Issue 017
September 2006
Is the ‘Kid’ giving up MMA?
Rumours have been circulating from within the Japanese MMA scene that Norifumi ‘Kid’ Yamamoto, the K-1 lightweight champion, may leave professional fighting to focus on his amateur wrestling career and the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
These rumours have been fuelled by a posting on ‘Kid’s blog, where he said he will leave MMA for one year to train at the university wrestling club.
Yamamoto’s former mentor Enson Inoue has also posted on his blog that Yamamoto will not fight at the next HERO’S show on August 5th, though Kid’s name is still listed on official releases from K-1. Prior to entering MMA, Yamamoto was a promising amateur freestyle wrestler. He enjoyed success in high school wrestling in the United States, and was an Arizona state champion. When ‘Kid’ returned to Japan he was deemed a potential candidate for the Olympics.The Japanese Wrestling Association suspended Yamamoto for a period of twelve months following an altercation with a member of a yakuza family. It was during this suspension that he began training under Enson Inoue and entered MMA. Yamamoto’s wrestling roots run deep. His father competed in the Munich Olympics, and his sisters are accomplished world champions in freestyle wrestling.
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Bonnar vs Griffin 2 at UFC 62
THE LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT finalists from season one of The Ultimate Fighter are to meet in a rematch of their thrilling first encounter. Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffin will appear on UFC 62, the same card as the anticipated Chuck Liddell vs Renato Sobral rematch.
“I think it’s safe to say you can expect more of the same this time around. You’ll probably see the same entertainment as the first time, because we are both such aggressive fighters,” Bonnar said.
PRIDE tournament matches announced
PRIDE FC has announced the final four for the open weight Grand Prix, to be held on September 10th. The semi-finals and final will take place on one night, with the winner earning a guaranteed shot at facing PRIDE heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko. Wanderlei Silva will face Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic in the first of the semi-finals. The two fought once before under modified MMA rules in 2002 when Cro Cop was first entering MMA. The match, with no judges decision possible, was ruled a draw. The second pair of semi-finalists will be Antonio Rodrigo ‘Minotauro’ Nogueira and Josh Barnett. The BJJ black belt Nogueira is a former PRIDE heavyweight champion, while Barnett is a former UFC heavyweight champ.
PRIDE Bushido, the event that features lighter weight fighters, has announced the card for its August 26th event.
The tournament participants have been whittled down to a remaining eight, and the matches are as follows:
Dan Henderson (USA) vs. Kazuo Misaki (Japan)
Akihiro Gono (Japan) vs. Gegard Mousasi (Armenia)
Ryo Chonan (Japan) vs. Paulo Filho (Brazil)
Denis Kang (Korea/Canada) vs. Amar Suloev (Russia)
Kimo test positive for banned substances, out of WFA
KIMO LEOPOLDO, the Hawaiian heavyweight scheduled to fight Bas Rutten on July 22nd, was denied his chance to compete when he failed a pre-fight drug test. Kimo, who failed s post-fight drug test and was fined $5000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission after his fight with Ken Shamroc, is thought to have tested positive for the anabolic steroid Stanozolol.
In a statement WFA CEO Jeremy Lappen said, “The California Athletic Commission has informed the World Fighting Alliance that Kimo Leopoldo has tested positive for a banned substance and therefore is not eligible for his July 22nd bout with Bas Rutten at the Forum in Los Angeles. The WFA is a fighter-first organization, so Kimo’s disqualification is a disappointment for our entire family of fighters. “[This is] a reminder that the WFA and Mixed Martial Arts is a professional sport, governed by the same rules as other major sports leagues. This situation, while disappointing, validates the steps we are taking as an organization and a sport to ensure the integrity of competition.”
Mark Weir v Ninja Rua at Cage Rage 18
REGARDING HIS upcoming fight on cage Rage 18 in September, British middleweight Mark Weir hinted at a possible PRIDE-level opponent to Fighters Only some weeks ago.Reports coming out of the cage Rage camp now indicate that this could be none other than Murillo ‘Ninja’ Rua, the feared Chute Boxe striker and brother of Shogun. Also on the card will be Ian Freeman vs. Mark Epstein for the British light heavyweight title, Robert ‘Buzz’ Berry will take Rob Broughton for the British heavyweight title and middleweights Tony Fryklund and Alex Reid are expected to clash.
Ultimate Fighter 4 ready to rock!
The contestants for the fourth series of the reality TV show “The Ultimate Fighter have been announced. This series will differ to the previous three by featuring former UFC fighters trying their luck at getting back into the big show.
It is also said that as these are all experienced fighters with strong backgrounds, the winner of each category will get an automatic shot at the UFC title in their division.
The two weight classes will be welterweight and middleweight, with eight fighters competing at each weight class.
Welterweight standout Georges St. Pierre is to feature as one of the “advisers” on the show, though it is not known if he will act as a team coach as previous fighters have. Randy Couture has been linked with the show, but no other confirmed names were available at the time of going to press.
The fourth season will be called ‘The Comeback’, and will be broadcast in America from August.
The confirmed fighters at middleweight are:
Charles McCarthy
Edwin Dewees
Gideon Ray
Jorge Rivera
Patrick Cote
Pete Sell
Scott Smith
Travis Lutter
Confirmed fighters at welterweight are:
Chris Lytle
Din Thomas
Jeremy Jackson
Matt Serra
Mikey Burnett
Pete Spratt
Rich Clementi
Shonie Carter
MMA Events Diary
AUGUST
06//Ultimate Fighting Revolution: Semi-Pro Series 2
Antrim, N.Ireland
12//Ultimate Force 3
Doncaster
13//Combat Sports Open Trials 2006: 3rd Leg
Amateur MMA, Hereford
20//Cage Rage Contenders 2
London
SEPTEMBER
02//Cage Warriors Contenders 1
Portsmouth
08//Welsh Amateur Grapple and Strike League
10//Maximum Fighting Championship 10: Unfinished Business
Edmonton
16//Cage Rage 18
London
16//Cage Warriors Quest
Sheffield
17// UK Mixed Martial Arts Championship
Circus Tavern Night Club, Purfleet
30//Cage Warriors Strike Force 7
Coventry
INTERNATIONAL
AUGUST
04//King Of The Cage:.Rapid Fire
San Jacinto, USA
05//K-1 HERO’s: Grand Prix
Tokyo, Japan
11//K-1 USA Open Try Out 2006
Las Vegas, USA
17//UFC: Ultimate Fight Night 6
Las Vegas, USA
26//Pride: Bushido 12
Japan
26//UFC 62: Liddell vs Sobral
Las Vegas, USA
SEPTEMBER
09//International Fight League
Portland, USA
09//NAGA West Coast Grappling Championship
Los Angeles, USA
10//Pride: Final Conflict 2006
Openweight
Japan
16//Fight Festival 19
Helsinki, Finland
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