Bushido 8: Gomi Goes the Distance
Gomi goes the distance
Stephen Martinez Jul 17, 2005
NAGOYA, Japan, July 17 — PRIDE Bushido golden boy Takanori Gomi fought two different
battles Sunday … the first against Cage Rage lightweight champion
Jean Silva, the second the
vicious heat of Nagoya.
Gomi stepped far from his usual knockout technique and instead decided to go back to his old SHOOTO roots — wrestling and ground-and-pound. Gomi needed top position, some submissions, and his always-granite chin to complete two tough rounds against unorthodox Chute Boxe fighter, “The Capoeira Master,” Jean Silva.
Gomi’s fatigue started to show in the middle of the fight but
despite that he offered Silva a lot of trouble, especially on the
ground by guard passing, taking Silva’s back and almost locking up
a Kimura and armbar.
On top Gomi punched him from every possible position but Silva somehow kept coming back for more. All this amounted to Gomi being pushed for the first time since he joined PRIDE and his first decision win in PRIDE.
The biggest surprise of the night came with a one-two combo from the hands of the “New York Bad Ass” Phil Baroni. His opponent Ryo Chonan started with his usual low kick and short punches but Baroni kept his composure, scoring on the inside with punches.
Between these exchanges, Chonan landed a low kick that was quickly answered by a devastating combo that sent him down to the canvas. Baroni followed with ground punches but referee Toyonaga jumped to stop the American from inflicting more damage. With this knockout victory Baroni raises his PRIDE record to 2-0, with back-to-back KOs over the two top middleweights in Bushido.
Now on top of his PRIDE division, Baroni is probably the fighter to beat in the upcoming 83-kg tournament.
Ikuhisa Minowa probably didn’t make a lot of sense with the comments he made in recent interviews with the press. But what he lacks on common sense is not really important when compared to his huge heart every time he steps inside the ring.
Coming off a devastating knockout loss against Baroni, the Japanese fans were wondering what was next for Minowa. DSE quickly answered this by bringing in UFC veteran Kimo Leopoldo for an open-weight match. After pumping up the crowd with his unique attitude Minowa went forward to meet Kimo at the bell. But the Hawaiian quickly shot a double-leg, landing inside Minowa’s guard.
After some trouble with the heavy Kimo on top, Minowa did a nice reverse from half-guard and quickly jumped into an Achilles lock. Kimo started rolling around but Minowa kept twisting his leg and left no other option but to tap out. Minowa got the biggest reaction from the crowd tonight when in unison the entire Nagoya Rainbow Hall yelled in joy, “Minowa! Minowa! Minowa!”
The “Crusher” Tatsuya Kawajiri got off to a slow start against Brazilian Top Team fighter Luiz “Buscape” Firmino. The first couple of minutes promised a really dull fight, with Buscape controlling Kawajiri from behind. Buscape worked for takedowns and suplexes, but Kawajiri stood after every takedown.
The fight got stock in the battle of positions. Finally after some struggle Kawajiri countered Buscape’s strategy to take his back by powering takedowns of his own and working from the top with ground-and-pound, soccer kicks and flying stomps.
To his credit, Buscape managed to score some punches and front kicks that rocked the SHOOTO champion’s face. With a few minutes left in the second round, Kawajiri suddenly recharged his batteries and started mauling Firmino, passing his guard and pounding his face. The fight closed with Kawajiri brutally stomping the Brazilian’s face but the bell rang and the fight went to the scorecards.
Kawajiri did more than enough on top position to get good points with judges that awarded him the unanimous decision. After the fight, Kawajiri apologized to the audience for his poor performance, which he blamed on the heat in Japan. Also he mentioned that he over-trained for this fight.
Gomi stepped far from his usual knockout technique and instead decided to go back to his old SHOOTO roots — wrestling and ground-and-pound. Gomi needed top position, some submissions, and his always-granite chin to complete two tough rounds against unorthodox Chute Boxe fighter, “The Capoeira Master,” Jean Silva.
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On top Gomi punched him from every possible position but Silva somehow kept coming back for more. All this amounted to Gomi being pushed for the first time since he joined PRIDE and his first decision win in PRIDE.
Gomi’s demeanor was one of relief after going the distance for the
first time in almost two years. “Today my opponent fought with
nothing to lose and I gave him everything I could,” Gomi said after
the fight, “but Silva kept coming back for more. His attitude
reminded me where I was early in my career. I learned where I was
when I had started fighting in SHOOTO with no worries about win or
lost record.”
The biggest surprise of the night came with a one-two combo from the hands of the “New York Bad Ass” Phil Baroni. His opponent Ryo Chonan started with his usual low kick and short punches but Baroni kept his composure, scoring on the inside with punches.
Between these exchanges, Chonan landed a low kick that was quickly answered by a devastating combo that sent him down to the canvas. Baroni followed with ground punches but referee Toyonaga jumped to stop the American from inflicting more damage. With this knockout victory Baroni raises his PRIDE record to 2-0, with back-to-back KOs over the two top middleweights in Bushido.
Now on top of his PRIDE division, Baroni is probably the fighter to beat in the upcoming 83-kg tournament.
Ikuhisa Minowa probably didn’t make a lot of sense with the comments he made in recent interviews with the press. But what he lacks on common sense is not really important when compared to his huge heart every time he steps inside the ring.
Coming off a devastating knockout loss against Baroni, the Japanese fans were wondering what was next for Minowa. DSE quickly answered this by bringing in UFC veteran Kimo Leopoldo for an open-weight match. After pumping up the crowd with his unique attitude Minowa went forward to meet Kimo at the bell. But the Hawaiian quickly shot a double-leg, landing inside Minowa’s guard.
After some trouble with the heavy Kimo on top, Minowa did a nice reverse from half-guard and quickly jumped into an Achilles lock. Kimo started rolling around but Minowa kept twisting his leg and left no other option but to tap out. Minowa got the biggest reaction from the crowd tonight when in unison the entire Nagoya Rainbow Hall yelled in joy, “Minowa! Minowa! Minowa!”
The “Crusher” Tatsuya Kawajiri got off to a slow start against Brazilian Top Team fighter Luiz “Buscape” Firmino. The first couple of minutes promised a really dull fight, with Buscape controlling Kawajiri from behind. Buscape worked for takedowns and suplexes, but Kawajiri stood after every takedown.
The fight got stock in the battle of positions. Finally after some struggle Kawajiri countered Buscape’s strategy to take his back by powering takedowns of his own and working from the top with ground-and-pound, soccer kicks and flying stomps.
To his credit, Buscape managed to score some punches and front kicks that rocked the SHOOTO champion’s face. With a few minutes left in the second round, Kawajiri suddenly recharged his batteries and started mauling Firmino, passing his guard and pounding his face. The fight closed with Kawajiri brutally stomping the Brazilian’s face but the bell rang and the fight went to the scorecards.
Kawajiri did more than enough on top position to get good points with judges that awarded him the unanimous decision. After the fight, Kawajiri apologized to the audience for his poor performance, which he blamed on the heat in Japan. Also he mentioned that he over-trained for this fight.
