ANGEL CHAMPAGNE presents RIZIN LANDMARK 4 in NAGOYA

MINOWAMAN Z vs. SAMURAI MARK HUNT, Dragon Gate wrestler Keisuke Okuda, sumo weed guy Takakenshin, and a pointless main event. Airs in English on FITE.tv outside Japan!

Date: Sunday, 6 November 2022 13:00 JST (00:00 ET) [FITE stream starts 1:00 AM ET]

Venue: Dolphins Arena (Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium), Naka-ku, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan

How Can I Watch?: https://www.fite.tv/watch/rizin-landmark-4/2pc63/ (US$19.99)

Previous RIZIN LANDMARK shows were secret events with 5 fights held at an undisclosed location in Tokyo. This one is a full show being held in a 7500-seat arena in Nagoya. The only reason for it to not be a numbered Rizin show is that they wanted to save the round 40 for New Year’s Eve. Well, that and the card stinks, big time. But we will watch it anyway!

Satoshi “Dominator” Yamasu (13-6) vs. Ren Hiramoto (1-2, 11-4 KB) (146)

Satoshi “Dominator” Yamasu continues his unremarkable MMA career with his second straight Rizin main event. In March, he defeated Kyohei Hagiwara via triangle armbar at Rizin 34. His career started 3-4 and he’s since recovered to his current 13-6, but in a bad 2020 he lost to both former champion Juntaro Ushiku and recent Floyd Mayweather victim Mikuru Asakura. His bounceback victory was in the first MMA fight for kickboxer “Black Panther” Noah Bey. The closest thing to a notable name on his record is back-to-back victories over a 21-8-2 Takahiro Ashida in 2018 to become the DEEP Featherweight champion. I can say that though his nickname is “Dominator” his handle online is “mma_pierrot” and he walks to the ring wearing one of those Jabbawockeez-style masks.

Ren Hiramoto is a childhood friend of Tenshin Nasukawa and his Rizin profile claims that he had a 95-5 record “in his amateur days.” After switching to MMA, he lost his first two fights, but still got to be in the main event of Rizin 36 in July and got a split decision win over shootboxer Hiroaki Suzuki. The switch to MMA was strange because he had won his last 6 kickboxing matches before making the change, his last being at the NYE 2019 Bellator Japan show. Hiramoto did some of his MMA training at Roufusport under the tutelage of Sergio Pettis, including seconding Pettis in his title fight with Kyoji Horiguchi. He does have 222K Instagram followers and is a 24-year-old tattooed hot boy, so there has to be a reason he keeps getting a spot as a key face of Rizin. His Twitter profile (@REN_MMA) hilariously has the description set to “生涯戦績980戦978勝2敗893KO 1SUB” which translates to “Lifetime record 980 fights, 978 wins, 2 losses, 893 KO, 1 SUB.”

They are certainly serving Hiramoto someone he has a chance to beat, but realistically Yamasu has a lot of experience including in grappling so he will probably come out on top. It is a thoroughly pointless match-up.

Masakazu Imanari (39-21-2) vs. Chihiro Suzuki (8-3) (146)

“Ashikan Judan” Masakazu Imanari is one of the Japanese legends of MMA. Known for his leglocks (“Ashikan Judan” means “The Great Master of Leg Submissions”), he is currently 46 years old and in any just world would be allowed to retire from doing combat sports. He has 62 fights, and had his first one in 2000! Based on recent activity, it does seem like he had switched to doing almost all grappling matches instead of fights, which is a healthier choice than getting punched in the head in your 40s. But he has been taking 1-2 MMA fights per year since 2018 anyway. And though he did lose via decision to Takahiro Ashida in August, he also beat 26-8-1 Takeshi Kasugai via round 1 armbar in October 2021 at Rizin Landmark 1. He began his career as a pro wrestler in UFO, which was founded by Antonio Inoki, after learning kickboxing and catch wrestling at Fujiwara Dojo under original Tiger Mask Satoru Sayama. Imanari previously held the DEEP Bantam and Featherweight titles, and he was also the final Cage Rage Featherweight champion.

