Issue 016

August 2006

A Japanese team comprised of elite level judo players, Yoshida Dojo is headed by one of PRIDE’s top stars. Not all of his fighters have made the transition to MMA as well as he has though, but many follow his example and wear their judo gis in the ring.

Name: Hidehiko Yoshida 102kgs

Current record 7-3-1

Leader of the Yoshida Dojo, he is an Olympic judo gold medallist and one of PRIDE’s most popular fighters. A fantastic technician. 

Name: Makoto Takimoto 85kgs

Current record 2-3-0

A middleweight with a patchy record, Takimoto has good takedowns but little else.  

Name: Kazuhiro Nakamura 93kgs

Current record 8-5-0

Yoshida’s number one student Nakamura is a good allrounder who is as happy to trade as he is use his excellent judo skills. Very tough.  

Name: Michihiro Omigawa 70kg

Current record 1-2-0

The only lightweight of the team, Omigawa fights without his gi. Fearless, he will fight anyone but often takes on guys out of his league.   

Name: Hector Lombard 84kgs

Current Record 5-1-0

The newest addition to Yoshida Dojo, Lombard is a Cuban

judo player and former Olympic competitor. Explosive 

and aggressive.