The Chronological History of MMA
Chapter 15: UWF-I Moving On Prelude to the World Chapter 1 10/6/91 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
By Michael Betz & Mike Lorefice 7/25/20

We are now heading into the Shoot-Realms of the Union of Wrestling Force International, and right away we can see what we are up against, as we are immediately treated to a montage of perennially misused Kazuo Yamazaki, and golden boy Nobukiko Takada, gearing up for tonight's main event, as the powers that be are prepared to take us back to a familiar creative wellspring. At least it is a refreshing source, as these two have always had good chemistry with each other, and this should be no different. Of course, they need a hit tonight, as when we last witnessed this group, we had to endure the embarrassingly awful 2 minute squash match where Bob Backlund was quickly dispatched by Takada, after faking an injury, in comically awful fashion.

Looking back at the trajectory of how we got here is interesting, as surely everyone had high hopes for Yamazaki. Here was Sayama's esteemed padawan, and his heir apparent, but his huge push to superstardom was not to be, and this scribe can't help but speculate that this turn of destiny may have been partly to blame due to Sayama leaving on bad terms after the Maeda fiasco, and subsequently exposing the business with his autobiography entitled, "Kayfabe."

We are back in the cozy confines of the Korakuen Hall, and no matter how big or extravagant other arenas may be, nothing feels more appropriate for combat sports then this quaint 2,100 capacity venue. After a raucous crowd ovation for the usual preliminaries, we are greeted to our first match, a bout between resident footfighting master, Makato Ohe, this time facing an unknown Sakuchai Sakuwitaya. The last few opponents that they have fed Ohe were decent in their own right, but inexperienced in the ways of international kickboxing, so hopefully this will be different. Right away we can see two things, the first is that Sakuwitaya does appear to have some genuine kickboxing experience, but that he is not in Ohe's league. He appears to be someone that has some rudimentary skills, but nowhere near the seasoning needed to face the experience of a former Shootboxing champion. The first moments show Sakuwitaya taking some stiff leg kicks, but he is managing to hang in there, while attempting to find his distance, when out of nowhere he attempts a flying jump kick (similar to the one that Machida took Couture out with, albeit with a different angle). A commendable attempt to be sure, but it sadly hit the chest of Ohe rather than landing flush in the jaw, to which he responded by shoving Sakuwitaya down to the ground. That was about the only moment that he got any glory though, as for the short duration of this fight, Ohe has been patient, and only throwing a kick or punch if there was some hurricane force power behind it. As soon as Sakuwitaya got back up, it was over. Ohe feinted with his lead leg, patiently waiting for an opening and landed a punch to Sakuwitaya's chin with an impact that reverberated throughout the building. For a moment it seemed like he was going to be fine, but it was a delayed reaction, because after taking the blow, and dancing around for a moment, Sakuwitaya completely collapsed, and was out cold. Great showing from Ohe, but they seriously need to find him an opponent that is somewhere in his league.

ML: Ohe seemed to have all the advantages in this shoot that was almost certainly designed to be an easy win. You could see that he was calm as could be, not fearing Sakuwitaya in the least. Ohe is the longer fighter, and just backed Sakuwitaya with some straights & a middle kick. Even Ohe was probably surprised by the delayed KO where Sakuwitaya just gave out a second or two after a rather routine left straight. This was pretty sad to be honest, I mean, if you can't withstand a few standard shots designed simply to control distance then you really don't belong in the ring with any sort of professional champion.

Next up is a tag-match Kiyoshi Tamura/Yuko Miyato vs. Tatsuo Nakano/Tom Burton. I still have no idea what is hoped to be accomplished with these tag matches that the UWF-I insists on putting together. It would be one thing if they had a giant roster, and ran the risk of putting on 3hr shows if they didn't consolidate their talent, but they have barely been able to go over an hour with these events, and that's with all the walkouts, ceremonial introductions, etc. The actual time of people wrestling is considerably less than that, usually between 40-50 minutes. To make matters more bizarre, there are no belts, or really any stakes involved, just another mishmash of who they want to throw together this month. In this case, it is the small/lithe gentleman vs. the brazen monsters, so we will now experience size vs. skill, speed vs. raw power, and slick holds vs. steroids.