Imanari’s opponent was supposed to be 14-4 Kazumasa Majima, but Majima injured the MCL in his left elbow. Stepping up in his place is 23-year-old prodigy Chihiro Suzuki. In addition to being 8-3 in MMA, he is 6-1 in kickboxing, 4-0 in muay thai, and 1-0 in shootboxing, for a combined record of 18-4. He started fighting in 2017 a few months before his 18th birthday. Per Rizin’s profile, he has a Peruvian father and a Japanese mother. He’s stepping in on late notice after choking out Kyohei Hagiwara just 6 weeks ago at Rizin 38.

I’m kinda fearing for Imanari’s health on this one, he was slated to face a 31-year-old on a three-fight losing streak and instead he gets a kickboxing boy with a lot of KOs on his record.

Yuki Motoya (31-10) vs. Kazuma Kuramoto (10-2) (134)

Yuki Motoya has been around long enough at 33 to have amassed an 8-5 record in Rizin. Last time out in July he defeated Greco-Roman Olympian Shinobu Ota, and he has MMA wins over Masakazu Imanari, Yoshiro Maeda, Tatsumitsu Wada, and Justin Scoggins.

Kazuma Kuramoto is a former Troop in the JSDF, and has a Greco-Roman wrestling background, with his best result being 7th at the World Championship in 2013. His nickname is “Throwing God” because of his German suplex that allowed him to start his MMA career 7-0. His RIZIN record is 3-1 and all his prior fights were in Shooto. As a 5’4” bantamweight he gives up 3 inches to Motoya. But he has really cool slams so he will be looking to continue to slam his way up the Rizin rankings while getting revenge for Motoya’s defeat of his Greco-Roman compatriot.

MINOWAMAN Z (65-44-8) vs. SAMURAI MARK HUNT (16-12) (265)

Fourth from the top we have a battle of two fighters that have not fought in years. Ikuhisa Minowa, née The Punk, née SUPER HLUK, née MINOWAMAN, is now reborn as MINOWAMAN Z. Per the Rizin site, “In September 2022, he changed his name to ‘Minowaman Z’ for the bright future of children, in order to change Japan by making use of his 26 years of professional martial arts experience. Expectations are rising as to what kind of performance ‘Superman Minowaman Z’ will show in the RIZIN ring.” After 117 fights since 1996, he has finally decided to use his martial arts to change Japan instead of using it to win fights. He makes his return to Rizin after he lost to sumo wrestler Takanofuji Tsuyoshi Sudario via leg kicks two years ago at NYE 2020. His last win was over Dong Sik Yoon in September 2017. He has wins over Sokoudjou, Hong Man Choi, Bob Sapp, Don Frye, Butterbean, Phil Baroni, and Kimo Leopoldo in his legendary MMA career. He also defeated Necro Butcher in 2010 under pro wrestling rules.

SAMURAI MARK HUNT, sorry to break kayfabe on this one, is 40 year old Kiyoshi Kuwabara. He has not fought in four years, since he lost to Roque Martinez at Rizin 12. He has 2012 wins over an 0-6-1 fighter named “King” and a fighter known simply as “Dat” in the GLADIATOR promotion. His career was 13-4 from 2011 to 2013, followed by 3-8 from 2013 to 2018. Per Rizin, he admires “The Phantom of Samoa” Mark Hunt which is why he took on his name. Both Minowa and Kuwabara are from Gifu in Japan, so this battle is for prefecture pride.

Callyu Gibrainn (5-2) vs. Takakenshin (0-1) (265)

“Juggernaut” Cally Gibrainn de Oliveira is making a quick return to Rizin after losing via RNC to Shoma Shibisai in his organizational debut six weeks ago. He is once again saying he will win this via KO, to turn his fortune around.

His opponent is “Takakenshin” Satoshi Kamiyama, the more disgraced of the disgraced Sumo Twin Bad Boys that got expelled from the premier large man sport and have thus been relegated to the trashweight division of the promotion that otherwise rarely runs above 146 pounds. He was ejected from the sixth level of sumo in July 2021 for hazing, participating while having the flu, and SMOKING WEED. Rizin quickly signed him and sent him out in April, where he was defeated by evil cop Shrek Sekine via soccer kick, but he is still hanging around. His twin brother is having much more success in Rizin so far, but he’s been doing it for two years longer. Imagine if they had the twins fight each other someday.

