promotions in North America. I mean one in particular, but I’m sure I don’t have to name them. I’d only put “Axis” somewhere in the title, and have it justifiably edited out later on. But you know who I mean.

As with my first piece of prose on LowKick, straight from the annals of http://mmafletch.blogspot.com, this second piece strives to correct the opinions of the misinformed, and it is centred on another MMA legend, who also honed his craft under the glare of the Rising Sun. In this case, it is because this particular fighting champion happens to originate from Japan itself… the man who I feel strongly is the #1 lightweight in the world… The Tobikan Judan, Shinya Aoki.


All rise, for the Rainbow Panted one. I’ll warn you now, kids; plenty of people across the forums have heaped hatred on this man in the most vitriolic way imaginable – he ALWAYS shoves it back down their throats. And this article will explain why.

Pull up a ringside seat, settle down, remove your grubby little hands from below your beltline, and place your hands on your knees like a gentleman. This topic is deserving of your utmost respect – I am here to discuss GREATNESS.

First of all, in order to drum the point home, let me preface my examination of Aoki’s legacy by making what clueless idiots may consider to be a bold statement, and what true fans will likely agree with. And it is as follows.

Shinya Aoki has the deepest resume over the last half decade, in the ENTIRE sport of MMA. Not just at lightweight… in the sport.

Those who adhere to the Zuffa LLC way of thinking may scoff, heap scorn upon this article and ooze slime in my general direction. But they are mistaken. They will say, “what about Anderson, he is undefeated in that same time frame, and has been the UFC middleweight champion…” I’m pleased for him. They may say, “oh what about the fortunes of… insert a fighters name who has grown popular under the UFC/Zuffa banner since early 2006. But away from the spotlight of the American propaganda, but under the glare of the Rising Sun, a man has forged a resume that is impossible to deny… and it sickens me when people do just that. It proves the ineffectiveness of the current coverage of the sport, the failures of its journalists and the effectiveness of the hype machine that pumps out its Dr Josef material from the heart of California and Nevada.

Imagine signing up to the forums at sherdog, the UG or mmalinker, and suggesting (as I have) that Aoki Shinya could possibly have a chance to defeat one Mr Baby Jay Penn. Try it – even after the two losses to Edgar, you will be scorned. You will be laughed off the forum. Laughed off, for suggesting that the man with the sport's deepest resume since prime Fedor has a chance to beat a fighter whose legacy is in the custody of the Zuffa hype machine...

Is the hype machine that powerful, that people will not entertain the idea of the man who has toppled champions from nigh on ALL organisations, and beaten more top 10 talent in recent years than ANYONE, even having a chance at beating “the invincible lightweight, BJ Penn? No one gives him a one in ten chance. How sickening, that though the hype was false and BJ just lost twice to an undersized lightweight, that it simply means there is a new guy in the UFC who would “destroy Aoki.”

Insert face palm emoticon. I would bet money on Shinya defeating any fighter below welterweight in MMA, provided the fight occurred in a ring. And yes, that includes the overhyped UFC stars too. Let me explain something – the reason many of the UFC guys who would “destroy Aoki” are even IN the top 10 in the first place, is because Aoki has been knocking the former occupants of those top 10 spots out of the rankings!!!

If there is another fighter in MMA with at least 9 victories over top 10 ranked opponents since 2006, please show him to me. If there is another fighter with a 15-2 divisional record at the highest level (Pride & Dream) that includes 12 top 10 ranked opponents since 2006, then please show him to me.

The thought that Aoki could not potentially snap the limbs of these overhyped UFC superstars is laughable. Melendez neutralising his grappling in the worst performance of Aoki’s career does not mean that Aoki cannot deal with elite, top 10 ranked guys with a boxer-wrestler style – he submitted p4p and elite lightweight Eddie Alvarez in a couple of minutes. Another powerful boxer-wrestler, Mizuto Hirota, was pretty much EMBARRASSED by Aoki, who snapped his arm with what is colloquially known as a “copper lock” (used by policemen) and then added insult to injury by showing him the middle finger salute whilst doing the Gremlin dance. JZ Cavalcante was Hero*s champion, p4p list member and no slouch himself – Aoki soundly decisioned him. And as for Shaolin Ribiero – ANOTHER top ranked lightweight, the master grappler Aoki even put on a striking clinic!

Yet Aoki has “no chance” against Frankie Edgar, Kenny Florian, BJ Penn? These guys “all destroy him in one round?”






















