Bellator 237: Fedor vs. Rampage Preview

Concluding their 2019 season, Bellator heads to Japan for the first time on Saturday. The card is a co-promoted event with Japanese MMA organization RIZIN Fighting Federation. Many of the fights on the card see representatives from both promotions face off. The two promotions have collaborated in the past, most notably with Kyoji Horiguchi facing former Bellator Bantamweight Champion Darrion Caldwell twice.

Headlining this card is two well-known heavyweights in Fedor Emelianenko and Rampage Jackson. Deep into his career, Emelianenko is recognized as one of the most accomplished mixed-martial artists to never compete in the UFC. A good part of his career took place in Japan, as he competed in now-defunct promotion Pride FC many times. Prior to his UFC and Bellator run, Jackson also had a stint in Pride. While both fighting under the same banner, the two heavyweights never clashed before. Along with the main event is a quite stacked Bellator card, with many fights on it.

Main Card

Bout 1: Goiti Yamauchi (24-4) vs. Daron Cruickshank (22-12) (Lightweight)

In one of the truest Bellator versus RIZIN matches, Goiti Yamauchi faces Daron Cruickshank. What makes it a true promotional clash is the amount of experience each fighter has in their territory. Yamauchi is now 10-3 in Bellator, with Cruickshank being 5-4 in RIZIN. Cruickshank will try to break a two-fight losing streak, as he recently lost to Damien Brown and Tofiq Musaev. Yamauchi fought in October, defeating Saad Awad with a first-round armbar. Yamauchi came in at 157.8 lbs, missing the lightweight limit.

Bout 2: Ilara Joanne (9-4) vs. Kana Watanabe (8-0-1) (Flyweight)

The second women’s bout of the evening will see undefeated Kana Watanabe battle Bellator’s Ilara Joanne. Watanabe has fought primarily in RIZIN and DEEP JEWELS. In RIZIN, she defeated Shizuka Sugiyama twice, once in very brief fashion. She has won three times in 2019, most recently beating Hee Eun Kang on a DEEP JEWELS card. Joanne debuted in Bellator back in October, prevailing over Bec Rawlings with a second-round kneebar. While that was her only win in Bellator, it was over a notable name.

Bout 3: Lorenz Larkin (21-7) vs. K-Taro Nakamura (35-10-2) (Welterweight)

In the next bout of the evening, two former-UFC fighters who now represent different promotions will collide. Lorenz Larkin, who is on a three-fight winning streak in Bellator, will face K-Taro Nakamura, who just won his RIZIN debut back in October. Larkin is coming off of a split decision over Andrey Koreshkov at Bellator 229. Nakamura’s win was a brief and dominant one over Marcos Yoshiop de Souza at RIZIN 19. This marked the end of his UFC run, going 4-4 while with the promotion. Larkin missed weight by two-and-a-half pounds, although his fight will go on. It was reported by MMAJunkie that the comission will force Larkin to fight at middleweight in his next bout “unless doctor provides not that drop to 170 is safe.”

Bout 4: Michael Page (16-1) vs. Shinsho Anzai (11-3) (Welterweight)

Bellator’s walking highlight reel Michael “Venom” Page will return on this card, facing former UFC fighter Shinsho Anzai. Page has gotten two dominant wins on recent Bellator shows, making a turnaround from his first pro loss, a brutal knockout at the hands of Douglas Lima. This fight is a quick turnaround for Page, who’s last fight was under a month ago. Anzai finished his UFC career with a 2-2 record, returning to DEEP Impact in September with a win against Yoichiro Sato.

Bout 5: Michael Chandler (19-5) vs. Sidney Outlaw (14-3) (Lightweight)

The co-main event of the evening is a strictly Bellator collision, as Michael Chandler will face Sidney Outlaw. Originally, Chandler was meant to fight Benson Henderson in what would be a rematch from 2016. Henderson was pulled from the fight due to injury, with Outlaw being named the new opponent. The fight is Chandler’s return after losing his Bellator Lightweight Championship to Patricio Pitbull. Outlaw made his Bellator debut just last month, defeating Roger Huerta at Bellator 234.

