Kazushi Sakuraba

Kazushi Sakuraba

Birth : 1969-07-14, Shōwa, Akita, Japan

History

Kazushi Sakuraba is a Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler, currently signed to Rizin Fighting Federation. He has competed in traditional puroresu for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and shoot-style competition for UWFi and Kingdom Pro Wrestling (KPW). He has fought in MMA competition in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Pride Fighting Championships, Hero's and Dream. He is known as the "Gracie Hunter" or the "Gracie Killer" due to his wins over four members of the famed Gracie family: Royler Gracie, Renzo Gracie, Ryan Gracie, and Royce Gracie. In particular, Sakuraba is famous for his initial fight with Royce, which lasted ninety minutes and ended after Royce was unable to continue due to damage received from Sakuraba.

Profile

Kazushi Sakuraba

Movies

NOAH: Great Muta Final
Pro Wrestling NOAH presents GREAT MUTA FINAL 'BYE-BYE' event on January 22nd, 2023 from the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama Japan. This event will feature Keiji Mutoh’s final match under The Great Muta persona as he teams up with AEW's STING & Darby Allin!
NJPW & NOAH: Wrestle Kingdom 16 - Night 3
Wrestle Kingdom 16: Night 3 is an upcoming three-day professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event co-produced by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah) promotions. The event will take place on January 8, at Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan. It will be the first time the event will be held over three days and the first one to take place in Yokohama. It will mark the first January 4 Tokyo Dome Show since 2007's Wrestle Kingdom I to be co-produced with another wrestling promotion.
NOAH: The New Year 2022
Pro Wrestling NOAH returns to the illustrious Nippon Budokan for NOAH THE NEW YEAR 2022.
NOAH: The Best - Final Chronicle 2020
Pro Wrestling NOAH presents their final event of 2020 from Tokyo, Japan.
NOAH: 20th Anniversary - NOAH The Chronicle Vol.4
Pro Wrestling NOAH celebrates its 20th anniversary with this event from Yokohama Budokan in Yokahama, Japan.
NJPW Dominion in Osaka-jo Hall
Dominion in Osaka-jo Hall was a professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on July 12, 2020, in Osaka, Osaka, at the Osaka-jō Hall and was the twelfth event under the Dominion name and sixth in a row that took place at the Osaka-jō Hall. Dominion in Osaka-jo Hall was officially announced on June 9, 2019, during Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall. It was scheduled to take place on June 14, 2020, but was postponed to July 12, to allow the rescheduled New Japan Cup tournament to take place instead, as the tournament was originally planned to be held earlier in the year but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the pandemic, the arena was limited to one-third capacity.
Quintet Ultra
Quintet Ultra was a grappling team survival event held by Quintet on December 12, 2019 at the Red Rock Casino in Las Vegas, USA. This event was based around teams representing four of the most notable MMA promotions: the UFC, Pride Fighting Championships, Strikeforce and World Extreme Cagefighting. Combatants were chosen based on how closely linked their careers were to those promotions.
Quintet 3
Grappling Team Survival Match
Quintet 2
Himself
TEAM Tiger Muay Thai VS TEAM Reebok
NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2016
Himself
Wrestling Dontaku 2016 is an upcoming professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event is scheduled to take place on May 3, 2016, in Fukuoka, Fukuoka at Fukuoka Kokusai Center and will feature ten matches, five of which will be contested for championships. The show will be headlined by Tetsuya Naito making his first defense of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Tomohiro Ishii. It will be the thirteenth event under the Wrestling Dontaku name.
NJPW Invasion Attack 2016
Himself
Invasion Attack 2016 is an upcoming professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event is scheduled to take place on April 10, 2016, in Tokyo at Ryōgoku Kokugikan. The event will feature nine matches, six of which will be contested for championships. The main event will see Kazuchika Okada defend the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against the winner of the 2016 New Japan Cup, Tetsuya Naito. The event will air worldwide on New Japan Pro Wrestling World and will feature English commentary, provided by Kevin Kelly and Steve Corino. Invasion Attack 2016 will be the fourth event under the Invasion Attack name.