Am I literally the only forum poster in the online MMA community with any damn sense anymore? Aoki has the potential to show up and look sloppy if his takedowns are stuffed in a wide cage a la the Gil fight… he also has the potential to embarrass elite opponents, and put them out of action with snapped limbs. Aoki can submit anyone at his weight, and don’t let the propaganda fool you… he is on a divisional tear. Here is why.

Shinya Aoki currently holds a 15-2 win/loss record at lightweight, and a 9-3 ledger at welterweight. I will examine his campaign at lightweight, to explain why this criminally underrated MONSTER of Mixed Martial Arts is quickly compiling what could well become the greatest resume at his weight division both in the sports short history, and for many, many years to come.

After going 7-2 in Shooto’s middleweight division (welterweight in the western world) Aoki began his lightweight odyssey in 2006. The pinnacle of Mixed Martial Arts competition, Pride Fighting Championships snapped up the promising youngster, who despite being undersized at the weight, had won the Shooto middleweight (170lbs) championship, and gone the distance with J-MMA O.G. Hayato “Mach” Sakurai. It was a wise decision – a new star was blooded on the big stage, and Aoki won all three of his bouts in Pride. He would of course go on to become a huge star and standard-bearer for the successor of that wonderful, doomed organisation.

Aoki claimed his first big scalp outside of Shooto that year, when on October 14th 2006 he defeated George Sotiropoulos, a man who is still a top ranked fighter with only one other loss in his career. This win may seem on the surface an inauspicious start to lightweight and pound-for-pound greatness, given that it is technically a DQ loss due to the illegal foul committed by George, but still… Aoki had been handsomely outgrappling the Australian, and it was likely he was en route to a submission victory.

A triangle choke win followed some weeks later at Pride Bushido 13, before Aoki came up against another elite fighter – Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen. Now, anyone who knows MMA, in particular the Japanese scene, knows that Hellboy Hansen is a savage. This is a guy who beat prime Takanori Gomi, prime JZ Cavalcante, prime Caol Uno, prime Masakazu Imanari, prime Rumina Sato, had been the Shooto Welterweight champion, and of course was the future Dream Lightweight Grand Prix winner, and thus future Dream Lightweight champion. Hellboy is and was Japanese MMA royalty.

Aoki submitted him via gogoplata in 2:24 of round 1. It is fitting that this event was called Pride: Shockwave, because the victory by gogo over one of the most feared lightweights around sent shockwaves throughout the MMA world. The then 23-year-old Aoki had arrived on the big stage with a bang, and was by now entrenched in the elite rankings. Four years later, there is no sign of him dropping out of them.

Roll on 2007, and Aoki’s tear continued. His record for the year would be 3-0, his best win over Akira Kikuchi – a man who competed in the welterweight division, and held a win over future p4p list entrant and Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields. In the light of 2010, a win over Shields is extremely impressive, but it was a feat he could not manage with Aoki; the Tobikan Judan narrowly, but rightly earned a decision win over the dangerous Kikuchi to defend his old Shooto middleweight championship.

The death of Pride was undoubtedly responsible for the relative lack of activity for Aoki in 2007, but with the emergence of a legitimate successor org to PrideFC in Dream, the Baka Survivor more than compensated in 2008. It would be one of the deepest gauntlets that any fighter has ever run in MMA, with Aoki facing top lightweight competition in a seven-fight murderers row.

First off was former K-1 Hero*s champion JZ Cavalcante, one of MMA’s then brightest stars. Illegal strikes curtailed that first fight – a no contest – but then the rematch resulted in an entertaining grappling exchange between both men… one that Aoki emerged victorious from. This also further advanced Shinya in the Dream Lightweight Grand Prix, the next round of which he successfully navigated with another first round gogoplata win over Katsuhiko Nagata. He was nearing his goal to proving his divisional dominance, and the sub-77kg fighters must have all been looking over their shoulders nervously.

July 21st 2008 was that fateful day. Clouds gathered, blocking out the rays of the Rising Sun, and tumbleweeds gathered in the streets of Tokyo, Nagoya, Yokohama, Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Only in Osaka could the rumble of distant movement be heard, as the people clamoured for tickets for the hottest show in town. It was time for the object of their love and hate to claim his mantle, take his place on the throne that had awaited him since early 2006. It was Aoki’s day.

He faced one of the unluckiest men in MMA, Caol Uno. They went the distance, after a predictably grappling based struggle, and despite Uno surviving a triangle choke attempt in which he came desperately close to losing, he managed only to survive in a losing effort, as all three judged deemed Aoki the winner. The tournament final in sight, Aoki had an impending encounter with either the dangerous Japanese wrestler with KO power, Tatsuya Kawajiri, or the perennial top 10 American Eddie Alvarez.

