According to a few sources that Zach Arnold over at FightOpinion dug up, Misaki's KO victory over Akiyama has been overturned to a ruling of No Contest after much controversy as to whether the soccer kick thrown by Misaki was actually legal.

In our story earlier this month, we asked the question "Was the kick illegal?". From the looks of the picture and the video replay, the kick was on the absolute extreme borderline of legality. It's interesting that it was overturned because the general concensus among hardcore American fans was acceptance that Akiyama was defeated. Even more interesting however was the fact that Yahya was defeated in a fashion that was blatantly illegal, yet there is no word on that fight being overturned.

Now that it is apparently official, what's this all mean? From the standpoint of the fans, we will obviously see a rematch between the two, but this time the stakes are even more enhanced than what we may have previously thought. Although rumors of a rematch were echoing even after Akiyama had accepted defeat, it didn't seem to have the vigor that it most likely will now.

Nightmare of Battle has some details on Misaki's Sengoku signing and his next matchup with Shooto Light Heavyweight Champion, Siyar Bahadurzada. Although it should be a decent fight, Bahadurzada still has some problems finishing opponents out, and he hasn't fought mid to upper tier competition for the most part.

The rumor now is that the rematch could take place in Korea. That fight in Korea would be surprisingly attractive to fans. It would most likely garner a huge crowd and big interest. Look for that fight to spark some fireworks in the future. Misaki will be a busy man for the coming months.

Was the kick illegal? Here's a translation of the Yarennoka rules from Fightlinker. They were able to get Roxy Modafferi to translate.

So…I read the Japanese rules, and it says: When someone is in the four-point position (with both hands and feet touching the ground) soccer ball kicks to the head and face are illegal, but knees aren’t. Then it said something like “BUT in the case of Fedor and (the other guy) it was a foul. (huh?) Then it said “that’s just a hypothetical situation.” (huh?)

In the wee hours of the morning for most American fans, a resurrection of a beloved  mixed martial arts promotion occurred in Japan. Although it may not bear the name of the old promotion, its intention was clear; Bring the fans back to the days of PRIDE. Yarennoka opened up with fantastic introductions, theatrical production, and even brought back Lenni Hardt to announce the fighters for the event. The elevator platform, the runway to the ring, the white canvas, the lighting, it all screamed of PRIDE. The event itself did not disappoint in the quality of the bouts. Let's recap the exciting night of events.

The surprise battles

The most exciting fight of the night was by far Kazuo Misaki vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama. Both fighters had expressed some animosity toward each other leading up to the event at times, but overall seemed to respect each other. The staredown at the pre-Yarennoka press conference was the most heated one out of all the matchups, and it was looking to be a bareburner. It did not disappoint.

Both fighters felt each other out for most of the early few minutes of the fight. Some exchanges occurred, but Akiyama caught Misaki dead on the chin and put him to the floor. Unfortunately for Akiyama, he didn't pounce on the opportunity. Misaki was able to recover and eventually unleash his own strike that put Akiyama to the floor. As Akiyama regained his footing, Misaki landed a knockout kick between the eyes of Akiyama and put him out for good. A fantastic battle that went back and forth and saw Misaki come back from life support to win.

Fedor vs. Hong Man Choi was seen as being an easy win for Fedor by much of the mixed martial arts community. It was a win for Fedor in the fashion we've grown accustomed to seeing from the Russian. His quick transition game sunk in the armbar in the first round, but only after being bruised up significantly by simple hammerfists from the giant Korean. Fedor managed to avoid the onslaught for long enough to transition into the armbar while in full guard. A very exciting fight for the fact that Choi was able to get top control and pound Fedor for a couple of seconds and visibly hurt “The Last Emperor”. Nonetheless, Fedor was still able to come out on top.

Other matchups

Shin'ya Aoki won an uninspiring unanimous decision over silver medalist judoka Bu-Kyung Jung. Jung sunk in two armbars that nearly broke Aoki's arm and had the crowd on its feet. Aoki managed to escape and pound out a decision win that he was lucky to get before being submitted.

“Mach” Sakurai did as expected, but without the fantastic knockout. He put Hasegawa in a lot of trouble for most of the fight, but was unable to land the big blow that could end the fight. In Sakurai's defense, Hasegawa has proved in the past that he can hang around even while being beaten.

