Sengoku Welterweight Grand Prix Bout
Keita “K-Taro” Nakamura vs Omar de la Cruz
Round 1:
The fighters clinched early in the opening round and both landed knees to the body. Nakamura backed de la Cruz into the corner and continued his assult with knee strikes. De la Cruz tried for a trip takedown, but failed. A second takedown attempt was also unsuccessful, but he pushed Nakamura into the corner and landed knees of his own. A nice right hand landed for de la Cruz, but he could not take Nakamura down.
Finally, de la Cruz took Nakamura to the mat with a throw, but Nakamura immediately got back to his feet. De la Cruz tried to take him down again, but wound up on his back. Nakamura threw short punches and hammerfists from the top, then postured up and landed a handful of more damaging strikes. Nakamura moved to half-guard briefly, but de la Cruz quickly regained full guard and tried for an armbar. Nakamura stepped out of it and punished de la Cruz with punches and hammerfists from the top. 10-9 Nakamura.
Round 2:
De la Cruz missed with a head kick to open round two, but landed a leg kick. The fighters clinched and de la Cruz pulled guard. Nakamura resumed his assault from the top with hammerfists and short punches. De la Cruz tried to set up a submission from his back, but Nakamura easily evaded and landed some hard punches from the top. De la Cruz attempted a sweep, but Nakamura remained on top. More solid punches scored for Nakamura, as de la Cruz could do little in defence.
Nakamura kept the pressure on with punches and tried to pass to half-guard. De la Cruz kept him in place, but Nakamura was relentless with punches and hammerfists. De la Cruz stood briefly, but Nakamura took him down and pinned him against the ropes. He postured up in de la Cruz’s guard and teed off with punches. De la Cruz had no answer and the referee stopped the fight. Good win for Nakamura.
Winner: Keita Nakamura by TKO (Punches) at 3:53 of round two. He improves to 19-4-2 and advances on in the Sengoku Welterweight Grand Prix.
Sengoku Welterweight Grand Prix Bout
Takuya Wada vs Jae Sun Lee
Round 1:
The fighters cautiously traded kicks early on and Lee backed Wada into a corner. He landed punches to Wada’s ribs, but Wada reversed and answered with knees. Time was called after an accidental low blow from Lee. The fight resumed and Lee threw kicks to the legs and body. Wada replied with a hard leg kick of his own, but Lee scored with a flurry and clinched. He landed knees to Wada’s leg.
The fighters were separated and Lee punched his way into a clinch again. He returned to kneeing Wada’s legs, but Wada tripped Lee to the mat with an impressive judo throw. Wada looked to land knees from side-control and Lee answered with knees from his back. Wada kept the pressure on with knees and hammerfists to the head and stole the round in the process. 10-9 Wada.
Round 2:
Lee threw lunging punches to the head and body in the second round and he clinched briefly, but Wada broke free. He jabbed and kept Lee at a distance, but Lee clinched a second time and took Wada down. Lee landed in side-control and kept the action going with hammerfists and knees. Wada scrambled and Lee took his back as the fighters stood up. Lee backed Wada into the corner and landed knees.
Wada reversed and fought out of the clinch. Lee landed leg kicks and the fighters exchanged stiff jabs. Wada caught a kick and took Lee down in the corner. Lee threw a hammerfist and stood up. Wada landed punches to the body and Lee drilled him with a hard knee to the thigh. The fighters were separated and Lee scored with a jab and a one-two. He clinched and landed knees before the bell. 10-9 Lee.
Round 3:
Both fighters came out quickly in the final round and each landed jabs, but Wada fell. Lee took advantage and worked from Wada’s guard. Lee landed short punches and hammerfists from the top and tried to posture up, but Wada scrambled to his feet. He ate a knee to the face on the way. Lee landed lead left hooks and Wada replied with a jab. Wada attempted to counter a leg kick with a takedown, but failed.
Wada tried to set up a right hand and Lee kept his distance. He scored with an overhand right and Wada clinched. Wada took Lee down, but Lee scrambled and looked to take Wada’s back. Wada regained control, but Lee stood up. Wada kept him pinned in the corner until Lee reversed and landed knees. The fighters were separated and Wada landed a right cross. Lee answered with a one-two and tried for a takedown, but Wada stayed up and the close round ended in a clinch. 10-9 Lee, barely.
Winner: Takuya Wada by Split Decision (30-29, 28-28 [Must Decision – Wada], 29-29 [Must Decision – Lee]) after three rounds. He improves to 20-8-10, 1 NC and advances on in the Sengoku Welterweight Grand Prix.