Bout 6: Fedor Emelianenko (38-6) vs. Quinton Jackson (38-13) (Heavyweight) 44

In the main event, two MMA legends will collide. Fedor Emelianenko and Rampage Jackson will add another fight to their extensive MMA records on Saturday, which currently sits at 95 fights combined. Both fighters have deep ties in Japan. Some of Emelianenko’s best known work comes from his days in Pride FC, being undefeated during his run. Jackson also fought in Pride, although his record was not flawless. Despite both fighting in Pride, they never faced each other. Jackson’s last win was over fellow JMMA superstar Wanderlei Silva, stopping him in the second round at Bellator 206. That was just over a year ago. Since then, Emelianenko has fought twice. He stopped Chael Sonnen in one round at Bellator 208, and recently saw an abrupt loss to Ryan Bader at Bellator 214. While in the main event slot, the fight is only set for three rounds.

Postlims

Bout 7: Sergey Shemetov (9-6) vs. Shoma Shibisai (5-2) (Heavyweight)

After the main event, Saitama Super Arena will see post-lims which feature a mixture of RIZIN and Bellator fighters. It is still up in the air whether the international broadcast will be able to see these fights. One of the first preliminary bouts of the evening is Sergey Shemetov facing Shoma Shibisai. Shemetov is a relative to viral king Vitaly Shemetov, who made his RIZIN debut back at RIZIN 17. Shibisai has competed in Ganryujima pit fighting in the past, winning many times in that promotion. His last RIZIN fight was an openweight victory over Chang Hee Kim, landing in armbar to win in just over a minute.

Bout 8: Ryuichiro Sumimura (14-7) vs. Jon Tuck (10-5) (Lightweight)

Former UFC fighter Jon Tuck was meant to make his Bellator debut in September against Brandon Girtz. Unfortunately, that plan fell through for him. Instead, his debut will come against Ryuichiro Sumimura on this card. Tuck finished his UFC run with a 4-5 record, most recently losing to Drew Dober in 2018. Sumimura has fought mostly in regional promotion DEEP Impact, although has appeared once in RIZIN. In that fight, Sumimura tapped out to now-Bellator fighter Kiichi Kunimoto.

Bout 9: Andy Nguyen (6-8) vs. AI (5-1) (Strawweight)

2019 has been a breakout year for Krazy Bee’s AI. She got noticed by most eyes when she beat underground J-pop idol Nanaka Kawamura on New Year’s Eve with a dominant performance. She then went on to win twice more in promotion DEEP Jewels, then returned at RIZIN 18 to have a very close fight with Tabatha Watkins. Now being dubbed the “Princess Bee,” which follows the lineage of Miyuu Yamamoto being the “Queen Bee,” AI is seen as one of the prospects in JMMA. AI doesn’t have a blood-relation to the Yamamoto family, but like Yusuke Yachi is very representative of the Krazy Bee brand. She will face Andy Nguyen on this Bellator card. Nguyen has a 1-2 record in RIZIN, fighting twice against the previously mentioned Yamamoto.

Bout 10: Yusaku Nakamura (16-6-1) vs. Makoto Shinryu (9-1-1) (Flyweight)

Two experienced JMMA fighters in Yusaku Nakamura and Makoto Shinryu will fight in the next bout. Nakamura’s last fight was a decision win over Topnoi Tiger Muay Thai at RIZIN 16. Before then, he was winless in Bellator, losing to Manel Kape and Tenshin Nasukawa. Shinryu has never fought in RIZIN or Bellator, but has attained an impressive record in DEEP Impact.

Bout 11: Ren Hiramoto vs. Takahiro Ashida (Catchweight 150 lbs) (Kickboxing Rules)

The next fight on the post-lims is the card’s sole kickboxing bout. After being vacant from the kickboxing scene for nearly two years, Ren Hiramoto returns to face MMA fighter Takahiro Ashida. Hiramoto fought in Japanese kickboxing promotion K-1 World, getting 10 wins in his time there. Ashida has been an MMA fighter for his career, fighting all around Japan’s regional scene. He has two wins in 2019, prevailing over Isao Sakiyama and Tatsunao Nagakura.

Bout 12: Jarred Brooks (15-2) vs. Haruo Ochi (19-7-2) (Flyweight)

Back at RIZIN 18, Jarred Brooks and Haruo Ochi were set to face off in a strawweight matchup. The competition ended abruptly however, as a head collision early cut Ochi on the head, making the fight a no contest. They’ll run it back on this Bellator card, this time under the flyweight class. Brooks got a regional American win before this event, defeating Victor Altamirano at WXC 83. Ochi is currently on an impressive seven-fight win streak. Most wins came from the promotion DEEP Impact, with one win being against former-Pancrase Champion Mistuhisa Sunabe at RIZIN 13.

