Manny PaquiAO, flanked by family and security, came out of an elevator and passed through a holding area for MMA fighters. To the boxing legend's right, former UFC champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson was trying to help his opponent put on a costume for his entrance. The Freire brothers were warming up for a title fight in the night's co-main event. One could see the all-time MMA great on the television screen. It was a scene from a New Year's Eve combat sports event that featured a co-promotion between Japan's Rizin Fighting Federation and the US's Bellator MMA. The fighters of Bellator went 5-5 against their Japanese opponents. There was more to it than that. A crowd of 23,661 filled the venue that was the home to some of MMA's biggest fights in the aughts, showing the sport in Japan is still alive and well fifteen years after the revered Pride FC promotion was sold to Zuffa. During the opening ceremony, the PA system played the Pride theme. The $100,000, 55 pound black armor patterned after the garb of ancient Japanese warriors was the only real hang up. It took more than a half hour, with the help of Jackson and Antonio, and it couldn't have been done without the man who designed the outfit. Do you know how to wear a suit? The need for Kato's presence was explained by Mike. Japan's Combat Countdown to the new year began at noon Saturday local time. Battle Cat, a plump, furry mascot with pointed ears, went sideways through a narrow doorway to meet fight enthusiasts. The sub-arena was filled with people for an expo as a secondary attraction. There was a ring in the corner that featured everything from jiu-jitsu to rap battles to talk shows to concerts. The line for merchandise was extended. The words "On this day, the holy ground will be covered with blood" were written on the bags that fans were given. Fans entering into Saitama Super Arena tonight are getting one of these pic.twitter.com/QO5Uo7MLrU The president of Rizin was putting on a tuxedo in a private room in the back of the production office. The sub-arena has a banner for a kaarage stand that has a shirtless Sakakibara wearing gloves. The joke was made for Japan's version of April fool's day. There were seven TVs in the production office, six of which were on the big broadcast networks in Japan. The pay-per-view event was on U-Next. Producers would constantly watch what was on the other stations during the event and make changes based on commercials and lulls on rival networks. The drug testing for the athletes on the card was going to take place in the locker rooms where the fighters' locker rooms were located. The Japan MMA Officials Committee (JMOC) was praised by a well-known American MMA referee. The typical two doctors at U.S.-based events were not present for the show. The judge was flown in for the event. The undercard began at 2pm. Yushi, an MMA fighter and fitness model, had one of the most memorable exits of the event, dancing his way down the ramp wearing a flamboyant, dazzling silver coat and transparent-framed sunglasses, with women on either side of him. Takuya Nakazawa was beaten by unanimous decision. Only two of the seven fights got past the first round. Johnny Case stopped Nobumitsu Tyson, who wore nothing but a bow tie and a silver platter at the ceremonial weigh-ins a day before, with ground and pound in 36 seconds. After that, at 4 p.m., 43-fight veteran Yuki Motoya devastated Rogerio Bontorin with a violent jumping knee for the best knockout of the night. Ren Hiramoto was going to fight a mystery opponent for an exhibition boxing match. The crowd wasn't aware who it was. The surprise was sung in by female rap duo hy4_4yh, who wore masks inspired by a famous Japanese pro wrestler. A children's break dancing performance took place inside the ring at the end of the first half. During the pause in the action, the team bus arrived and the fighters entered their lockers. When Juan Archuleta walked over to greet him, he was wearing a green knit suit and no shirt. He winked and said there were no rules. It was a joke. The unified rules of MMA in North America and beyond are maintained by the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports. Knees and kicks to the head of grounded opponents are legal in Japan. The fights that end in a decision are scored as a whole. Royce and his son came back from the arena at 4:57 p.m. The man looked frustrated. Fans had just mobbed his father. A historic 90-minute contest against Sakuraba was one of the highlights of the last part of his career. It's not possible to walk with him here. Five minutes after the two of them left to find some Starbucks, Pacquiao arrived through the entrance as a surprise guest. The entrance of Ninja Turtle-costumed UFC veteran John Dodson was shown on a television screen as he knocked out veteran Hideo Tokoro with a body shot. Jackson rolled a cardboard box on a dolly. It was too heavy to carry around. Jackson is still a huge fan in Japan of his time in Pride. They were trying to find a way to get the costume down to the locker room. Back in front of the fans, he made a surprise appearance around 5:17 p.m., strutting down to the ring to "Eye of the Tiger" They said that they had an agreement with Rizin to fight for the promotion in three years. According to sources, it will likely be an exhibition boxing match like the ones Floyd Mayweather had. The date will be announced soon by the boxer. I am looking forward to fighting a Japanese fighter. A girls pop group was performing inside the arena ring with fans singing and dancing with them. A gray blob with evergreen tree ears was near the mascot. Seika Izawa, the top women's atomweight in the world, was going to the main ring to face South Korea's Si Woo Park. Izawa won the Rizin's women's super atomweight grand prix title with a split-decision victory over Park. Antonio Inoki, an icon in Japan who died in October, was honored in a video package following that fight. One of the most famous people in the country was a pro wrestling star and MMA fighter named Inoki who fought against the likes of Muhammad Ali. One of Inoki's students gave a speech in memory of him after the video package. In time for the main card to start, Nurmagomedov sat in the front row. The opening ceremony included all 10 fighters participating in the ring, along with Scott Coker, a slick video package with the Pride theme music and some ear-piercing pyrotechnics. This is the most epic thing you will ever see. We promise.𝐑𝐈𝐙𝐈𝐍 𝐕𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐑 OPENING CEREMONY!!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 [ #RIZIN40 | @FiteTV PPV link in bio ] pic.twitter.com/Cerh24jh7w
There were two people getting ready in the locker room at the time. The father and son were with the brother. The rivalry between the two camps made the scene noteworthy. They both won their titles in the same year, and in the same month. They have had a lot of verbal altercations. Saturday was calm with the team working together.
