Masaaki Noiri

Masaaki Noiri
野杁 正明
Born May 11, 1993
Nagoya, Japan
Native name 野杁 正明
Nationality Japan Japanese
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight 63 kg (139 lb; 9.9 st)
Division Lightweight
Welterweight
Style Karate, Kickboxing
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of Nagoya, Japan
Team Oishi Gym
Rank      black belt in Shin Karate
Years active 2007-present
Kickboxing record
Total 30
Wins 24
By knockout 10
Losses 6
By knockout 2
Draws 0
last updated on: February 16, 2014

Masaaki Noiri (野杁 正明 Noiri Masaaki, born May 11, 1993) is a Japanese kickboxer who competes in the lightweight and welterweight divisions. He began practicing karate as a young boy and had great success in both full contact karate and amateur kickboxing in his early teens, which included winning the K-1 Koshien 62 kg (136 lb) schoolboys tournament in 2009. After turning professional in 2010, he became a mainstay in the Krush promotion and was victorious in the 2011 Krush Under-22 ~63 kg (140 lb) Supernova~ Tournament.

Noiri is known for his devastating knee strikes and, as of April 2013, is ranked the #1 lightweight in the world by LiverKick.com.[1]

Career

Amateur career

As a schoolboy, Noiri began practicing Shin Karate, a style of full contact karate based on Kyokushin but modified to use boxing gloves and allow punches to the face. He soon became an All Japan Junior Champion in the discipline. On February 25, 2007 at the age of thirteen, Noiri participated in a try-out held by the K-1 kickboxing organization and was took on as one of Japan's youngest prospects.[2]

Noiri continued to show promise by winning the New Japan Karate Federation's K-2 Lightweight Grand Prix on May 3, 2009.[3] He was then called upon to fight under the K-1 banner on August 10, 2009 at the K-1 Koshien 2009 King of Under 18 Final 16, where he defeated Ryo Murakoshi via knee strike knockout at the opening stage of the K-1 Koshien -62 kg/136 lb high school tournament.[4] Advancing to the quarter-finals at the K-1 World MAX 2009 World Championship Tournament Final on November 26, 2009, Noiri beat Keisuke Miyamoto by unanimous decision.[5]

The final two stages of the tournament were held on December 31, 2009 at Dynamite!! 2009. Noiri was drawn against the previous year's Koshien champion, Hiroya, in the semi-finals and caused an upset by winning a unanimous decision from the judges. He then took another unanimous nod over Shota Shimada in the final to become the K-1 Koshien 2009 King of Under 18 Tournament Champion.[6]

He returned to K-1 Koshien the following year, with all four tournament rounds being held on the same night at the K-1 Koshien 2010 King of Under 18 Final on November 20, 2010. He made it past Naoki Takeda with a unanimous decision victory in the first round, but was then eliminated by Keigo Ishida via decision at the quarter-finals.[7]

Professional career

Noiri debuted as a professional kickboxer on March 14, 2010 in his home town of Nagoya, defeating Shinji Aseishi by unanimous decision.[8] Following this, he was recruited by Krush and went 3-0 in the promotion, including two KO wins, before entering the Krush First Generation King Tournament at -60 kg/132 lb which began on December 12, 2010.[9][10][11] He was victorious over Junpei Aotsu in the tournament's first round[12] but was then defeated by Yuji Takeuchi in the quarter-finals on April 30, 2011. Noiri floored Takeuchi in the second round and again at the beginning of the third when both men knocked each other down with concurrent left hooks. Takeuchi, knowing that he had to stop Noiri to win the fight, came back aggressively towards the end of the fight, however, and violently knocked Noiri out with a left hook to send him crashing out of the tournament.[13]

Despite having recently suffering the first loss of his professional career, Noiri was invited to the K-1 World MAX 2011 -63kg Japan Tournament Final, a one-night tournament made up of eight of Japan's best lightweights, on June 25, 2011. He faced a tough test in the quarter-finals against the more experienced Ryuji Kajiwara. The bout was called a draw after three rounds and so an extension round was added to decide the winner, after which Noiri was given a close split decision. In the semis, he went up against the previous year's runner-up in Yuta Kubo and came out on the losing side of a unanimous decision.[14]

