Sengoku Raiden Championships came to the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan tonight for SRC 14, which was headlined by a Sengoku Middleweight Championship rematch between Jorge Santiago and Kazuo “The Hitman” Misaki. The event also featured the lightweight debut of “The Japanese Sensation” Akihiro Gono, who faced Jadamba Narantungalag.
Elsewhere on the card, featherweight star Hatsu Hioki took on Jeff “Ippon” Lawson, while Nick “The Goat” Thompson battled Taisuke Okuno in a welterweight bout. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.
SRC Middleweight Championship
Jorge Santiago vs Kazuo “The Hitman” Misaki
Round 1:
Misaki circled around Santiago until Santiago clinched against the ropes. The fighters exchanged short punches and knees in close. Misaki reversed and put Santiago in the corner. He backed away and Santiago landed a jumping knee and a kick. Misaki took him down and worked from Santiago’s half-guard. Action was sparse as Santiago defended and Misaki tried to set up a submission or advance position.
Santiago kicked Misaki off and stood up, then landed a lunging right hand. Misaki countered with a knee and slammed Santiago to the mat. He landed in side-control, but soon stood over Santiago and kicked at his legs. Santiago kicked from his back and landed an upkick, but Misaki dove in with punches. He landed more punches in the final 15 seconds. 10-9 Misaki.
Round 2:
Misaki landed leg kicks to start off the second round and sidestepped a combination from Santiago. Misaki stuffed a takedown and began to target the body. He followed with a right cross and avoided a Santiago body kick. A nice flurry to the body and head scored for Misaki and Santiago answered with a flying knee. He began to stalk Misaki around the ring and Misaki landed a knee to the body in close.
Misaki connected with a one-two and attempted a flying knee of his own. Two hard punches to the body scored for Misaki and Santiago replied with one of his own. Misaki pulled guard with a tight guillotine choke and Santiago had to roll to narrowly escape. Misaki wound up on top in mount and landed punches, but Santiago scrambled for a kneebar. The fighters fell through the ropes and the round ended shortly after the restart. 10-9 Misaki.
Round 3:
Santiago landed a left hook to the body and a one-two in the third round, then clinched in the corner. Misaki reversed against the ropes and tried for a guillotine, but landed a knee instead and backed away. Santiago floored Misaki with a head kick and dove in with punches. Misaki, bleeding from the eyelid, recovered and tried for a heel hook. Santiago got to his feet and Misaki kicked from his back, then stood.
Santiago scored a takedown and worked from Misaki’s guard. Misaki held on and defended well, which prevented Santiago from doing much of anything. Santiago seemed content to stay on top and throw only a handful of short punches and hammerfists as Misaki tied him up. Very little transpired on the ground as Misaki continued to tie Santiago up and stopped him from landing any damaging strikes. This continued until the bell. 10-9 Santiago. Not dominant enough for a 10-8.
Round 4:
Misaki looked to put together combinations in round two and connected with a two-punch flurry. He clinched and backed Santiago into a corner. Misaki tried for a takedown, but was unsuccessful. Santiago threw a standing backfist and Misaki dropped him with a one-two. Misaki pounced and landed all sorts of punches and hammerfists. Santiago somehow survived and Misaki moved to mount. Misaki then moved to back control and tried for both a rear-naked choke and then an arm-triangle choke.
When that failed, Misaki switched back to side-control and then tried for a guillotine choke. Misaki landed knees to Santiago’s head and Santiago was given a Red Card for intentionally rolling through the ropes. A stiff jab landed for Misaki after the restart and Santiago swung wildly for a knockout. Misaki ducked under the punches, but was dropped by a one-two from Santiago late in the round. With the point deduction from the Red Card, this was a 10-8 round for Misaki, even despite the late knockdown. Maybe 10-7. Crazy round.
Round 5:
Santiago rocked Misaki right away in the final round and dropped him with a big flurry of punches and a knee. Santiago swarmed with punches, but could not finish the fight. He moved to mount and landed more punches, then tried to set up an armbar. Santiago gave it up and switched back to punches. Santiago locked on an arm-triangle choke, but Misaki refused to give up and escaped. He swept Santiago and punched from the top.
