Sengoku 7 Re-Cap

World Victory Road: Sengoku 7
Yoyogi National Gymnasium
Tokyo, Japan

Sengoku is back for their second effort this year. The first show of the year had Jorge Santiago winning the Middleweight Title, Satoru Kitaoka beating Takanori Gomi for the Lightweight Title, King Mo, and former Elite XC Heavyweights Dave Herman and Antonio Silva. This show features King Mo and the first round of the Featherweight Tournament. This should be interesting as DREAM started their Featherweight tournament on their last show so it will be interesting to compare and contrast the two divisions as they progress in their respective tournaments. Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten are our HDNet TV announcers.

The fighters featured at the beginning of the telecast are Hatsu Hioki, L.C. Davis, Nam Phan, and Marlon Sandro. So those are the four guys to watch on tonight’s show. James Thompson and Mo Lawal will also fight tonight, but not against each other.

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Nick Denis (6-0) vs. Seiya Kawahara (6-1)

Denis is the King of the Cage Canadian Bantamweight Champion. All of his fights have been won by KO or Submission with 5 Kos. Kawahara has finished 5 of his 6 wins by KO or Submission with 4 Kos so it looks like we are going to see someone finished in this fight. Kawahara is the 2nd youngest fighter in this tournament at 21 years of age. Denis has a degree in BioChemistry.

R1- Denis hit a high kick early that knocked Kawahara down and followed with some knees. Denis knocked him down again with n exchange later in the round and followed it up as some Ground and Pound and as the ref was moving to stop the fight Kawahara’s corner threw in the towel. Good start to the tournament and while both guys looked green, Denis showed some good striking and remains undefeated.

Winner: Nick Denis by TKO (Strikes) R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Ronnie Mann (16-1-1) vs. Tetsuya Yamada (3-0)

Mann’s only loss was by unanimous decision by in July of 2007. He was 3-0 in 2008. Yamada is the youngest participant in this tournament. He is only 18 and actually just finished high school at the beginning of this month. All 3 of his victories have come in the 1st round. Yamada has a 4” height advantage in this fight.

R1- Mann is the aggressor early in the fight but Yamada rushes in and gets a take down but Mann is able to sweep him over and get on top. Mann gets a body triangle on Yamada as he takes his back and looks for a submission. Mann gets rolled back over but he’s in full mount. Yamada slips out the back and grabs a heel hook but doesn’t seem to have it clamped in too well and gives it up and instead ends up in the rubber guard that Mann breaks. Very active fight on the ground so far as Yamada goes for a triangle but is denied. Yamada went for a jumping knee bar and ended up with a toe hold but couldn’t hold it and Mann stood up. Really good fight so far that is somewhat even. Mann has be in control of the fight more but Yamada is really fighting for submissions.

R2- Mann spends the first part of this round on top in a dominant position but hasn’t really done any damage. Yamada is actively trying to keep this fight on the ground even if he’s in guard. Mann gets a slam near the end of the round. Mann was more decisive in this round as he’s winning the fight so far.

R3- Yamada hit a good head kick early but Mann fought it off and got a take down. Yamada rolled him over and looked for subs but Mann fought through it. Mann hit a good body shot and then got Yamada down again. Yamada has definitely slowed down in this round but he did hit a good kick before Mann took him down again. Mann grabs a toe hold and Yamada tries to counter with a knee bar but Mann releases the move. Yamada jumps on top to end the fight. I’ve got Mann winning this fight.

Winner: Ronnie Mann by Decision (Unanimous)

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Chan Sung Jung (2-0) vs. Shintaro Ishiwatari (6-1-3)

Jung’s last fight was a 17 second knockout victory. Ishiwatari’s only loss came in his pro debut in 2006.

R1- These guys are standing up at the beginning of the fight and throwing leather. Jung hitting a good combo and landed a good left that floored Ishiwatari as he was backing into the corner. Jung landed side control and got some brief Ground and Pound in before Ishiwatari got back to his feet with half a round left. Ishiwatari connected on a high kick but Jung fought it off. Both guys are really throwing at one another. Jung came in with a combo and then took Ishiwatari’s back and locked in a Rear Naked Choke and won the fight. Really fun fight.