He then returned to Krush to compete in the 2011 Under-22 ~63 kg Supernova~ Tournament.[15][16] After finishing both Violence and Daizo Sasaki in the same night on October 10, 2011,[17] Noiri advanced to the tournament's final stage held at Krush.14 on December 9, 2011. The semi-finals saw Noiri rematch Hiroya and cruise to a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-28, 30-28) after sending his opponent to the canvas in round one. In the final, he went up against Koya Urabe and ended the fight with one of the year's most impressive knockouts.[18][19] After nullifying Urabe's superior boxing, he landed with a flying knee that ended Urabe's night towards the end of the first round, crowning him the tournament winner.[20]

Noiri ended the year with a unanimous decision victory over Kengo Sonoda at Fight For Japan: Genki Desu Ka Omisoka 2011 on December 31, 2011.[21][22] To kick off 2012, he bested his first international opponent, Frenchman Cedric Peynaud, with a unanimous decision (30-28, 29-28, 29-28) at Krush.17 on March 17, 2012.[23][24]

On May 20, 2012, Noiri ventured up to 64 kg/141 lb limit to face Raz Sarkisjan at the Hoost Cup. The previously unknown Dutch-Armenian fighter scored a major upset with a unanimous decision win, flooring Noiri twice in the second round before getting dropped himself in the third.[25][26] Three months later, Noiri returned to 63 kg/138 lb and bounced back with a unanimous points (30-27, 30-27, 30-28) win over Makihira Keita at Krush.22.[27][28]

The end of 2012 saw lightweight's previous kingpin Yuta Kubo move up in weight, and so Noiri then took his place as number one in the world rankings. This despite his loss to Sarkisjan which took place at 64 kg/141 lb, technically outside the lightweight limit of 63.5 kg/140 lb.[29][30]

He solidified his place as the world's top lightweight[31] with a unanimous decision (30-28, 29-27, 29-28) win over Yetkin Ozkul at Krush.24 in Tokyo on November 10, 2012. After an even first two rounds, Noiri dropped Ozkul with a flying knee in the final round, securing a victory.[32][33][34]

He dominated Makoto Nishiyama en route to a second round referee stoppage in a non-tournament bout at the Krush Grand Prix 2013 ~67kg First Class Tournament~ on January 14, 2013.[35][36]

Moving up to the welterweight division, Noiri was invited to the Road to Glory Japan -65kg Slam on March 10, 2013 and had his rubber match with Hiroya in the quarter-finals. This fight was much closer than their first two affairs as Noiri was only able to pick up a majority decision due to a point deduction for low blows to Hiroya, resulting in scores of 30-29, 30-29 and 29-29. He struggled again in the semis, but came out with another majority decision over Yukihiro Komiya. In the tournament final, he was much more dominant as he floored Yuki twice in round one and twice again in two, forcing the referee to stop the bout.[37][38][39]

This tournament win qualified him for the Glory 8: Tokyo - 2013 65kg Slam event on May 3, 2013, the tournament made up of the world's eight top 65 kg kickboxers.[40][41] In the quarter-finals, he defeated Liam Harrison via TKO due to a cut in round two, and in the semis he outpointed Mosab Amrani. He faced fellow Japanese native Yuta Kubo in a rematch in the final. He suffered a brutal low blow in the first round and wasn't able to rally back until the third. It was too late by that time, however, and he lost the decision.[42][43][44]

In his first match under Muay Thai rules, Noiri knocked out Seiji Takahashi with a third round front kick to the face for the vacant WBC Muaythai Japan Super Lightweight (-63.503 kg/140 lb) Championship at a New Japan Kickboxing Federation event on July 15, 2013.[45][46]

