Issue 073
March 2011
He’s the technical grappling supremo and ‘decision specialist’ who’s quietly become Japan’s top mixed martial artist. But even Yushin Okami thinks his fights can be hard work for fans...
Yushin ‘Thunder’ Okami’s arduous quest to become the UFC middleweight champion is not yet complete. But for now, he can breathe a sigh of relief. After a resolute master-class in ‘getting the job done’ by shirking showmanship for practicality, Okami was able to outstrike perennial contender Nate Marquardt at UFC 122. He now must sit and wait patiently for the outcome of Vitor Belfort vs Anderson Silva at UFC 126 in February (the victor becoming middleweight champion) before his eagerly awaited title challenge. Within his weight class, Okami is currently ranked number three in the world by the UFC, a stratum Japan’s prodigal son will be keen to scratch out and rewrite history as the first Japanese to attain a UFC belt. A master of game plans, the Kanagawa-born southpaw is 29 years old. While known as a ‘decision specialist’, he has KO’d Evan Tanner, TKO’d Kalib Starnes, forced Rory Singer to submit to punches and armbarred Brian Foster.
If Silva were to prove triumphant against Belfort he’d be in line for his second outing with Okami – the first being shrouded in controversy. In 2006, during a Rumble On The Rock tournament in Hawaii, ‘The Spider’ struck Okami with an illegal upkick. The referee immediately gave Okami the chance to continue, but ‘Thunder’ opted for a disqualification victory. Silva remains adamant that Okami could continue, blasting his win as “cheap and cowardly.” The rhetoric continues to this day with Okami modestly maintaining that really his opponent won, and Silva spitting feathers. While many fighters remain reticent on discussing their weaknesses, Okami talks openly about the decision and his strategy for improvement, keeping the fans entertained and how he’s taking tips from no less than Chael Sonnen to finally dethrone ‘The Spider’ Silva.
FO: Firstly, congratulations on your number-one contender status.
Yushin: “Thank you.”
We’ll talk about your fighting style, and Anderson Silva, but first let’s look at the main event fight between yourself and Nate Marquardt at UFC 122 in Dusseldorf. For this fight, you stayed in Portland training with Team Quest right up until you headed to Germany, without returning to Japan...
“I got into Portland on October 16 and stayed there about three weeks. It seemed like it would be a good experience for Rikuhei Fujii, too, who was preparing for a fight in December, so we went together. The weight cut went very well. I did everything thoroughly, consulting with my physical trainer Yuuya Ikarashi about what to eat as well, so my physique changed, I lost water quickly, and I dropped four kilograms in the last two days effortlessly. That was the first time I’d ever cut that kind of weight in such a short amount of time. If we went out eating, we certainly wouldn’t lose weight, so we stayed in a condominium, bought foods at the supermarket and ate meals that the guys that came with us prepared based on Ikarashi’s advice. I was really supported by everyone around me.”
So you had your usual training partners with you too and were really able to train in America as ‘Team Okami’?
“Yeah, it’s because we were able to develop that kind of environment that I could get my head into fight mode training at Team Quest. And so rather than go once more back to Japan and have to worry about jetlag, I thought it would be best to head directly there. As for losing weight, the chicken there is really dry, it doesn’t have the fat of chicken in Japan, and the beef is all lean, so the foods there are even better than in Japan for losing weight. The plan was to take in a little bit of fat, really cut down on carbs and get a lot of protein, so being in America actually helped.”
What made you want to go that far, and to train with Team Quest?
“One reason was that from talking with [Gen] Isono [Okami’s mentor] and a number of other people. I knew that, of course, Chael [Sonnen] and Matt [Lindland] were there. Chael had also fought Marquardt, and there would be a lot of big guys to train with.”
Fighting at the highest levels of the UFC like you do, do you find there’s a lack of good training partners in Japan?