NJPW The New Beginning in Niigata 2016
Himself
The New Beginning in Niigata is an upcoming professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event is scheduled to take place on February 14, 2016, in Nagaoka, Niigata, at the Aore Nagaoka. The event will feature nine matches, three of which will be contested for championships. In the main event, Hiroshi Tanahashi will take on Kenny Omega to determine the new IWGP Intercontinental Champion, following previous champion Shinsuke Nakamura's departure from NJPW. The New Beginning in Niigata will be the ninth event under the New Beginning name and the first to take place in Niigata.
NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka 2016
Himself
The New Beginning in Osaka 2016 is an upcoming professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event is scheduled to take place on February 11, 2016, in Osaka, Osaka, at the Edion Arena Osaka. The event will feature nine matches, four of which will be contested for championships. In the main event, Kazuchika Okada will defend the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Hirooki Goto. The New Beginning in Osaka will be the eighth event under the New Beginning name and the third under the New Beginning in Osaka name.
NJPW Tag League Finals 2015
The World Tag League is a professional wrestling round-robin tag team tournament held by New Japan Pro Wrestling as a spin-off of the popular singles tournament, the G1 Climax. It was created in 1991 as the Super Grade Tag League, as a continuation of a regular tag team tournament held since 1980, gaining the name G1 Tag League in 1999. In 2012, New Japan's new owners, the Bushiroad company, renamed the tournament to its current form. The winners of the tournament, assuming they do not already hold the belts, obtain #1 contendership to the IWGP Tag Team Championship. The World Tag League is held under a points system, with 2 points for a win, 1 for a draw and 0 for a loss. The current format, introduced in 2006, is essentially identical to that of the G1 Climax, with the top two scoring teams from two blocks of five or six advancing to the semifinals, and the winners of those matches battling in the final.
NJPW Power Struggle 2015
Himself
Power Struggle (2015) is an upcoming professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event is scheduled to take place on November 7, 2015, in Osaka, Osaka, at the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium. It will be the fifth event under the Power Struggle name.
NJPW King of Pro-Wrestling 2015
Himself
King of Pro-Wrestling (2015) is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on October 12, 2015, in Tokyo at Ryōgoku Kokugikan. The event was NJPW's biggest event between August's G1 Climax and January's Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome and was main evented by Kazuchika Okada defending the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against A.J. Styles. All in all, the event featured nine matches, four of which were be contested for championships. In addition to airing worldwide through NJPW's internet streaming site, New Japan Pro Wrestling World, the event aired in Japan as a regular PPV through SKY PerfecTV!. It was the fourth event under the King of Pro-Wrestling name.
NJPW Destruction in Kobe 2015
Himself
Destruction in Kobe (2015) is a professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event is scheduled to take place on September 27, 2015, in Kobe, Hyōgo at the Kobe World Memorial Hall. The event will feature nine matches, three of which will be contested for championships. It will be the eleventh event under the Destruction name.
NJPW G1 Climax 25 - Finals
G1 Climax Finals: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: KUSHIDA (c) vs. Ricochet IWGP Jr. Tag Team Championship: Young Bucks (c) vs. ReDragon Bullet Club vs. Chaos & The Kingdom ...And More
NJPW Dominion 7.5 in Osaka-jo Hall
Himself
Dominion 7.5 in Osaka-jo Hall is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on July 5, 2015, in Osaka, Osaka, at the Osaka-jō Hall. The featured ten matches with all six of NJPW's championships on the line, main evented by an IWGP Heavyweight Championship match between champion A.J. Styles and challenger Kazuchika Okada. This was the seventh event under the Dominion name and the first to take place in July.
NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2015
Himself
Wrestling Dontaku 2015 was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on May 3, 2015, in Fukuoka, Fukuoka at Fukuoka Kokusai Center and featured nine matches, three of which were contested for championships. In addition to airing worldwide through NJPW's internet streaming site, New Japan Pro Wrestling World, the event also aired in Japan as a regular PPV through SKY PerfecTV!'s Sukachan service. It was the twelfth event under the Wrestling Dontaku name.
