Tito Ortiz Vs Sakuraba

OP says PRIDE rules? So they're in a ring with no elbows allowed on the ground?

I'll take Saku by sub. Yes, Tito had good sub defense, but there would be too many sub opportunities for Saku in PRIDE rules. Dude submitted Renzo Gracie, for crying out loud.
 
Realistically if Saku fought in this era he would most likely fight at WW.

Prime Tito would be a lot bigger and stronger than Saku, good sub defense and good wrestling. He would beat Saku IMO, style wise Saku is a great match up for him, smaller guy he can throw around that can't KO him.
 
I just watched Arona vs Saku the other day and the one fellow is right, Saku was kind of beat up at that point but he still gave Arona a tough fight. Caught him in near finishing hold a couple of times. A prime Sak vs a prime Tito? Tough call but I have to pick Sak because he wasn't just a great wrestler, he was a great finisher. Too slippery for Tito to hold down. GNP wouldn't work against a Prime Saku. He had to be hurt standing and in his prime, that was even tough. I spent a couple of hours watching his old fight on Youtube the other day and came away really impressed.
 
I'd go with Sakuraba via submission. At that time, Tito hadn't fought and beat anyone special except for Guy Mezger and his Lay N' Pray win over Wand. Sakuraba was in his prime in 2000.
 
Kumason said:
"His only real loss in years was to Igor Vovchanchyn on the same night"


you didn't watch that fight did you?Sure it was a loss but after he didn't get the decision if I remember correctly he deserved he called it a day kind of like Guy Mezger (or should I say Ken Shamrock) did vs him.


As far as the fight itself in pride it would be a toss up i'd lean Saku I think he'd get the favorable decision =/ in the UFC at that time I would go Tito.




That was 5 yrs later Sakuraba had already gone drastically downhill and the game had evolved.
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His only loss since Kimo Lepoldo in his first fight, he was understandably too exhausted to go into overtime but its still a loss and with no real controversy I don't see how it isn't legitimate. Just cause the odds are stacked that high against you doesn't mean a loss shouldn't count.
 
Tito would duck Saku like everyone else who was a legitimate threat at the time.
 
Saku was just the better fighter however Tito could beat him under the unified rules.
 
Tito would manhandle him untill he got tired and then Saku would sub him whilst looking like something out of a horror movie!
 
Sakurabas Ear said:
Back in the year 2000 lets say instead of fighting Yuki Kondo in December Tito fought Saku.

Ruleset: PRIDE

Rounds
1st : 10:00
2nd: 5:00
3rd: 5:00

Who takes it?


141_l.jpg


Kazushi Sakuraba

Record:11-2-1
Height: 6'0
Weight: 176-183lb's

Saku would've been coming off of a huge string of wins and what should've been a loss to Guy Mezger but we all know how that turned out. His only real loss in years was to Igor Vovchanchyn on the same night as his brutal fight with Royce Gracie which lasted like 90 minutes if I'm not wrong, maybe more? He still gave Igor a good fight mind you and had him in trouble with an armbar.


tito.jpg


Tito Ortiz

Record: 5-2
Height: 6'3
Weight: 199lb's

At the time Tito would've just beaten Wanderlei Silva to become champion after Frank Shammrock left the building, Tito wasn't as experienced as Saku obviously but was quite a bit bigger and just beat the man who would send Saku into a bad spiral. They share a common opponent in Guy Mezger and while neither man beat him without controversy, Tito beat him more convincingly and that impresses me more than Sakus bizarre win over Mezger despite The Hunntington Beach Bad Boy's previous history with Mezger.




I'm thinking that Tito has the edge due to his size and GNP, Saku obviously has the more dangerous submission game and striking is a toss up.



I've got Tito via UD/SD.
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Sakuraba is not 6". He may be listed that tall but I've met the man several times and he's shorter than me and I am 6". He's 5' 10" at best and Tito would've killed him. Also Sakuraba would enter the ring at 176 - 185 lbs where as Tito would have come in at 215 - 220 lbs. He would have been just too big.
 
Namek said:
Realistically if Saku fought in this era he would most likely fight at WW.

Prime Tito would be a lot bigger and stronger than Saku, good sub defense and good wrestling. He would beat Saku IMO, style wise Saku is a great match up for him, smaller guy he can throw around that can't KO him.
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Sakuraba was small enough to fight at Lightweight or lower.

He was weighing in at 183 with no visible Abs.

What he did at his size was amazing
 
probably Tito via huge size advantage

edit - if it was in PRIDE and Tito had no elbows, Id pick Saku via sub or UD, in UFC Tito via TKO
 
Freddy Mercury said:
Sakuraba is not 6". He may be listed that tall but I've met the man several times and he's shorter than me and I am 6". He's 5' 10" at best and Tito would've killed him. Also Sakuraba would enter the ring at 176 - 185 lbs where as Tito would have come in at 215 - 220 lbs. He would have been just too big.
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Around that time thats what they had him billed as so I used stats from their fights closest to December 2000
 
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He submitted Rampage and Randleman don't forget. The guys that hurt Sak in his prime were lethal strikers, which Tito was not.
 
sad to say, but the guy that saku fought who resembles tito back then the most was...arona...

bad match up for saku.
 
Tito Ortiz, easily. Let's not forget that Tito Ortiz beat Wanderlei right before he started wrecking shop in Pride.
 
crankshaft said:
I'd go with Sakuraba via submission. At that time, Tito hadn't fought and beat anyone special except for Guy Mezger and his Lay N' Pray win over Wand. Sakuraba was in his prime in 2000.
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Tito had been beaten down and tapped to strikes against Frank Shamrock by that stage
 
Medium Nog said:
To be fair, Tito would have mauled that Rampage and finished him quickly.
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I don't think Tito would EVER maul Rampage and finish him quickly, at that stage he could've won a comfortable decision over him though.
 
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