Kazushi Sakuraba (born July 14, 1968 in Akita Prefecture) is a Japanese professional Mixed martial arts fighter. He has experienced an accomplished career in the PRIDE Fighting Championships.

Biography

Early Years
The could have-out amateur grappler within primary school & the collegial champion, he originally debuted as a American-style professional wrestler in 1993 in UWF International, and processed raid New Japan Pro Wrestling in 1996 as the two promotions were feuding. Once UWFI folded, he joined its replacement, Kingdom, but fallowing it closed fallowing exclusively a year, he joined Nobuhiko Takada, Naoki Sano, and others within creating the horse barn known as Takada Dojo whose members would dedicate themselves exclusively to mixed martial arts combat.

Sakuraba mass produced his Mixed martial arts debut in 1997 with a submission triumph all over Marcus Silveira at UFC Japan, overcoming a weight deficit in the match to win by arm-bar submission.

PRIDE Fighting Championships

Around 1998, Sakuraba began his career in the PRIDE Fighting Championships, defeating Vernon White with an armbar at the PRIDE Two event. For even many years, his ingenious & entertaining fighting style proved to become equally effectual; around spite of a bodyweight that fluctuated in the moo 180 pounds, Sakuraba remained at or touching the top of the 205 pound weak heavyweight section higher until his loss to Wanderlei Silva in March of 2001. Up to now, Sakuraba hwhen defeated such notable weak heavyweights as Vitor Belfort, Ebeneezer Fontes Braga, Kevin Randleman and Quinton Jackson, placing Sakuraba amongst a virtually all successful 185-pounders to compete at the 205 pound class.

Sakuraba has too been known for his typically-humourus & weak-light-hearted demanor. This may be evidenced around his ring entrances, which develop featured all about from either the disguised Sakuraba accompanied to the ring by identically-costumed lookalikes to Road Warriors-inspired spiked football pads & facepaint, to the donning of the traitorously moustache and red cap for the Super Mario Bros. homage.

The Gracie Rivalry

Sakuraba earned a nickname 'A Gracie Hunter' for his PRIDE victories on top brothers Royler, Royce, Renzo, and Ryan Gracie. These triumph were emblematical: a reverse ude-garami (arm web, an armlock) system that Sakuraba listed to overcome Royler & Renzo was a equivalent technique utilized per easily-known judoka Masahiko Kimura in 1951 to defeat a Gracies' father, Helio Gracie. Moreover, Royler's loss to Sakuraba withwithin 1999 constituted a number 1 kill of a Gracie at Japanese paws in about 5 decades since the bout between Kimura & Gracie. Sakuraba's fight against Royce, a 2nd in a encounter by using the Gracies, lasted Xc proceedings, ending only Royce's corner throw in.

Incidentally, numbers of of the Gracies' wins against Japanese rival in a years before the Royler-Sakuraba contest were on top members of the UWFi stable of which Sakuraba was section, including Naoki Sano, Yoji Anjo and Sakuraba's mentor, Nobuhiko Takada. So, Sakuraba's triumph above a Gracies can be seen when making higher for his mate' losses. Despite a agency competition, Sakuraba has non pubically displayed bad blood against a Gracie personal. Successively, aside from either Royler world health organization at first refused to assume his controversial kill, a Gracies develop systematically congratulated Sakuraba & treated him warmly fallowing a matches.

Recent Years

Though Sakuraba was unconquered across his number 1 9 bouts, recent years use seen an apparent decline within his ability to compete sustaining a elite group of the 205 pound class. Fallowing losing Five of the X matches as the result his number 1 kill by Wanderlei Silva, Sakuraba so suffered a particularly devastating loss against Ricardo Arona at PRIDE's Middleweight Gr& Prix event in June, 2005, when you took which his face became severely swollen and damn due to perennial strikes from either Arona; his corner stopped a fight when a 2nd around. Per se, the bit of fans keep around suggested that Sakuraba either move down to a moo weight class sequentially to remain competitory or even retire from either MMA altogether.

Even so, Sakuraba stated inside August of 2005 that he has there is there are no plans to move down within weight class when he however has areas where he might improve & has no quick plans to retire. In the equivalent year, he began educational videos at Chute Boxe Academy in Brazil, alongside Wanderlei Silva.