Bless his heart, Denis Kang does his best in this MMA Rated interview not to bash Dream for dropping him from the Dream.5 fight card on July 21. It seems like they didn’t have a great reason for taking him off the event, nor did they have an explanation for why he only recently found out about it, but Kang’s trying to stay positive, which we like.
Where it starts to seem like he’s struggling, though, is where he justifies the problems Dream is experiencing by pointing out that all organizations have problems, even The Vatican. Comparing an MMA organization to the Vatican in an attempt to make yourself feel better about how they’re jerking you around is the last refuge of a very frustrated fighter. I think Samuel Johnson said that.
According to GracieFighter.com, Nick Diaz will no longer be fighting Hayato “Mach” Sakurai at DREAM.5 (July 21st; Osaka, Japan) for the league’s vacant welterweight title, due to contractual obligations with EliteXC: “Apparently EliteXC has other plans for Diaz and the July date might conflict with their plans.” You could probably figure out what those plans are, but for the record, sources have informed FiveOuncesofPain that a rematch between Diaz and K.J. Noons for EliteXC’s 160-pound title will be added to the next “Saturday Night Fights” broadcast on July 26th.
Though the event was initially rumored to be held in St. Louis, it looks like that idea is being scrapped, as several major sporting events (including a monster truck rally; go figure) are already scheduled to take place in the Gateway City around that time. Now, the buzz is that the Diaz/Noons bout will take place somewhere in Stockton, California, the city that spawned those rotten Diaz brothers. Obviously, it’s a wise move from a marketing standpoint — just as EliteXC’s “Street Certified” event featuring Kimbo Slice was a hit in Kimbo’s hometown of Miami, and “Shamrock vs. Le” did bang-up business in San Jose, Nick Diaz’s rabid civic pride could translate into a wild sellout crowd in Stockton, which would be a perfect backdrop to a live television event (providing that there are no riots in the arena, of course).
At this point, EliteXC: Unfinished Business (working title) will still be headlined by the middleweight championship rematch between Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith, as well as Jake Shields vs. TBA for the vacant welterweight belt.
I don’t believe in telling fighters they should retire. Not really. When fans and writers insist that a legend of the sport should give it up it always seems so hollow. What do we know about what someone like that should do with their lives?
But even I have to admit that Kazushi Sakuraba’s beating at the hands of Melvin Manhoef in Dream.4 this weekend was difficult to watch. I’ve always had a soft spot for Sakuraba. He embodied so many of the best fighter attributes. He was tough and resilient, and at the same time he was also crafty and dangerous. He always seemed like he was having fun, even on his worst nights.
That’s why it’s so hard to see him continue past his prime. He’s obviously not having fun these days. His efforts are joyless and perfunctory, like a man waiting on his pension. And yet, for some reason, he can’t seem to walk away.
I used to wonder what it was that made pro athletes hold on too long. Almost everyone does it. The difference is that a baseball player who’s too old and too slow gets sent to the minors. A basketball player who can’t keep up gets cut.
But with fighters it’s a different story. They either step down significantly in competition, or they start taking some bad beatings. Sakuraba has done both. The former may harm his legacy somewhat, but it’s nothing compared to what the latter will do to you.
Once I got the chance to interview Ken Shamrock and I asked him why it was so difficult to retire from pro fighting. He had recently lost yet another fight to Tito Ortiz, and though neither of us knew it at the time he had still worse moments left in him.
What he said made a lot of sense to me. He said that in order to be a high-level fighter in the first place you have to be the kind of guy who can keep pushing though anything. You have to be able to break your hand in the middle of a fight and still keep punching. You have to believe that you can walk through fire.
The problem, he said, is that as you get older your physical gifts atrophy much faster than the mental ones. You’re still as tough and determined, but not as quick or as strong. You get hurt and you think it’s just another injury, like the ones you’ve overcome before, only it never heals quite right. That’s when the fighter’s mind — once among his greatest assets — becomes a detriment. His virtues are also his faults.
This is exactly what’s happening to Sakuraba. A normal man would have retired by now. But a normal man never could have taken those knees from Ricardo Arona. Sakuraba is not a normal man. This much is clear. Quitting is such a foreign concept to him. How can a guy like that retire?
But if he doesn’t retire you have to wonder where this path will lead him. The beatings he takes now could stay with him the rest of his life. Much like Larry Holmes said he hated having to pound Muhammad Ali, who had been his idol, Manhoef also expressed regret for what he did to Sakuraba. There may be no sadder scenario in the world of professional fighting than that one.
Sakuraba’s future is his decision. If he’s earned anything in his illustrious career, it’s the right to go on too long if that’s what he wants. I just hope he knows that he doesn’t have to.
Why aren’t more people talking about how great this fight between Hideo Tokoro and Darren Uyenoyama was? Easily the fight of the night at Dream.4, these two showed us what great MMA really looks like. It’s just a shame that it seems to have gotten lost in the shuffle with all the action over the weekend.