SARAMI (16-13) vs. Laura Fontoura (7-1) (108)

Laura Fontoura gets a more reasonable fight after being brought in as a “7-0” victim for Seika Izawa in the first round of the Super Atomweight Grand Prix back in July. I say “7-0” in quotes because her first 5 fights were nobodies and her last two wins were against 6-7 and 6-10 opponents.

That means that “SARAMI” Satomi Takano at 16-13 still represents a significant opponent for Fontoura. She’s also 10 years older and 5 inches shorter at 5’0”. SARAMI has no wins over anybody I recognize, 4 losses to fighters with losing records, and she lost her Rizin debut to Kanna Asakura in April. Advantage probably still lies with Laura Fontoura.

Yusaku Nakamura (16-9-1) vs. Takaki Soya (12-4-1) (126)

36-year-old Yusaku Nakamura fights out of Team Alpha Male Japan and has lost 3 straight, with his last win coming in June 2019 over Topnoi Kiwram. He was also fed to Tenshin in kickboxing in 2018, as his Rizin debut, when he had 0 previous kickboxing bouts. Because Rizin, because Japan. He has no notable wins, but he was the World Series of Fighting Global Challenge Flyweight champion.

 Takaki Soya, meanwhile, is on a three fight win streak. He took all of 2020 and 2021 off, but returned to defeat Nobuyoshi Nakatsukasa at Rizin Trigger 3rd in April. His list of opponents is also rather thin, and he lost to Yoshiro Maeda at Vale Tudo Japan 7th in 2015. Rizin’s profile notes that he has Crohn’s disease.

Jin Aoi (9-5-1) vs. Hiroaki Suzuki (2-2, 15-5 SB, 1-0 KB, 1-4 MT) (146)

Jin Aoi is 1-1 in Rizin and returns for the first time since June 2021 after going 1-1 in DEEP this year. He beat Kotetsu Boku at Rizin 23 and his last fight was a TKO loss to Kouya Kanda in May.

Hiroaki “General Killer” “Kaibutsu-Kun” Suzuki fought in Shoot Boxing from 2008 to 2018, including wins over Mitsuhiro Ishida, Joachim Hansen, and Michihiro Omigawa. Shoot Boxing is kickboxing, but with bonus points being awarded for “shoot” on a throw or “catch” on a successful standing submission. Suzuki was able to win both the lightweight and super lightweight titles. He is 2-2 in MMA since his debut in Rizin last October, though last time out he became main eventer Ren Hiramoto’s first victim in the sport of MMA.

Alan “Hiro” Yamaniha (19-10-4) vs. Yasuhiro Kawamura (13-7-1) (134)

Alan “Hiro” Yamaniha is the fourth banana of the Bonsai Jiu-Jitsu team of Japanese Brazilians that includes Roberto Satoshi Souza and Kleber Koike. He has a 2-2 record in Rizin and has also fought in DEEP and Pancrase a lot. He lost to Yuki Motoya at Rizin 35 in April.

Yasuhiro Kawamura makes his Rizin debut as the Fighting NEXUS Bantamweight champion. His opponents are as questionable as his record, as he has only once fought an opponent with more than 9 wins, and it was a quick defeat to Shoko Sato at Vale Tudo Japan 2021. Kawamura’s profile notes that he quit baseball at age 15 to do martial arts, but his parents thought the striking was too dangerous, so he just did BJJ until he was 19 and could make the decision to get hit in the head over and over without his parents’ input.

Full Swing Uoi (23-12-5) vs. Ji Yong Yang (5-0) (134)

His real name is Mamoru Uoi, and the “full swing” in question is his dynamic hook that “full swings.” He’s another classic Japanese journeyman fighter who has almost all of his bouts against other Japanese fighters with mediocre records. Full Swing, though, is 1-6 in his last seven, with the win coming against an 8-9 opponent. And with an additional kickboxing TKO defeat in that same timeframe. His RIZIN record is 2-3. He lost a decision to Throwing God Kuramoto at Rizin Landmark 3 in May.

“Korean Predator” Ji Yong Yang makes his return to Rizin after defeating Shoji Maruyama, a 19-16-1 last minute replacement for Kai Asakura, at Rizin 36 in July. In addition to his 5-0 pro record, he had a 5-0 amateur record and, allegedly, an 11-1 record and a WAKO championship win in “Korean kickboxing.” Seems like Rizin is taking some time to build up Yang as a Korean prospect.