Mitsuhiro Ishida put on a wrestling clinic against Gilbert Melendez. Melendez found Ishida on his back for most of the first round, and he was unable to reverse it for most of the round. Ishida worked a strong wrestling takedown game and simply peppered Gilbert while on top and on the back. Melendez came back in the second round with a solid knee to Ishida's head, and then was able to do some top control pounding of his own, but it wasn't to the degree that Ishida had put on him in the first round. Ishida edged out Melendez by decision.

Makoto Takimoto defeated Murilo Bustamante in a controversial split decision. Although Takimoto was closer to actually ending the fight when he caught Bustamante and dropped him, Bustamante controlled most of the fight. It may be a question of judging criteria.

“The Crusher” Tatsuya Kawajiri did exactly that... crushed Azeredo. For nearly the entire fight, Azeredo was on the bottom being punched and peppered with small shots from Kawajiri. Kawajiri didn't quite wind up the power to put Azeredo out, but it was a dominating performance from the lightweight.

Chicago native Mike Russow surprised many fans. He looked more powerful than Zentsov at the weigh-ins and proved it in this clash. Russow put Zentsov down immediately, and worked a smart submission grappling game on the ground. He eventually sunk in a quick North South choke on an utterly horrible performing Roman Zentsov. Fedor should start teaching him transition techniques.

Production

If you were a loving fan of PRIDE, this production is exactly what you want to see. A large runway, elevator platform for the fighters, the high steps down to the runway, the large panoramic screens, the music, the drums, and Lenni Hardt screaming fighter introductions were all present. From the opening bell, the white canvas on the mat showed the spilt blood of its combatants.

The pre-fight television promos were very good as well. Some of the promos added backstory to some of the rivalries, especially the Misaki vs. Akiyama bout. Overall, an impressive event as far as masking PRIDE and also providing some unbelievable matchups.

Divisional shifts?

Fedor will maintain his #1 ranking regardless of this bout, but it was more interesting of a fight than we may have first thought once they stepped in the ring. Unless Couture fights Fedor and wins, or Couture beats Nog and remains more active, we won't see a shift. Nogueira will most likely never surpass Fedor as far as standing is concerned due to his two decisive defeats by the hands of Fedor.

Other battles will affect world divisional rankings. Akiyama may drop, and Misaki, Ishida, Kawajiri, and Sakurai will most likely move up or sit in the same place. Specifically, Ishida defeated Melendez, arguably a top 3 lightweight. Aoki is definitely the undecided one. Will he drop due to poor performance?

Overall thoughts

Personally, I was impressed with how the production was put together. Almost exactly like the PRIDE events, and I believe was done by the same firm. It was nice to go back and have an event that brought back those memories. The most glaring success from the event was the matchups. After all, we are all here to see fantastic mixed martial arts. Yarennoka didn't disappoint.

Misaki came back from the dead to defeat Akiyama, and Fedor, although heavily favored, looked to be in trouble for a split second before showing why transitional MMA rules the fight game. Kawajiri showed fans everywhere why he is the “Crusher”, Ishida displayed unbelievable pace and wrestling ability, and Mike Russow put his name on the map.

Look forward to possibly another event being organized by the same groups. Monte Cox did hint at this during the event, and I would not doubt that the event will push people to want to see more of the same. PRIDE could be making a comeback under the support of former DSE employees and M-1 Global. Whether that is good or bad is another story due to the always present “Yakuza” factor in Japan, but we'll most likely see this type of event again.

Quick Results

Shinya Aoki over Bu-Kyung Jung by unanimous decision
Hayato “Mach” Sakurai over Hidehiko Hasegawa by unanimous decision
Fedor Emelianenko over Hong Man Choi by armbar at 1:54 of Rd. 1
Kazuo Misaki over Yoshihiro Akiyama by back from the dead knockout at 2:12 of Rd. 1
Mitsuhiro Ishida over Gilbert Melendez by unanimous decision
Makoto Takimoto over Murilo Bustamante via split decision
Tatsuya Kawajiri over Luiz Azeredo by unanimous decision
Mike Russow over Roman Zentsov via surprise North-South Choke at 2:58 of Rd. 1

For those of you too lazy to search for it:

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Main Event: Fedor Emelianenko vs. Hong Man Choi

I'll be brief with this matchup. Fedor is arguably the best pound for pound fighter in the world. People have recently criticized his strength of opponents as a reason to demote him to #2 or #3 in the world, but he still has an unbelievable combination of skills that can easily defeat nearly all MMA fighters within his weight class with ease. His transitional game is the most overlooked aspect of his skillset that I believe will continue to put him above even fighters such as Josh Barnett or Randy Couture. With that said, Fedor should easily defeat Choi with in the first round by submission.

