Arguably one of the best outside competing mixed martial artists in the world
Ultimate Fighting ChampionshipKyrgyzstan outstanding Rajabali Shaidullayev maintained his perfect record and became a two-time champion in front of 48,968 fans at the Kyocera Dome in Osaka, Japan.
Shaidullayev won a tough unanimous decision AJ McKee in the year Super Rizin 5 the main event. The win allowed him to keep his
Rizin Fighting Federation featherweight title and capture
Professional fighter league championship at 145 lbs.
Rajabali Shaidullaev went 20-0 by unanimous decision over AJ McKee
Shaidullaev (20-0, 8-0 Rizin) suffered early adversity when a one-two counter by McKee (25-3, 1-1 Rizin) knocked him off balance in the opening seconds. Shaidullaev quickly recovered, whipping McKee to the canvas and landing short elbows and punches, pinning him against the bottom rope.
McKee responded with a kick to the face, but Shaidullaev continued to attack with punches and elbows.
McKee took Shaidullaev’s back and brought him to the canvas briefly in the second round. Shaidullaev made a bursting escape before McKee pressed down from near the base of the corner post.
McKee tried to tie up his opponent from below, but Shaidullaev provided side control and opened a cut near McKee’s right eye. McKee briefly got the legs down before being knocked down again, and Shaidullaev spent the rest of the round pounding the American from inside guard.
Shaidullaev advanced to the third round for the first time in his professional career, but showed no signs of slowing down. He landed an overhand right and followed it up with a takedown.
McKee worked his way up to one knee and attempted a takedown before briefly backing Shaidullayev during a scramble. After returning to their feet, both men went for the finish, with Shaidullayev landing the cleaner shots.
McKee secured a late takedown to the midsection of Shaidullayev, where the fight ended.
All three judges scored the match 30-27 for Shaidullaev.
After the win, Shaidullayev addressed the audience and noted that he has one fight left in his current Rizin contract.
Kyoma Akimoto then stepped into the ring and respectfully asked for the opportunity to become Shaidullaev’s next and potentially final challenger for Rizin’s title.
Shaidullaev and Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara seemed receptive to the proposal. If terminated, the championship contest could take place on New Year’s Eve.
Rizin stars in the lightweight co-main event Miku Asakura (20-6, 1 NC; 14-5 Rizin) survived a series of submission attempts before the decorated wrestler was tapped out Shinya Aoki
(49-13, 1 NC; 1-1 Rizin) in the first round.
Competing for Rizin for the first time since the promotion’s inaugural event in December 2015, Aoki immediately buckled and pulled guard. He tried a triangle choke, but Asakura got away by slamming him to the canvas.
After the fighters got to their feet, Aoki jumped on Asakura’s back and applied a body triangle as he fell to the mat. Aoki threatened with a rear naked choke and then an armbar, but Asakura changed into his guard and posed to strike.
Asakura’s first punch seemed to render Aoki unconscious. Asakura continued with follow-up strikes until the referee stopped the fight at 2:39 of the opening round.
Kind of like Aoki’s first Rizin appearance where he defeated
Kazushi Sakurabathe match carried the feeling of a symbolic passing of the torch. Asakura has endured his struggles in recent years, but this time it was youth and power that proved decisive.
The main card opened with a featherweight match between Ren Hiramoto (5-3, 5-3 Rizin) and Dautbek with Karshy (19-4, 1 NC; 5-2, 1 NC Rizin), which ended in a controversial split after three entertaining rounds.
Dautbek landed shots from high position after an early takedown, but Hiramoto got to his feet and traded power shots with him. Dautbek tripped Hiramoto with a hard left hook, then continued to connect with an overhand left hook. He secured another takedown late in the round and landed more ground shots.
Dautbek landed a body kick and scored another takedown in the second round. Hiramoto threw him away and began attacking his opponent’s lead leg. Dautbek then tried to bring the fight back to the ground, allowing Hiramoto’s confidence to grow.
Hiramoto’s defense held up until midway through the final round, when Dautbek tripped him near the ropes. The referee brought the fighters to their feet after the match was stopped, but Dautbek landed a suplex and ended the fight with strikes to the ground.
Hiramoto looked dejected before the score was announced, but the two judges scored the fight 29-28. The third scored Dautbek 29-27, giving Hiramoto a split decision.