The main-card opener was won by the man who trained under Abdulmanap Rabadanov. At 7 pm, Nurmagomedov entered the ring to congratulate Rabadanov and he had some words of encouragement for Takeda. The crowd is so silent during fights you can hear fighters' cornermen. There is applause until there is action in the fight.
"It's one of the best events I've ever been to," said Nurmagomedov. The fans were great. The show was a success. I have never seen fans like this. I don't mind going to Japan every year for this event, it was a new experience. I enjoy the Japanese culture and fans.
Archuleta, always one to make a fashion statement, walked out accompanied by fire shooting from the stage at 8 p.m.
The Mexican side of Archuleta's family is represented by the other side of his culture. It was an honor to represent both samurai and Roman soldiers. It's something that pays homage to my family and that's what it is. The Aztecs have a culture.
They have lost our history and I wanted to show it to you all.
While Archuleta was on his way to a split-decision win to put Bellator ahead in the competition, he was already in the process of getting on his samurai costume for the main event in a holding area. The man wouldn't fight for another two hours.
Antonio said that the team had thought about the issue that boxing star Deontay Wilder had in 2020, wearing a 40-pound entrance costume. He blamed walking out on the defeat. But that didn't deter him from getting a bigger getup.
On Saturday, Nassourdine Imavov and Kelvin Gastelum will go head-to-head to see who will get a shot at a title.
Imavov vs Gastelum is a UFC fight.
Saturday, Jan. 14, UFC APEX, Las Vegas
• Main card: 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+
• Prelims: 4 p.m. ET on ESPN+
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Antonio said they were following him. It's crazy when it's crazy. It was not that bad. The finances hurt me more. We could have purchased a condo to live in.
At 9:05 pm, former Rizin and Bellator champ Kyoji Horiguchi won a unanimous decision over Hiromasa Ougikubo. Twelve minutes later, the gladiator walked out in his costume. The Latin word for warrior is bellicose. Patricky said that the costume didn't make sense because he was going against Japan. The event's theme made Patricio's entrance gear more fitting than the others.
He got ready to walk at 9:35 p.m. behind the entrance stage while his opponent was in the ring. At 9:47 p.m., Patricio won via unanimous decision and went on to win all three of his fights. The team went up by four on the night.
At 10 p.m., the main event bout between Roberto "Satoshi" de Souza, a Brazilian-born fighter with Japanese heritage and Koike Erbst, a Japanese-born fighter, took place. He covered his face with a horned helmet while walking out. The fake cash was shot out by cannons as he made his way down the ramp. He waved a sword around before entering the ring.
He did, after all that. De Souza was threatening a lot with submissions. In the third round, de Souza almost got spiked in the head with a front roll by McKee. The trophy for the win was dropped from the ceiling at 10:41pm.
Half of the samurai costume was on a dolly and the other was on a desk. The $100,000 item was guarded by an event worker and security was needed. A reporter was reprimanded for attempting to touch it.
Antonio said that it needed an insurance policy.
He didn't take off his helmet until he got back to the locker room, as he was backstage getting his gloves removed. The agent of Archuleta was talking with his friend.
Jackson laughed and said to watch the helmet. He's going to remove your eye. He has me.
In the locker room, he said that it took a lot of research to find authentic, handmade samurai garb in Tokyo. It is made with alligator skin. He initially said he was going to rent it, but then decided to buy it. It took him a year and a half to make the costume, and he only sold it to a king, who he refused to name.
You don't rent armor if you're going to be a samurai. They would rather die than be captured. That says a lot to me.
As the clock struck midnight and the new year began, the Japanese media gathered at the news conference podium to hear the address from McKee. The day had come to an end as had the previous one.
"I think it was the end of the year," he added.
It was probably the most expensive, heaviest and final one. Adding another chapter to the New Year's Eve combat sports tradition in Japan is a great idea.
"Anything I do, I do to the best of my ability," he said. People don't pay tribute to their culture. I'm familiar with where I came from. I'm familiar with my culture. I'm familiar with it's history. I'm familiar with the history of a lot of cultures. This goes into my body as a warrior. It was a pleasure to share our cultures with one another.
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