NJPW Invasion Attack 2015
Himself
1. Yuji Nagata, Captain New Japan, Alex Shelley, KUSHIDA & Yohei Komatsu vs. Manabu Nakanishi, Jushin Thunder Liger, Tiger Mask, Ryusuke Taguchi & Sho Tanaka 2. Hiroyoshi TenzanSatoshi Kojima & Tomoaki Honma vs. Yujiro Takahashi, Tama Tonga & Cody Hall 3. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title: Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (c) vs. Rocky Romero & Barreta 4. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Kenny Omega (c) vs. Máscara Dorada 5. IWGP Tag Team Title: Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows (c) vs. Michael Bennett & Matt Taven 6. Special Six Man Tag Match: Togi Makabe, Hirooki Goto & Tetsuya Naito vs. Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI 7. Special Tag Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Kazushi Sakuraba & Toru Yano 8. Special Singles Match: Kazuchika Okada vs. Bad Luck Fale 9. IWGP Heavyweight Title: AJ Styles (c) vs. Kota Ibushi
NJPW The New Beginning in Sendai
Himself
1. Satoshi Kojim & Yohei Komatsu vs. Manabu Nakanishi & Captain New Japan 2. Tiger Mask & Jay White vs. Kyle O'Reilly & Bobby Fish 3. Special Six Man Tag Match: Mascara Dorada, Alex Shelley & KUSHIDA vs. Kenny Omega, Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson 4. NWA World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Jushin Thunder Liger (c) vs. Chase Owens 5. NWA World Heavyweight Title: Rob Conway (c) vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan 6. Special Tag Match: Tetsuya Naito & Kota Ibushi vs. Kazushi Sakuraba & Toru Yano 7. Special Tag Match: Kazuchika Okada & YOSHI-HASHI vs. Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi 8. Special Six Man Tag Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows & Tama Tonga 9. NEVER Openweight Title: Tomoaki Honma vs. Tomohiro Ishii 10. IWGP Intercontinental Title: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Yuji Nagata
NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka
Himself
1. Sho Tanaka vs. Yohei Komatsu 2. Manabu Nakanishi & Captain New Japan vs. Tiger Mask #4 & Máscara Dorada 3. Rob Conway & Chase Owens vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Jushin Thunder Liger 4. Kota Ibushi vs. Tomoaki Honma 5. 3-Way Match - IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles Match: Time Splitters (KUSHIDA & Alex Shelley) vs. reDRagon (Kyle O'Reilly & Bobby Fish) (c) vs. Young Bucks (Nick Jackson &Matt Jackson) 6. IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title Match: Kenny Omega (c) vs. Ryusuke Taguchi 7. Special Match: BULLET CLUB (Bad Luck Fale, Yujiro Takahashi & Tama Tonga) vs. Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano & Kazushi Sakuraba 8. Special Match: Yuji Nagata, Satoshi Kojima & Tetsuya Naito vs. CHAOS (Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI) 9. IWGP Tag Team Titles Match: BULLET CLUB (Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows) vs. Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata (c) 10. IWGP Heavyweight Title Match: AJ Styles vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (c)
Pioneers of MMA: Kazushi Sakuraba
Himself
Considered by UFC President Dana White to be one of the greatest talents of all time, the legend of Kazushi Sakuraba began at UFC Ultimate Japan in 1997, where the 183lbs puroresu (traditional Japanese pro-wrestler) entered the heavyweight tournament on short notice only to win the four man event outright. Fighting almost exclusively in Japan and the PRIDE FC organization, “Saku” became a national icon by defeating six UFC champions and routing the legendary Gracie family. Featuring exclusive interviews and rare archival footage, this FIGHT PASS Original is the definitive retrospective of Sakuraba, Japan’s most celebrated mixed martial artist.
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 9
Himself
Wrestle Kingdom 9 in Tokyo Dome was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) promotion, which took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on January 4, 2015. It was the 24th January 4 Tokyo Dome Show and the first event on the 2015 NJPW schedule. The event featured ten professional wrestling matches and one pre-show match, six of which were for championships. In the double main event, Shinsuke Nakamura defended the IWGP Intercontinental Championship against Kota Ibushi, and Hiroshi Tanahashi defended the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Kazuchika Okada. The appearance of Pro Wrestling Noah wrestlers led to a storyline in which NJPW's Suzuki-gun group began wrestling at Noah events starting the week after Wrestle Kingdom 9. Through NJPW's partnership with Global Force Wrestling (GFW), the event was broadcast with English commentary as a GFW event.