Noiri had his rubber match with Yuta Kubo at Krush.32 in Nagoya on September 1, 2013, defeating Kubo for the first time in three attempts to take his Krush 67 kg/147 lb title and put an end to his seventeen fight win streak in the process.[47] The bout was relatively one-sided in favour of Noiri and saw Kubo deducted a point in round three for extensive clinching, allowing Noiri to take a wide unanimous decision.[48]

He challenged Tetsuya Yamato for his WBC Muaythai International Super Lightweight Championship at an NJKF event in Tokyo on February 16, 2014, losing a unanimous decision.[49]

Championships and awards

Karate

Kickboxing

Kickboxing record

24 wins (10 KOs), 6 losses, 0 draws
Date Result Opponent Event Location Method Round Time Record
2015-04-19 Loss Netherlands Massaro Glunder K-1 World GP 2015 -55kg Championship Tournament Tokyo, Japan TKO 2 0:40 24-6
2015-02-06 Win Morocco Ilias Bulaid Krush 51 Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 24-5
2014-12-21 Win Japan Ogata Atsushi Krush 48 Sendai, Japan KO 1 23-5
2014-02-16 Loss Japan Tetsuya Yamato NJKF Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 5 3:00 22-5
For the WBC Muaythai International Super Lightweight (-63.5 kg/140 lb) Championship.
2013-09-01 Win Japan Yuta Kubo Krush.32 Nagoya, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 22-4
Wins the Krush -67 kg/147 lb Championship.
2013-07-15 Win Japan Seiji Takahashi NJKF Tokyo, Japan KO (right front kick) 3 1:17 21-4
Wins the WBC Muaythai Japan Super Lightweight (-63.503 kg/140 lb) Championship.
2013-05-03 Loss Japan Yuta Kubo Glory 8: Tokyo - 65kg Slam Tournament, Final Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 20-4
For the Glory 65kg Slam Tournament.
2013-05-03 Win Morocco Mosab Amrani Glory 8: Tokyo - 65kg Slam Tournament, Semi Finals Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 20-3
2013-05-03 Win England Liam Harrison Glory 8: Tokyo - 65kg Slam Tournament, Quarter Finals Tokyo, Japan TKO (cut) 2 19-3
2013-03-10 Win Japan Yuki Road to Glory Japan 65kg Tournament, Final Tokyo, Japan TKO (referee stoppage) 2 1:35 18-3
Wins the Road to Glory Japan 65kg Tournament.
2013-03-10 Win Japan Yukihiro Komiya Road to Glory Japan 65kg Tournament, Semi Finals Tokyo, Japan Decision (majority) 3 3:00 17-3
2013-03-10 Win Japan Hiroya Road to Glory Japan 65kg Tournament, Quarter Finals Tokyo, Japan Decision (majority) 3 3:00 16-3
2013-01-14 Win Japan Makoto Nishiyama Krush Grand Prix 2013 ~67 kg First Class Tournament~ Tokyo, Japan TKO (referee stoppage) 2 1:56 15-3
2012-11-10 Win Turkey Yetkin Ozkul Krush.24 Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 14-3
2012-08-26 Win Japan Makihira Keita Krush.22 Nagoya, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 13-3
2012-05-20 Loss Armenia Raz Sarkisjan Hoost Cup Nagoya, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 12-3
2012-03-17 Win France Cedric Peynaud Krush.17 Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 12-2