Doo Ho “The Korean Super Boy” Choi vs Ikuo Usuda
Round 1:
Usuda pushed forward with jabs and a quick leg kick as Choi circled away. Usuda tried to set up a takedown with a punching combination, but Choi stayed on his feet and the fighters clinched in the corner. Usuda could not take Choi down and Choi backed away. He landed a combination and Usuda clinched once again. Usuda tried to trip Choi to the mat, but Choi stayed up and the referee separated the fighters.
Usuda threw quick punches and Choi answered with a body shot. Finally, Usuda scored a takedown, but Choi immediately got to his feet and threw a quick flurry. Choi countered a takedown attempt with a left hook and a knee. Usuda clinched and threw punches to the body. Both fighters landed solid punches in the final 25 seconds. 10-9 Usuda.
Round 2:
Usuda looked to land body kicks early in round two and he took Choi down soon after. Usuda stood and landed punches from a standing position, then kicked at Choi’s legs. Choi scrambled back to his feet and Usuda clinched once again. He backed Choi into a corner and tried for a trip, but Choi defended well. Usuda landed a combination as Choi backed away. Choi landed a hard inside leg kick and the fighters traded punches.
Both landed leg kicks and Usuda backed Choi up with a big left cross. Usuda took Choi down very briefly, but Choi got back to his feet and landed short knees in a clinch. The fighters separated and Choi landed a combination. He floored Usada with a right hand and followed with more punches, but Usuda recovered and stood before the bell. 10-9 Choi due to the flurry very late in the round.
Round 3:
The fighters circled in the final round and exchanged jabs. A clinch followed and Usuda landed two knees to the face. He tried to trip Choi to the mat, but could not. Time was called after Choi was hit with a knee to the groin. The fight resumed and Choi threw a lunging uppercut. Usada tried for another takedown, but failed. He switched to knees to Choi’s ribs and leg and backed Choi into the corner.
The referee strangely separated the fighters for no apparent reason and Usuda scored a quick takedown. Choi scrambled back to his feet and landed a knee. Usuda backed him into the corner and the fighters were separated again. The fighters traded punches and Choi stuffed a takedown. Usuda landed a one-two and tried for another takedown, but met with no success. Usuda landed a hard one-two and a right hard. Big punches were exchanged in the final 20 seconds. 10-9 Usuda.
Winner: Doo Ho Choi by Split Decision (30-29, 29-29 [Must Decision – Choi], 28-30) after three rounds. He improves to 3-1-0.
Ryo Kawamura vs Hidetada Irie
Round 1:
Irie looked to shoot in for a takedown early on, but ate an uppercut for his efforts. He landed a winging overhand right as Kawamura jabbed. Kawamura connected with a counter right and targeted the body. He ducked under another overhand right from Irie and clinched. He backed Irie into a corner and threw short knees.
Irie tried for a standing guillotine choke, but Kawamura escaped and the fighters separated. Kawamura promptly clinched and put Irie in the corner again. Irie held on and prevented Kawamura from landing much of anything. Kawamura resorted to short punches to the body and fought out of another weak guillotine. Irie backed away and Kawamura scored with left hooks to the head and body. 10-9 Kawamura.
Round 2:
Kawamura came out more aggressively in the second round and landed a lead right hook, then stuffed a takedown. He backed Irie into the corner and threw knees to the legs. The fighters were separated and Irie scored with a leg kick. Kawamura landed counterpunches and an uppercut. He took Irie down and threw hammerfists from the top.
Kawamura stood and allowed Irie to get back to his feet. Irie continued to throw wild overhand rights and was tagged by crisp counters from Kawamura. The fighters exchanged punches and Kawamura landed a hard right hand. He backed Irie into a corner with a barrage of punches, but Irie stayed on his feet. More punches to the head and body landed and the referee stopped the fight.
Winner: Ryo Kawamura by TKO (Punches) at 3:00 of round two. He improves to 12-5-2.
Undercard Fights:
Shigeki Osawa defeated Katsuya Toida by DQ (Accidental Low Blows) at 1:35 of round three. He improves to 6-1-0 with the win.
Kazuki Takudome defeated Yuma Ishizuka by TKO (Punches) at 3:22 of round one. He improves to 5-1-1 with the win.
Ye Won Nam defeated Ikkei Nagamura by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 3:03 of round one. He improves to 4-1-0 with the win.
Capped off by a quick and devastating knockout victory for new Sengoku Featherweight Champion Marlon Sandro, Sengoku Raiden Championships 13 was an exciting and action-packed event. Keita “K-Taro” Nakamura and Takuya Wada also picked up wins to advance on in the Sengoku Welterweight Grand Prix.