Japanese superstar Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto will no longer compete on the upcoming Strikeforce St.Louis: “Heavy Artillery” card. Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker confirmed the news today and stated that Yamamoto may be a part of Dream.14 on May 29th in Saitama, Japan.
Yamamoto was scheduled to face Federico “Kiko” Lopez on the undercard of “Heavy Artillery,” but the cancellation of DREAM’s Light Heavyweight Grand Prix has left Dream.14 with just four confirmed fights. Yamamoto may now be brought in for the DREAM event, but it is not yet confirmed.
Yamamoto (17-3-0, 1 NC) won 14 straight fights over a seven-year period from 2002 to 2009 and totalled victories over the likes of Jeff Curran, Royler Gracie, Caol Uno and Genki Sudo along the way. In 2007, he defeated current DREAM Featherweight Champion Bibiano Fernandes and later stopped jiu-jitsu ace Rani Yahya. However, injuries sidelined the Japanese star for nearly 18 months and he was shockingly upset by Joe Warren at Dream.9 last May. A second defeat to Sengoku champ Masanori Kanehara and a knockout loss in K-1 have left Yamamoto struggling to regain former glory.
While his participation is not confirmed, Yamamoto would be a welcome addition to the Dream.14 card, which suffered a significant loss with the cancellation of the promotion’s Light Heavyweight Grand Prix. Dream.14 takes place on May 29th at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)