How do you rate Kazushi Sakuraba?

Needs more tattoos and 80 IQ trash talk. Dana would cut him.
 
"In fact, professional wrestling is strong."

Also technically he is a UFC champion.
 
A picture that will forever be remembered, and shows that this man would have died fighting in front of his people.

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As others have said. He's a legend and had crazy heart.

To his own detriment he fought guys that were WAY bigger than him. He took a lot of punishment. If he fought today against guys his size I have to think he'd be a contender in the MW division (possibly WW but most Japanese guys don't like to or didn't cut much weight I don't believe).
 
He beat Vitor in 1999 and tapped Rampage in 2001. He was undeniably at the pinnacle of the sport.
Rampage was green as hell in 2001. He pretty much had only fought cans up to that point and had no jiu jitsu.
 
Rampage was green as hell in 2001. He pretty much had only fought cans up to that point and had no jiu jitsu.
Also I believe he took that fight on short notice as well. Still you can't hate on Sakuraba for defeated Rampage. An argument could be made that Rampage fought a good fight & gassed out. The only questionable fight I have for Sakuraba is the one vs Vitor Belfort.
 
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Rampage was green as hell in 2001. He pretty much had only fought cans up to that point and had no jiu jitsu.
He didn't look like he had no jiujitsu in that fight. It was a back and forth war, with Rampage slamming his way out of multiple triangles and armbars, before ultimately giving up his back in a scramble.
 
He was a Alcoholic (most Japanese are) and an average fighter.
 
He was a Alcoholic (most Japanese are) and an average fighter.

Sakuraba was a Smoker, an Alchoholic and Onahole user..

I met him backstage in PRIDE and he told me all this, he also said that PRIDE were fixing fights
 
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Legendary but as with all legends, has been surpassed technically by the fighters of today. Hindsight is 20/20, but Saku isn't the guy whose techniques you should be copying in 2020.
people should probably be copying his kimura prowess. There are a lot of opportunities to use them if people were as good as them as Saku.
 
Fan's favourite! Ultimate entertainer/showman. Missed his fight entrances
 
Legendary but as with all legends, has been surpassed technically by the fighters of today. Hindsight is 20/20, but Saku isn't the guy whose techniques you should be copying in 2020.
Fighters like SAKU G. or Tamura had a specific skill set tailored to a specific Fight Configuration & Scorin´System.
 
Haters have arrived. Great. I always want to hear what the TUF noobs think about the pioneers.
 
best Japanese fighter ever... maybe he'd have a good chance at Bellator, in UFC I doubt he can defeat some serious names like GSP...
 
best Japanese fighter ever... maybe he'd have a good chance at Bellator, in UFC I doubt he can defeat some serious names like GSP...
BS

GSP would never win against roided Vitor, Randleman, Rampage...He was stopped by a LW manlet

Saku would smash GSP
 
A fighter of his era that was able to put a multitude of skills together in order to be one of the more complete fighters. He had an absolute warrior's spirit, even if he didn't have the soul of an athlete. He was exactly as gracious in victory as defeat, and had no business being competitive with the people he was.

He showed the whole world that the Gracie mystique was an illusion, and that excellent grappling could be learned elsewhere. He also smoked like a chimney which I think is remarkable.
 
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