Santiago used a Kimura to sweep and take Misaki’s back. He tried for a rear-naked choke and Misaki spun out. Santiago moved to mount and struck from the top. Santiago threw more punches and Misaki rolled and gave up his back. Santiago landed more and more punches and Misaki’s corner bizarrely threw in the towel with fewer than 30 seconds left in the fight that he would have won. Strange ending to a phenomenal fight.
For the second time, an SRC Middleweight Championship bout between Santiago and Misaki ends with a fifth-round comeback victory for Santiago. Amazing.
Winner: Jorge Santiago by TKO (Corner Stoppage) at 4:31 of round five. He improves to 23-8-0 and remains the SRC Middleweight Champion.
Jadamba Narantungalag vs “The Japanese Sensation” Akihiro Gono
Round 1:
Gono landed a one-two, jabs and a leg kick early in the first round and continued to circle around Narantungalag. A stiff jab landed for Gono and he ducked under a combination. Gono picked his shots, then landed a lunging left hook. The fighters clinched and Narantungalag landed a knee to the body. Narantungalag connected with a spinning back kick to the body and Gono answered with a kick to the liver. Narantungalag slammed Gono down to the mat, but Gono quickly worked back to his feet.
Narantungalag just missed with a head kick and Gono jabbed. A nice left hand landed for Narantungalag and he attempted another spinning back kick. Gono clinched and Narantungalag hip tossed him to the mat. Gono stood and was hit with punches and a hard knee to the body. The fighters exchanged knees and separated. Narantungalag landed a looping head kick and connected with two-thirds of a three-punch combo. More punches landed for Narantungalag in close. 10-9 Narantungalag.
Round 2:
Narantungalag caught a kick early in round two and took Gono down. He stood over Gono and kicked at his legs until referee Keiichi Serizawa stood Gono up. The fighters exchanged punches and kicks and time was called after an accidental low blow from Narantungalag. The fight eventually continued and Narantungalag mixed up kicks and punches, then landed a jumping knee. Gono scored with a left hook to the liver, but Narantungalag remained aggressive with kicks and punches. He landed a spinning back kick to the body and Gono took him down.
Narantungalag immediately got back to his feet and landed a lead left hook. A one-two followed and Narantungalag landed a knee. He took Gono down and struck from the top in Gono’s half-guard. Hard punches landed for Narantungalag and he stood up. Narantungalag landed kicks to Gono’s legs and he moved back to Gono’s half-guard. More short punches and hammerfists followed from Narantungalag until the bell. 10-9 Narantungalag.
Round 3:
Narantungalag opened the final round with a knee to the body and more strikes in close. The fighters clinched and Narantungalag threw short right hands over the top. Gono broke free of the clinch with a left hook. The separation was short-lived and the fighters clinched again. Both landed knees and short punches. Gono fell while throwing a body kick and tried for a heel hook from the ground. Narantungalag stood over Gono, then moved to Gono’s half-guard.
Gono tried to set up a submission from his back, but Narantungalag stood up. The fight returned to the feet and Gono countered a leg kick with a hard right hand. Narantungalag fired off a head kick and Gono landed another right cross. Narantungalag took Gono down and punched from the top. Gono scrambled to his feet, only to eat a hard right hook. Narantungalag locked on a guillotine choke and used it to take Gono down again. Gono got out of the choke, but Narantungalag hit him with more punches. 10-9 Narantungalag.
Winner: Jadamba Narantungalag by Unanimous Decision (30-28, 30-28, 30-29) after three rounds. He improves to 6-2-0.
Hatsu Hioki vs Jeff “Ippon” Lawson
Round 1:
Lawson opened the fight with a jumping side kick and followed with punches. He continued to fire off wild strikes and Hioki answered with front kicks. Body kicks and punches landed for Hioki, but Lawson scored with lunging punches of his own. Hioki took Lawson down and moved from side-control to back control. Lawson rolled over and Hioki took mount. He looked to set up an armbar, then switched to a triangle choke instead. Lawson stood while stuck in the choke and tried to fight it off, but could not and tapped out.
Winner: Hatsu Hioki by Submission (Triangle Choke) at 2:09 of round one. He improves to 22-4-2.
Leonardo Santos vs Sotaro Yamada
Round 1:
Yamada opened up with kicks early on and clinched in the corner. Santos reversed and time was soon called after a knee strayed low. Yamada recovered and the fight resumed. Within seconds, time was called again after Santos was kicked in the groin. He collapsed to the mat, but got back to his feet after a moment and action resumed. Yamada landed a body kick and both fighters scored with leg kicks. Yamada caught one and clinched. Yamada drilled Santos in the groin with a hard knee. Yamada was given a Red Card and the fight eventually carried on.