Bout 13: Kanna Asakura (15-4) vs. Jayme Hinshaw (4-3) (Atomweight)

A year ago, Kanna Asakura found herself high on the card of RIZIN 14, attempting to beat Ayaka Hamasaki with the RIZIN Super Atomweight belt on the line. That didn’t go her way, as she lost with a second round armbar ending Hamasaki’s dominant performance. She has went 2-1 in 2019 so far, recently winning over Alesha Zappitella at RIZIN 18. She now faces Jayme Hinshaw, who will be making her debut in Bellator. She had previously fought in King of the Cage for all of her pro-career. While having just slightly more wins than losses, Hinshaw is currently riding a three-fight winning streak.

Bout 14: Hiroto Uesako (16-8) vs. Yusuke Yachi (20-9) (Lightweight)

In an all-RIZIN affair, Hiroto Uesako and Yusuke Yachi face-off in the next preliminary bout. Uesako and Yachi are one of the more well-known lightweights in the promotion. While Yachi has name recognition, he is currently on a three-fight losing streak that dates back to RIZIN 12. Uesako debuted in RIZIN earlier this year, defeating Yves Landu to secure his spot in the Lightweight Grand Prix. He lost in the first round of that tournament to Luiz Gustavo in October.

After this event, Bellator will return in late January with Bellator 238. Headlining the card will be Cris Cyborg, making her Bellator debut against Featherweight Champion Julia Budd. However, before the year concludes, some Bellator talent will be seen on RIZIN’s New Year’s Eve card at Saitama Super Arena.

RIZIN 19 Live Coverage

RIZIN will make their debut in Osaka, Japan on tonight with “RIZIN 19.” The stacked show includes the first round fights from the first round of the Lightweight Grand Prix, among other big matchups. Amid a typhoon in Japan which has made the whole country re-schedule and cancel events, RIZIN 19 went on. Live coverage of the event can be seen here as the night progresses.

Bout 1: Taisei Umei (7-6) vs. Seiki Ueyama (22-11) (123 lbs) (Kickboxing Rules)

The evening started with a kickboxing bout between Taisei Umei and Seiki Ueyama. Both fighters were fighting in their hometown. Ueyama had interesting pants, with one leg ending at the ankle and the other at the knee. In the first round both fighters were landing lots of low leg kicks. Umei had the better punches in the first three minutes.

In the second round the damage from leg kicks on Umei’s legs started to show. The tempo between the fighters stayed fast in the second round.

The third round was even better than the one before, with both fighters throwing everything at each other. Ueyama was really picking Umei apart as the fight was closing out. In the final seconds of the round, Umei was knocked down but endured. He had a bloody nose as the fight concluded. As expected after his performance, Seiki Ueyama got the unanimous decision victory.

Bout 2: Chang Hee Kim (1-4 1 NC) vs. Shoma Shibisai (4-2 1 NC) (Openweight Bout) (MMA Rules)

The next fight was an interesting one as it was a rare openweight bout. The much larger Chang Hee Kim faced Shoma Shibisai, who was smaller but came into the fight with a better record. Both fighters were given flowers before their fight. Early on, Kim went into a standing clinch with Shibisai. Shibisai got good knees in before getting put against the ropes. Shibisai tried for a kimura, taking Kim to the ground. He tapped out only seconds later. Getting a quick kimura victory, Shoma Shibisai bettered the much larger Chang Hee Kim.

Bout 3: Takuma Konishi (22-6-1) vs. HIROYA (38-17) (170 lbs) (Kickboxing Rules)

Switching back to kickboxing again, the next fight was between Takuma Konishi and HIROYA. Konishi’s originally opponent Shintaro Matsukara pulled out earlier this week, with HIROYA being announced as the replacement fight. HIROYA was targeting leg kicks early on. Konishi landed a counter-punch which dropped HIROYA only a minute into the round. He got back up and started to trade punches with Konishi. A knee was landed by Konishi which dropped HIROYA again and called an end to the bout.

Bout 4: Taiga (20-9-1) vs. Taiju Shiratori (17-5-1) (137 lbs) (Kickboxing Rules)

The final kickboxing figbt of the evening saw Taiga face TEAM TEPPEN’s Taiju Shiratori. Tenshin Nasukawa was in attendance to support Shiratori. The height and reach advantage was more than clear. After a minute of fighting, Shiratori landed a punch combination which dropped Taiga. It quickly became target practice for Shiratori.

Early in the first round Taiga took a tumble after getting hit with a hook. It was ruled as a knockdown. After Shiratori continued to land strikes, Taiga went down again making it the third knockdown of the fight.