2011-12-31 Win Japan Kengo Sonoda Fight For Japan: Genki Desu Ka Omisoka 2011 Saitama, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 11-2
2011-12-09 Win Japan Koya Urabe Krush.14, 2011 Under-22 ~63 kg Supernova~ Tournament Final Tokyo, Japan KO (left flying knee) 1 2:58 10-2
Wins the 2011 Krush Under-22 ~63kg Supernova~ Tournament title.
2011-12-09 Win Japan Hiroya Krush.14, 2011 Under-22 ~63 kg Supernova~ Tournament Semi Finals Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 9-2
2011-10-10 Win Japan Daizo Sasaki Krush 2011 Under-22 ~63 kg Supernova~ Tournament, Quarter Finals Tokyo, Japan KO (left hook to the body) 2 1:42 8-2
2011-10-10 Win Japan Violence Krush 2011 Under-22 ~63 kg Supernova~ Tournament, First Round Tokyo, Japan KO (right knee) 3 1:25 7-2
2011-06-25 Loss Japan Yuta Kubo K-1 World MAX 2011 -63kg Japan Tournament Final, Semi Finals Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 6-2
2011-06-25 Win Japan Ryuji Kajiwara K-1 World MAX 2011 -63kg Japan Tournament Final, Quarter Finals Tokyo, Japan Extension round decision (split) 4 3:00 6-1
2011-04-30 Loss Japan Yuji Takeuchi Krush First Generation King Tournament ~Triple Final Round~, Quarter Finals Tokyo, Japan KO (left hook) 3 1:51 5-1
2010-12-12 Win Japan Junpei Aotsu Krush First Generation King Tournament ~Round.1~, First Round Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 5-0
2010-09-20 Win Japan Hirotaka Urabe Krush.10 Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 4-0
2010-06-12 Win Japan Yoshihiro Shirakami Krush-EX ~ Next Generation Fight 2010 vol.2 ~ Tokyo, Japan KO (left straight to the body) 3 2:37 3-0
2010-04-29 Win Japan Yosuke Sato Krush.6 Tokyo, Japan KO (right flying knee) 2 1:29 2-0
2010-03-14 Win Japan Shinji Aseishi Nagoya Kick: Central Rhythm Nagoya, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 1-0
Amateur kickboxing record
Date Result Opponent Event Location Method Round Time
2010-11-20 Loss Japan Keigo Ishida K-1 Koshien 2010 King of Under 18 Final, Quarter Finals Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 1 2:00
2010-11-20 Win Japan Naoki Takeda K-1 Koshien 2010 King of Under 18 Final, First Round Tokyo, Japan Decision (unanimous) 1 2:00
2009-12-31 Win Japan Shota Shimada Dynamite!! 2009, K-1 Koshien 2009 King of Under 18 Tournament Final Saitama, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 2:00
Wins the K-1 Koshien 2009 King of Under 18 62kg (136lb) Tournament title.
2009-12-31 Win Japan Hiroya Dynamite!! 2009, K-1 Koshien 2009 King of Under 18 Tournament Semi Finals Saitama, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 2:00
2009-10-26 Win Japan Keisuke Miyamoto K-1 World MAX 2009 World Championship Tournament Final, K-1 Koshien 2009 King of Under 18 Tournament Quarter Finals Yokohama, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 2:00
2009-08-10 Win Japan Ryo Murakoshi K-1 Koshien 2009 King of Under 18 Final 16, First Round Japan KO (right knee) 3 0:59