NJPW Road To Tokyo Dome - Day 6
NJPW Road To Tokyo Dome Night 6 took place in Tokyo, Japan on December 20, 2014. The main event was a six man tag featuring Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi & Togi Makabe taking on Kazuchika Okada, Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii.
NJPW World Tag League 2014 - Day 11
Himself
The World Tag League is a professional wrestling round-robin tag team tournament held by New Japan Pro Wrestling as a spin-off of the popular singles tournament, the G1 Climax. It was created in 1991 as the Super Grade Tag League, as a continuation of a regular tag team tournament held since 1980, gaining the name G1 Tag League in 1999. In 2012, New Japan's new owners, the Bushiroad company, renamed the tournament to its current form. The winners of the tournament, assuming they do not already hold the belts, obtain #1 contendership to the IWGP Tag Team Championship. The 2014 finals featured Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata battling Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson.
NJPW World Tag League 2014 - Day 11
The World Tag League is a professional wrestling round-robin tag team tournament held by New Japan Pro Wrestling as a spin-off of the popular singles tournament, the G1 Climax. It was created in 1991 as the Super Grade Tag League, as a continuation of a regular tag team tournament held since 1980, gaining the name G1 Tag League in 1999. In 2012, New Japan's new owners, the Bushiroad company, renamed the tournament to its current form. The winners of the tournament, assuming they do not already hold the belts, obtain #1 contendership to the IWGP Tag Team Championship. The 2014 finals featured Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata battling Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson.
Metamoris 5
The live experience of Metamoris 5 at the Long Beach Convention Center will be a seamless next step for us to allow for a slightly bigger crowed while still maintaining intimacy, comfort, more scenic control, and amenities for the ultimate grappling experience. Aside from a card that will go down in history forever, we will have Acai, a full bar, Metamoris merchandise, and the guarantee for a black belt viewing experience in any seat. Metamoris 5 is the show you don’t want to miss!
NJPW Power Struggle 2014
Himself
Power Struggle (2014) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on November 8, 2014, in Osaka, Osaka, at the Bodymaker Colosseum. The main event featured a IWGP Intercontinental Championship match between champion Shinsuke Nakamura and challanger Katsuyori Shibata.
NJPW Destruction in Kobe 2014
Himself
Destruction in Kobe (2014) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on September 21, 2014, in Kobe, Hyōgo at the Kobe World Memorial Hall.The event featured ten matches, three of which were contested for championships. In the main event of the show, Chaos' Shinsuke Nakamura challenged Bullet Club's Bad Luck Fale for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.
NJPW G1 Climax 24 - Day 12
Himself
NJPW's biggest tournament of the year G1 Climax starts today. With 22 participants in this year's tournament, G1 Climax 24 marks the largest tournament in its history. As with its round robin rules, the 22 wrestler are divided into 2 blocks of 11 where each wrestler will face their opponent in addition to a bye. Each match is worth 2 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, and 0 points for a loss.
NJPW G1 Climax 24 - Day 12
NJPW's biggest tournament of the year G1 Climax starts today. With 22 participants in this year's tournament, G1 Climax 24 marks the largest tournament in its history. As with its round robin rules, the 22 wrestler are divided into 2 blocks of 11 where each wrestler will face their opponent in addition to a bye. Each match is worth 2 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, and 0 points for a loss.
NJPW Dominion 6.21
Dominion is an annual professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event has been held every June since 2009 as pay-per-view (PPV). Since 2013, viewers outside of Japan have also been able to view the event as an internet pay-per-view (iPPV). Dominion is the first major event following the Best of the Super Juniors tournament and usually includes a match, where the tournament winner challenges for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, assuming the champion has not won the tournament.
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome
Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion, which took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on January 4, 2014. It was the 23rd January 4 Tokyo Dome Show and the eighth held under the "Wrestle Kingdom" name. Like the previous year, the event aired worldwide on internet pay-per-view (iPPV). The event featured ten matches, six of which were contested for championships. For the first time in twenty years, the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) World Heavyweight Championship was defended during the event with NWA representative Rob Conway defending against Satoshi Kojima. The event was headlined by a double main event; Shinsuke Nakamura defending the IWGP Intercontinental Championship against Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada defending the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Tetsuya Naito.
