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Takaya vs. Tokoro
Oct 2, 2009
Dream Featherweight Grand Prix Semi-Final
Hiroyuki Takaya vs. Hideo Tokoro
The Breakdown: You are not likely to ever see a fight with two more disparate fighters. Takaya’s biker gangster persona seems perfectly suited for his kickboxing style, while Tokoro’s janitor turned superstar story has warmed the hearts of millions; his submissions routinely remind opponents he is more than just a Lifetime movie of the week candidate. What Tokoro may lack is the ability to plant Takaya on his back long enough to grab hold of something and torque it, especially considering Takaya’s underrated submission defense and knack for translating his striking to the mat. Unless Tokoro can draw Takaya into a grappling match by hook or crook, his one-dimensional style will not do him any favors in this fight.
The X Factor: Takaya often makes the
mistake of over-committing on his strikes and leaving himself
vulnerable to takedowns. He also generates a world of power on his
power shots, but that will not help him much if he whiffs and fails
to recover his guard before Tokoro takes this fight somewhere from
which he cannot escape.
* * *
The Bottom Line: This fight will be
defined by poor decision making on the part of Tokoro, as he
repeats the same mistake he has made in the past and tries his luck
on the feet against a superior striker. The end game will be
predictable for us and painful for Tokoro, who ends up splayed out
on the canvas while Takaya takes the second ticket to the
final.
Every so often, tournaments work out. Let’s hope this one does. Takaya and Warren in the same ring seems like the only way anyone can justify watching Bob Sapp fight. As for the potential matchup itself, Warren would do well ditching his ambitions as a striker in favor of grounding-and-pounding Takaya for as long as it takes someone to hand him the grand prix title.
While Warren’s hands are exceptionally skilled at this point, he would be smart to play it safe against a more versatile and learned striker -- especially when you consider Takaya’s guard game is not particularly sharp offensively. Plus, he lacks the skill needed to hold down a wrestler of Warren’s caliber.
Warren may lack the good sense to resist trading with Takaya, but he will eventually take him down and do what everyone in his corner hopes -- notch a tidy ground-and-pound TKO. With that win, Warren will have gone from relative unknown to featherweight standard bearer in the time it takes an average person to plan a vacation.
Hiroyuki Takaya vs. Hideo Tokoro
The Breakdown: You are not likely to ever see a fight with two more disparate fighters. Takaya’s biker gangster persona seems perfectly suited for his kickboxing style, while Tokoro’s janitor turned superstar story has warmed the hearts of millions; his submissions routinely remind opponents he is more than just a Lifetime movie of the week candidate. What Tokoro may lack is the ability to plant Takaya on his back long enough to grab hold of something and torque it, especially considering Takaya’s underrated submission defense and knack for translating his striking to the mat. Unless Tokoro can draw Takaya into a grappling match by hook or crook, his one-dimensional style will not do him any favors in this fight.
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Every so often, tournaments work out. Let’s hope this one does. Takaya and Warren in the same ring seems like the only way anyone can justify watching Bob Sapp fight. As for the potential matchup itself, Warren would do well ditching his ambitions as a striker in favor of grounding-and-pounding Takaya for as long as it takes someone to hand him the grand prix title.
While Warren’s hands are exceptionally skilled at this point, he would be smart to play it safe against a more versatile and learned striker -- especially when you consider Takaya’s guard game is not particularly sharp offensively. Plus, he lacks the skill needed to hold down a wrestler of Warren’s caliber.
Warren may lack the good sense to resist trading with Takaya, but he will eventually take him down and do what everyone in his corner hopes -- notch a tidy ground-and-pound TKO. With that win, Warren will have gone from relative unknown to featherweight standard bearer in the time it takes an average person to plan a vacation.
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