Yamada landed kicks to the legs and Santos answered with a straight left and a head kick. Yamada clinched and backed Santos into the corner. He threw two legal knees, but a third one hit Santos low yet again. After another lengthy delay, the fight continued and Yamada was dropped by a one-two. Santos drilled him with a big knee on the ground and struck from the top. The fight returned to the feet and both fighters landed punches. Yamada clinched and, of course, landed a knee to the groin. At last, Yamada was disqualified, giving Santos an unfortunate win.
Winner: Leonardo Santos by DQ (Low Blows) at 3:56 of round one. He improves to 8-3-0.
SRC Welterweight Grand Prix Semi-Final Bout
Taisuke “Goten” Okuno vs Nick “The Goat” Thompson
Round 1:
Thompson jabbed early on and Okuno pushed forward with a combination that missed. He landed a right hook and Thompson clinched. Thompson backed Okuno into a corner and tried for a takedown. He could not get Okuno down and referee Samio Kimura separated the fighters. Thompson landed three stiff jabs and a leg kick. Okuno wobbled Thompson with a right hook and he followed up with more punches. Thompson tried for a takedown, but wound up on the bottom and Okuno continued to strike from the top.
Thompson attempted a triangle choke, but ate a series of punches. Time was called and the fight was moved to the centre of the ring. Okuno kicked away at Thompson’s thighs and smiled the entire time. Thompson was stood up and Okuno taunted. The fighters exchanged punches in the final 15 seconds and Thompson punished Okuno’s ribs. He took Okuno down and locked on a tight arm-triangle choke right at the bell. Good rally by Thompson very late in the round. 10-9 Okuno, barely.
Round 2:
Both fighters landed hard punches in the opening seconds of round two and Thompson clinched against the ropes. He took Okuno’s back while standing and tried to set up a rear-naked choke. Thompson dragged Okuno to the mat and threw punches to the body. Okuno spun and reversed position, then worked from the top in the corner. He threw punches and hammerfists as Thompson stood up.
Thompson scored a takedown and landed in Okuno’s half-guard. Okuno regained guard and tried to kick Thompson off. Thompson locked on a guillotine choke and pulled half-guard. Okuno held on and escaped. He landed two knees as the fighters got back to their feet. Okuno smiled and flashed out quick punches and a kick that missed. Thompson took him down and landed a handful of punches before the bell. 10-9 Thompson.
Round 3:
Okuno charged forward with big punches in the final round and floored Thompson with two right hands. He followed with literally dozens of hammerfists, but Thompson held on. Okuno tried for a guillotine choke and Thompson stood up to escape. Okuno landed a looping left hook and Thompson fell face-first to the mat. Brutal KO win for Okuno.
Winner: Taisuke Okuno by KO (Punch) at 0:27 of round three. He improves to 10-4-2 and advances on in the SRC Welterweight Grand Prix.
SRC Welterweight Grand Prix Semi-Final Bout
Yasubey Enomoto vs Kenta Takagi
Round 1:
Enomoto opened the fight with body kicks and he clinched soon after. Enomoto landed a knee and Takagi backed him into a corner. More knees scored for Enomoto and Takagi pinned him in another corner. Enomoto threw short punches over the top until referee Samio Kimura separated the fighters. Right hands landed for both fighters and Enomoto threw a head kick that was blocked.
Enomoto landed a right cross and two body kicks. More punches connected for Enomoto and Takagi looked to counter with a combination. A body kick and two right hands scored for Enomoto. And another kick. Takagi’s midsection became very red as Enomoto landed kicks. Punches landed for both fighters and Enomoto dropped Takagi with a straight left. He stood over Takagi and missed with a stomp, but landed a handful of punches. 10-9 Enomoto.
Round 2:
The second round began with more hard body kicks from Enomoto, but Takagi tried to counter with knees from a Thai clinch. In a split second, Enomoto countered a spinning backfist with a standing bulldog choke. He dragged Takagi to the mat and Takagi quickly tapped out. Impressive counter submission for Enomoto.
Winner: Yasubey Enomoto by Submission (Bulldog Choke) at 0:53 of round two. He improves to 5-1-0 and advances on in the SRC Welterweight Grand Prix.
