A unique mashup of world-class skill and theatric charisma, the 46-year-old Japanese judoka boasts a 15-7 record during a career that has taken him all over the globe. Akiyama last fought at One Championship “King of the Jungle,” where he knocked out Sherif Mohamed in the first round of their Feb. 28, 2020 encounter. “Sexyama” was booked to face former One Championship and Universal Reality Combat Championship titleholder Eduard Folayang at One on TNT 4 in April before withdrawing with an injury.
As the MMA world awaits word on Akiyama’s next move, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied him to this point:
46: Years of age for Akiyama, who was born on July 29, 1975 in Osaka, Japan.
7: Akiyama victories by submission, accounting for 47% of his career total (15). His methods of choice: five armbars and two Ezekiel chokes. Akiyama owns six other victories by knockout or technical knockout and two more by decision.
12: First-round finishes on the Akiyama resume. His knockout of Mohamed was his first in 11 years, five months and five days.
59: Seconds needed for Akiyama to submit Carl Toomey with an armbar at K-1 Hero’s 2 on July 6, 2005. It remains the only sub-minute stoppage win of his 24-fight career.
6: Countries in which Akiyama has competed as a mixed martial artist. He has gone 11-2 with two no contests in Japan, 2-1 in South Korea, 1-2 in the United States, 1-0 in Singapore, 0-1 in China and 0-1 in England.
25: Total strikes by which Akiyama outlanded the opposition in his two Ultimate Fighting Championship wins: a split decision over Alan Belcher at UFC 100 and a unanimous verdict over Amir Sadollah at UFC Fight Night 52. He connected on 164 strikes in those two bouts while absorbing 139 in return.
8: Consecutive wins for Akiyama between July 6, 2005 and Oct. 9, 2006. He defeated Toomey, Michael Lerma, Masakatsu Okuda, Tokimitsu Ishizawa, Katsuhiko Nagata, Taiei Kin, Kestutis Smirnovas and Melvin Manhoef in succession during the longest such streak of his career.
5: Promotions in which Akiyama has plied his MMA trade. He has gone 10-1 with one no contest in K-1, 2-5 in the UFC, 2-0 in Dream, 1-1 in One Championship and 0-0 with one no contest in Yarennoka.
21: Rounds completed by Akiyama since he turned pro in 2004. He has visited the judges on six different occasions and holds a 2-4 record in those appearances.
.713: Cumulative winning percentage between the seven men—Agilan Thani, Alberto Mina, Jake Shields, Vitor Belfort, Michael Bisping, Chris Leben and Jerome Le Banner—who have defeated Akiyama. They sport a combined record of 139-55-1.