Winner: Chan Sung Jung by Rear Naked Choke R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Masanori Kanehara (11-5-5) vs. Jong Man Kim (3-5-3)

Kim is winless in his last 5 fights (0-3-2) so my guess is that he will not be the favorite to win this one. Expert analysis by Bas Rutten on his record “That’s not that good” (I kid because I actually really like Bas as a color commentator). However, he does hold a victory over one of the favorites in this tournament (Hatsu Hioki). Kanehara has finished 10 of his 11 wins by KO or Submission). Kim is a wrestler and BJJ fighter. Kanehara is a jiu jitsu fighter.

R1- The jiu jitsu guys stay on their feet with the fight being pretty even until Kanehara gets in a couple of shots that floors Kim with about a minute left in the round. Kim’s face looks like he has some bruises after the first round.

R2- Kanehara gets a take down and tried to get a submission with an arm triangle but Kim broke free. After two rounds Kanehara is winning this fight. Kim is going to need to finish to get the win in this one.

R3- Final round was pretty even with Kanehara getting a take down in the final minute. I’ve got Kanehara winning this fight.

Winner: Masanori Kanehara by Decision (Unanimous)

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Matt Jaggers (9-4) vs. Marlon Sandro (12-0)

Marlon Sandro is the Featherweight King of Pancrase. He trains with Thales Leites, Jose Aldo and Wagnney Fabiano. He has only finished 5 of his 12 fights but is undefeated. Jaggers has a wrestling background. According to the odds-makers Sandro is a 5.5 to 1 favorite and is the biggest favorite of any of the tournament fights tonight. Sandro is a Muay Thai and BJJ fighter.

R1- Sandro got a take down about 30 seconds into the fight. Jaggers got up swinging. Sandro got another take down about half way through the round. Jaggers is able to roll Sandro over but Sandro rolls him back over. Sandro gets some punches in but then Jaggers flips him back over. Slight edge to Sandro in the first round for the take downs but hasn’t really done any damage.

R2- Sandro nipped Jaggers in the mid-section with a spinning back kick and then got another take down. Sandro looks like he’s working for an arm triangle and Jaggers gets to his feet but Sandro finishes him off with the arm triangle.

Winner: Marlon Sandro by Submission (Arm Triangle) R2

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- L.C. Davis (13-1) vs. Michihiro Omigawa (4-7-2)

L.C. Davis has only 1 professional loss which was to WEC fighter Wagnney Fabiano in an IFL fight. Davis is a 4 to 1 favorite in this fight and has won 4 straight fights. Omigawa is 0-3-1 in his last four fights. He has a Judo background.

R1- Omigawa got Davis to the ground about a minute and a half into the fight and then laid on top of him doing nothing for a while. Omigawa mounts at the two minute mark but hasn’t done any damage yet. LC gives up his back trying to get out but Omigawa is just hugging him at the point. Omigawa is doing a good job with the wrestling but not much in terms of finishing the fight. Omigawa did grab an arm bar near the end of the round but Davis was able to hold on until the bell. Omigawa definitely up after one round.

R2- Omigawa once again is able to get Davis to the ground after about a minute and a half of stand-up that Davis was winning but not decisively. Davis is able to get up fairly quickly this time. This round was even so Omigawa has the advantage going into the final round. A strong round by either guy here could take this fight.

R3- Omigawa gets a takedown at the one minute mark of the round and seems content to lay on Davis until the bell rings in four minutes. Omigawa gets a guillotine but can’t finish with the submission. This was definitely my least favorite of the Featherweights so far. Omigawa gets the upset as he controlled the fight in unspectacular fashion.

30-28, 30-28 and 30-27 in favor of Omigawa on the score cards.