Legend:       Win       Loss       Draw/No contest       Notes

References

  1. ↑ LiverKick.com Lightweight Rankings - April 2013
  2. ↑ 【K-1】トライアウトにGRABAKA・山宮、ライズ・百瀬、チームドラゴン3名など、9名が合格
  3. ↑ 新空手LEGEND　FIGHT　野杁正明　2009年5月3日
  4. ↑ 【K-1甲子園】62kg開幕戦、HIROYAは苦戦の末に判定勝利！70kg王者は松倉信太郎
  5. ↑ Quick Shots - K-1 World Max 2009 Finals
  6. ↑ FieLDS Dynamite!! 2009 recap and post fight discussion
  7. ↑ The Combat Sports Report: K-1 Koshien, Sprawl & Brawl, ADCC, Rickson Cup
  8. ↑ 【ナゴヤキック】K-1甲子園王者・野杁正明がデビュー戦で完勝！秋元皓貴も勝利
  9. ↑ 史上最強のＫ－１甲子園王者・野杁がKrush常連ファイターをＫＯ葬！
  10. ↑ Koshien Champion Masaaki Noiri Wins At Krush
  11. ↑ 卜部弘嵩、野杁と新世代エキシビジョン：7.18 新宿
  12. ↑ Koshien Fighters Reign Supreme at Krush
  13. ↑ Krush Triple Final Results, Three Champions Crowned
  14. ↑ K-1 -World MAX -63kg Japan Tournament Live Results
  15. ↑ Krush Announces -63kg Under-22 "Supernova" Tournament
  16. ↑ Koya Urabe, Masaaki Noiri Announced for Krush Supernova Tournament
  17. ↑ Krush Supernova Tournament Results: Urabe, Noiri, Hiroya, Takahashi Advance to Semis
  18. ↑ The 2011 LiverKick.com Awards
  19. ↑ StillW1ll & Liverkick.com: Top 5 Knockouts of 2011
  20. ↑ Krush.14 Results: Masaaki Noiri Wins Supernova Tournament, Ryuji Kajiwara Defends 63kg Title
  21. ↑ Yuta Kubo vs Nils Widlund, Masaaki Noiri vs Kengo Sonoda Added to DREAM NYE Event
  22. ↑ NYE Kickboxing Fix: Kubo, Noiri Win + Aerts, JLB in Pro Wresling
  23. ↑ Kenta vs Yasuhiro Kido for 70kg Title, Masaaki Noiri vs Cedric Peynaud at Krush.17
  24. ↑ Krush.17 Results: Kido KOs Kenta for Title, Noiri and Urabe Win, Yamazaki Leads WildRush League
  25. ↑ Tetsuya Yamato vs Sergio Wielzen, Masaaki Noiri vs Raz Sarkisjan Headline May 20th Hoost Cup
  26. ↑ Masaaki Noiri Loses In Big Upset, Yamato Defeats Wielzen At Hoost Cup
  27. ↑ Yuta Kubo vs Yuya Yamato Among Nagoya vs Tokyo Fights Added to Krush.22
  28. ↑ Results: Takiya Defends 55kg Title, Kubo KOs Yamato
  29. ↑ LiverKick.com Lightweight Rankings - September 2012
  30. ↑ LiverKick.com Lightweight Rankings - On The Outside Looking In
  31. ↑ LiverKick.com Lightweight Rankings - November 2012
  32. ↑ Krush.24, Nov. 10: Yetkin Ozkul vs. Masaaki Noiri, Youth GP Finals
  33. ↑ Fight To Watch In November: Part 1
  34. ↑ Krush.24 Results: Noiri Tops Ozkul, Urabe and Matsukura Win Youth GPs
  35. ↑ Krush Adds Bennoui, Ezbiri to 67kg Tournament
  36. ↑ Krush 67kg Tournament Results: Kubo Wins Tournament in Disputed Decision, Alamos Upsets Takiya
  37. ↑ Road to GLORY Japan on March 10, GLORY 65kg Tournament on May 3 in Tokyo
  38. ↑ Road to Glory Japan 65kg SLAM Tournament Preview
  39. ↑ Masaaki Noiri Wins Road to Glory JAPAN 65kg SLAM Tournament
  40. ↑ GLORY 8 Tokyo: 65kg Tournament Field Complete, More Fights Added
  41. ↑ GLORY 8 Tokyo 65kg Tournament Matches Announced
  42. ↑ GLORY 8 Tokyo Live Results
  43. ↑ GLORY 8 Tokyo Results and Review: Yuta Kubo Proves Why He is the Number One Japanese Fighter in the World
  44. ↑ Glory 8 Results: Yuta Kubo wins featherweight tournament
  45. ↑ Japanese Scene Weekly Recap: May 27th -June 2nd
  46. ↑ 野杁正明、高橋誠治を3R KOしWBCムエタイ日本スーパーライト級王者に：7.15 後楽園
  47. ↑ Yuta Kubo and Masaaki Noiri Fight For Third Time at Krush.32
  48. ↑ Revenge is Sweet: Masaaki Noiri Defeats Yuta Kubo at Krush .32
  49. ↑ 大和哲也、野杁正明との死闘制しWBCムエタイ・インター王座防衛：2.16 後楽園

External links