【Top5】Greatest Japanese Fighters in MMA history

Find out he is related to a famous family
Embrace hip hop culture
Divorce and become a heartthrob
Challenge K-1
Take a bad boy persona
Fight names comparable to a Gracie, Uno, Sudo, and Miyata instead of unknown guys

+1

Although the family connections made KID what he subsequently became.

For Kyoji, be fashionable, hip and cool. Get popular for stuff other than fighting.
Get better japanese management? There was a docu called Kickfighters which featured a lot of Masato's manager, how he came up with the "lone wolf" gimmick Masato had for awhile. Japan loves that sort of shit. It doesn't have to be a wholesale copy, but honestly he needs to be more interesting. Kinda like what Rena is trying to do and what Tenshin has sort of done. Japan is filled with tons of talented MMA fighters/kickboxers who are boring af.

Ironically most of them would form the majority of this list.
 
+1
Japan is filled with tons of talented MMA fighters/kickboxers who are boring af.

Ironically most of them would form the majority of this list.
I don't speak Japanese, but I did feel like he was more charismatic than usual this weekend. He wasn't crazy or yelling like what might be ideal, but I did find that he was lively and comfortable speaking to the audience, and came off as the type of guy who smiles in the face of danger.

Again I don't speak Japanese, but he didn't appear "boring af" to me. Still your points are noted.
 
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I don't speak Japanese, but I did feel like he was more charismatic than usual this weekend. He wasn't crazy or yelling like what might be ideal, but I did find that he was lively and comfortable speaking to the audience, and came off as the type of guy who smiles in the face of danger.

Again I don't speak Japanese, but he didn't appear "boring af" to me. Still your points are noted.

Maybe boring a bit too strong, but you don't really need to speak Japanese to get the appeal.

For these fighter/athelete types, image is really the most important thing and also why handsome/hot but less successful fighters get more attention/fame than the less physically appealing but more talented ones. A good e.g. is Megumi Fujii - excellent fighter but Pride/K1 wouldn't touch her whereas Shinju Auclair gets her 2nd or 3rd pro fight on NYE. Same thing with Rena and why she was more heavily marketed than say Kanna Asakura. It's very similar to the US in that regard I suppose.

Kyoji... well there's not much to say about him other than he's a great in the ring. But even in 2017 a Naoya Ogawa return fight would probably do better business than even Kyoji/Tenshin.
 
Maybe boring a bit too strong, but you don't really need to speak Japanese to get the appeal.

For these fighter/athelete types, image is really the most important thing and also why handsome/hot but less successful fighters get more attention/fame than the less physically appealing but more talented ones. A good e.g. is Megumi Fujii - excellent fighter but Pride/K1 wouldn't touch her whereas Shinju Auclair gets her 2nd or 3rd pro fight on NYE. Same thing with Rena and why she was more heavily marketed than say Kanna Asakura. It's very similar to the US in that regard I suppose.

Kyoji... well there's not much to say about him other than he's a great in the ring. But even in 2017 a Naoya Ogawa return fight would probably do better business than even Kyoji/Tenshin.
Interesting well maybe you're right. I was still kind of hoping that this was Kyoji's coming out party and that he came out of it as a new star.

Like to clarify, I didn't think anyone would expect him to draw big on NYE, nor did I think it would be fair to judge his star power based on its ratings. In my mind this was the weekend that put him on the map and finally got him noticed, and thus it's only future events that would show whether the gamble paid off or not - but judging on what you're telling me it doesn't sound like it did.
 
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you asking for top 5 but i know that Sakuraba and Sudo would be on that list the other 3 are debatable depending on what qualities you are looking for.
 
My favs:
Sakuraba
Gomi
Yoshida
Kid
Genki Sudo

By importance:
Sakuraba
Yoshida
Funaki
Ogawa
Hawtness

(Takada is #1 if that counts, which it shouldn't)
 
Not in Order...

Mach Sakurai
Saku
Rumina Sato
Caol Uno
Funaki

Yuki Nakai should also be mentioned
 
By importance:
Sakuraba
Yoshida
Funaki
Ogawa
Hawtness

(Takada is #1 if that counts, which it shouldn't)

I really like your both lists. Yoshida most definately belongs on both. And glad you made that importance list too.
I also considered adding Takada on my list, because he has made big impact on Japanese mma. But I was afraid I would get kicked out of forum for trolling since I'm only white belt.
On my importance list there would be following: Sakuraba, Yoshida, Takada, Funaki, Gomi, Minowa, Fujita, Tamura, TK.
 
I really like your both lists. Yoshida most definately belongs on both. And glad you made that importance list too.
I also considered adding Takada on my list, because he has made big impact on Japanese mma. But I was afraid I would get kicked out of forum for trolling since I'm only white belt.
On my importance list there would be following: Sakuraba, Yoshida, Takada, Funaki, Gomi, Minowa, Fujita, Tamura, TK.

Minowa, Fujita, TK, and Tamura are valid too. I forgot about Fujita to be honest.

If we want to be super technical, I think Inoki might be up there too. 1st huge mma ever (kinda) and then his NYE events.
 
I really like your both lists. Yoshida most definately belongs on both. And glad you made that importance list too.
I also considered adding Takada on my list, because he has made big impact on Japanese mma. But I was afraid I would get kicked out of forum for trolling since I'm only white belt.
On my importance list there would be following: Sakuraba, Yoshida, Takada, Funaki, Gomi, Minowa, Fujita, Tamura, TK.
TK!...how could i forgot him!

Takada was huuge in Japan...but most of his fights were all works...i think he also grabbed deep into Saku's pocket...
Karma catched up to him at Pride23...when he lost his worked match, he was supposed to win, by KO against Tamura, in his retirement fight...lol...getting kicked deep into the nuts...needed minutes to recover...fight continues...he rans over to Tamura like a bull and gets knocked the fuck out by a single shot...

Edit:
BUT nobody can get me more hyped up to a JMMA Event than Takada, when he is playing the drums allmost naked!
It is just freaking awesome
 
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Based on accomplishment during his entire career

Okami, uno, kikuta, gono, nakamura


Based on marketability at peak

Sato, sakuraba, gomi, takada, satake
 
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