Choi exhibits an immense size and weight, towering over 7 foot tall and at around 350 pounds. He is primarily a K-1 striker, and during this bout, the use of knees will be disallowed due to the height discrepancy. This hurts Choi's chances, but had they been used, Choi's slowness would have still been his ultimate weakness. Choi's last performance against Jerome Le Banner was terrible, and if it was any indication as to how he would perform in this bout, Fedor should have no problems.

Shin'ya Aoki vs. Bu-Kyung Jung

Originally, this bout was to feature K-1 HERO's Middleweight tourney champion Gesias “JZ” Calvancanti, but he suffered a torn ligament and had to pull out. A huge disappointment. Now, the rubber guard master that is Aoki will take on Bu-Kyung Jung, a 2000 silver medalist Judoka.

Without going in-depth, Aoki should easily defeat the judoka. Although Jung will have some excellent throwing skills and abilities in the clinch, Aoki's submission game is nearly unmatched in the weight class. He went from potential defeat to a win fairly quickly in this matchup.

Hayato “Mach” Sakurai vs. Hidehiko Hasegawa

The first of the matchups that should be interesting is veteran Hayato Sakurai vs. DEEP champion Hidehiko Hasegawa. A battle of opposite styles, Hasegawa will be looking to get Sakurai to the ground for a submission or do enough damage to squeak out a decision win. Sakurai will undoubtedly be seeking the knockout.

Hasegawa has had problems recently. He dropped a battle at DEEP 31 to Dong Hyun Kim, but then rematched him at DEEP 32, which ended in a controversial draw that many people felt Kim won. Either way, Hasegawa hasn't had impressive streaks of greatness. He's dropped a number of decisions to mid-tier competition, and hasn't defeated any opponents that were overly impressive in their careers.

Sakurai, on the other hand, has fought some of the best competition out there. In his last fight, he dominated recent TUF winner Mac Danzig and knocked him out cold in the second round of their PRIDE battle. He defeated Joachim Hansen, Jens Pulver, and won a hard fought decision over Shin'ya Aoki. With 7 wins in his last 8 fights, look for Sakurai to continue his dominance. Sakurai should be able to TKO Hasegawa sometime after the midpoint of this fight.

Kazuo Misaki vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama

Akiyama has recently been allowed back into the MMA scene in Japan after the “lotion” incident against Sakuraba that landed him on suspension indefinitely. In his comeback fight against a tough Denis Kang, Akiyama showed something that many fans didn't think he could do. He knocked out Kang with a vicious uppercut that completely incapacitated Kang and stunned the crowd. Regardless of the greasing incident, Akiyama does have some great judo skills in the clinch, and obviously has the ability to knock his opponent out. Does he actually have the technical striking skills or was it just a lucky punch? It's not known yet, but this should be another test to see if Akiyama will approach top 5 status.

Misaki has fought some of the best in the business. He defeated Kang in a close split decision, beat Dan Henderson and Phil Baroni, submitted Ed Herman, and has went through much of his career avoiding being knocked out. He's never been defeated by a punch, and has only lost once by TKO due to his arm being broken. Akiyama has stated in the press that Misaki is a much better fighter than him, and he believes it is a honor to battle him, but the fact is, Misaki isn't a finisher and Akiyama is.

Misaki will have range on Akiyama, but Akiyama's clinch skills should be able to work against Misaki. Misaki hasn't had success in defending against the clinch in some of his losses. It will definitely depend on what level Akiyama's takedown game is at. I think Akiyama has more of a skillset that can do a bit more to edge out Misaki via decision.

Gilbert Melendez vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida

A matchup that has provided some anticipation to US fans that have seen Melendez fight in Strikeforce. Melendez has an excellent wrestling and takedown skillset that is accompanied by a solid striking game. Melendez's claim to the top 5 ranking has to do with his win over Tatsuya Kawajiri at PRIDE Shockwave 2006. He also recently defeated a tough veteran in Tetsuji Kato while nursing a broken hand. This may all sound impressive, but Ishida will be a tough test for the Cesar Gracie student.

