UFC 23
''UFC 23: Ultimate Japan 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on November 19, 1999 at Tokyo Bay NK Hall in Tokyo, Japan. History UFC 23 was the second UFC event to take place in Tokyo, Japan, where the newly formed PRIDE Fighting Championships were enjoying massive success. UFC 23 was headlined by a Heavyweight Championship Title bout between Kevin Randleman and Pete Williams, held to determine the champion after Bas Rutten's retirement. The event also featured a four-man "Japanese" tournament, held to crown the first ever UFC Japan Champion. The tournament was the first in the UFC since UFC 17, and the last one-night tournament held by the UFC (subsequent multiple-night tournaments have since taken place in 2003 at UFC 39 and UFC 41, and in 2012 at UFC on FX 2, UFC on FX 3, and UFC 152). SEG originally intended UFC Japan to be a separate company, run by local promoters, but due to mounting financial problems, a lack of cooperatio ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA promotion company in the world as of 2011. It produces events worldwide that showcase 12 weight divisions (eight men's and four women's) and abides by the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. , it had held over 600 events. Dana White has been its president since 2001. Under White's stewardship, it has grown into a global multi-billion-dollar enterprise. The UFC was founded by businessman Art Davie and Brazilian martial artist Rorion Gracie, and the first event was held in 1993 at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado. The purpose of the early Ultimate Fighting Championship competitions was to identify the most effective martial art in a contest with minimal rules and no weight classes between competitors of different fight ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pride Fighting Championships
PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts events, broadcast to about 40 countries worldwide.What is Pride? , Official Pride site. Last retrieved December 5, 2006 PRIDE was owned by the Dream Stage Entertainment (DSE). For the ten years of its existence, PRIDE was one of the most popular MMA organizations in the world. Pride broadcast its event on Japanese [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Masutatsu Yano
Masutatsu Yano (born July 11, 1975) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist who competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, RINGS, Pancrase and Deep. Mixed martial arts career Ultimate Fighting Championship Yano made his professional mixed martial arts debut and sole UFC appearance against Katsuhisa Fujii on November 19, 1999 at UFC 23. He lost the fight via TKO due to punches in the second round. Pancrase Yano made his Pancrase debut against Daisuke Ishii on January 23, 2000 at Pancrase: Trans 1. He lost the fight via KO due to punches in the first round. Yano then faced Kazuo Takahashi on August 27, 2000 at Pancrase: 2000 Neo-Blood Tournament Second Round. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Fighting Network Rings Yano made his RINGS debut against Yasuhito Namekawa on June 15, 2001 at Rings: World Title Series 2. He lost the fight via a guillotine choke submission in the second round. Yano then faced Hiroyuki Ito on February 15, 2002 at Rings: World Tit ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Katsuhisa Fujii
,(born August 15, 1972) is a Japanese retired mixed martial artist and professional wrestler, mostly known for his work in Pro Wrestling Zero1 and Hustle. A professional MMA competitor from 1996 until 2010, he competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, PRIDE Fighting Championships, Pancrase, DEEP, RINGS, and M-1 Global. Mixed martial arts career After a career of judo and amateur wrestling at the Tokyo University, Fujii learned mixed martial arts on the Super Tiger Gym of Satoru Sayama and debuted for Shooto in 1997. Ultimate Fighting Championship Fujii made his debut in Ultimate Fighting Championship during the UFC 23 tournament in Japan, where he first faced the newcomer Masutatsu Yano. The bout started slow, with Fujii defending with strikes and submissions attempts against his opponent's wrestling acumen, but in the second round, Fujii stunned Yano with punches and scored the knockout victory. He advanced to the next round and found himself against fello ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kenichi Yamamoto (fighter)
(born June 11, 1976) is a Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. Known for his pro wrestling career in UWF International, Yamamoto also competed against some of the best MMA fighters of his era in RINGS, Pride and the UFC, taking on Kevin Randleman, Genki Sudo and Pat Miletich, among others. In 1999, Yamamoto won the UFC 23 Middleweight Tournament in Japan. He returned to the ring against former Light Heavyweight King Of Pancrase Keiichiro Yamamiya on October 27, 2012. He lost via unanimous decision. Professional wrestling career A fan of Akira Maeda, Yamamoto was trained in karate since his childhood and entered the Seidokaikan school before turning his attention to professional wrestling. In 1993, he was accepted in Union of Wrestling Forces International and debuted on October 14 in a match against Kazushi Sakuraba. After two years on the mid card, he joined Yoji Anjo and Yoshihiro Takayama to form the Golden Cups stable, in which he gained fame. In 1996, U ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Keiichiro Yamamiya Keiichiro Yamamiya (born July 12, 1972) is a Japanese former professional mixed martial artist. A veteran of 89 fights who began his career in 1996 and last competed in 2015, he fought in the UFC, Pancrase, DEEP, and World Victory Road. He was the inaugural King of Pancrase Light Heavyweight Champion. Yamamiya holds notable decision victories over Chael Sonnen, Nate Marquardt, and Denis Kang. Mixed martial arts career Ultimate Fighting Championship Yamamiya signed with the UFC in 1999. He made his debut against Eugene Jackson at UFC 23 on November 19, 1999, and lost via first-round knockout. Yamamiya was then granted his release |