The third round opened with a shocking overhand knockdown from Taiga. The crowd woke up because of this. Both fighters were connecting with wild punches. The final round was chaotic as both of them were scrambling to do damage. When consulting the scorecards, all three judges gave the fight to Taiju Shiratori. After the fight he asked to be on the New Year’s Eve show.

Bout 5: Marcos Yoshio Souza (8-1 1 NC) vs. K-Taro Nakamura (34-10-2 1 NC) (170 lbs) (MMA Rules)

Before the next fight, Tenshin Nasukawa came into the ring to say that he will fight on New Year’s Eve after healing a hand injury. The next fight saw brother of Roberto Satoshi Souza, Marcos Yoshio Souza face K-Taro Nakamura. This was the RIZIN debut for both fighters. Nakamura finished up his UFC run in his previous fight. Shizuka Sugiyama was shown at ringside supporting Nakamura. Early on, Souza slipped from a spinning back kick and found himself in bottom position on the ground. They got up shortly after with Nakamura landing a strike. Souza was dropped by a punch, with Nakamura doing ground and pound. Nakamura kept hitting Souza until his corner called the end to it. It was clear that K-Taro Nakamura was levels ahead of his opponent in his RIZIN debut. After the fight he had his wife and his kid in the ring with him. He said he wanted to be part of the collaborative card with Bellator on January 29th.

Bout 6: Damien Brown (19-12) vs. Tofiq Musayev (15-3) (RIZIN Lightweight Grand Prix First Round) (MMA Rules)

The next four fights on the card were in the first round of the RIZIN Lightweight Grand Prix. The first fight was between Damien Brown and Tofiq Musayev. Both of them have won twice in RIZIN before. Brown was hit with a low blow kick in the first minute causing a pause in the fight. They resumed quite quickly. Musayev was landing hard shots in the first round. With a minute left in the round, Brown got smothered with punches in the corner, eventually getting hit enough that the referee stepped in. Moving on to the second round of the Lightweight GP, Tofiq Musayev proved himself again as a dangerous fighter.

Bout 7: Hiroto Uesako (18-7) vs. Luiz Gustavo (9-1) (RIZIN Lightweight Grand Prix First Round) (MMA Rules)

The second of four first round fights was Hiroto Uesako facing “The Killer” Luiz Gustavo. Right off the bat, Uesako charged at Gustavo and put the pressure on him. Uesako was dropped by punches with two minutes left in the first round. They got up into a standing clinch in the corner, with Uesako cut open quite badly on the face. The referee called a pause to the fight with Uesako being checked by a doctor. Shortly after, the fight was called off, giving Luiz Gustavo the victory, moving on to the second round. As expected, Uesako was very upset about this.

Bout 8: Tatsuya Kawajiri (37-13-2) vs. Patricky Pitbull (21-8) (RIZIN Lightweight Grand Prix First Round) (MMA Rules)

After the first intermission of the night, the Lightweight Grand Prix continued. The next first round fight was between Bellator’s Patricky Pitbull and JMMA veteran Tatsuya Kawajiri. Pitbull stopped takedown attempts early on. Kawajiri ate a hard uppercut while trying for a takedown. Kawajiri caught a jumping knee but was hit with punches on the ground while holding the leg. The referee stepped in, giving Pitbull the win. Completely stunning the Osaka crowd, Patricky Pitbull brought Bellator to the second round of the Lightweight Grand Prix.

Bout 9: Roberto Satoshi Souza (9-0) vs. Johnny Case (26-6-1) (RIZIN Lightweight Grand Prix First Round) (MMA Rules)

The final of four Lightweight Grand Prix fights was between Johnny Case and Roberto Satoshi Souza. Early on, Case stuffed a takedown attempt. They went back to stand-up after Case avoided an omoplata. While Souza went down for a takedown he was hit with a punch which dropped him and made him tap out on the ground. It looked like the punch might have went in his eye. Johnny Case became the final fighter to move on to the semi-finals in an anti-climactic finish.

RIZIN Lightweight Grand Prix Semi-Finals Draw

Before the second intermission of the evening, all four Lightweight Grand Prix winners came out to draw the next round of matchups. There were four translators in the ring (one for Tofiq Musayev, one for Luiz Gustavo and Patricky Pitbull, and one for Johnny Case) since no Japanese fighter moved on to the semi-finals. Here were the second round picks:

Johnny Case vs. Tofiq Musayev
Luiz Gustavo vs. Patricky Pitbull

We were told later in the broadcast that the semi-finals and the finals of the tournament will take place on the New Year’s Eve card.

