Shinya Aoki: "One Dream - to Evolve"

New Years Eve.  Over twenty thousand people sharing a single room.  Yet there is dead silence.  DREAM Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki is facing challenger Satoru Kitaoka and the tension is palpable.  A five-round championship battle is beginning, yet the wind-up video before the fight is more a testament to the bond these brothers of the ring share, rather than a brandishing of weapons.  It is a very emotional few moments.  But, this is a battle.  It is their job, their livelihood, and their choice.  Thousands of people now sit on the edge of their seat, waiting and holding their breath as the bell rings.

Two completely different attitudes clash: at the touch gloves, Kitaoka slaps and Aoki tries a handshake that is definitely not returned.  Shinya assumes a... a Muay Thai boxing stance?  And a head kick?!  To the delight of a crowd eagerly expecting him to back up his recent comments about his new training accomplishments, he clinches and throws a knee, which leads to a takedown.  Kitaoka is able to sink a guillotine, but Aoki powers out and tries for several different submissions.  When Kitoaka escapes to standing, Aoki uses the corner like a cage to clinch and try TDs - a nice little preview of possible future cage matches!  Ref resets them in the center.  After a few moments of gauging distance, Aoki shoots in for a TD and eats a right hook on the way. Shinya's in half guard and controlling the Koala with - yes - his face, and landing a few hammerfists.  At the end Kitaoka opens; Aoki stands and drops bombs.  This was definitely Shinya's round.

At the bell, Kitaoka expects a standing battle, but Aoki slams him back into the corner with another TD.  To further Kitaoka's confusion, Aoki alternates between grappling and standing.  But Aoki can't pass Kitaoka's guard which the Koala uses to land some strikes from the bottom, and eventually Shinya returns the favor with palms to his head.  At the final minute, the ref stands them back up, Shinya finishes with some brutal kicks and it even looks like Kitaoka eats a knee as Shinya gets the final TD at the end of the round.  Definitely 2-0.

Courtesy The Fight Bulletin

Round three sees newly-minted Thai boxer Shinya Aoki come out of the corner with what looks like a training drill: 1 - gut kick (doubles over Kitaoka); 2 - clinch (gets him back in the dreaded corner); 3 - knee (Kitaoka can't defend); 4 - TD; 5 - backmount and secure a body triangle.  Twenty thousand-plus fans have just knocked the decibel recorder off the chart!  For almost two minutes, Aoki looks for a submission: twister, choke, then triangle.  It's at that point which Kitaoka escapes and now Aoki's the one on his back throwing the upkicks.  The ref stands him up.  Again Aoki sets up a double leg TD with a strong kick, but the ropes stop Kitaoka's descent.  When they reset, Aoki throws a head kick that connects with a thwap that resounds through the whole quiet arena.  Yes, a HEAD kick!  He follows it up with a clinch and more knees in the corner.  A scramble on the ground ends the third.  3-0

A DREAM Come True, Part 1: "Genki Desu Ka! Fight for Japan"

Back in November 2011, I wrote about MMA hype in Asia growing to a crescendo.  DREAM confirmed a New Years Eve show under sponsors FeILDS and IGF and started releasing fights on the card.  As if in an effort to try and trump the Japanese promotion, the UFC confirmed a return to Japan in February and released its own card, stacked with almost every Asian on the promotion's roster.  ONE FC finally announced its schedule of events in Southeast Asia for 2012, and then dropped a bomb to counter the UFC news: a fighter-sharing agreement and a co-sponsored promotion in Singapore with DREAM.

The fight cards on both promotions seemed to read like a who's-who of JMMA.  Both positive and negative assessments were made regarding both cards (I wrote an analysis of the UFC's here).  When faced with the decision of traveling to Japan to see which fight, for me, DREAM totally captivated my interest.  The previews they produced for the bantam-, feather- and lightweight matches had me on the edge of my seat screaming at the computer, my neighbors banging on the walls for me to keep it down.  And then came the final cog in the machine that set my DREAM trip into motion:

I got on the internet and bought my ticket before Evolve MMA's head honcho would realize his mistake ("Oh, that's not MMA Japan ") and rescind the invitation!

And now, PART 1 - Before the Fight!  PART 2: Fight Day will be posted in a few days.

Please allow me the guilty pleasure of slipping into fan mode for the remainder of this article.  This event was just too exciting for me personally to be able to share it in a purely informational context.  There may be moments of clarity in which I assess certain things objectively, but for the most part, I was a "full-on MMA fanatic" for the entire course of events.

Arrival to Tokyo.

On December 29th, I awoke at the hellish hour of 5am in order to make an 8am flight.  I am NOT one of those people who do the morning session on the mats and then post pictures of it on Facebook to make everyone else feel inadequate.  As I checked in and was handed my boarding pass, the nice USA Delta agent politely informed me that my flight was delayed.  Okay, no problem, how long?  Seven hours delay.  Okay, problem.  I went back home (and yes, back to sleep), and began to feel sorry for myself.  I'd asked Chatri if I could have the chance to watch Shinya Aoki's final workout before the fight, and he'd given me the time and place - Shinya's DEEP Impact official DREAM gym!  Epic stuff goes on at that gym.  If I had made the 8am flight, I would have been able to make the last session.  Later, my disappointment was compounded when friends told me that Bibiano, Chonan and a few other fighters were also on hand.  Woe was me!

Courtesy Orono

Chatri took pity on me and invited me for drinks once I finally arrived in Tokyo - at 10:30pm.  I made my way to the swank top-floor bar of the Peninsula Hotel in Ginza, only to find him camped out like a boss in the adjacent restaurant (which was closed and vacant) along with two of his coaches from Evolve, Orono and Namsaknoi, and Matt Hume.  If Chatri wants a table, Chatri gets a table.  In reality though, I suppose the bar was full and the staff were accommodating enough to provide for us.  It was a beautiful setting, with 180 degree views of Ginza and surrounding Tokyo, and the interior was softly lit with glittering accents mirroring the city lights outside.  Here's the table we sat at: