Chiquerim Out. Shinya Aoki Will Fight at Dream F4J, Two Interesting Opponents Possible

It was reported last week that Japanese submission ace Shinya Aoki would indeed be competing on Dream 17: Fight For Japan card on May 29th. His original opponent was supposed to be Willamy "Chiquerim" Friere, but Chiquerim had to withdraw due to visa issues. MMAWeekly is reporting that Aoki will stay on the card, and his two possible opponents each offer interesting stylistic challenges:

MMAWeekly.com initially reported that a fight between he and former MFC lightweight champion Antonio McKee was on tap, as long as McKee could finalize his travel details. While that fight is very much still in play, our sources indicate that Dream is also negotiating with former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner. Read More

Toby Imada Returning to Shoot Boxing in June vs Shishido!

Nightmare of Battle is reporting that Toby Imada, perennial contender in the Bellator lightweight tournament, is going to return to Japan again this year to compete in the Shoot Boxing S-Cup. Imada was a finalist in last year's S-Cup, amazing everyone with a semi final victory over Andy Souwer, only to be defeated in the final by the legend Buakaw Por. Pramuk.

Imada's opponent for the June 5th bout will be Hiroki Shishido. Shishido has held several Shoot Boxing titles and I'm sure is a heavy favorite to win. But then, so was Souwer. For more & highlights Continue reading

The Friday Freakshow: Freakshow fights that you should probably watch vol. 1

In an effort to bring you the most entertaining and obscure literature/fights you'll probably come across on mma sites, I've decided to stray away from the norm and review/preview one freakshow fight that you should probably(definitely) watch(or rewatch) each week.

Throughout these articles we'll go over upcoming freakshow fights, and those of the past that captured our hearts and imaginations as young budding MMA fans.

For our first edition we're going to turn the clocks back to the year 1995. Read More

The Afro Cometh -- Again! Tachi Palace Fights 9 Today

There is perhaps no more iconic a symbol of Shooto than Mamoru Yamaguchi and his afro, every bit as puffy as Shooto’s gloves. Only recently departing the comfy confines of a Korakuen Hall to try his hand at stateside competition, the former two-time Shooto champion and current King of the Cage 125-pound titlist is making his journey stateside at an interesting time -- one in which flyweight has become the next division for hardcore fans to entreaty the UFC to patronize. Despite being arguably MMA’s greatest flyweight of all-time, Yamaguchi accedes that he will still have to earn his way into the Octagon and thus looks forward to putting on performances that will afford him some brain space with Western MMA fans. Originally scheduled to meet John Dodson, Yamaguchi will face Kevin Dunsmoor on Friday at Tachi Palace Fights 9 (free Sherdog stream: 8:15 ET/5:15 PT) in Lemoore, Calif. Luck and fate allowing, he will put on a performance worthy of getting himself on the UFC’s radar. For more, plus an interview with Mamoru Read more

Ryo Kawamura Drops Down To Middleweight!

Two fights were announced for the June 5th Pancrase event today.

Ryo Kawamura has relinquished his Light Heavyweight King Of Pancrase title and will finally move down to Middleweight to take on Ikkei for the Middleweight King Of Pancrase title (which Rikuhei Fujii has relinquished) at the event. So there will be three title fights on June 5th.

A fun Featherweight rematch has also been added to the card. Takada Dojo’s Kensaku Nakamura will rematch the hard-hitting Yusuke “Bancho” Kawanago.

Nakamura is the only loss besides Takumi on Bancho’s record. Their first fight ended in a split decision victory for Nakamura. Bancho will not only have a shot at getting revenge, but also at getting back on the winning track after a quite unfortunate loss to Takumi earlier this year. For the full card, read more

Fedor Emelianenko will meet Dan Henderson on July 30

Fedor Emelianenko will meet Dan Henderson on July 30 on a Strikeforce card in the Chicago area, a source with knowledge of the fight confirmed to ESPN.com Tuesday. 

An official announcement of the heavyweight attraction is expected shortly. SB Nation reported the finalized fight on Tuesday. Read More

UPDATE! Kotani Disqualified! Only Three LWGP Fights Today

Veteran and possible GP favorite Naoyuki Kotani has been disqualified from today’s Pancrase Lightweight GP since he failed to make weight. He weighed-in at 71.5kg yesterday and when he weighed-in again today he was 1.0kg over so he has been disqualified and his opponent, Tomoshi Iwamiya, will not get to fight today. Nothing yet on what will happen with this tournament fight but it’s either a rematch in the near future, Iwamiya advancing automatically, or a new opponent for Iwamiya."

Also, the event will air on Samurai TV today at 11 PM.

All but one fighter successfully made weight on Monday ahead of Pancrase’s fourth “Impressive Tour” event, which goes down Tuesday at Differ Ariake in Tokyo.

UFC veteran Naoyuki Kotani, one of eight competitors in Pancrase’s 2011 lightweight grand prix, was the lone fighter to miss his mark. The 29-year-old submission specialist tipped the scales at 157.6 pounds for his match with Tomoyoshi Iwamiya (153.6) and will be reweighed on fight day, according to Pancrase officials. For more on the GP & Card Read More

Inoki Planning Big Event In August

Antonio Inoki is planning a big event in August 26th (or possibly in September). IGF GENOME16 will take place on July 10th. Josh Barnett, Bobby Lashley, and Jerome Le Banner have advanced to the semifinals of the IGF world title tournament so a fourth semifinalist should be decided then.    

Anyway, the August event might take place at Ryogoku Kokugikan and probably won’t be in the GENOME series. Inoki wants stars from K-1, MMA, and Puroresu on the event. Rumored participants are Jerome Le Banner (possibly semifinal match), Peter Aerts, and Ray Sefo. He wants to call out to Mirko CroCop and dismissed sumo wrestlers for the event as well. NOB

Shooto Tradition 2011 Tohoku Earthquake Charity Event Vids

Check out more thrilling action from the Shooto Tradition 2011 - Tohoku Earthquake Charity Event including such fights as Hatsu Hoki vs Donal Sanchez, Shooto Bantamweight title match between champion Shuichiro Katsumura vs Koetsu Okazaki. Also a nontitle affaur between the always exciting Lion Takeshi & Taiki Tsuchiya! Read/View more

Farkhad Sharipov Replaces UFC-Bound Escovedo at TPF 9

Cole Escovedo was all set to take on Tommy Vargas at Tachi Palace Fights 9 on May 6 -- until the UFC came calling.

Last Friday, word broke that Escovedo will take on Brazilian prospect Renan “Barao” Pegado at UFC 130 on May 28, leaving Vargas without a dance partner. Days later, Tachi Palace officials have found their substitute for the UFC-bound “Apache Kid.”

Sherdog.com learned from Tachi Palace Events Coordinator Jeremy Luchau on Monday that Florida-based Kyrgyzstani Farkhad Sharipov will step in on less than two weeks’ notice to meet Vargas. For fighter comments & more regarding the full card Read more

Satoru Kitaoka's Next Move, May Lead to UFC Signing

Satoru Kitaoka is a JMMA superstar. We all love him. We also all know that he has been feverishly scouting out opportunity in the United States and possibly looking for a place to fight in the United States. He made a visit a few months back to several gyms, as well as a Strikeforce and UFC card. Well, MMA-JAPAN has the scoop on what Kitaoka will do. Read More...

Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz ? UFC president open to idea

TORONTO – The UFC's current crop of welterweights has little to offer, and with a super fight with middleweight champion Anderson Silva apparently unlikely, what's next for 170-pound titleholder Georges St-Pierre?

It was the big question after St-Pierre's decisive but heavily panned decision victory over Jake Shields in Saturday's UFC 129 main event.

But UFC president Dana White has a potential solution: a fight with Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. Read More