Disaster struck. His fellow semi-final victor Alvarez was unable to continue to the final in the one-night event, and he was replaced by former Aoki victim Hellboy Hansen. A fired up Hellboy delivered perhaps the best display of a glittering career in J-MMA, as he avenged his earlier loss in style. Aoki suffered his first ever loss at lightweight, and his first loss by technical knockout. Hellboy was the Grand Prix winner, and thus the inaugural Dream Lightweight Champion.

Despite the blip, Aoki pressed on. He got back to winning ways, and secured the Super-fight that fans had been denied at the Grand Prix finals, a bout with Eddie Alvarez that the World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts saw fit as to put their inaugural lightweight championship at stake in. Removing all doubts that if the Baka Survivor was not THE best lightweight in the sport, that he was still at least in the top 3, Aoki submitted the American after only 1:32 in round 1 with a heel hook. The 25-year-old had added a new belt to his growing collection, and a new name to his ever-growing collection of scalps of elite fighters.

Re-entry into the welterweight division followed, in the desire to try his luck in a second Grand Prix, and Aoki went 1-1 – defeating David Gardner in hilarious fashion after the American was foolish enough to wave at the crowd and shout “Hello Japan”, while the most dangerous Japanese submission artist had his back… and losing in a rematch to the legend, Hayato Sakurai. After this phase, Aoki was back in the saddle at lightweight. In the remainder of 2009, he would defeat FOUR top 10 ranked fighters in a row.

Aoki put on a surprise striking clinic against Vitor “Shaolin” Ribiero at Dream 10, then he got his rubber match against Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen. The Norwegian had been out of action for the previous year since winning the belt, but was still ranked, and had one of the more impressive 19-7 win/loss records that you are going to find in MMA. Aoki removed all doubts, facing him fresh without the wear and tear of a previous bout that night as he had at the Grand Prix finals, and in this third fight he won decisively – securing an armbar with only seconds left in the fight. Shinya Aoki had avenged his sole loss at lightweight, and become the Dream Lightweight Champion. His worth was proven – he was the #1 Lightweight on the planet, with a 13-1 divisional tear to his name. Like Gomi, whose identical 13-1 tear in Pride made his name and legacy, Aoki had now capped such a streak, but one that was to continue.

One thorn stuck in his side. The upstart org in Japan, Sengoku, had a top 10 ranked lightweight as its champion, a man known to all hardcores; Mizuto Hirota. A specially co-promoted show on New Years Eve 2009 may have raised the eyebrows of those concerned that one of Japan’s premier orgs must be in financial difficulties, but fight fans salivated over the prospect of a champion vs. champion bout to determine the TRUE lightweight champion in Japan. Aoki had the resume, the streak, the top 10 ranked scalps in his wins column… and Hirota claimed to have the answers; namely his powerful punches and the grappling that would supposedly neutralise Aoki’s attempts to put the fight in his realm.

It would not transpire quite that way.

Shortly into the fight, Aoki rode the apparently “much stronger man” (aren’t all his opponents meant to be stronger? Isn’t that why “all the UFC guys would destroy him”? Pfft, don’t get me started on that crap). Not only did Aoki ride his back, he did so with only one hand controlling the nonplussed Hirota. One hand waved to the crowd. Then, in a display of savagery, Aoki used the aforementioned “copper-lock” – or “hammer-lock” in puro-resu terms – and grotesquely bent Hirota’s arm in the wrong direction, until the elbow joint visibly snapped. Just to display his superiority over his hated rival, Aoki abandoned the Japanese code of Bushido and Samurai spirit, by breaking into the Goblin dance and flipping Hirota and the booing crowd off.




Regardless, the now 14-1 lightweight was untouched in the MMA world. For all the hate and empty statements thrown at him (he’d get killed in the UFC, etc) there was not one single fighter in the world who could even touch that recent resume. Aoki is to 2006-2009 what Fedor Emelianenko was to 2003-2006, what Igor Vovchanchyn was from 1995-2000, what Frank Shamrock was 1997-1999, and what Ken Shamrock was 1994-1996. Aoki is cut from that cloth.

Next up, April 2010, came the single downfall that is used to justify the way Aoki is criminally underrated. The Melendez fight.

*Never mind that Melendez was a pound-for-pound top 3 fighter in early 2007.
*Never mind that Melendez had a TREMENDOUS game plan for Aoki.
*Never mind that Melendez gave the performance of a lifetime.
*Never mind that it was Aoki’s first fight in a cage.
*Never mind that Aoki never came close to being finished.

