“Wow, it is a fairly skilled opponent.” That was how Taisei Sakuraba, son of legendary Japanese fighter Kazushi Sakuraba, reacted when RIZIN booked his debut combat for Dec. 31 in opposition to Yusuke Tachi, a veteran of 41 MMA bouts.
Wanting again at his father’s profession, all of it is sensible.
“Saku Jr.” grew up competing in judo and watching his father shine within the PRIDE ring. He entered the mat for grappling contests in more moderen years earlier than asserting his transition to combined martial arts however wasn’t anticipating to face such an skilled foe proper off the bat.
Sakuraba, now 55, has confronted the who’s who of the game as one of many stars of PRIDE in Japan, sharing the ring with a lot heavier opponents like Wanderlei Silva, Mirko Cro Cop, “Rampage” Jackson, Igor Vovchanchyn and Vitor Belfort. For his son, it’s a matter of future to go down that very same street. Not a lot when it comes to dimension, as each Sakuraba and Yachi are lightweights, however the hole experience-wise is simply monumental.
“I used to be considering perhaps it was an excessive amount of of a shortcut in a approach,” Sakuraba instructed MMA Preventing by way of a translator. “However as soon as it was confirmed, I type of thought of it I simply type of got here to my sense and mentioned, hey, I received to do it. You know the way there are specific elements with a purpose to turn out to be a star, and a kind of elements are successful fights that individuals suppose that you simply’re going to lose.”
Yachi holds a document of 27-14 in MMA after successful 4 of his previous 5. He’s a former Shooto and PXC featherweight champion and has challenged Roberto Satoshi for the RIZIN light-weight throne in 2021.
“For my debut combat, I believe it’s going to be undoubtedly a problem for me,” Sakuraba mentioned of Yachi, “however I believe if I can beat this opponent if I come out as a winner after this combat, persons are going to essentially suppose totally different about me. It’s undoubtedly going to place my title on the map. So in that sense, I’m very excited to see how a lot I can do. And as soon as I beat my opponent, I’m very excited to see how everybody’s gonna react.
“Saku Jr. mentioned that my father made his title preventing worldwide fighters, going in opposition to greater opponents, so I believe I wish to tackle that legacy. It is going to be particular to problem himself in opposition to ‘greater and stronger worldwide opponents,’ so Yachi is a wonderful solution to get issues began at RIZIN Decade.
“I come from a aggressive judo background, and in judo, outcomes matter. You win or lose, it’s a giant distinction,” Sakuraba mentioned. “Particularly should you wanna make it to the Olympics, all that stuff, it’s important to win, and it’s important to earn your factors with a purpose to make it to the Olympics. I used to be going by way of a really aggressive facet, however with regards to preventing, I believe it’s a bit totally different.”
“Clearly, outcomes do matter, nevertheless it’s the way you carry out and the way you combat,” he continued. “There’s a giant facet of that in preventing. There’s a giant which means to that. Going in opposition to challenges, going in opposition to the percentages, going into the ring because the underdog, meaning loads. There’s loads of drama. There’s much more to inform in the course of the combat with fights like that. I believe in preventing, it’s crucial to to combat to encourage individuals, to maneuver individuals’s feelings, that’s one factor that’s required as an expert fighter.
“As soon as the Yachi combat was confirmed, I assumed that Yachi can be a significantly better opponent than no person that has the identical quantity of expertise that I do. It’s simply a direct problem for me; I’m getting into because the underdog, and every part is ready. The stage is ready for me to encourage, go in there, and encourage the followers. I believe that’s one factor {that a} fighter is required to do, to maneuver individuals’s feelings and encourage individuals.”
Yachi scored greater than half his RIZIN wins through stoppage, together with a submission over PRIDE and UFC legend Takanori Gomi and knockouts in opposition to veterans Satoru Kitaoka and Daron Cruickshank. Ultimately, nevertheless, Sakuraba believes that being inexperienced might assist him on Dec. 31.
“I believe skilled fighters, veterans, they’ve a solution to combat. They’ve their strategies all arrange,” Sakuraba mentioned. “However for me, I believe the factor that he’s most likely not gonna count on is my grittiness. I don’t have a technique. I don’t have my approach of preventing. I’ve no alternative however to go in there and do my best possible, the way in which I can. I don’t care the way it appears, I’m simply going to go in there and do my finest. My grittiness, my willingness to not quit and simply proceed to combat and attempt to present myself, is what’s most likely going to shock him, that he’s most likely not used to at this stage of his profession. The grittiness of somebody like me who’s coming into the game.”
Trending Merchandise