Ishida Is 15-3-1 with 11 of his wins by decision. He doesn't have tremendous knockout power or a dangerous submission game, but he does have great wrestling technique and a solid takedown defense that has frustrated opponents in the past. Melendez still has an edge in the striking, and he has a rock solid chin in case he gets surprised. Even if this fight doesn't go to the floor, Melendez should be able to defeat Ishida in the standup game. Ishida will most likely look for top control, and Melendez has a great training team that is proficient in jiu-jitsu and wrestling to counter anything Ishida can do on top. Melendez via TKO, third round.

Makoto Takimoto vs. Murilo Bustamante

Takimoto shouldn't be a significant problem for Bustamante. Bustamante hasn't beaten upper-echelon competition, but he has fought some of the best in the business and taken them the distance. He did beat Matt Lindland at UFC 37, Minowa at Bushido 9, and recently beat Dong Sik Yoon at Bushido 13, and Ryuta Sakurai for a second time at DEEP 29. He has some significant power in his hands, and a good submission grappling background in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He should make his Brazilian Top Team camp proud in this battle. Bustamante by decision.

Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Luiz Azeredo

This fight could be a big problem for Azeredo as he doesn't exhibit enough striking defense or offense to stop Kawajiri's “crushing” power. Although Azeredo has avoided being knocked out by some great standup fighters, he still has a susceptible chin. Kawajiri should have a power advantage, striking advantage, and can nullify the submission attempts with his excellent wrestling. Kawajiri should take this one by pure power and striking ability, first or second round.

Mike Russow vs. Roman Zentsov

Russow is coming out of Chicago, Illinois with a 6-1 record. His only loss was to Kharitonov in his only fight that has been a significant test of his ability. He's primarily a submission fighter who will be looking to hit the floor against Zentsov, a standup fighter.

Zentsov has weaknesses in his game and is far from perfect. He's had some great wins in his career and some horrible losses as well. He has a much better striking game than Russow, but Russow will have more weight, size, and grappling ability. Many of picking Zentsov, but I'll pick the Chicago native from my home state via submission.

It’s been more than eight months now since PRIDE Fighting Championships hosted ‘Kamikaze’ and what now appears to be the final event the all-but dead promotion will ever put on.  Sadly, PRIDE is something that the new generation of MMA fan never had a chance to directly enjoy.  By the time the UFC had began cultivating new fans in droves through the TUF series, PRIDE was blacklisted from mention and was basically left to Asia, over half a world away.  Regardless of the Dream Stage Entertainment Company’s scandalous collapse, the fighters that were developed in the promotion are still entertaining fight fans around the globe.  K-1 Heroes, M-1 Global, EliteXC, WEC and UFC all sport a roster of fighters that has been significantly bolstered by PRIDE refugees. Following the Zuffa initiated purchase of PRIDE, the Fertita’s inked a number of the A-list fighters to UFC contracts, deposing the now seemingly worthless PRIDE deals.  Dana White and the boys have proved both unwilling and unable to nab every top talent, most notably Fedor in the ‘exclusivity’ fiasco.  Emelianenko has landed the large contract but other champs and top-10 combatants haven’t, even as we approach a year since the MMA world shook with disbelief. 

Before the announcement of the New Year's Eve event “Yarennoka” this list was longer than anyone could have ever possibly expected it to be.  The event will host the first fights for Shinya Aoki, Kaz Misaki, Mitsuhiro Ishida and Ricardo Arona since the PRIDE days.  In short, this article could’ve been and would’ve inescapably been much longer. Aren’t you lucky. 

Below are six fighters that remain unsigned by a major MMA organization or have had their careers significantly impacted by the influx of PRIDE vets into their respective divisions.  There is a myriad of reasons why all are still unsigned, and each case is unique.  However, one thing rings true in each instance:  these guys should be signed by now. Maybe Santa will bring us one more thing to cheer about before 2008 is upon us.

1. Takanori Gomi

It seems like yesterday that Gomi was on top of the world, doesn’t it?  Gomi was PRIDE’s; well; pride and joy.  He was the Japanese homegrown star in the Lightweight division.   The 160lb Champ was on everyones shortlist of desired talent and MMA megastars.  But, here we are in mid-December, and still no Gomi sighting beyond FSN re-runs. The only thing keeping Gomi from being remotely forgotten by now is the persistent rumor mill that has churned out more false predictions that your local weather lady.   First, we heard the UFC for a BJ Penn rematch, something everyone and their grandma would pay top dollar to see.  After that dissipated, naturally focus shifted to K-1.  Geographically, it made sense, and another dream match-up awaited ‘The Fireball Kid,’ this one with the legendary Norifumi ‘Kid’ Yamamoto.  Then, word got around that a K-1 deal was unlikely, and fans scratched their heads in confusion.