The contest itself was entertaining and fast paced, and somewhat surprisingly, everyone looked good here. Even Tom Burton was looking looser and more fluid this time. Of course, Tamura is still the rock star, and is really bringing the new generation of tech to the shoot-game. Cartwheeling out of bad positions, rapid transitions, and creative grappling entries show that he was really something special. To make it even more impressive is to think that he was a very high caliber contender in real shoots too, which isn't something too many fighters can lay claim to, the ability to excel in both the real and worked ends of the spectrum. Tamura wins by finally figuring out the counter to the Boston crab, which is to apparently is to turn a quasi ankle-pick into a toehold. Well played, sir.

ML: It's hard for a Tamura match to overachieve, but given the tag match format, I think it's fair to say this one did. Though the format may be hokey, this is a great example of a doubles match that worked, keeping a higher pace than they could have in a singles match of this length (18:48) without losing the intensity, as well as keeping guys who don't have amazing stamina or huge move sets effective by breaking their portions up. The key to the match was Miyato, who, all things considered, probably gave an even performance than he did in his great match against Tamura on 8/24/91. Beyond being an entertaining and fiery presence who pulled the fight out of the opponents, he also really upped his technical game in all areas. Miyato was again making an attempt to move more like Tamura, turning and spinning out, even using the go behind. There was a nice sequence where he hit a backdrop into a half crab then spun into a facelock. Miyato set a good tone for the match, showing some good use of distance & footwork in standup to get his low kicks in, and doing a good job of taking advantage of the opponents inability to actually do anything to control him once they got him to the mat, just exploding rather than honoring the imaginary forcefield that normally keeps UWF-I fighters other than Tamura down. This is really what I've been wanting to see from him, things that make him relevant & dangerous despite being undersized. The story of the fight was that the larger team of Nakano & Burton would start out ahead on the mat, getting the judo throw or takedown, but then their more skilled opponents would start moving & countering before they got anywhere with their submission holds. Miyato wasn't showing a path to victory so much as wearing the bigger guys out by making them keep working at a higher pace than they would like because he was feisty & annoying, and if they didn't get him down again, he was just going to make it harder by continuing to beat up their legs. Tamura was able to get a takedown on Nakano, and his counters were often into his own submissions, rather than simply scrambling back to his feet & forcing the opposition to start over. Tensions were escalating as Nakano dropped into an Achilles' tendon hold, but Tamura countered with a heel hook only to have Nakano keep kicking him in the face until he released, which allowed Nakano to take his back. Miyato got back to his feet enough that Burton began to slow down, and was caught off guard when Miyato finally threw his hands, stunning Burton and allowing Miyato to get the spinning heel kick in for a knockdown. I was surprised at how much ring time Miyato was logging, Tamura was really getting the star treatment here, coming in for brief sequences where he looked good, but letting Miyato carry the load. There was one crazy Tamura spot where Burton had his back & started to go for a cravate, but Tamura handspringed & took a front facelock. Nakano got a couple near finishes on Tamura including a snap suplex into a high kick when Tamura was getting back up, and as usual, Tamura was way down on points. I liked the finish where Tamura losing the battle of pulling himself halfway across the ring to get to the ropes before Burton could turn him over into the Boston crab, which allowed him to use Burton's momentum against him (Burton was busy dragging him back), tripping him up into an ankle lock for the win. I'm not saying much about Nakano or Burton here, largely because they were instruments who were very well played by maestros. ***3/4

