Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Japanese fighters prime for Octagon impact in April



Japanese competitors will continue to grace the Octagon this coming April. As previously reported, a bout between former Shooto world champion Caol Uno and Joe Stevenson is currently in the negotiation stages, and is a possibility for either the UFC Fight Night card on April 5 or the April 7 UFC pay-per-view event in Houston, Texas. Also, three other Japanese competitors are scheduled to compete in the UFC this coming April.

Previously slated to face Spencer Fisher in Oct., Naoyuki Kotani is now scheduled to make his UFC debut against top-flight undefeated Brazilian prospect Thiago Tavares. Meanwhile, veteran Dokonjonosuke Mishima, looking to atone for his disappointing Octagon debut against Joe Stevenson, has agreed in principle to face UFC lightweight title challenger Kenny Florian. Also, making an unsuccessful UFC debut was Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Kuniyoshi Hironaka, who has agreed to face Canadian Jeff Joslin.

All three bouts are currently scheduled for April 5. However, since the matches have not yet been officially signed, one or more of the bouts may yet be shifted to the April 7 card in Houston.

"K-Taro" Keita Nakamura, who came out on the losing end of a hotly contested decision against Minnesotan Brock Larson this past Dec., is also a possibility for an April bout in the Octagon. Nakamura was the leading candidate to face Shooto world champion Shinya Aoki in Feb., however Nakamura has remained dedicated to fighting in the UFC at the present time.

"K-Taro" has vigorously weight trained in an effort to get bigger and stronger to compete amongst the very physically dominant class of fighters in the UFC's 170-pound division.

Source: www.sherdog.com

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