Some have speculated that Gomi’s loss to Nick Diaz (yeah it was changed to a No Contest because Diaz was apparently stoned, but c’mon, it was a loss) is hurting his asking price.  Perhaps the most logical fight for Gomi would be an immediate rematch with Diaz in EliteXC; you’d think he would desire one anyway. Still, nothing has panned out.  The latest word is that former DSE executive Keiichi Sasahara tried to convince Gomi to participate in the Yarennoka card, but he apparently declined.

This forces me to ask what the hold-up really is. Is it money? Certainly after being courted by the four largest and wealthiest organizations in the business, someone would have paid the price if it was reasonable.  Is it mental? Gomi has often been criticized for his work ethic, and he has turned in some sub-par performances in the cardio department lately.  If he was willing to cut to 155 lbs, he would be a HUGE lightweight whose size would be tough for the division to handle. 

One last rumor I will address is one that I see as most likely being the outcome of Gomi’s odyssey.  There is a ‘new’ PRIDE in the works, backed by a company called World Victory Road Inc.  There has been talk that Gomi is in negotiations with them, and is likely to be the main event at the promotions debut in February ’08.  It all makes sense to me; Japan + being the #1 draw + fresh organization…I have my fingers crossed.

This past weekend Randy Couture was in Dallas for “HDNet Fights: Reckless Abandon.” As a guest on the show, Couture reiterated that he was not retired from fighting, and that he had only resigned from the UFC. During the interview, Couture expressed his interest in fighting Emelianenko, and again stated that this is the only fight that makes sense for him right now. Will the UFC let Couture get away, or will they break down and bring Fedor into the Octagon?

What about Couture’s contract with the UFC?

Couture stated in the interview and post-fight press conference that his fighting contract was going to expire in July. He would be released from his employment contract in October. There is still a cloud of ambiguity surrounding the UFC and their contracts. Is it going to be significant that the UFC offered Couture a fight with Nogueira? It very well could be. If the contract is structured in such a way that Couture has to fight a certain number of times and do so in a certain time period, then he could be in breach of contract since he turned down the Nogueira fight. The UFC might have a significant bargaining chip when it comes down to the expiration of Couture’s contract. Couture stated he was going to honor the UFC’s contract and do everything he can to avoid litigation. The fact of the matter is that Randy owes the UFC two more fights, and if they offered him a fight and he turned it down; he may be violating that contract. That would be good news for the UFC who would then be able to go into a lengthy court battle with Couture, and keep him from fighting.

Will the UFC let this fight happen somewhere else?

The more I think about this from a business standpoint, the more I think the UFC will allow this fight to go on without themselves being involved. If Couture somehow manages to get out of his contract with the UFC, I think he’ll move on and fight Fedor in Japan, possibly on New Years’ Eve in 2008. While it will probably do big money overseas, it will do next to nothing here in the States.

In America, people associate MMA with the UFC. The UFC has done a great job of creating that brand recognition. In fact, most news outlets and the media call it “ultimate fighting,” not mixed-martial arts. Let’s take Fedor’s fight with Matt Lindland as an example. That fight only had 15,000 pay-per-view buys. Yes, you read that right, 15,000. Even the mediocre UFC cards do around 400,000. And, if we’ve learned anything about Couture over the past couple of months, this fight won’t come cheap. I’m anxious to see if M-1 will still have their million-dollar offer on the table.

What’s in it for M-1?

The problem for M-1 is there are a limited number of opponents out there for Fedor. Of the opponents that do exist, almost all of them lack value. Outside of Josh Barnett, who isn’t a huge draw in America, there isn’t another opponent that makes sense. Truthfully, only the hardcore MMA fans want to see that fight. That leads us to another problem for Fedor, he has no drawing power in America. If he is going to actually fight Couture, it would make the most sense for the fight to take place in Japan. Fedor is a huge draw in Japan and it would be the best place for M-1 to make money. They’re going to need to make as much money as possible considering the million-dollar payoff I alluded to earlier.

When M-1 held their first ever press conference, they said that Fedor asked for a special clause to be put into his contract. This clause would pay Couture $1 million more than what his current contract pays him in order to fight Fedor, with the winner winning an additional $1 million. It may be easy for M-1 to avoid this since Couture probably won’t be the UFC heavyweight champion anymore.