Next up is Yoji Anjo vs. Billy Scott. The last time we saw Scott in a singles match was a surprisingly awesome affair with Kazuo Yamazaki, and out of all the imported Tennessee talent, he has showed the most promise, by far. Here he must face his sophomore test against everyone's loveable zebra-warrior in Anjo, and they don't waste any time. Immediately after the bell, Anjo rushes in with a slap to try and set up an o-goshi throw, but Scott just shoves him off, and gives him a stiff kick in the back for his trouble. This causes our zebra to wisely rush back to the safety of his savannah, backing off to regroup before charging in again. He attempts another hip-toss, but Scott is wise to these judo shenanigans, and responds with a couple of ultra-low single-leg takedowns, a la Sakuraba, succeeding with his second attempt, which he converted into a slam. They both then proceeded to get into a slap fest until Anjo pulls out a sweet Kani Basami out of his bag of tricks, which shows that maybe there is something to be said for these judo parlor tricks, after all. What followed next was a barrage of strikes, takedowns, reversals, until Anjo scored the first rope escape against Scott, in what could be loosely interpreted as a kimura from an open guard. Anjo quickly followed this up with a head kick knockdown, furthering his score against Scott. This upswing didn't last long though, as shortly afterwards, Scott got a takedown and finished the match in what is one of the most bizarre submissions I've ever seen, which resembled something between a "twister" and a neck-crank. Bizarre finish aside, this was a great match, and although they could have let it breathe more in spots, the fast pace kept it highly entertaining. Scott is continuing to show that he has a bright future, as he adds a credible gravitas with his look, and athleticism.

ML: Scott took a big step forward here, partially because he's a tough & proud guy who isn't going to allow Anjo to take advantage of him. These guys really stepped up the level of defense & intensity, not only refusing to go along with the opponent, but making each other pay with a swift foot to the face. While this wasn't a shoot by any means, of all the works we've seen so far, it's probably the match that felt most like it both in terms of the fighters moving quickly & desperately to avoid what the other fighter was trying & getting a bit out of control and even nailing each other when they had the chance. They really put a lot of energy into the takedowns, throws, and scrambles, and both fighters inserted their share of cheap shots. They took some brief rests on the mat, where Scott isn't the most fluid to begin with once he gets you there, but made up for it by seeming to legitimately piss each other off in standup, leading to some strikes that were arguably too mean & some scrambles where the loser normally would have given up much easier. 11:29 was a good length for this, as it started great, and maintained the intensity throughout, but the holes were becoming more and more apparent the longer it continued. I was surprised that Scott got the upset here, although Anjo is one of their better fighters, I wasn't opposed to it because Scott did a nice job of standing up for himself & hanging with the veteran. With this being Scott's 3rd match, it's hard to argue against this overachieving. ***1/2

And now.. The main event, and a sad realization sweeps over me, as I am now realizing that this is, and forever will be, Yamazaki's destiny. To forever be confined as a 2nd banana to Takada. Maybe the writing was always on the wall though, as this picture taken from the 1985 Shooting Bible , tells the entire story. Here we have Takada rolling around in his brand-new fancy sports car, while Yamazaki is reduced to getting by day-to-day in a beat-up Toyota Corolla. This snapshot perfectly sums up how Yamazaki was treated throughout his career. Instead of a Clubber Lang tale of one's meteoric rise to the top, climbing up out of the poverty of your surroundings, and overcoming your circumstances, instead it was a hard luck tale, that told us all that sometimes you will always be kept down by the man born with a golden spoon in his mouth. Though these two have fought countless times, especially as young lions in New Japan where Takada was 11-0 in 1982 & 20-0 in 1983, Yamazaki only has 4 wins over Takada, 12/5/84 in the Original UWF in one of Dave Meltzer's early 5-star rated matches, 1/6/86 in New Japan's UWF League, and 8/13/88 & 5/4/89 in Newborn UWF.