Melvin Manhoef def. Kazushi Sakuraba via TKO (strikes), 1:50 of round 1
Ronaldo Souza def. Jason Miller via unanimous decision
Zelg Galesic def. Taei Kin via TKO (injury), 1:05 of round 1
Gegard Mousasi def. Dong Sik Yoon via unanimous decision
Hideo Tokoro def. Darren Uyenoyama via unanimous decision
Ralek Gracie def. Alavutdin Gadzhiev via submission (armbar), 3:02 of round 1
Alistair Overeem def. Tae Hyun Lee via KO, 0:36 of round 1
Shinya Aoki def. Katsuhiko Nagata via submission (gogoplata…FROM THE TOP!![?]!), 5:12 of round 1
Hat tip to BloodyElbow for alerting us that all three major MMA events this weekend are open for wagering at BetCris.com. Let’s run through the numbers…
EliteXC: Return of the King (June 14th; Honolulu, Hawaii; live on Showtime)
Yves Edwards (-130) vs. KJ Noons (even)
Nick Diaz (-450) vs. Mushin Corbbrey (+370)
Murilo Rua (-250) vs. Tony Bonello (+200)
Dave Herman (-155) vs. Ron Waterman (+125)
Rafael Feijao (-280) vs. Wayne Cole (+220)
Notes: Nick Diaz just got surgery to file down his sharp ocular bones, which is supposed to prevent his face from shredding so easily (and losing him another fight). Sounds dodgy to me, and it hasn’t yet been proven that the procedure was a practical success. With odds that wide and Diaz’s scar tissue still a question mark, we’d definitely throw a double-sawbuck on Corbbrey, who has shown some great submissions in his relatively brief career. Undefeated Australian King of the Cage vet Tony Bonello (16-0-1, 14 wins by submission) may also be a good underdog bet, even if the competition he’s faced is nowhere near the level of the guys that Ninja Rua has gone up against.
(Kazuo Misaki cracks Logan Clark a good one. Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)
Far less publicized or attended than their first two cards, Sengoku held its third event yesterday at a half-full Saitama Super Arena, marked by former PRIDE star Kazuyuki Fujita’s upset by YAMMA heavyweight champ Travis Wiuff (who is now riding a nine-fight win streak), as well as Kazuo Misaki and Nick “The Goat” Thompson coming away with victories, and MMA elder statesman Maurice Smith’s comeback bid hitting a painful speed bump at the hands of Hidehiko Yoshida. Full recap is at Japan MMA; quick results are below.
Hidehiko Yoshida def. Maurice Smith via submission (neck crank), 2:23 of round 1
Travis Wiuff def. Kazuyuki Fujita via KO, 1:24 of round 1
Kazuo Misaki def. Logan Clark via unanimous decision
Nick Thompson def. Michael Costa via submission (kimura), 4:13 of round 2
Sanae Kikuta def. Chris Rice via submission (armbar), 3:54 of round 1
Marcio Cruz def. Choi Mu Bae via submission (triangle choke), 4:37 of round 1
Rodrigo Damm def. Jorge Masvidal via TKO, 4:38 of round 2
Fabio Silva def. Kazuo Takahashi via KO, 0:24 of round 2
At the event, it was announced that Sengoku IV (August 24th) will mark the beginning of a lightweight GP, with the winner to face Takanori Gomi. Satoru Kitaoka, Eiji Mitsuoka, Kazunori Yokota, Duane Ludwig, and Rodrigo Damm have already been booked for the tourney.
On a slow news day, leave it up to the Japanese to give us gold. In an exclusive story, our good friend Caleb Newby of Nokaut.com is reporting one of the oddest news bits in a long while:
Mirko Cro Cop will face Ralek Gracie, a black belt in brazilian jiu-jitsu, in a special rules grappling [...]
The Japanese-based DREAM mixed martial arts promotion recently announced five bouts for the second round of its middleweight grand prix tournament slated for the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on June 15.
Among the notable competitors are Jason “Mayhem” Miller (21-5) vs. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (8-1). Miller was last seen in action on May 11 at DREAM 3, where he defeated Katsuyori Shibata by TKO. Souza is also coming off a DREAM win, when he submitted Ian Murphy back on April 29 in the opening round of the GP.
In one of the more lopsided match-ups, elder statesmen Kazushi Sakuraba (24-10-1) is being fed to Dutch kickboxer “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (21-4-1). Sakuraba was able to get past the opening round of the grand prix by submitting Andrews Nakahara, but he is going to have his head taken off against Manhoef if he stays on his feet.
Manhoef, like Miller, is coming off a TKO win on May 11 when he obliterated Dae Won Kim with punches and knees at DREAM 3. Considering he’s ended his last four fights via (T)KO, we can only hope that Sakuraba is a religious man.
Here are the matches for the second round of the middleweight GP:
Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Melvin Manhoef
Gegard Mousasi vs. Dong Sik Yoon
Jason “Mayhem†Miller vs. Ronaldo “Jacare†Souza
Zelg Galesic vs. Taiei Kin
Shinya Aoki will also take on Nagata Katsuhiko to determine the fourth and final man to advance to the semifinals of the 2008 DREAM Lightweight Grand Prix.
The night was also supposed to feature the main event of former PRIDE and UFC heavyweight Mirko Cro Cop (23-6-2) facing decorated K-1 kickboxing champion, Jerome LeBanner (3-1), but a minor leg injury to the Croation striker forced that bout to be moved to DREAM 5 on July 20.
Written by admin on May 23rd, 2008 with comments disabled.
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