Another bonus for Fedor is the fight will take place in a ring. M-1 stated they will use a ring for their promotion, and this benefits Fedor entirely. There’s no doubt that Randy’s game plan would be to put Fedor up against the fence and try to wear him down. Using a ring negates that strategy, and is a big disadvantage for Couture.

The man they call the “Techno Giant”

Fedor is scheduled to take part in a spectacle fight on New Year’s Eve at “Yarennoka!” against Korean giant Hong Man Choi. While the Japanese fans love these spectacle fights, this could turn out to be a very stupid move for M-1. What happens if Fedor loses to the inexperienced Choi? The credibility surrounding the organization and Fedor would be completely demolished. M-1 would most certainly be over, and Fedor would probably accept a smaller offer from the UFC. This is what happens when you put a fighter you’re building an organization around in spectacle fights. This is a very high risk/low reward kind of fight.

Final Thoughts

There are still a lot of variables to consider, but the way Couture has been talking, this fight could very well happen at the end of the year. We still have to wait and see if Fedor defeats Hong Man Choi and we have to see how the Couture contract saga will play out. Do you want to see Fedor fight Couture inside the Octagon? Do you think this fight will ever happen? How big of a backlash would you expect from fans if Fedor loses to Choi?

In the spotlight that surrounds Yarennoka's recent announcement that Fedor Emelianenko will in fact fight Hong Man Choi on New Year's Eve in Japan, the general fanbase seems to be coming to the conclusion that this recent move confirms that Fedor Emelianenko is running from the world's top tier of fighters in the Heavyweight division. Few people have looked at an entirely different reason as to why Fedor has taken this fight, and it could simply be the most obvious or the lack of knowledge of American fans to the Japanese ways during the New Year. Let's take a look.

Japanese love spectacle!

As mentioned here in previous articles, the Japanese are generally glued to the television on New Year's Eve. According to Tim Leidecker's article at Sherdog.com, nearly 50 million people tuned in to view the PRIDE and K-1 shows on New Year's eve in 2004. That's a very large number of viewers for two combative sports cards that featured a great PRIDE Shockwave card that headlined with Fedor vs. Minotauro. The K-1 card, however, was much more of an entertainment card. Sapp vs. Le Banner, Frye vs. Nakao, appearances by Royce Gracie, Fujita, Akiyama, and Ologun. Moving up on the time table, Zuluzinho vs. Fedor was even done at one point during a New Year's Eve event. It should be no surprise that this fight between Fedor and Hong Man Choi is happening.

With that said, it's obvious that Yarennoka is looking to produce some great fights on the card and wanting to mix in some spectacle fights to woo the masses to see their card. It's rumored that K-1 may show the Fedor fight on their network TV affiliate when it occurs. This would only add to the already stacked entertainment card of K-1 Osaka Dome.

Is Fedor running?

This argument has been talked to death in the minds of many MMA fans. Many people in the American fanbase feel that if he has told everyone that he wants to fight the best, why didn't he sign with the UFC? Money, fame, proximity to Russia? From all the rumored figures that Fedor was offered, we can come to the conclusion that it probably wasn't because of money, but more because of the demands Fedor was asking. M-1 met those demands due to the closeness Fedor has with it's promoter, Vadim Finkelstein. Now, M-1 Global will build around Fedor an entire promotion. So, what did the fans expect?

Fedor wasn't going to fight a top contender out of the gate. M-1 Global can't risk losing such a high profile piece of the puzzle right off the bat. This is the obvious conclusion most people can come to, but there is another explanation for fighting such a low-echelon fighter. It's New Year's Eve. Spectacle overthrows quality during the New Year. Fedor simply takes this fight for a good purse, defeats an inexperienced MMA fighter in Hong Man Choi, and then takes off. Do you seriously blame the guy?

Fedor in the future

Once he takes off with his easy win and big purse, look for M-1 to begin the process of trying to mount an attack on the European MMA fanbase. We talked about their expansion efforts into Germany yesterday. Pedro Rizzo is likely to be next. After that, fans will hope for Josh Barnett or Ricardo Arona down the line. We may even see Randy Couture if Zuffa miraculously becomes generous.

Fedor could very well be running, but understanding the network share battle in Japan during the New Year's rush definitely explains such a horrible matchup, although compelling to someone who doesn't regularly watch MMA in Japan. In my opinion, Fedor is simply grabbing a paycheck, getting a nice teaser/warmup fight, and then heading home to begin training for Rizzo.

