Shungo Oyama ( 峻護 ''Ōyama Shungo'' ; born April 11, 1974) is a Japanese former professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

. A professional competitor from 2001 to 2014, he competed for the

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 even ...

Pancrase is a Japanese mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Tokyo. It was founded in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the An ...

, RINGS,

DREAM A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...

K-1 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993 by karateka Kazuyoshi Ishii. Originally under the ownership of the Fighting and Entertainment Group (FEG), K-1 was considered to be the largest Kickboxing organization in the worl ...

, and

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

Early life

Oyama was born in Nasu District in Tochigi Prefecuture,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

on April 11, 1974, as Toshiyuki Oyama. He started practicing

Judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

when he was five years old, winning the All Japan Businessmen's Individual Championship, among other titles. He did not limit itself to a single grappling style, and also won the All Japan Sambo Championship and the All Japan Combat Wrestling Championship. Then, he began training MMA and won All Japan Amateur

Shooto is a combat sport and mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the Shooto Association and the International Shooto Commission (ISC). Shooto was originally formed in 1985, first as a particular fighting system and then in 1989 as a ...

Championship, making a pro debut in 2001.

Mixed martial arts career

Background and fighting style

He is best known for being a student of Japanese

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

superstar

Hidehiko Yoshida is a Japanese gold-medalist judoka and retired mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. He is a longtime veteran of Japan's PRIDE Fighting Championships, competing in the Light Heavyweight (MMA), middleweight (93kg) and Heavyweight (MMA), heavy ...

, and briefly trained with three-time King of

Bas Rutten Sebastiaan "Bas" Rutten (; born 24 February 1965) is a Dutch-American actor, former mixed martial artist, kickboxer and professional wrestler. As a kickboxer, he fought 16 times, winning the first 14 matches by knockout, 13 in the first round ...

. Shungo has also trained at the famed Takada Dojo, run by former

PRIDE Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

General Director

Nobuhiko Takada Nobuhiko Takada (, ring name: ) (born April 12, 1962) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist, retired professional wrestler, actor, and writer. He competed in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF) and the Uni ...

. Though his record is not impressive, Shungo has gained respect for his die hard spirit, and stubbornness to submit. On more than one occasion he has been injured or choked unconscious due to his refusal to tap out.

PRIDE

Oyama had his anticipated debut in

in 2001 against feared

Wanderlei Silva Wanderlei César da Silva ( , , ; born 3 July 1976) is a Brazilian former mixed martial artist who competed in Japan's Pride Fighting Championships and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He holds the record for the most wins, knockouts, ...

. In a fight of 30 seconds, Oyama met a spirited striking exchange, but he was overwhelmed and knocked out while he tried to avoid Silva. Shungo followed with a bout against famed Brazilian jiu-jitsu Wallid Ismail, but he underperformed again. The judoka met Ismail in his field of expertise by pulling guard early with a guillotine choke, which only allowed the Brazilian to pass guard, but Oyama escaped and contained Wallid until the second round. At the end, however, Ismail blocked a triangle choke attempt from Oyama and locked an arm triangle choke which Shungo refused to tap out to, rendering the Japanese unconscious. After the match, it was revealed that Oyama had suffered a

retinal detachment Retinal detachment is a condition where the retina pulls away from the tissue underneath it. It may start in a small area, but without quick treatment, it can spread across the entire retina, leading to serious vision loss and possibly blindness. ...

. His third match in PRIDE finally dissipated the negative criticism towards Oyama when he faced Renzo Gracie of the famed Gracie

Jiu-Jitsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...

family. With a combination of his own unorthodox striking style, a good takedown defense and a little

Kazushi Sakuraba is a Japanese professional wrestler, submission wrestling, submission wrestler and former mixed martial artist, currently signed to Pro Wrestling NOAH, Pro Wrestling Noah, where he was formerly one-half of the former GHC Tag Team Championship, G ...

imitation, Shungo was able to frustrate Gracie and dominate the fight to gain a unanimous decision. In a controversial moment, Gracie, irritated by his fight antics, spit in Shungo's face. Shortly after, Ryan Gracie challenged him to a fight to avenge Renzo. Oyama and Ryan met in the main event of PRIDE 22-Beasts From The East 2, in a fight in which the BJJ specialist caught Oyama in an armbar. The judoka, in a last action of defiance, refused to submit and got his arm broken. After the fight, Ryan assaulted Oyama and verbally insulted him before being restrained. Oyama faced Dan Henderson in 2003, going to the fight with an arm injury. After being knocked out by punches, medical examination showed that his eye injury had reopened, and he had to go to hiatus. His last fight in PRIDE was against

Mirko Cro Cop Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a Croatian former professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...

