Issue 038
June 2008
These days, many fighters deem leglocks too impractical or difficult to apply in a mixed martial arts bout. While a kneebar, heel hook or toehold is a great addition to your jiu-jitsu or submission wrestling arsenal, it’s rare to see one successfully pulled off in the cage or ring.
Unless, of course, your name is Masakazu Imanari (14-5-1). In that case, it’s almost a certainty.
The Deep and Cage Rage world featherweight champion, who goes by the nickname ‘Ashikan Judan’ (roughly translates to ‘Master of Leglocks’), is known as much for his goofy nature as he is for his incredible leg techniques. The latter have landed him some truly impressive finishes – including most recently, a beautiful reverse heel hook submission over Jean Silva (15-8-3) at Cage Rage 25.
While the submission awed casual and hardcore fans alike, Imanari wasn’t so impressed with his performance. “My body didn’t move the way I wanted it to,” says Imanari, through his interpreter Tomomi Sawabe. “Regardless, I’m happy that I was able to finish this fight the way I wanted to – with a leg submission.”
Leg submissions are what the Kanagawa native has been about ever since he started his mixed martial arts (MMA) career, back in 2002. Over the years, 70% of his submission wins were via leglocks. His victims include Cage Rage standout Jean Silva, Pancrase legend Yoshihiro Maeda (23-4-2), and UFC veteran Jorge Gurgel (12-3-0).
Though he seems to completely disregard the stand-up aspects of MMA, the father of one keeps improving his art with each fight. That may have something to do with the fact that he trains with grappling wizard Shinya Aoki (14-2-0), a man regarded by many to possess the best submissions in MMA. “I learn a lot from Aoki,” chuckles Imanari. “I always lose to him! But in many ways our styles are similar.”
So what’s next for the leglock master? Though he hopes to return to the UK and continue defending his title, recent developments in Japan have opened a whole new world of possibilities. With the DREAM promotion rising from the ashes of Pride and K-1 HERO’s, fans may very well see Imanari competing in the featherweight division of the new Japanese organisation.
“I don’t know where I’m going in the mountain climb that is my career,” says Imanari. “But as long as I’m going up the mountain in a comfortable car, it’s all fine by me. Hopefully we will return to England soon, but Japan is also a possibility. Aoki has very good contacts in DREAM.”
With Imanari mentioning Aoki every few sentences, one wonders whether the leglock master would ever fight his beloved team-mate? Imanari smiles as Sawabe translates the question. “My goal is to beat him,” answers Imanari. “Hopefully before I die! No, to me the opponent or organisation doesn’t really matter. I am a professional, this is what I do – if I didn’t have fighting, and if I wasn’t good at leglocks, I would probably be homeless.”
