Grappling Questions for Noriaki Kiguchi

[TakadaDojoKeith]

Hi, guys. I started a similar thread in the World MMA forum, but wanted to let the diehard grapplers of Sherdog know that 1.) this old school Sherdogger is currently working on a book about the kakutougi boom of the early 2000's here in Japan and 2.) I'm interviewing Noriaki Kiguchi for it next week. For those who don't know, he was a champion wrestler way back in the late 60's and was a coach for MMA guys like Takanori Gomi, Genki Sudo and Rumina Sato. He was also the founder of combat wrestling and is still the honorary chairman of it's governing body. If you've got any questions you'd like me to ask him about grappling (technique, theory, history, etc.), post them and I'll try and include them in the interview. I figure this is a good chance for all the CACC guys to get some answers to their questions about the connection between wrestling and MMA in Japan (paging Dr. @Kforcer ).

 

[EndlessCritic]

Never heard of him, but I'll bite:

Are there any particular positions/techniques that he believes are being underutilized in modern MMA.

 

[Daniel Fox]

Hi, guys. I started a similar thread in the World MMA forum, but wanted to let the diehard grapplers of Sherdog know that 1.) this old school Sherdogger is currently working on a book about the kakutougi boom of the early 2000's here in Japan and 2.) I'm interviewing Noriaki Kiguchi for it next week. For those who don't know, he was a champion wrestler way back in the late 60's and was a coach for MMA guys like Takanori Gomi, Genki Sudo and Rumina Sato. He was also the founder of combat wrestling and is still the honorary chairman of it's governing body. If you've got any questions you'd like me to ask him about grappling (technique, theory, history, etc.), post them and I'll try and include them in the interview. I figure this is a good chance for all the CACC guys to get some answers to their questions about the connection between wrestling and MMA in Japan (paging Dr. @Kforcer ).

I actually remember Masaaki Hatta telling me about this guy. I believe he is a Greco Roman Wrestler, I think he placed 5th in the world. Ask him what style actually had the biggest influence on Japanese Grappling, CACC or Sambo? To me, although I am far from an expert, the Japanese hard style fighters looked more like Sambo guys, rather than Catch guys. I know there was a Sambo guy named Victor Koga who was half Japanese, and half Russian. The Japanese have always been good at Sambo.

 

[TakadaDojoKeith]

Never heard of him, but I'll bite:

Are there any particular positions/techniques that he believes are being underutilized in modern MMA.

Lots of people haven't, but I think they'd find the story of his influence pretty interesting. That's why I wanted to include him in the book. Here's a link that shows him coaching Gomi and Sudo. It's all in Japanese, but gives an idea of his influence.

 

[TakadaDojoKeith]

Gonna bump this once, just in case there are anymore grappling questions for Kiguchi-san.

 

[TheFakeMacoy]

Ask him which one of his pupils (or at least the famous ones) he enjoyed training the most.

 

[Daniel Fox]

In the Early 90's all the way into the 2000's MMA was huge in Japan, and Japan produced some really good fighters (Sakaraba, Rumino Sato, Gomi, Sudo, ETC Just to name a few), it seems like the popularity is not what it used to be, why is that?

 

[ChainFlow]

Gonna bump this once, just in case there are anymore grappling questions for Kiguchi-san.

Could you ask him what he thinks of modern sub-only grappling compared to combat wrestling?

 

[AmericanJiuJitsu]

Ask him what he thinks about the explosion of sub only grappling tourneys/events like EBI and Polaris.

Also ask him if he thinks Catch could ever be as big as BJJ.

 

[Kforcer]

Hi, guys. I started a similar thread in the World MMA forum, but wanted to let the diehard grapplers of Sherdog know that 1.) this old school Sherdogger is currently working on a book about the kakutougi boom of the early 2000's here in Japan and 2.) I'm interviewing Noriaki Kiguchi for it next week. For those who don't know, he was a champion wrestler way back in the late 60's and was a coach for MMA guys like Takanori Gomi, Genki Sudo and Rumina Sato. He was also the founder of combat wrestling and is still the honorary chairman of it's governing body. If you've got any questions you'd like me to ask him about grappling (technique, theory, history, etc.), post them and I'll try and include them in the interview. I figure this is a good chance for all the CACC guys to get some answers to their questions about the connection between wrestling and MMA in Japan (paging Dr. @Kforcer ).

I'd respond to this, but I think you got your fill of me with my Facebook responses to this, lol.