NJPW Destruction 2013
Destruction was a professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event aired domestically as a regular pay-per-view (PPV) and internationally as an internet pay-per-view (iPPV). The event was headlined by Kazuchika Okada defending his IWGP World Heavyweight Championship against Satoshi Kojima.
Wrestle-1 Raising An Army Tour - Day 1
Wrestle-1 has their debut event.
NJPW G1 Climax 23 - Day 9
The G1 Climax tournament carries on from Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan.
NJPW G1 Climax 23 - Day 11
The G-1 Climax comes to a conclusion at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan.
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7
Himself
Wrestle Kingdom 7 in Tokyo Dome was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion, which took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on January 4, 2013. It was the 22nd January 4 Tokyo Dome Show and the seventh held under the "Wrestle Kingdom" name. The event featured eleven matches (including two dark matches), five of which were contested for championships. The event featured outside participation from All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) representative Keiji Mutoh, Pro Wrestling Zero1 representative Shinjiro Otani, and American freelancer Shelton Benjamin. For the first time in five years, the event did not feature wrestlers from Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). For the first time, the event was made available for international market on internet pay-per-view (iPPV).
NJPW King Of Pro-Wrestling 2012
Himself
King of Pro-Wrestling (2012) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) promoted by New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on October 8, 2012, in Tokyo at Ryōgoku Kokugikan. It was the first event under the King of Pro-Wrestling name. In the main event Hiroshi Tanahashi defended his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Minoru Suzuki.
Dream 17
as Himself
Dream 17 was a mixed martial arts event held by Fighting and Entertainment Group's mixed martial arts promotion Dream. The event took place on September 24, 2011 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
Dream 16
DREAM.16 was a mixed martial arts event held by Fighting and Entertainment Group's mixed martial arts promotion DREAM. The event took place on September 25, 2010 in Nagoya, Japan.The event aired live in North America on HDNet. This event served as the final for DREAM's Light Heavyweight Grand Prix and crowned the first DREAM Light Heavyweight Champion. Gegard Mousasi and Tatsuya Mizuno who won their opening round bouts at DREAM 15 fought for the title.
Baton
Robot Guard (voice)
Baton is a collection of three 20-minute Sci-fi anime films dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the establishment of Yokohama city. On Planet Abel, human-like robot Apollo (Ichihara Hayato, Rookies) and robot-like human Mikaru (Ueto Aya, Azumi) come upon a stowaway robot with a mysterious "Cipher" chip. Not knowing Cipher's powers, Apollo takes the chip for fun, throwing both him and Mikaru headfirst into a mind-boggling mystery that affects the past, present, and future.
Dream 2
himself
Dream.2 Middle Weight Grandprix 2008 1st Round was a mixed martial arts event promoted by DREAM. It took place on Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama City, Japan. The event hosted the opening round of the promotion's Middleweight Grand Prix. All bouts were conducted under DREAM Rules, (1stR x 10 min, 2ndR x 5min) in an 84 kg/185 lbs weight class.
K1 Dynamite!!
"The Gracie Hunter"
K-1 PREMIUM 2007 Dynamite!! was a mixed martial arts event held by K-1 and Hero's on New Year's Eve, Monday December 31, 2007 at the Kyocera Dome Osaka in Osaka, Japan. It featured 7 HERO'S MMA rules fights, 4 K-1 rules fights, and 4 fights in the K-1 Under 18 Tournament. The event attracted a sellout crowd of 47,918 to the Kyocera Dome Osaka headlining with a bout with Kazushi Sakuraba versus Masakatsu Funaki.
K1 Dynamite!! USA
Dynamite!! USA was held on Saturday, June 2, 2007 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. Unofficially it shattered the record for highest attendance numbers for a North American mixed martial arts event with 42,757 claimed spectators although only 3,674 paid meaning that the event was a financial disaster. Featured Brock Lenar's first MMA bout and a rematch of the classic Sakuraba Gracie fight which at the time Royce won by unanimous decision but later after being found to have highly elevated levels of testosterone (and clearly looking much larger and more muscular) the decision was overturned to a no contest.
K1 Dynamite!!
