Yamamoto vs. Uyenoyama

This is the official discussion thread for Yamamoto vs. Uyenoyama. Let's see what you've got.

when is Kid's nickname going to be changed to "Man"?

Officially punching my ticket to the OCCUYAMAMOTO convention.

Let's go Yamamoto first round finish get me some more points in the fantasy league!!

I usually don't believe in conspiracy theories but people are saying that this is a tune up/build up fight for Yamamoto. UFC is planning a show in Japan in February and will probably need many recognizable names.

Yamamoto was most likely being very over-hyped when he first entered the UFC vs Mighty Mouse and I agreed by picking Johnson. Since then, 2 of his scheduled bouts were cancelled vs Cariaso and Page (injury). He's still a decent fighter and has KO power. I believe he gets the job done this time.

My call here is Kid by 1st round TKO. He finishes the fight, no injury and gets booked in Japan next.

The gimmest gimme fight of all time. Kid SHOULD dominate.

Knockout of the Night.

Kid is done.

There's a reason why Kid is the heavy favorite.  I want to see him fight at UFC Japan so bad!!  If he wins this fight, which he should, he should fight Brad Pickett.

Looking forward to seeing Kid in the octogon again.

Not sure if they are throwing him a bone here or what... but i think he gets it done finally.

I had Uyenoyama by Submission in round 2, close....has anybody seen this guys previous fights?  His jiu jitsu definatley defines him but his stand up isn't terrible either.

Kid's done, he doesn't really deserve to fight on the Japan card.

yeah but if w want to have winning fighters on the card, then there won't be any japanese fighters on the card-Oh boo-hoo- you know it is true

Hioki and Omigawa are coming off wins over good people. Omigawa should be on a 2 fight winning streak. Riki ***uda is coming off a robbery where he looked very good. Takeya Mizugaki just wrecked Cole Escovedo.  Yushin Okami is the number 3 middleweight in the world. Gomi and Kid were both disappointing but they're both 5 years removed from their primes. 

This whole "Japanese guys can't win in the US" is tired. The good guys from the japanese scene (like Jorge Rivera) get thrown in with the wolves, so they lose, then they pick up guys like Yamamoto and Gomi way too late. Hioki, Omigawa, ***uda, Mizugaki and Okami are all still relevant. 

not Japanese by DYK is a solid WW..Brian Stann is a top fighter out of Japan as well

So are we going to do this? Brian Stann- not Japanese.
Yamamoto and Gomi are not falling short because they are "past their prime" that is a tired excuse.
I have no criticism of Hioki actually. He is probably the best BW in the world and i can't wait for him to fight Cruz. Notwithstanding, it is sad that their only elite fighter is at 135 pounds.
***uda-By no means elite. Could not convincingly beat Nick Ring even if he was robbed.
mizugaki and omigawa are both 2-2 in the UFC if i'm not mistaken. That is not bad, but by no means are they fighters i want to see in a main card. I mean, Bruce Leroy can beat Cole Escovedo too, should we make him a co-main event?
Okami is a legitimate contender at 185, i will admit that.
Bottom line is Brazil has more to offer for a native card. Before you thumbs me down, look at the brazil card and look at the Japan card. Tell me  "no"

 

 

Obviously Brazil is more successful in MMA, they are the second most successful country in MMA. 

I'm not saying ***uda is going to be champion, but he looked good against Ring, and he clearly won that fight. 

You don't think Gomi and Kid are past their primes? That's ridiculous. Before he came to the UFC Gomi was 2-2 in his last 4, losses to Kitaoka and some guy named Sergey Golyaev. His wins were against Tony Hervey (10-12) and Takashi Nakakura. Kid was undefeated, until getting stricken with injuries. When he came back he lost to Joe Warren, and Kanehara (17-10) then got signed after beating Federico Lopez (5-5). Of course, that isn't because he's past his prime, this is the same Kid that knocked out Genki Sudo, Bibiano Fernandes, Rani Yahya, and Miyata in 4 seconds, and has wins over a bunch of other big names like Jeff Curran and Caol Uno, right? Obviously neither of those two are half as good as they ever were.

Mizugaki is a solid bantamweight. I never said he should be in the co main event, that is a ridiculous jump to a conclusion. Omigawa is 1-2 since returning to the UFC at FW. Anyone who watched the Elkins fight (solid 145er, just decisively beat Zhang) could tell you that was a terrible robbery. Jason Young was a big win over a solid prospect, and he beat him more dominantly than Poirier did. He deserves a main card spot. 

If they want to put Kid on the card, he should be buried in the prelims. Omigawa and Hioki deserve main card spots along with some Pride guys like Rampage, then the main event (Bendo/Edgar) and Lauzon/Pettis. 

The argument i tried to make is that the Japanese guys have a worse rep than they deserve. Jorge Santiago was doing really well on the Japanese scene, but got fed to the wolves in the UFC (Brian Stann being a terrible match up and Demian Maia being an amazing fighter) then cut on two losses. Marlon Sandro is getting criticized for not destroying everyone, but he got to the final fight of a big tournament, then got caught after decisively winning against a guy that a lot of people are calling top 5, but everyone is saying that he, like other Japanese fighters, was never good. 

It's ridiculous. 

It's not that the japanese fighters arent good... It's just none of them are great.

Boom! Thiago hits another homerun.

I still don't understand what your point is @minotauro.

At 33 years of Age Gomi can still compete, the problem is now he has to do so against the likes of Ken Florian, Clay Guida, Nate Diaz, and oter octagon warriors who are miles better than guys like Jeff Curran and Caol Uno, the fighters who you are impressed with Yamamoto for beating. Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of kid yamamoto, but I really must take exception to the assertion that Gomi and Yamamoto are "past their prime". I think it is evident that by and large an opponent in the UFC is going to be a more difficult adversary than anyone you will encounter elsewhere.

* Edited at 11.17.2011, 8:21 AM ET *