HHJ
04-25-2010, 09:43 PM
http://www.headkicklegend.com/2010/4/25/1443612/hidehiko-yoshidas-astra-farewell
http://cdn1.sbnation.com/entry_photo_images/365206/20100426001_large.jpg
Unlike how I pointed out before, where many people in the press and on the internet were simply ignoring Yoshida's farewell, the day after in Japan it is front page news. Of course that brings out a whole different range of questions and probabilities. The long short of things is even if the press didn't promote the show, they knew it was a big deal after the fact. Much as the tradition is for a fighter heading into his retirement, Hidehiko Yoshida went out in a tearful manner, being soundly defeated by the much younger Kazuhiro Nakamura. Yoshida actually came into the fight heavier than he had fought before, as throughout most of his career he stuck around the 225 range, but this time came in pushing 250 and looking like he wasn't exactly in the greatest shape.
The fight resembled the Satoshi Ishii bout, meaning that Yoshida chose to stand up most of the fight, with minimal judo grips or even attempts at throws, although Yoshida chose to go out in style with his Judo gi. I'm sure the question will eventually be asked of what this does for Nakamura's career, and the short answer is nothing. Defeating Yoshida does not make careers, as Yoshida retires at a rather unimpressive 9-8, with losses to fighters like James Thompson (whose ear was exploded on CBS by Kimbo) and Sanae Kikuta who hasn't fought since. If anything, this can be a turning point for Nakamura who has not seen a win since Sengoku 6 back in November of 2008, hopefully he can continue to win after this bout.
Micah Miller's second advance on Japan proved to be yet another failure, as probably the man with the biggest future in this whole ASTRA event, Michihiro Omigawa took the fight to him and was able to outwork him for three rounds. The highlight as always, is his colorful post-fight speech, where he once again called himself a bastard for not finishing his opponent and being undeserving of fans. Enson Inoue made his return to the ring after a six year absence to honor Yoshida and easily dispatched New Zealand kickboxer Antz Nansen in the first round with an armbar.
Ryo Chonan's night didn't end as well for him, sadly, as Korean Jung Hwan Cha was able to knock him out in the second rounds. Cha mentioned that he was a big fan of watching Chonan fight in PRIDE and has done some training with the Yoshida Dojo, it was a honor to fight on the card and shocking to be able to fight and defeat Ryo Chonan.
http://cdn1.sbnation.com/entry_photo_images/365206/20100426001_large.jpg
Unlike how I pointed out before, where many people in the press and on the internet were simply ignoring Yoshida's farewell, the day after in Japan it is front page news. Of course that brings out a whole different range of questions and probabilities. The long short of things is even if the press didn't promote the show, they knew it was a big deal after the fact. Much as the tradition is for a fighter heading into his retirement, Hidehiko Yoshida went out in a tearful manner, being soundly defeated by the much younger Kazuhiro Nakamura. Yoshida actually came into the fight heavier than he had fought before, as throughout most of his career he stuck around the 225 range, but this time came in pushing 250 and looking like he wasn't exactly in the greatest shape.
The fight resembled the Satoshi Ishii bout, meaning that Yoshida chose to stand up most of the fight, with minimal judo grips or even attempts at throws, although Yoshida chose to go out in style with his Judo gi. I'm sure the question will eventually be asked of what this does for Nakamura's career, and the short answer is nothing. Defeating Yoshida does not make careers, as Yoshida retires at a rather unimpressive 9-8, with losses to fighters like James Thompson (whose ear was exploded on CBS by Kimbo) and Sanae Kikuta who hasn't fought since. If anything, this can be a turning point for Nakamura who has not seen a win since Sengoku 6 back in November of 2008, hopefully he can continue to win after this bout.
Micah Miller's second advance on Japan proved to be yet another failure, as probably the man with the biggest future in this whole ASTRA event, Michihiro Omigawa took the fight to him and was able to outwork him for three rounds. The highlight as always, is his colorful post-fight speech, where he once again called himself a bastard for not finishing his opponent and being undeserving of fans. Enson Inoue made his return to the ring after a six year absence to honor Yoshida and easily dispatched New Zealand kickboxer Antz Nansen in the first round with an armbar.
Ryo Chonan's night didn't end as well for him, sadly, as Korean Jung Hwan Cha was able to knock him out in the second rounds. Cha mentioned that he was a big fan of watching Chonan fight in PRIDE and has done some training with the Yoshida Dojo, it was a honor to fight on the card and shocking to be able to fight and defeat Ryo Chonan.