, losing again by KO.

Post-PRIDE

In 2006, Oyama faced another Gracie family member in the form of Rodrigo Gracie at the HERO'S 6 event. He got his second victory over the family, controlling Rodrigo and landing

ground and pound Ground may refer to: Geology * Land, the solid terrestrial surface of the Earth * Soil, a mixture of clay, sand and organic matter present on the surface of the Earth Electricity * Ground (electricity), the reference point in an electrical circ ...

for a unanimous decision. Oyama faced Handong Kong at Pancrase 257 on March 30, 2014. He won by first round heel hook. He participated "Martial Combat 10" as a substitute of Daiju Takase in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

for the title of

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight. The light heavyweight class has ...

(-87 kg) on September 16, 2010. He beat Brian Gassaway from USA with an inverted triangle choke and won the first professional title in his career. After winning, he proposed to Junko Kawada, with whom he had a four-year relationship while in the cage. They were married in his hometown.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 14–19 ,

Yuji Sakuragi is a Japanese mixed martial artist, kickboxer, and professional wrestler, currently associated with Real Japan Pro Wrestling (RJPW)'s team Seikendo. He is known for his Kyokushin Karate background and his ability to score KO wins. In MMA, he c ...

, TKO (corner stoppage) , Pancrase 263 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:03 ,

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–18 , Ikkei Nagamura , KO (punch) , Pancrase 260 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:01 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 14–17 , Handong Kong , Submission (heel hook) , Pancrase 257 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:26 ,

Yokohama, Kanagawa is the second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a population of 3.7 million in 2023. It lies on Tokyo B ...

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–17 , Jordan Currie , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , Pancrase 252: 20th Anniversary , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–16 , Eun Soo Lee , KO (punches) , Road FC 10: Monson vs. Kang , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:48 ,

Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...

, South Korea , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–15 , Asif Tagiecv , TKO (knees and punches) , RINGS Vol. 2: Conquisito , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:44 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–14 ,

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

, KO (soccer kick) , Pancrase: Progress Tour 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:19 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 13–13 , Hae Suk Son , TKO (punches) , Road FC 6: The Final Four , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:10 ,

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 12–13 , Jong Dae Kim , Submission (heel hook) , Road FC 6: The Final Four , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:44 ,

, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 11–13 ,

Denis Kang Denis Kang (, born September 17, 1977) is a retired Canadian professional mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor since 1998, Kang has formerly competed for the UFC, PRIDE, DREAM, ...

, TKO (knees) , Road FC 5: Night of Champions , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:30 ,

, South Korea , Return to Middleweight. , - , Win , align=center, 10–13 , Kyu Suk Son , KO (punch) , Pancrase: Impressive Tour 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:11 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 9–13 , Brian Gassaway , Technical Submission (inverted triangle choke) , MC: Martial Combat 10 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:50 , Sentosa, Singapore , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–13 , Vitaly Shemetov , KO (punches) , X-1 Nations Collide , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:31 ,

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, Hawaii , Return to Light Heavyweight. , - , Win , align=center, 8–12 , Mike Wimmer , Submission (heel hook) , KOTC: Toryumon , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:07 ,

Ginowan, Okinawa is a Cities of Japan, city located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2024, the city has an estimated population of 100,319, with 47,490 households and a population density of 5,142 persons per km2. The total area is 19.51 km2. The city ...

, Japan , Welterweight debut. , - , Loss , align=center, 7–12 , Andrews Nakahara , TKO (punches) , DREAM.8 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:00 ,

Nagoya, Aichi is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is the list of cities in Japan, fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020, and the principal city of the Chūkyō metropolitan area, which is the List of ...

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–11 ,

Yoon Dong-Sik Yoon Dong-Sik (, born August 24, 1972, in Seoul), often anglicised to Dong-Sik Yoon, is a South Korean judoka, and mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. Career Judo Before competing in MMA, Yoon was a well-known judoka with over 50 int ...

, Decision (unanimous) , DREAM 2: Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 First Round , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Saitama, Saitama is the capital and largest Cities of Japan, city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Saitama, Urawa, Ōmiya, Saitama, Ōmiya, Yono, Saitama, Yono and Iwatsuki, Saitama, Iwatsuki. It is a Cities desig ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 7–10 , Carlos Newton , TKO (submission to punches) , HERO'S 2007 in Korea , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:42 ,

, South Korea , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–10 ,

Melvin Manhoef Melvin Manhoef (born 11 May 1976) is a retired Surinamese people, Surinamese-born Dutch people, Dutch mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and Kickboxing, kickboxer. In kickboxing, he is a former It's Showtime (kickboxing), It's Showtime Middl ...