Politics aside, these two always had good chemistry with one another, and while the booking here was lacking any build up, at least it's a well-tested formula, so hopefully they put in another classic tonight. After a bit of a feeling out process, we have Yamazaki nailing a back suplex off a missed kick from Takada, and immediately Takada grabs the ropes to garner an escape. There is some more jockeying for position from the two of them, until Yamazaki is able to fight for, and finally obtain, a heel hook, scoring more points against Takada. Takada tries to initiate a tie-up, in which Yamazaki responds by feinting with his hand, as if he was going to accept, only set that up as a way to kick Takada in the gut. Herein lies the greatness of Yamazaki's craftmanship, while someone like a Tamura was a lot of flash, speed, and soundnfury, Yamazaki had a more calculated, methodical approach, that I wish more of Pro Wrestling was patterned after.

They battle both over position, and who was going to be able to secure a kimura. This led to an interesting grappling sequence, when Yamazaki was unable to secure a kimura, he started grating his elbow, and the blade of his forearm against Takada's face, causing him to shift enough that he was able to slap on a side headlock. From there, we get a sequence that wouldn't be unsimilar to watching two high-level white belts roll at your local BJJ academy. Yamazaki stacks Takada, getting out of a sloppy triangle attempt, and counters with a clever kneebar entry, which sadly doesn't work. Things continue to unfold with Takada scoring an ankle lock of his own, and Yamazaki scoring a knockdown with a series of knees in the corner of the ring, and while I'm cheering for Yamazaki, I get the sinking feeling that there couldn't possibly be any way that they will allow him to win. After this wave of despair flows through me, I comfort myself with thoughts, that perhaps, Yamazaki will have the courage to do what Yuki Kondo did to Frank Shamrock years later, and simply kick Takada out of the ring and into the front row.

Sadly, this did not happen.. What did happen, was Takada hulked up, and got several knockdowns against Yamazaki before finally finishing with a Dragon suplex followed by an armbar. This started off decent, but was really hampered by Takada's laziness. In the original UWF days, Takada was way more apt to put some real work into a match, where he now seems content to just coast. This was basically a US Hulk Hogan main event where the hero got beat up for the first three-quarters, only to make a miraculous comeback in the end. Yamazaki did what he could with it, but this was sorely lacking compared to some of their great matches from times past.

ML: If Yuko Miyato were a decent booker, UWF-I might still exist today. The league has kind of been on autopilot for the first series of small Korakuen Hall shows, with the problem that no one has been given the opportunity to appear to be any threat to Takada. They had to bring in a former WWF Heavyweight Champion who has been more or less out of the sport since the new ringleader of the circus scoffs at things such as the amateur backgrounds that the real legends of the sport such as Thesz & Gagne had devoted so much effort to giving value to in their peers & successors. After Takada dispatched of Mr. Bob in mere moments, there was only one man known to be strong enough to give him a run, Yamazaki. While Yamazaki was, at best, the #3 fighter in the UWF incarnations, his win over Takada in their first meeting in the Newborn UWF was really the thing that cemented his presence on the top of the bill there. Granted, he always lost to Maeda & usually to Takada, but was enough of a threat that people believed he could win, & took the matches seriously, filling the buildings and responding rabidly to the action, even if more were rooting against him. Yamazaki absolutely needed to win this, he could then lose the next handful to Takada as usual, but that bought you that handful, as well as Tamura or Anjo's ticket to the top going through Yamazaki. Yamazaki winning gave you options, Takada winning gave your, well, more staleness & embarrasment.