Despite all this, the Melendez fight is the sole barometer that stupid, clueless fight fans and Zuffa Kool Aid drinkers use to discredit Aoki with. And that is WRONG.

All I’ll say is this – lets see the rematch in the Dream ring. 15 minutes is a LONG time to avoid getting submitted by Shinya Aoki in the smaller ring, as opposed to the huge cages used in USMMA.

But regardless, Aoki soldiered on and faced his sixth top 10 ranked opponent in a row, his 12th overall in a period of less than five years, and his 9th in less than three years. It would be the dangerous Tatsuya Kawajiri, a former friend of Aoki’s, and a man that fight fans had been clamouring for for years – some say, despite the Aoki/Hirota Super-fight, and the battles between Aoki and Uno, Sakurai and others, that after the post-Pride decline of Takanori Gomi, that THIS was the real fight to decide the #1 lightweight that Japan could field. Aoki vs. Kawajiri, a dream fight for all.

Fans of the Baka survivor may have been worried that his game was scouted, given the ineffectiveness against Melendez. They need not have feared. Aoki was back to his devastating best, and the fight more resembled Aoki vs. the p4p ranked Bellator champion Eddie Alvarez; Kawajiri was taken down quickly, and submitted via a vicious heel hook. Aoki was back to best.

And that is the story of Shinya Aoki’s career, from 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and his two fights of 2010. An amazing odyssey, especially for such a young yet cerebral fighter. Even now, Aoki is only 27-years-old, and any true fight fan – love him or hate him – must be wondering about just how much this young fella can achieve. (OK, he is five years older than me, but still – the guy is hardly old). Already boasting one of the deepest resumes in the short history of our sport, this man shows no signs of slowing down, and is just entering the age of his athletic physical prime.

Do not believe “the truth”. Believe the record books, the list of fallen champions, and your own eyes. Tune into Dream, and watch FEG’s lightweight champion. I’m sure my work will be discredited, but in time what I have said will be viewed through the lens of history, with the benefit of retrospect. And I will be vindicated.

It is a pleasure to watch the modern great, Shinya Aoki perform. I only wish that more people actually appreciated that pleasure, instead of being so quick to look for any means of discrediting him, just because the champions he beat did not have “UFC” emblazoned across the 6oz gloves that they were unable to knock Shinya out with.

This man is the real deal, and he has the record to prove it.

2006-2010 - Shinya Aoki's Lightweight Resume:

W Jason Black
W George Sotiropoulos
W Clay French
W Joachim Hellboy Hansen
W Brian Lo Anjoe
W Bu Kyung Jung
NC JZ Cavalcante
W JZ Cavalcante
W David Gardner
W Katsuhiko Nagata
W Caol Uno
L Joachim Hellboy Hansen
W Todd Moore
W Eddie Alvarez
W David Gardner
W Vitor Shaolin Ribiero
W Joachim Hellboy Hansen
W Mizuto Hirota
L Gilbert Melendez
W Tatsuya Kawajiri


I’d like to shout out my forum pahtnah, from Noo Yowk City, Mr Anthony “Bloodstain” Lane, and everyone at our Team Takeover forum. Teamtakeover.forum-express.com… my own blog is http://mmafletch.blogspot.com

I’d like to thank all the fans, I’d like to thank allllll the peopllllllle… so many people…. and they all walk hand in hand, hand in hand through their… *****life!

(Sorry. The Liam Gallagher introduction went to my head there. He sang a variation of his rival’s song to mock him, and I just did likewise. But if fits.)

Back to Aoki and this article; the moral of this Disney fable is; don’t listen to the propaganda, kids. Don’t drink the Zuffa Kool Aid, stay in school, and leave them drugs alone! Only take lethal drugs like alcohol and tobacco that your government taxes… not the illegalised ones that they don’t.

Stay safe.

Watch the fights.

Support the fighters.

Fuck the management.

Fuck the politics.

Thank you for reading, my lovelies. This one is for the #1 Lightweight in Mixed Martial Arts.

The one who doesn’t fall, doesn’t stand up.

It’s been emotional. Black-fringe-wrist-slashing-Bullets-For-My-Valentine teenage hormones type emotional.

“He mobilised the English language and sent it into battle”. Winston Churchill knew the power of words. I hope mine can influence a few minds too. Propaganda is a terrible thing, and worse still when the ones propagating it are hardly at the level of Dr Josef Goebbels. Shinya Aoki has the deepest resume out there – recognise.

Once more, it HAS been, emotional.

Fletch