Will we ever see him in a relevant fight outside the UFC? Josh Barnett is really the only man I'd like to see Fedor fight. If Couture can somehow manage to escape his contract, that is a very good fight I'd like to see. Hong Man Choi, I don't want to see it, but I'll watch it to see how Fedor looks. I'm not a fan of this type of spectacle fight, but then again, it isn't geared toward us, it's geared toward the Japanese public. Realize that and focus on not getting a migraine over it everyone.

One of the many discussions I've had over the past few days with fellow hardcore mixed martials arts fans has been regarding the quality of the New Year's Eve cards in Japan. On one side of the debate, we have the concept of television ratings driving the matchups that are made on the cards. On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have the idea that end of the year MMA cards should feature quality bouts that determine standing in a division. There is also some middle ground obviously. The MMA card that features the best of both worlds. Capturing the hardcore and casual fans in Japan and now with the addition of the Yarennoka card to the U.S. fanbase with HDNet, an appeal to the U.S. fanbase as well. The question that was asked by the end of this debate was: Is entertainment over quality the main driving force for New Year's Eve cards in Japan?

Yarennoka, Fedor, and the Lightweights

For Yarennoka, it seems to be the best of both worlds... to an extent. Tapping into the number of highly touted lightweight fighters that have either originated in Japan or have had successful runs in Japan seems to be on the list. With battles featuring Tatsuya Kawajiri, Mitsuhiro Ishida, Gilbert Melendez, Hidehiko Hasegawa, Hayato Sakurai, Shinya Aoki, and Gesias "JZ" Calvancanti, there is without a doubt a demand for upper-echelon matchups in Japan, according to the organizers of Yarennoka.

Another aspect of the card is the entertainment portion. With Hong Man Choi avoiding injury and being eliminated from the K-1 Grand Prix Final in the preliminary round, he is now surely close to making a deal to fight at the NYE event. What's the appeal here? Gigantic freakishly tall South Korean who weighs around 330+ taking on arguably the best pound for pound fighter in the world seems like a spectacle fight. Fact is, it is a spectacle fight looking to pull in the casual and hardcore alike to see Fedor perform against a man who looks to be a challenge when you take a glance at him.

In my opinion however, Fedor will decimate the Korean. Choi has a small amount of experience in MMA (1-0), and he also had one of the worst K-1 showings I've seen in quite some time at the Grand Prix Final on December 8th. Not only was he slow in his striking, but he was being beaten by Jerome Le Banner, a hard striker in his own right. Jerome still had considerable size disadvantage in a fight that didn't rely on ground tactics due to the K-1 rules, but striking. Although I thought Jerome would win, I thought a better showing from Choi was expected. A much better performance.

I'm not completely convinced that the lightweight fights won't garner some good ratings, but Fedor vs. Choi may spark some interest from the Japanese public. It's definitely a good fight for M-1 Global as well. Stylistically, Fedor matches up well against the Korean and it protects their investment barring Fedor somehow gets beaten. Entertainment over quality in this case keeps M-1 Global going and provides a potential ratings boost.

K-1 Osaka Dome

In an argument revolving around which card may produce better ratings, I may have to make a case for the Osaka Dome card. Melvin Manhoef's explosive knockout power, Zuluzinho's size vs. Minowa's small frame, but decent ground skills, Japanese legends Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Masakatsu Funaki, and another decent fight for "Kid" Yamamoto. Add in the appearance of Japanese MMA phenom Hiroya in a U-18 tournament, and we may see a solid ratings card throughout the evening.

In my mind, this card stands out as a bigger draw for ratings. It features the David vs. Goliath matchup that the Japanese seem to love. Manhoef seems to be generating a following as well with his big knockouts. Sakuraba will always draw a huge amount of fans and fighting Funaki will only add to that fuel. I suppose I could be wrong on the idea that the quality of the Yarennoka card may outweigh the entertainment value of this card.

Final debate

Which will prevail? Will entertainment prove that it is the king of the ratings war during the Japanese New Year? Will the Yarennoka card have enough star power and great matchups to lure the viewership their way? Fans in Japan may be able to get the best of both worlds as TV times aren't set in stone, but it'll be interesting to see if there is a dropoff. K-1 will apparently be on Network television and Yarennoka will be a PPV card, so neither event will be in direct competition, but will Yarennoka's buy get nullified by K-1's card on national TV? I would think so, what do you think?