Winner: Michihiro Omigawa by Decision (Unanimous)

Heavyweight Fight- Jim York (9-2) vs. James Thompson (14-9)

York has finished all of his 9 victories but he’s only fought twice in the last 31 months. Thompson is 2-7 in his last 9 fights. Thompson has a 4” height advantage and a 7 lb advantage.

R1- Thompson charges in and misses. This is a slugfest early! York grabbed a standing guillotine but couldn’t finish with it. Pretty even stand up with Thompson starting to pull away but he got caught and floored and the ref stopped the fight.

Winner: Jim York by TKO (Strikes) R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Nam Phan (14-5) vs. Hideki Kadowaki (13-8-2)

Nam Phan is a guy who has fought for Strikeforce in the past and recently lost a close split decision to Billy Evangelista in a Lightweight fight at the June 2008 show (I actually had the fight scored a draw with a 10-8 round to Evangelista and two 10-9 rounds to Phan). He trains with Caol Uno. Phan is a 3 to 1 favorite to win this fight but has lost 3 of his last 5 fights. Kadowaki is a former Shooto Lightweight Champion. He has defeated Bao Quach, Akitoshi Tamura (twice) and Rumina Sato and has losses to Kid Yamamoto, Hatsu Hioki and Takeshi Inoue.

R1- Lots of stand up early in this fight. Phan caught him with a right hand that floored him and the ref stopped the fight. Fun fight and good finish by Phan.

Winner: Nam Phan by TKO (Strikes) R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Hatsu Hioki (17-3-2) vs. Chris Manuel (6-0-2)

Hatsu Hioki has beat Mark Hominick twice and Jeff Curran once. He is undefeated outside of Shooto (5-0 in those fights). Hioki was 4-0-1 in 2008. He’s ranked as Inside MMA’s #8 Featherweight. Hioki is a 3.5 to 1 favorite. Manuel fights out of American Top Team and is a BJJ Black Belt.

R1- Hioki gets a quick take down. Hioki gets takes his back and attempts an arm bar but Manuel escapes. Hioki gets him down again. Hioki is looking really strong on the mat. Hioki now getting some Ground and Pound. Hioki went for an arm bar and settled for a triangle choke and hit some Ground and Pound. Hioki gets the win, he was by far the best looking fighter tonight in the tournament.

Winner: Hatsu Hioki by Submission (Triangle Choke) R1

Light Heavyweight Fight- Muhammed Lawal (3-0) vs. Ryo Kawamura (9-3-2)

Lawal comes to the ring with some dancing Japanese girls with a cape and crown. Ryo is the King of Pancrase Light Heavyweight Champion. Lawal is a 5 to 1 favorite.

R1- King Mo gets a quick take down early but Ryo gets back up. Lawal hits some strikes and gets Ryo down again. Lawal is dominating early and getting in strikes up against the ropes on Ryo. Lawal is just manhandling Ryo and continues to take him down time after time. Borderline 10-8 round for Lawal.

R2- Lawal gets a yellow card in this round as he hit Ryo with two eye pokes in the early going. Lawal hit a good jumping knee. Lawal took Ryo’s back and got him to the ground. Lawal is getting take downs at will in this fight. I’ve got Lawal up 20-17 so far going into the third round.

R3- Lawal begins this round by smothering Ryo again. Once King Mo learns some submissions he’s going to be a very dangerous fighter. Mo drops Ryo on the back of his neck and hits some good Ground and Pound in the last minute of the fight. Ryo is basically just trying to hold on to get a decision but then finally fights back and gets taken down by Mo as the bell rings. Dominate win by Lawal, he just didn’t finish him. Ryo looks pretty jacked up after the fight and King Mo looks fresh.

30-24, 20-27 and 30-27 on the score cards.

Winner: Mohammed Lawal by Decision (Unanimous)

This was a pretty good show. I liked it more than the DREAM Featherweight Grand Prix first round show. Next round match-ups look like this in the Sengoku Featherweight Tournament:

Hatsu Hioki vs Ronnie Mann
Michihiro Omigawa vs Nam Phan
Masanori Kanehara vs Chang Sung Jung
Marlon Sandro vs Nick Denis