K-1 PREMIUM 2006 Dynamite!! was held by K-1 and Hero's on New Year's Eve, Sunday, December 31, 2006 at the Kyocera Dome Osaka in Osaka, Japan. It featured 10 HERO'S MMA rules fights, and 4 K-1 rules fights. The event attracted a sellout crowd of 51,930. The main event between Kazushi Sakuraba and Yoshihiro Akiyama was ruled to be a No Contest after it was determined that Akiyama had applied an illegal substance causing Sakuraba to be unable to secure a takedown due to slipiness. Sakuraba can be heard loudly protesting to the referee. Akiyama later said that this substance was a lotion that he always used for dry skin Dynamite!! 2006 was also the final time Genki Sudo stepped into the ring as after his match, Sudo shocked the crowd by announcing his retirement
Pride Shockwave 2005
Self
Pride Shockwave 2005 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on December 31, 2005. In Japan, the event was called "Otoko Matsuri 2005 – Itadaki" (Itadaki means victory) The event concluded the Pride Lightweight (73 kg, 161 lb) and Welterweight (83 kg, 183 lb) tournaments of 2005. Takanori Gomi won the Lightweight tournament by knocking out Hayato Sakurai. Dan Henderson won the Welterweight tournament by defeating Murilo Bustamante via split decision. Wanderlei Silva retained his Middleweight Champion title by defeating Ricardo Arona via split decision.
Pride 30: Fully Loaded
Self
Pride 30: Starting Over (also promoted as Fully Loaded outside Japan) was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships on October 23, 2005 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
Nagurimono: Love & Kill
A foppish English businessman (Christian Storms) stages a martial-arts contest between champions of two rival yakuza gangs to resolve a dispute over a wonder drug he is dealing and that both sides want.
Pride Critical Countdown 2005
Self
Pride Critical Countdown 3 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. This event held the second round of the Pride Middleweight tournament. It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on June 26th, 2005.
Pride Critical Countdown 2005
Pride Critical Countdown 2005 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. This event held the second round of the Pride Middleweight tournament. It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on June 26th, 2005.
Pride Total Elimination 2005
Self
Pride Total Elimination 3 was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships. This event marked the first round of the Middleweight tournament. It took place on April 23rd, 2005, at the Osaka Dome in Osaka, Japan.
Pride Critical Countdown 2004
Self
Pride Critical Countdown 2 was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships. The event held the second round of the Heavyweight tournament. It took place on June 20th, 2004, at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
Pride Shockwave 2003
Self
Pride Shockwave 2003 (Otoko Matsuri in Japanese) was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. Gary Goodridge announced he would retire from Pride. It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on December 31, 2003.
Pride Final Conflict 2003
Self
Pride Final Conflict was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on November 9, 2003 and had over 67,450 people in the audience. This event was host to the semi-finals and finals of the 2003 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix tournament.
Pride Total Elimination 2003
Self
PRIDE Total Elimination 2003 was a mixed martial arts event held by PRIDE Fighting Championships. It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on August 10, 2003. This event was host to the quarterfinals of the 2003 PRIDE Middleweight Grand Prix tournament. The four winners in the quarterfinals advanced to the PRIDE Final Conflict 2003 event in November.
Pride 25: Body Blow
Self
Pride 25: Body Blow was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan on March 16, 2003.
K1 Dynamite!!
"The Gracie Hunter"
The inaugural show was a co-production between PRIDE Fighting Championships and K-1 held on August 28, 2002. The event was called K-1 Dynamite! by K-1 and PRIDE Shockwave by PRIDE Fighting Championships', though in Japan it was simply called Dynamite!. The live audience totaled 91,108 people, and is the largest on record for either organization or any professional fighting event.
Pride 23: Championship Chaos 2
Self
Pride 23: Championship Chaos 2 was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on November 24, 2002.
Pride Shockwave 2002
PRIDE Shockwave was a mixed martial arts and kickboxing event co-promoted by PRIDE and K-1 on August 28, 2002. It was held at Tokyo National Stadium in Tokyo, Japan. This event, holds the Pride attendance record with 91,108 spectators.[1] In Japan the event was known as Dynamite!
Pride 17: Championship Chaos
Self
Pride 17: Championship Chaos was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on November 3, 2001. This event also saw the crowning of the first Pride FC Heavyweight and Middleweight champions.
Pride 15: Raging Rumble
Self
Pride 15: Raging Rumble was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on July 29, 2001.