Notable Links

Tim Leidecker - Politics of Promoting on New Year's Eve in Japan

"Because Japanese MMA originated in pro wrestling, entertainment comes first when booking fights, especially on Dec. 31. This is why hardcore fight fans don't always get the fight that has the most meaning from a sporting perspective. More often the battle that is made has the most appeal to the casual viewer."

Zach Arnold - FightOpinion.com

Zach has some years of experience covering the PRIDE scandals and other aspects of Japanese MMA. Head over there and browse the articles, he definitely has a unique perspective on the Japanese MMA business side.

Say what you will about the former Dream Stage Entertainment group organizing this event, it simply cannot be denied that the Yarennoka card is shaping up to be one of the better mixed martial arts cards of the year. Although PRIDE was scandalized with ties to the Yakuza crime syndicate, the fight cards didn't lack any luster for many of the fantastic cards they put out for the fans to see. This is no exception to that philosophy. The card is shaping up to look like this:

Fedor Emelianenko vs. TBA
Gesias "JZ" Calvancanti vs. Shinya Aoki
Hidehiko Hasegawa vs. Hayato "Mach" Sakurai
Gilbert Melendez vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida

The newly announced Gilbert Melendez fight was confirmed by TAGG Radio as they are a main sponsor of the Strikeforce veteran. Melendez is one of the few fighters who has the ability to go overseas to prove his stance in the Lightweight World Rankings. The advantages of having a non-exclusive contract and being in a Lightweight division that has fighters around the world within its rankings is great for him. He doesn't have to sit outside the UFC fighting no-names, much like any Welterweight fighter outside the UFC experiences, ie. Jake Shields. The UFC doesn't have every single lightweight within the realm of the rankings under contract.

We've analyzed the Calvancanti vs. Aoki and Hasegawa vs. Sakurai matchups in past articles, we'll look at the Melendez vs. Ishida matchup next. Gilbert Melendez is currently undefeated with a 13-0 record. He trains out of the Cesar Gracie Academy with fighters like Shields and the Diaz brothers. Some may say his record shouldn't indicate a top 3 ranking in the world, but he has some great wins over Hiroyuki Takaya, Clay Guida, Rumina Sato, and his more recent big win over top 5 lightweight Tatsuya Kawajiri. Melendez has a strong style of striking and explosive takedowns. In his most recent fight against Shooto veteran Tetsuji Kato, he broke his hand in the first round of the fight yet continued to use it to a limited capacity to ward off Kato and get the decision win. He's tough, mobile, quick, and has the transition game to be dangerous on the floor. His striking is probably the more exciting part of his skills because he throws strikes with a good amount of power, and can still set up explosive shoots that will easily make opponents struggle to react.

Mitsuhiro Ishida is another PRIDE lightweight who was put on the waiting block with the Zuffa purchase of PRIDE. He hasn't fought since New Year's Eve of 2006 in which he succumbed to strikes in the first round to Takanori Gomi. Ishida is a fighter that continually wins by decision and cannot finish his opponents. He's currently 14-3-1 with 10 decision victories in his 14 wins, not exactly the finishing type. When he has finished opponents, it has been by TKO strikes on the ground. His most notable win is over Marcus Aurelio in PRIDE and Takashi Nakakura in Shooto. To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure if Ishida can deal with Melendez's skillset. He's had some wars in his career, specifically with Vitor Ribeiro in which he lost by decision, but nonetheless impressive considering Ribeiro's ju-jitsu skills on the mat. I don't think it will be enough to avoid the strikes from Melendez, but hopefully Gilbert's hand is 100% because Ishida can take a shot. Nonetheless, it should be a great fight to an already decent card for New Year's Eve.

Who's left?

Of the rumored names, Kazuo Misaki, Joachim Hansen, Luiz Azeredo, and Ricardo Arona are left. Arona has pretty much denied being a part of the card as he is taking some time off. Misaki and Azeredo seem like good high probability choices to be appearing on the card and Hansen wouldn't back down from an offer unless he plans on taking some time off as well. There are many other names out there floating, so we could see another good matchup soon.

Final thoughts

Overall, the card is shaping up to be very good. Although some people are throwing the card out the window due to its backing by former DSE employees, a fight card is a fight card and this one looks good, especially in the lightweight world picture. Don't hate, just enjoy the fights. Although the U.S. fan base won't be able to see it, you should at least be aware of it as we loom closer to New Year's Eve.