Kazushi “The Gracie Hunter” Sakuraba vs Zelg “Benkei” Galesić

Round 1:
Sakuraba circled Galesić early on, then dove in for an ankle pick and took Galesić down. He immediately transitioned into a heel hook, then an achilles lock. Galesić escaped and reversed position, then punished Sakuraba with punch after punch from the top. Sakuraba, with his face already badly swollen, maintained his grip on Galesić’s leg and tried tor a toe hold, then rolled into a kneebar. Galesić hastily tapped out and it appeared that serious damage had been done to his knee. Incredible fight.

Winner: Kazushi Sakuraba by Submission (Kneebar) at 1:39 of round one. He improves to 26-12-1, 2 NC.

Katsuyori Shibata vs Tokimitsu “Kendo Kashin” Ishizawa

Round 1:
Shibata landed a big right hand to the shockingly unmasked Ishizawa in the early goings and followed with an uppercut against the cage. He landed more punches and the fighters separated. Ishizawa connected with a nice overhand right and clinched, then looked for a takedown. Shibata fought him off and reversed against the cage. Both fighters threw hard punches and backed away.

Ishizawa backed Shibata to the cage and teed off with big punches, but Shibata held his ground and threw back as good as he got. Ishizawa secured a Thai clinch and landed knees, but Shibata pushed him off and landed a one-two. Ishizawa pressed forward and was clipped by a left hook counter. With less than 20 seconds to go, Shibata staggered Ishizawa with a left hook and Ishizawa crumpled to the canvas. Shibata dove in and landed punches until the referee stopped the fight. Huge victory for Shibata.

Winner: Katsuyori Shibata by TKO (Punches) at 4:52 of round one. He improves to 4-6-1.

Dong Sik Yoon vs Tarec “The Sponge” Saffiedine

Round 1:
The fighters exchanged leg kicks early on and Saffiedine reversed a takedown attempt. From side-control, he landed short knees and looked to move to mount, but Yoon regained butterfly guard. Saffiedine stood up and Yoon followed. Saffiedine landed a grazing overhand right and Yoon rushed in and clinched. He tried for a takedown against the cage, but Saffiedine defended and both landed knees.

Yoon tried once again for a single-leg takedown, but Saffiedine reversed a Judo throw and briefly took Yoon’s back. The fight returned to the feet and more knees were exchanged in a clinch. The referee separated the fighters and Yoon landed a leg kick. Saffiedine countered with a head kick that landed, but Yoon was unfazed.

Round 2:
Saffiedine landed a lead left hook and a body kick, then followed with a flying knee to start off the second round. He just missed with a lunging two-punch combo. Another flurry narrowly missed the mark for Saffiedine and Yoon countered with two punches and a takedown. Saffiedine worked for a Kimura from the bottom, but Yoon escaped and punched the body from half-guard.

A scramble ensued on the ground and Yoon partially took Saffiedine’s back. He looked to secure a Twister, but Saffiedine squirmed free. Yoon transitioned into a rear naked choke attempt and Saffiedine defended again. Yoon switched to a neck crank that seemed to have Saffiedine in trouble, but he survived the hold. Yoon secured another neck crank and Saffiedine was one second away from tapping. Yoon landed a barrage of punches, but Saffiedine survived until the bell.

Round 3:
The final round began slowly as the fighters cautiously circled each other. Saffiedine landed a leg kick and followed with another one seconds later. Saffiedine missed with a front switch kick and Yoon tried for a takedown. Saffiedine stepped free and scored with more leg kicks. Yoon landed a one-two and Saffiedine answered with another chopping leg kick. The referee called time and gave both fighters a Yellow Card for passivity.

The fight resumed and Yoon blocked a head kick. Saffiedine turned up the pace and connected with an overhand right, then a nice right cross. Yoon dove for a takedown and met with no success. Saffiedine scored with an uppercut and a quick flurry, then another combination as a fatigued Yoon tried for a desperation takedown. Saffiedine landed kicks and taunted Yoon as Yoon replied with jabs. More punches landed for Saffiedine and he fought off one takedown, but Yoon pushed him to the mat briefly. Tough fight to score.

Winner: Dong Sik Yoon by Split Decision after three rounds. He improves to 5-7-0.