K-1 HEROS 1 3/26/05

K-1 HERO'S 1

Saitama Super Arena, Saitama, Japan

3/26/05 13,000 in Attendance

We awake in a dark world: 2005. KINGDOM is long gone, swallowed up as the pro-wrestling and MMA business fundamentally changed worldwide. Kazushi Sakuraba, the slayer of the Gracie myth, has himself been slain. PRIDE, the Goliath of Japanese MMA, is in the later parts of it's history. They've burned bridges with K-1 and Inoki and raided every other JMMA promotion in a race for profitability as attendance numbers begin to wane. UFC is seeing huge success with its dreadful Ultimate Fighter reality show, further sucking whatever fun remained in American MMA.

However, there is a glimmer of something interesting here. K-1, after being fed up with PRIDE's business ways, decided to organize their own MMA promotion: HERO'S. What is its mission? TO FIND THE NEXT HEROS OF MMA! You might ask: who would be able to lead such an ambitious venture as this? Who would be qualified to help discover and promote the next HEROS of public, brutal fighting. AKIRA FUCKING MAEDA, THATS WHO! The genius behind RINGS emerges from the shadows to lead HERO'S into the second half of the 2000s, but even with Maeda aboard, will K-1 succeed in their task? Probably not, but let's watch anyways!

HERO'S! Its all capital letters and the apostrophe is really a star (like a literal star)! HEROS is a bit reminiscent of a name like RINGS, and this is not a coincidence, as Akira Maeda apparently just tried to do RINGS again but this time inside of a company someone else owned (this will become more and more evident the further we dig!).

We open with a press conference where our crew of boys (hey Genki Sudo and Caol Uno is here!) gives some words before their fights, and Maeda also speaks on the new promotion and its future. WHO IS THE REAL HERO? Emblazons the screen indicating the reason this whole thing is called HERO'S is quite literal and they are literally attempting to discover the next heroes of MMA. Hmmm wonder if that has anything to do with the imminent crash of this whole business in Japan (thats exactly why). WILL HERO'S BE ABLE TO DISCOVER THIS HERO AND/OR HEROES?!

THE OPENING FIGHT is between Chalid Arrab and Yukiya Naito, two dudes I am completely unfamiliar with! Chalid Arrab is a German kickboxer (34-8) and Mixed Martial Artist (7-3) who hasn't fought since 2010, though his MMA career ended even earlier in 2005. Yukiya Naito (15-6-2) is a veteran of Pancrase and had his last fight in 2009.

This one doesn't really get going in the first round until Naito catches a kick from Arrab and scores with a double-leg takedown. So far they have just been just been stuck in the guard as Arrab keeps Naito at bay with punching from the bottom, but no one is advancing at the moment. I would like to point out here that Naito has VICE sponsorship on his shorts which is very 2005 of him. Naito is finally able to get to half guard but Arrab sweeps him right over and now has control. Arrab stands up and wants to just land kicks on Naito whose stuck in the down position while trying to snatch a leg, but the ref decides to stand them up. From the various bits of research I have done, there was some sort of directive to the refs to restart and bring people up quicker than other promotions. While this obviously keeps things moving, it can also be a bit of a curse so I'll guess we'll just have to see how that all plays out while we explore HERO'S.

The second round begins as Arrab lands some uppercuts to Naito who... tries to roll away but just proceeds to be punched more. After landing a few hits, Arrab decides to back away forcing the ref to bring Naito back up. Naito has been trying to get in close for a trip but it hasn't worked so far as Arrab either overpowers him or lands strong punches. Naito tries for a double into the ropes, but Arrab totally squashes it and falls onto Naito. NAITO FINALLY GETS THE TRIP HE WAS LOOKING FOR! LOL Arrab already flipped Naito back over and is punching him but oh shit Naito snags an arm and holds on for dear life. The submission doesn't work out though, and they are back up. Chalid Arrab wins a pretty easy bout against Yukiya Naito by decision, and also managed to bust up Naito's nose pretty good right at the end.

OH MY GOD ITS TIME FOR SHUNGO OYAMA! This guy scored a big knockout win at his debut fight at King of the Cage 7 Wet and Wild in 2001 (I highly recommend it as it was an outdoor event and it was raining so you can imagine what effect that had on the fights) and fucking coasted on that shit for YEARS. He also was able to beat Renzo Gracie which just added to the guys mystique, despite losing so many of his other bouts handily. He has not fought since a loss in 2014 where he finished his career with a record of 14-19, but don't be fooled by the weak record because this guy can be entertaining as hell. Oh, and Oyama will be fighting Valentijn Overeem, a veteran of RINGS and PRIDE with notable wins over Randy Couture and Renato Sobral. He has not fought since 2014 after going on a 7 fight losing streak in minor promotions from all over Europe, and he finished his career with a record of 32-34.