A year after they were originally supposed to meet in a title fight, the former lightweight champion Roberto Satoshi de Souza (21-4, 14-3 Rizin) and the first racket
Shunta Nomura (10-3, 2-1 Rizin) finally shared a ring.
Nomura sprawled near the corner and denied de Souza’s takedown attempts until midway through the opening round. De Souza eventually forced him to sit against the corner post and threw punches while standing over him.
Nomura kept de Souza from securing the rear choke, but the former champion appeared to have gained an early lead.
The fight stalled in the second round with both men landing kicks and long jabs. De Souza connected with two right hands, while Nomura opened a cut next to his opponent’s right eye with a left hook.
After a brief exchange of power punches in the final round, de Souza took Nomura to half guard. He eventually regained control and kept Nomura trapped in a body triangle until the final bell.
All three judges scored the match 29:28 in favor of de Souza. After earning the unanimous decision, de Souza revealed he had a dislocated shoulder early in the fight. If the medical ailment clears in time, he could return on New Year’s Eve and potentially challenge for the lightweight title he lost last year.
A featherweight veteran Yutaka Saito (22-9-2, 5-5 Rizin) spoiled the comeback By “Ya-Man” Sugiyama (3-3, 3-3 Rizin), competing for the first time since suffering a career-threatening orbital injury.
Saito ducked a right hand and took Sugiyama to half guard early in the fight. He worked his way to side control before Sugiyama pinned him at the end of the round. Sugiyama survived a rear naked choke attempt and made it to the bell.
The second round followed a similar pattern with Saito controlling Sugiyama on the ground. Saito again went for a naked choke, but Sugiyama refused to give up. When Sugiyama stood for a moment, Saito climbed onto his back and dragged him down again.
Saito knocked Sugiyama off balance with a knee in the final round and scored another takedown. Sugiyama had no answer to Saito’s grappling, and the former champion controlled him with a body triangle for over two minutes.
All three judges scored the fight 30-27 for Saito, who earned a dominant unanimous decision.
Former Rizin Featherweight Champion Vugar Karamov (22-7, 8-4 Rizin) returned to the victory column with a unanimous decision Ryo Takagi
(11-4, 5-3 Reason).
Karamov took Takagi to his back and dragged him to the canvas after hitting him near the corner. Takagi stood briefly, but Karamov delivered another takedown and threatened an arm-triangle choke. He transitioned into a back naked choke and then a guillotine, but Takagi escaped each submission attempt.
Karamov recovered from two jabs in the eye early in the second round. Takagi later countered a takedown with a guillotine choke and returned near the corner. He then surprised Karamov with a trip, but could not hold the Azerbaijanis down for long.
Karamov added two takedowns in the final round and controlled Takagi against the corner post. He scored one final takedown late in the fight that prevented Takagi from finding the knockout he needed.
The judges scored Karamov 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27.
Natalia Kuziutina (11-1, 2-0 Rizin) moved closer to a women’s super atomweight title opportunity by submitting Rizin’s star Rena Kubota
(15-7, 14-6 Reason).
Kubota entered with strong tape around the left knee, which Kuziutina immediately targeted with kicks. Kuziutina followed with quick uppercuts before forcing Kubota to the canvas and landing knees to the head.
Kubota stood up near the corner where Kuziutina attacked his left leg with another knee. He then dragged Kubota back to the mat, knelt down and tried the hold.
Kubota’s right eye swelled up significantly between rounds, with replays showing the damage was caused by an accidental clash of heads.
Kuziutina immediately took down Kubota in the second round and landed knees from a north-south position. He then secured a one-handed guillotine and moved in, applying a choke hold until Kubota tapped out at 3:14.
The event started with a lightweight kickboxing match between
Hide Meison Usami and Noah Beycompeted with open-fingered gloves.
Usami opened with leg kicks and two straight left hands that forced Bey backwards. Bey frustrated her opponent with lateral movement but did little of her offense, while Usami ended the round with a flying switch kick.
Bey had more success with kicks in the second round, leaving Usami with visible injuries on both of his legs. Usami caught one of Bey’s kicks and Bey countered with a spinning backfist.
Bey switched stances in the final round and used kicks to set up a right hand. Usami then dropped him with a right hook. Bey hit a standing figure eight, but Usami got a body slam and floored her again with a left cross.
Bey got to his feet and both men traded blows before the closing bell. Usami’s two late knockdowns earned him a unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring the fight 30-25.