Pride 13: Collision Course
Self
Pride 13: Collision Course was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. This was the first Pride event allowing knee strikes to the head of someone in the "four-points" position (the opponent is on their hands and knees). It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on March 25, 2001.
Pride 12: Cold Fury
Self
Pride 12: Cold Fury was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on December 9, 2000.
Pride 11: Battle Of The Rising Sun
Self
Pride 11: Battle of the Rising Sun was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Osaka Castle Hall in Osaka, Japan on October 31, 2000.
Pride 10: Return of the Warriors
Self
Pride 10: Return of the Warriors was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at Seibu Dome in Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan, on August 27, 2000. The event was called "the best Pride yet" by Stephen Quadros and Eddie Bravo, the American announce team, and featured many memorable fights.
Pride Grand Prix 2000 Finals
Self
Pride Grand Prix 2000 Finals was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on May 1, 2000. The event concluded the Pride open-weight tournament of 2000. It is famous for containing one of the most anticipated matches in mixed martial arts history, Royce Gracie vs. Kazushi Sakuraba.
Pride Grand Prix 2000 Opening Round
Self
Pride Grand Prix 2000 Opening Round was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on January 30, 2000. The event began the Pride Openweight tournament of 2000.
Pride 8
Self
Pride 8 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place on November 21, 1999, at Ariake Coliseum in Tokyo, Japan.
Pride 7
Self
Pride 7 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place on September 12, 1999, at Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan.
Pride 6
Self
Pride 6 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Pride Fighting Championships. It took place at Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan, on July 4, 1999. The first four matches were won by decision. The event also featured a karate match between Hiroki Kurosawa and Nobuaki Kakuda.
Pride 5
Self
Pride 5 took place at the Nagoya Rainbow Hall in Nagoya, Japan, on April 29, 1999. This event marked the Pride debuts of Mark Coleman and Vitor Belfort. It also featured a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu demonstration by Rickson Gracie and Royler Gracie.
Pride 4
Self
Pride 4 was a mixed martial arts event held by KRS-Pride (later renamed Pride Fighting Championships). It took place at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan, on October 11, 1998.
Pride 3
Self
Pride 3 was a mixed martial arts event held by KRS-Pride (later renamed Pride Fighting Championships) on June 24, 1998 at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan.
Pride 2
Self
Pride 2 was a mixed martial arts event held by KRS-Pride (later renamed Pride Fighting Championships). It took place at Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan on March 15, 1998. Kazushi Sakuraba, Mark Kerr, Vernon White, and Marco Ruas all made their Pride debuts at this event. In addition to the MMA events, there were also two kickboxing events.
UFC 15.5: Ultimate Japan 1
Himself
UFC Japan: Ultimate Japan (aka UFC 15.5) was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 21, 1997, in Yokohama, Japan. The event was seen on pay per view in the United States, on cable TV in Japan, and was later released on home video. It featured a four-man heavyweight tournament, the first ever UFC Middleweight Championship bout, a Heavyweight Championship bout, a Superfight and was the first UFC appearance of MMA legends Kazushi Sakuraba and Frank Shamrock. It was the first event to be located in a country other than the United States or its territories. The undercard produced the inaugural UFC Lightweight Champion (under 185 pounds) from a four man tournament, Conor "The Mighty" Quinn. However, this division was disestablished after one successful title defence and the Champion's reign lasted a mere 94 days.
NJPW Skydiving J
Sky Diving J was a professional wrestling event produced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on June 17, 1996 at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan. The event was notable for revolutionizing junior heavyweight wrestling in NJPW and Japanese wrestling history.
Dynamite!! 2010
Dynamite!! 2010 was a mixed martial arts and kickboxing event and the latest in the annual New Year's Eve event promoted by Fighting and Entertainment Group that took place on December 31, 2010 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. The event included bouts that encompass the DREAM, K-1 and K-1 World MAX banners.
Kazushi Sakuraba Documentary
"The Gracie Hunter"
A comprehensive documentary on (in my opinion) the greatest MMA fighter of all time, Kazushi "The Gracie Hunter" Sakuraba. Includes various fights from Pride FC, including arguably the most important fight in MMA:- Royce Gracie Vs Kazushi Sakuraba (1), Behind the scenes footage and interviews.