ITS A BATTLE OF THE MEN WITH LOSING RECORDS! While the opening match of the night featured two 5 minute rounds, this fight and all the others on the card have three 5 minute rounds (just like the dastardly UFC!). I would also like to point out that Oyama is wearing his famous shiny silver vale tudo shorts which is definitely a contributing factor in my Shungo apologism. Overeem begins the first round with leg and body kicks with Oyama keeping his distance but pressing forward till he gets Overeem into the corner. WOW THEY ARE LEG LOCK BATTLING and yes SHUNGO OYAMA wins with a SUPER slick toe hold. I'm getting flash backs to Valentijn Overeem's back to back heel hook loses in PRIDE with the ending of this one...

Shungo Oyama.... is indeed strong

OUR NEXT FIGHT features Australian dude Ian Schaffa fighting Kazuyuki Miyata, an Olympic Freestyle wrestler. Miyata has participated in the 2000 Sydney Olympics and this is just his second MMA fight as he is coming off a loss against Royler Gracie from a few months prior. Miyata last fought in 2016 in Rizin and has a record of 15-9. Ian Schaffa is a boxer-kickboxer from Australia who has a record of 7-9-2 and last fought in 2013! Something that really places HERO'S in the year 2005 is the copious trucker caps like the one Miyata is wearing when he arrives to the arena (they are good and I will always support them!).

OK so this bout is a great example of stuff I don't much care for in MMA:

1. This is not a bad match per se but it is a boring one! Schaffa is quick and can land shots but Miyata is always able to bring him down, but it amounts to nothing, so much so that even Miyata's jumping stomp was ineffective. Schaffa pulls a split decision win, but honestly a draw would have been the more accurate outcome. This is one that on first watch I was entertained enough, but one a second watch while writing just could not sit through.
2. The HERO's executives and producers made the decision to constantly cut to Miyata's wife and child throughout as she sees her husband getting hit in the face. It is distasteful for its weird capitalist sadism of making an grappler fight for money (abolish all money, wages, and forms of economic calculation!) in front of his family, but also because of its connections to this masculinity (and emasculation when loses occur) that absolutely plagues the world of MMA. Its something I truly find repugnant!

Hey that kinda sucked but now its time for something that REALLY DOESN'T SUCK! CAOL UNO FIGHTING JOACHIM HANSEN in an absolute classic, a slobber knocker, etc etc. HERO'S, following in PRIDE's footsteps, has also chosen to raid Shooto, Japan's original MMA promotion and a martial art all unto-itself (this makes it superior to the slapdash “MMA” that is taught in gyms throughout the world now), and the results are spectacular! Almost as spectacular as Caol Uno's MULLET!!!

Can I just start off by saying that Hansen, nicknamed HELLBOY, is a fucking scary dude, but ya know what, Caol Uno just trips Hansen into an oblivion and proceeds to start landing ground and pound that echos across this arena so maybe he's not as scary as I thought. Hansen gives Uno a receipt with a big upkick, and Uno has to go into closed guard. Uno is able to keep away from up kicks and wrestle around Hansen and then proceeds to hit more deadly ground and pound. Hansen is able to snag one of Uno's legs for a single leg takedown attempt but instead uses it to grab Uno's back for a big slam. Hansen still has Uno's back as the stand and Uno has a wrist lock on he uses to bring Hansen down, but as soon as they hit the mat they are back up doing damage in the clinch. Uno's ability to land ground and pound in between rapid position changes is awesome, and he feels comfortable utilizing uncommon positions like holding onto Hansen's ankle and putting it by Hansen's head so he could punch his face. How creative!

Round 2 opens with striking until Uno trips Hansen with ease from the clinch, and to avoid up kicks, turns his back and sits onto Hansen but after numerous attempts cant get past guard. As Uno stands up he eats a fucking thunderous kick to the jaw that makes the crowd go “ahhhhhh.” Hansen is able to strike his way to gain control of Uno on the ground, refusing to let go as they stand back up while in the clinch. Hansen hits Uno so hard with his shoulder he gets splattered with nose blood, they continue to strike each other as both land. Uno catches a kick but Hansen rides his back to the ground and is seeking a rear naked choke (prophecy comes true as before the match Hansen told Uno mockingly to “tuck your chin”), but Uno is able to keep Hansen at bay till being saved by the bell.

The final round starts with a strong combo from Hansen which leads to him landing the LOUDEST kosoto gari (minor outer reap!!) I have ever heard in my time watching fake and/or real fighting. LOL Uno is already on his feet and he is HYPED up so he just fucking starts cartwheeling to get around Hellboy's hellish legs of doom. Uno has Hansen's back looking for a choke (hey how bout u tuck your chin Hansen!) but Hansen defends and gets to his knees as Uno still has control. Hansen is out and has control of Uno until... they do some wild grappling shit (best way I could describe it!) and now Uno is back in Hansen's guard. Uno is SOOOOOO close to this arm bar but Hansen slips out (the crowd is flipping out at this point). They are back up and in the clinch until Uno lifts up Hansen with a cleaaaaannnn double leg. Uno is doing some ground and pound while he tries to run the clock down. They return to their feet and Uno fucking LOOKS AT THE CLOCK just long enough for Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen to put that knee of his into Caol Uno's skull for an amazing/disgusting knockout!