“No, I can train in Japan too. But having pushed myself so hard, I started to feel like I was simmering down. I wanted to go to the US to change that mood. And to fight against a veteran like Marquardt, I thought it would be difficult to win unless I put myself into a situation that would motivate me.”
So, it really worked out with Team Quest?
“Yeah, it was good. Matt [Lindland] gave me strategies for dealing with Marquardt the whole time. He’d come into the gym with me outside of training time and we’d watch video; he did a lot just coaching me. Chael had fought Marquardt in February this year, so he still had counters for him in his head. The substance of their coaching was, ‘Keep moving forward, putting pressure on him. If you stop, he’ll get you. He comes in swinging, so if you stop you become his prey. So, keep moving forward yourself. Whatever you do, don’t back off. If he shoots, drop and stuff the takedown.’ Chael’s boxing trainer also told me, ‘Throw your jab, and move forward.’”
Were you able to put into practice what you learned there at Team Quest?
“My time at Team Quest taught me that I’ll be able to create a new style for myself. I also learned from facing Marquardt that I should have more confidence. It was good that I was able to fight Marquardt. Adding in that I could train with Team Quest before the match, it really was good. Those guys, their enthusiasm, ability, their character... even though we were born and raised in different places, I was able to cross over national borders and meet people I could really rely on. And that I could take their guidance and learn from it was a really big thing. I also learned to accept that I can change my style if it’s necessary to win. I stuck with the strategy, so it can’t be helped, but maybe I was too easy-going in my approach.”
That said, after the fight, there was a clear difference between your and Marquardt’s faces.
“I got carried away and went for stuff like the flying knee [laughs], and I ended up bleeding from a punch he threw when I was landing and another punch that grazed me near my ear, I think it was just those two... But, I thought it would be decided in the third. Well, I didn’t throw as much comparatively in that round. What can I say? I fought confused.”
Did Dana White say anything to confirm a title shot after the fight?
“No, he didn’t. But I believe he’ll give me the chance. I don’t think at all that I won back when they gave me the disqualification victory in the Anderson fight. That was my loss. If I can fight for the championship next, I would really like, after all, for it to be against him. I want to put it all on the line and fight.”
Seeing the Marquardt bout, do you accept that fans may think, ‘Okami doesn’t put on good fights’?
“I understand it. I’m a fan of the sport as well, and I think my fights are boring. But my sense of value at the moment comes from wanting to be the first Asian champion in the UFC. Everything can begin once I get there. Of course I want to put on an exciting fight and come out victorious in the end. That is what I am thinking before every match. But the most important thing for me right now is struggling for the championship. I’m sure this fight received criticism. But for the people that think, ‘Okami doesn’t put on good fights’ as well, I want them to see me striving to become a champion and to become interested.”
Does it ever irritate you, fans being frustrated by anything less than a spectacular performance?
“I think it’d be wrong to force them otherwise. Putting on an exciting fight and winning is what being a pro is all about. So, I take all of the praise and criticism right on the chin. If I can fight in my ideal way and grow closer to being the person I want to be, then I can put on an exciting fight and cinch the win. If I can’t do that, then I get frustrated and really suffer. So, to try to reach my ideal, the next fight is my greatest chance. I think it will really put me to the test.”
Do you think it’s important for a fight to be considered exciting regardless of the outcome?
[Without hesitation] “I don’t want that at all. No matter how good the fight is, a loss is a loss. No matter how boring a fight you make, I think winning is absolutely above that. That’s how a competitor thinks. Though maybe I should, as a pro, accept disagreeing with that. Anyone that fights in MMA wants to put on a good fight and win. But even if everyone thinks that, you can’t always do it. Really, I understand that. I mean, I want to put on good fights. But, I have confidence in myself. I have the vision in my head, to train more and more and to be able to put on better fights. I’m still growing. I can only improve little by little. But I will definitely grow more and put on fights that make the fans happy; and, above that, I’ll be a winning fighter, I promise. I wasn’t able to put on a good fight this time, but I promise you that I will put on better fights and continue to win.”