, TKO (punches) , HERO'S 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:04 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 6–9 , Rodrigo Gracie , Decision (unanimous) , HERO'S 6 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–9 ,

, TKO (doctor stoppage) , HERO'S 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:51 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5–8 , Peter Aerts , Submission (heel hook) , K-1-Premium 2005 Dynamite , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:30 ,

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4–8 , Yun Seob Kwak , Submission (achilles lock) , HERO'S 2005 in Seoul , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:14 ,

, South Korea , Light Heavyweight bout. , - , Loss , align=center, 3–8 , Sam Greco , KO (knees and punches) , HERO'S 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:37 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–7 ,

Valentijn Overeem Valentijn Overeem (; born 17 August 1976) is a Dutch retired professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. A professional competitor since 1996, he has previously fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, RINGS, KSW, the World Fighti ...

, Submission (toe hold) , HERO'S 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:28 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–7 ,

Sean O'Haire Sean Christopher Haire (February 25, 1971 – September 8, 2014) was an American professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and kickboxer, better known by his ring name Sean O'Haire. Haire was best known for his appearances with the profess ...

, TKO (punches) , K-1 Fighting Network Rumble on the Rock 2004 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:31 ,

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–6 ,

, TKO (punches) ,

PRIDE Bushido 4 Below is a list of mixed martial arts events scheduled and held by the Pride Fighting Championships. Events Event locations Seven cities in two countries have hosted a total of 68 events: * Japan (66) : Saitama, Saitama, Saitama – 25 : To ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, Japan , Return to Heavyweight. , - , Loss , align=center, 2–5 ,

Dan Henderson Daniel Jeffery Henderson (born August 24, 1970) is an American former mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler, who last competed as a Middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the last Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champi ...

, TKO (punches) , PRIDE 25 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:28 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–4 , Ryan Gracie , Submission (armbar) , PRIDE 22 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:37 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2–3 , Renzo Gracie , Decision (unanimous) , PRIDE 21 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–3 , Wallid Ismail , Submission (triangle choke) ,

PRIDE 15 The year 2001 was the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''. Title fights Debut Pride FC fighters T ...

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:30 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–2 ,

, TKO (punches) , PRIDE 14: Clash of the Titans , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:30 ,

, Japan , Return to Heavyweight. , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Phillip Miller , TKO (strikes) , KOTC 8: Bombs Away , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:00 ,

Williams, California Williams (formerly Central) is a city in Colusa County, California. The population was 5,643 at the time of the 2010 census, up from 3,670 at the 2000 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area o ...

, United States , Middleweight debut. , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Mike Bourke , KO (punch) , KOTC 7: Wet and Wild , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:17 ,

San Jacinto, California San Jacinto ( , ; ) is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. It is located at the north end of the San Jacinto Valley, with Hemet, California, Hemet to its south and Beaumont, California, Beaumont to its north. The mountains ...

, United States ,

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

* K-1 Hero's ** 2006 K-1 Hero's Light Heavyweight Grand Prix Semifinalist * Martial Combat ** Martial Combat Light Heavyweight Championship (1 Time) * ROAD FC ** ROAD FC Middleweight Championship (1 Time, first) *

** 7th All Japan Amateur

Championship,

Light heavyweight Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight. The light heavyweight class has ...

winner (September 10, 2000)

Judo

** 28th All Japan Business Groups Judo Individual Championship, Men 81 kg class winner

Sambo

** 21st All Japan Sambo Championship, Men Senior 82 kg class runner-up (1997) ** 22nd All Japan Sambo Championship, Men Senior 82 kg class winner (1998) ** 24th All Japan Sambo Championship, Men Senior 82 kg class winner (June 28, 1998) ** 25th All Japan Sambo Championship, Men Senior 82 kg class winner (1999) ** 26th All Japan Sambo Championship, Men Senior 82 kg class winner (July 16, 2000)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oyama, Shungo 1974 births Living people Japanese male mixed martial artists Middleweight mixed martial artists Martial artists from Tochigi Prefecture Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Japanese male judoka Japanese sambo practitioners Road Fighting Championship champions Mixed martial artists utilizing sambo 20th-century Japanese sportsmen