Keisuke Okuda (0-4) vs. Yuta Kubo (0-1 MMA, 37-8-1 KB, 4-1 MT) (146)

I don’t know what the hell this fight is. Keisuke Okuda is a currently active pro wrestler that wrestles in Dragon Gate. His current stable is HIGH-END with YAMATO, Dragon Kid, and Ben-K, and he was in two ****+ singles matches in 2020. He is 0-4 in MMA and 0-1 in Shootboxing, but he won 4 Ganryujima moat fights via the “3 ring out” rule in one night on September 17, 2018.

“The Smiling Sniper” Yuta Kubo is a 35-year-old kickboxer that achieved a 41-9-1 combined stand-up record, fights in Rajadamnern Stadium, and the K-1 Featherweight title before announcing he was switching to boxing. He ultimately did not go to boxing, but instead went to MMA in Rizin. His MMA loss was to Olympic Silver medalist Shinobu Ota at Rizin 30.

OPENING FIGHT Prelims

These fights allegedly begin an hour before the FITE broadcast of the show is scheduled to start, so it is unclear as to whether or not they will air.

Junya “Ebichu” Hibino (4-2) vs. Riku Yoshida (5-0) (134)

Junya “Ebichu” Hibino is so-named because he is a big fan of the idol group Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku and is in fact designated as the “official fighter” of the group by their promoter. Which I’m researching on Wikipedia and learning is a group that uses the gimmick “Forever a Middle-schooler” and includes several 15-year-old members. So maybe not the coolest thing to be obsessed with when you’re 24. Hibino had all of his previous fights in DEEP and had his latest win just six weeks ago.

Riku Yoshida is 22 and has also had all of his fights in DEEP. He has Kyokushin Karate as his base, which he started at age 5. He decided to become an MMA fighter at age 18 after “he was shocked to see Conor McGregor in the UFC.” He is from Nagoya and fights in DEEP Nagoya, so he is looking to get a hometown win on the big stage of the Rizin OPENING FIGHT prelims.

Kenta Kubo (6-2) vs. Hideyoshi (3-2) (126)

40-year-old Kenta Kubo may only have 8 fights since his pro MMA debut in 2019, but according to his Rizin profile, he also “[accumulated] more than 20 fights in various underground martial arts.” His last fight was 6 weeks ago at GLADIATOR 019, which is quite the quick turnaround for someone his age.

Hideyoshi Okamoto is only 23 and is fighting representing his hometown of Nagoya as well as his father, who was a substitute instructor at the karate dojo. His MMA inspiration was the performance of local fighter Hatsu Hioki at UFC 144 in Saitama Super Arena. In addition to his 3-2 pro record he had a 14-6 amateur record since he began training MMA at age 13.

Syuto Sato (1-3-1 KB, 2-1 MT, 3-8 SB) vs. KAZUNORI (1-3 KB, maybe?) (KB 117)

The opening fight of the night is the only kickboxing rules fight on the show and it features one of the worst guys I’ve seen on a major show like this. Shuto Sato is 6-12-1 in the various stand-up fighting disciplines and has lost his last 3. His older brother is a retired MMA fighter Kanta “Kang” Sato who went 9-4 and was the first DEEP Strawweight champion. He’s 0-2-1 in Rizin and yet he somehow got this booking anyway. Because he’s from Nagoya, I suppose.

It’s not like he’s here to lose to a hot prospect either. KAZUNORI (last name unknown) is 36 years old and has only fought in DEEP since 2019 and he’s 1-3 there. His record seems to be incomplete on Tapology, though. Google Translate for Rizin’s profile page has this: “When he was a child, he was passionate about baseball, but when he saw K-1 when he was 20 years old, he thought, ‘I want to be famous, too,’ and decided to go on the path of kickboxing. He won 24 of his 33 amateur fights. Since turning professional, he has experienced 34 fights so far, and is feared as an excellent aggressive fighter who never backs down.” If his actual experience level is 67 fights, then I expect his old ass to handily defeat Sato. Another funny part of his profile is talking about how he gave it his best try against 16-year-old Kaito Hasegawa back in June but eventually lost.