Bout 10: Alexandra Alvare (0-2) vs. RENA (8-3) (112 lbs) (MMA Rules)

After a lengthy second intermission, the next fight was RENA versus Alexandra Alvare. The fight was RENA’s return after losing to Lindsey VanZandt at Bellator 222. Alvare was a short notice replacement for RENA after Shawna Ram pulled out due to a concussion. RIZIN Super Atomweight Champion Ayaka Hamasaki was in the corner of RENA. RENA dropped and hurt Alvare within seconds, getting an easy victory. While against an extremely easy opponent, RENA had a return to form after a loss in the summer.

Bout 11: Miyuu Yamamoto (5-3) vs. Seo Hee Ham (21-8) (108 lbs) (MMA Rules)

After her RIZIN debut in the summer, Seo Hee Ham returned to face Miyuu Yamamoto. The fight was presumably a #1 contenders matchup for to decide the next opponent for Ayaka Hamasaki. Miyuu walked out to a mashup of songs including KID Yamamoto’s walkout theme. Her son Erson Yamamoto was cornering her for this fight. Yamamoto got a single leg takedown in the second minute of the fight. Ham got up quickly but was pushed back down. They stood back up into a clinch and then returned to stand-up. Ham stopped the next takedown attempt. Yamamoto got another takedown with two minutes left in the round. The referee stood them up due to inactivity with a minute left in the round. The round ended in stand-up.

Ham was able to stop a takedown early in the second round. Her striking was significantly better this round. Yamamoto was taken down and was hit with strikes from bottom position. The fight was paused as Ham went out of the right. Yamamoto got a cut around her ear that was checked out, although they were able to resume. When they resumed, Yamamoto went into a clinch and landed knees. Ham landed a few punches and then stuffed a takedown. With Yamamoto holding her leg, Ham let off some hammerfist punches to the head. They got back to a standing clinch where Yamamoto was thrown down and hit with two soccer kicks to the head. Yamamoto got back up but was shoved down again. Ham was on Yamamoto’s back, throwing hammerfist strikes. The strikes continued unanswered until the referee stepped in and ended it. Ham seemed sad after the stoppage, immediately hugging and bowing to Yamamoto while tearing up. Both of them were very emotional. After the fight, RIZIN Super Atomweight Champion Ayaka Hamasaki came out and accepted a challenge from Ham. They did a face-off photo as well.

Bellator Japan and RIZIN 20 Announcement

Before the next fight, it was announced that Bellator MMA will do a show on December 29th, and RIZIN 20 will take place on New Year’s Eve. Headlining Bellator Japan will be Rampage Jackson and Fedor Emelianenko. Names shown in the video package were Kyoji Horiguchi, Ayaka Hamasaki and Mikuru Asakura.

Bout 12: Kai Asakura (13-1) vs. Ulka Sasaki (22-7-2) (134 lbs) (MMA Rules)

After the third and final intermission of the evening, the show had it’s co-main event. It was 7 AM EST by the time this fight had come. The co-main event was Kai Asakura versus Ulka Sasaki. Asakura was hot off his huge upset win over Kyoji Horiguchi. Sasaki was coming back after his loss against Shintaro Ishiwatari. His edge over Asakura was really just experience. Kyoji Horiguchi was celebrating his birthday, watching the fight at ringside. As expected, Mikuru Asakura was in the corner of his brother Kai. The fight was chaotic from the start, with Sasaki being dropped in the first 20 seconds. Asakura started to land knees and kicks to a grounded Sasaki. The referee paused the fight to check out Sasaki, who had a broken jaw. Obviously due to the injury the fight was stopped. In under a minute, Kai Asakura added another W to his record, priming himself for a title fight with Horiguchi. After the fight, Horiguchi came into the ring and accepted a fight against Asakura.

Bout 13: Fabio Maldonado (25-13) vs. Jiri Prochazka (24-3-1) (220 lbs) (MMA Rules)

The main event of the evening was Fabio Maldonado facing RIZIN Light Heavyweight Champion Jiri Prochazka in a non-championship bout. Prochazka started to clip Maldonado in the second mi nute of the fight. Cornered, Maldonado was completely covering up and letting Prochazka swing away. Shortly after being dropped by punches, the referee came in and ended it, giving Prochazka the win. In a completely one-sided bout, Jiri Prochazka gave himself his second win of the year.

RIZIN’s next event will be on December 29th, collaborating with Bellator for the promotion’s first show in Japan. After that, RIZIN will hold the traditional New Year’s Eve show. More updates will come in the next couple of months for the matchups on those shows.