BOOM 

That was one for the ages, certainly setting an incredibly high bar for not just this first show but every HEROS event to come. Caol Uno bows to the four sides of the ring as the crowd give a standing ovation for the wild shit that just occurred. Both fighters are seriously hurt after a fight like this. Caol Uno is practically carried back to the locker room and Joachim Hansen has a concussion and begins dry heaving as his team call for a doctor. This is a side of MMA rarely shown, and I could only assume this was Maeda's idea (thanks dude).

It's the happy go lucky Genki Sudo going up against the world famous kickboxer (and sadly dead since 2013) Ramon “The Diamond” Dekkers! This was Dekkers' only MMA fight and reportedly he took it on a few days notice so lets see how this goes for him!

IT DOESN'T GO WELL! Dekkers loses by an excruciating looking heel hook in the first round and Sudo gets to fly his very corny but well-meaning WE ARE ALL ONE flag once more. That was a fun albeit short class of styles!

OH HELL YA Its Big Daddy Gary Goodridge time! Remember when we watched Pride 1 and he nearly killed Oleg Taktarov? I sure do and I totally assume that he will do the same here to the very large man from North Ossetia, Alan Karaev. Despite being new to MMA, Karaev does have a background in sumo and he was also an arm wrestling champion (just like Goodridge). Now this is what I call good booking!!

Karaev is able to take Goodridge down and BOY DOES HE WANT THAT KEYLOCK. He's so big he is wearing out Goodridge here and now hes cranking on Goodridge's neck omg that is painful looking. Goodridge uses some technique to slide out and takes control on the ground, and from there you just know Karaev is totally screwed. GOODRIDGE WINS BY FOREARM CHOKE! What a cool dude, the crowd loves him so much!

I know the boys in the last fight were big but hold up because its BJ PENN AT 191 POUNDS. He's actually eating a sandwich backstage before the bout I am not joking. Having slain all his foes in the UFC, Penn said fuck off and went to Japan for some nice paydays! His opponent is the super young yet BIG Lyoto Machida, an absolute favorite of mine from my youth of watching UFC and taking karate lessons. Let me tell you Lyoto is also in sandwich mode for this fight as he's clocking in at a whopping 225!

There story of this match is both guys completely shutting down the advancements of the other. Both of these guys are at their largest weights in their careers, and the fact that Penn and Machida are incredibly talented fighters (phenoms, prodigies, a lot has been said), means that this fight is violent yet calculated, heavy and plodding (but in a pleasant way). Machida throughout is able to land more clean shots and his schooling in karate (fuck yes) shines (kata but this time your face is in the way).

Lyoto Machida is able to score the victory here, and how could he not while fighting with INOKIISM emblazoned on his vale tudo shorts! [Some backstory on that: K-1 and Inoki were still working together at this time and had major success in earlier years doing joint shows with PRIDE, but as those relationships soured over the years, Inokiists began appearing on HEROS cards. HEROS also had connections with a pro-wrestling group called BIG MOUTH LOUD, a splinter from NJPW, but that will be for another day!] Both of these guys are so gassed at the end of this but Penn looks particularly tired.

OK so Heath Herring's knee explodes in the middle of him almost getting a win! Its terrible to watch!

BOB SAPP! OLYMPIC SILVER MEDALIST JUDOKA MIN SOO KIM! IN A POSSIBLY WORKED FIGHT! Some say this is a work, and it seems like it might be. You can never be sure of these things though as Kim ended his MMA career at 3-7 so maybe he lost legit. Who can say!? (What we can say is Min Soo Kim loses by a glancing punch late in the first round!)

Tfw Maeda tells you that your jobbin' tonight

Our headline bout for the night is another Judo player, Yoshihiro Akiyama (14-6), in his second ever MMA fight against Jerome Le Banner, the aggressive kickboxer who also dabbled in MMA and pro wrestling! I usually would be pulling for the Judo guy here, but Akiyama has tainted his gi with a giant THE MASK 2 ad on the back. A truly ugly film and he has lost my support for such silliness!

Akiyama is immediately looking for the trip, and get its (of course), and is able to get himself into half guard. MASK 2 is staring me in the face because of the above head camera but this issue is quickly put to an end as Jun Akiyama's tainted capitalist judo is bested by a knee to the skull (lots of knees to the skull tonight!). Jerome Le Banner looks genuinely shocked by his win, and despite the reputation that European Kickboxers have, gives Akiyama a nice bow of sportsmanship.

Other than Genki Sudo, the other 3 fighters promoted by the company lost tonight so things are already are off to an odd start. Is the next HERO of Japanese MMA older European kickboxers? Probably not, but this is the quandary K-1 finds themselves in. HEROS is in such a strange moment in time. At this point the fight market in Japan is over-saturated. Everyone is still getting paid, the money is looking good, and attendance plus tv ratings still seem stable. This situation will not last, but that's the reason I am doing this watch of HEROS. Similarly to the study of KINGDOM as the last of the shoot style boom, HEROS is the last of the truly BIG Japanese mma promotions. DREAM was large but it was operated by a group of executives from numerous promotions that had collapsed in 2007. HEROS is the last great NEW fight promotion of this era and for that reason an exploration of it is needed. Also, Akira Maeda is here and that is always a nice excuse to watch something.