One of the problems with Takada's matwork is even when he was gifted an obvious counter, he just sat on it. For instance, Yamazaki hits a no cooperation backdrop early on, and waits around with Takada holding a Kimura setup, until he just gets bored of Takada not doing anything & pivots to take away Takada's angle. Yamazaki keeps moving so Takada can't do his usual pretend contemplation that's actually not knowing what he could/should be doing, but when he's not doing things he learned in the New Japan dojo, sometimes it's hard to tell what he really thinks he's supposed to be accomplishing, he's really just grabbing appendages sometimes and hoping that looks enough like some sort of submission. Other times, it's easy to see that he has only vague notions of what the actual submissions are supposed to look like, hence his legs being reversed on his triangle attempt. To some extent, the problem with the match is that Yamazaki keeps grabbing/catching the leg & taking Takada down to avoid the thing Takada does well, kick, but to his credit, Yamazaki does enough things well on the mat that the match doesn't fall apart despite Takada mostly being forced to work on the mat. Story wise, Yamazaki is trying to get a leg submission, or at least debilitate the leg enough that Takada can't use it to knock him out. Takada does come up with one a great combo when Yamazaki wants to lock up, but Takada lands a right inside leg kick and a right slap, almost simultaneously, and Yamazaki is caught so off guard he basically turns & covers, allowing Takada to kick around what guard Yamazaki has until he drops him. Once Takada has this one opening, he just steamrolls Yamazaki, getting him down to one point before adding insult to injury by submitting him with his patented armbar. I think the later stages of the match were actually supposed to show how tough Yamazaki was in taking all this punishment that Backlund and the others weren't up to, but one could certainly argue that it made Yamazaki look worse to just get blown out of the water once the first real advantage of the match was gained. This was maybe passable, but it was shockingly never really exciting. It's definitely nowhere near the level of probably any of their previous matches since they were basically rookies.

Conclusion: Outside of a disappointing main event, this was an entertaining, if uninspired event. There still seems to be no clear direction to this outfit, other than to portray Takada as an unstoppable hero, but at least they have been consistently entertaining, so there must be credit given for that. It may be a bit frustrating, knowing that they have the talent on their hands to do more than they are, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

ML: Kind of an odd show in that you had a squash, followed by two overachieving really heated & competitive matches, followed by what should have been the biggest match within the promotion that was somehow transformed into another kind of a squash where this inexplicably mightier version of Takada can now beat a guy who has at least had some success against him in the past without ever being in any trouble. Scott announcing himself, and Miyato taking steps to make himself the relevant in the more modern version of shooting are things to get excited about, while the desperation of going right back to Takada vs. Backlund, without even given Backlund a win to show he's viable, or hell even credible in the 1990's, certainly is not. Again, UWF-I is the most difficult promotion to know what to think of because two very good matches on a four match show is better than the other promotions are doing, but PWFG is more fulfilling in the sense that you have Suzuki, Shamrock, & Funaki already in the main events, and only on the rise, whereas UWF-I has shown itself to be Takada or bust, even though Takada is a bust, and becoming more & more a laughable one as a guy such as Scott, who is just some dude that wrestled in school, can come in and already show way more understanding of both the technical aspects & the compelling methods of fakery in just a few outings.

*In Other News*

UWF-I's event on 9-26 was a sellout, but almost caused a riot with the inanely short Takada/Backlund main event that only lasted just 1:15 mark. The ending of the match caused the Sapporo crowd to become unruly, which caused Kazuo Yamazaki to grab the mic and try and calm them down. After Yamazaki's attempt at peacekeeping, Backlund grabbed the mic and admitted to being knocked out and vowed to work on block kicks better for their next confrontation.

It was a hot night in Holland, as a molten kickboxing event took place on 10-20-91 in Amsterdam. Some highlights include a brutal headkick KO delivered to Nicco Anches by Peter Theijsse. We also got to see up and coming Dutch fighter, Ernesto Hoost, face veteran Leo de Snoo in a brutal 5-round war. Snoo's composure and experience was tough to deal with, but at the end of the fight, Hoost's sizeable reach advantage, quickness, and combinations were too much to overcome, as he was able to score a head kick knockdown that put him far enough over on the scorecards that he couldn't be denied. If Hoost continues to stay healthy, then he is certainly going to be a champion for a long time to come.