is a Japanese

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

and

wrestler Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat spo ...

. A professional competitor since 2009, he has fought in the

UFC 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 ...

, Bellator,

Pancrase Pancrase Inc. is a mixed martial arts promotion company founded in Japan in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the Ancient Olympic Games. Suzuki and Funaki ...

and

King of the Cage King of the Cage (KOTC) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Southern California, United States. History KOTC was founded in 1998 by Terry Trebilcock. KOTC features mostly amateur as well as up and coming MMA stars and former mainstr ...

Background

Born and raised in Japan, Anzai began

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

in high school at the age of 15. Anzai later continued wrestling at

Meiji University , abbreviated as Meiji (明治) or Meidai (明大'')'', is a private research university located in Chiyoda City, the heart of Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1881 as Meiji Law School (明治法律学校, ''Meiji Hōritsu Gakkō'') by three Meij ...

, and also attended

Kokugakuin University Kokugakuin University (國學院大學; ''Kokugakuin Daigaku'', abbreviated as 國學大 ''Kokugakudai'' or 國大 ''Kokudai'') is a private university, whose main office is in Tokyo's Shibuya district. The academic programs and research include S ...

. In amateur wrestling, Anzai was second place at the 2005 All-Japan Junior Olympic Cup, was first place at the 2008 All-Japan Combat Wrestling Championship (over 80 kg). Anzai also won the ADCC Asia Trials in 2011 at 99 kg and 2013 at 88 kg, respectively.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Anzai made his professional MMA debut in May 2009. He fought exclusively in his native Japan for the

and

(Japan) promotions. During the next six years he amassed a record of 8–1.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In his UFC debut, Anzai stepped in to replace

Sheldon Westcott Sheldon Westcott (born August 10, 1985) is a Canadian mixed martial artist who competes in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is also known for being a contestant and finalist on The Ultimate Fighter for Te ...

against

Alberto Mina Alberto Mina (born May 2, 1982) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Biography A native of Campina Grande in northeast Brazil, Mina began his career at the age of 5, ...

on August 23, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 48. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round. In his second fight for the promotion, Anzai faced Roger Zapata on September 26, 2015, at UFC Fight Night: Barnett vs. Nelson. He won the fight via TKO due to a hand injury Zapata sustained in the third round. After nearly two years away from the promotion, Anzai returned to face

Luke Jumeau Luke Jumeau (born 12 February 1988) is a New Zealand mixed martial artist, and he competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Jumeau was born in Hamilton, New Zealand. Raised by a single moth ...

on September 23, 2017, at UFC Fight Night: Saint Preux vs. Okami. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Anzai faced Jake Matthews on June 23, 2018, at

UFC Fight Night 132 ''UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Edwards'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 132'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on June 23, 2018, at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Back ...

. He lost the fight via rear-naked choke in the first round. Anzai was released from the UFC in June 2019.

Post-UFC career

After the his release from the UFC, Anzai won one fight in his native

Deep Deep or The Deep may refer to: Places United States * Deep Creek (Appomattox River tributary), Virginia * Deep Creek (Great Salt Lake), Idaho and Utah * Deep Creek (Mahantango Creek tributary), Pennsylvania * Deep Creek (Mojave River tributary), ...

promotion before signing with the Bellator. He made his promotional debut against

Michael Page Michael Jerome Reece-Pagewkaassociation.com, Retrieved 28 August 2017. (born 7 April 1987) is a British kickboxer, boxer, and mixed martial artist. He is recognised in the MMA community for his unorthodox fighting style, which originated fro ...

at Bellator & Rizin: Japan on December 29, 2019. He lost the fight via knockout in the second round.

Championships and achievements

** Middleweight King of Pancrase (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 11–4 ,

, KO (punch) , Bellator & Rizin: Japan , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:23 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 11–3 , Yoichiro Sato , Technical Decision (majority) , DEEP 91 Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:39 ,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–3 , Jake Matthews , Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Edwards , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:44 ,

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, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Saint Preux vs. Okami , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 , Roger Zapata , TKO (hand injury) , UFC Fight Night: Barnett vs. Nelson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:47 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–2 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Le , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:17 ,

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, SAR, China , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 ,

Ryo Kawamura is a Japanese mixed martial artist, professional wrestler, and the former executive president of Pancrase Inc. A professional MMA competitor from 2005 until 2014, Kawamura most notably competed for Pancrase, where he is the former King of Panc ...

, TKO (punches) , Pancrase 259 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:52 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Will Noland , TKO (punches) , Pancrase 252: 20th Anniversary , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:30 ,

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Yuji Hisamatsu , Decision (unanimous) , Pancrase 247 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Hyun Gwan Lee , TKO (soccer kick) , Pancrase: Progress Tour 12: All Eyes on Yuki Kondo , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:36 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Yuji Sakuragi , Decision (Unanimous) , Pancrase: Progress Tour 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Akihito Tanaka , TKO (punches) , Pancrase: Impressive Tour 8 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:16 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–1 , Jerry Nelson , Decision , KOTC: Toryumon , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Yuji Saeki , TKO (punches) , KOTC: Toryumon , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:54 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Jason Symak , TKO (punches) , Pancrase Gate 2009 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:35 ,

, Japan , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Anzai, Shinsho 1985 births Living people Japanese male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling Japanese male sport wrestlers Amateur wrestlers Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Sportspeople from Saitama (city)