This mix of K-1 and MMA fights, Sengoku and DREAM fighters, fighters in their teens and those in their forties, provided a great show to end the year 2009.
Masato fought his heart out to a judge decision and retires gracefully.
Hidehiko Yoshida and Satoshi Ishii fought to a judge decision, swayed slightly by a knee to the groin, although unintentional, by Ishii. Yoshida didn’t really engage Ishii but did manage to show him that moving from Olympic Judo to professional MMA isn’t easy.
Ishii shakes Yoshida's hand with both hands after the fight showing respect.
Shinya Aoki displayed his renowned jiu-jitsu again, leaving Mizuto Hirota with a broken upper arm to be immediately operated on. Following the fight stop he ran around the ring with his middle fingers in the air, then stood over Hirota doing the same. His corner were quick to tell him to calm down but it was too late. He was warned about this behaviour by the event promoters and has apologised publicly but the damage to his reputation is done. At least one North American MMA website has compared his disrespectful actions to Tito Ortiz and more recently, Brock Lesnar. Regardless of the country or culture it is never good to see this kind of contempt shown by any professional athlete, let alone a professional fighter who carries extra responsibility for his sport.
Gegard Mousasi controlled Gary Goodridge with a takedown followed by aggressive ground and pound, earning a referee stop although Goodridge got up very quickly and contested. He was still defending himself but he did not improve his position. Some easy money for Mousasi there and we look forward to seeing him really being tested in 2010.
Alistair Overeem ends his fight against Kazuyuki Fujita with a huge knee, Fujita goes down clutching his forehead and didn’t get up for quite a while. He was taken to hospital immediately. MMA-IN-JAPAN.com wishes Fujita well as he is always friendly and a solid sparring partner.
Minowa-man took the SuperHulk Tournament final with a left hook and TKO over Sokoudjou. The following day, New Year’s Day, he mentioned in the press conference that he couldn’t think well because of the punches he received from Sokoudjou. He also said himself that he thought it was a lucky punch that won him the fight. When congratulated, Minowa-man asked if they were intending to make a belt since, in fact, it was a tournament. There were a few laughs and he was applauded but his inquiry seemed to be brushed off. Belt or no belt, the fans still love him.
