Hirotaka Yokoi
| Hirotaka Yokoi | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 8, 1978 Hokkaido, Japan |
| Other names | Kaibutsu-kun ("Monster-kun") |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 220 lb (100 kg; 16 st) |
| Division | Heavyweight |
| Team | Rings Japan / Alliance Team |
| Teacher(s) | Tsuyoshi Kohsaka |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 16 |
| Wins | 11 |
| By knockout | 2 |
| By submission | 5 |
| By decision | 4 |
| Losses | 5 |
| By knockout | 4 |
| By submission | 1 |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Hirotaka Yokoi (横井宏考) (born June 8, 1978 in Osaka) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist and professional wrestler who competed in the Heavyweight division. In his mixed martial arts career, Yokoi competed for PRIDE, Shooto, RINGS, and DEEP.[1] [2] [3]
Background
Yokoi originally started training in judo since highschool, but he was more interested in Universal Wrestling Federation pro wrestling and its ofshoots. He participated at a Shooto mixed martial arts tournament during his stay at the Kinki University, and later moved to Fighting Network RINGS, joining Tsuyoshi Kohsaka's Alliance team after the demise of the company. The same year, he also worked for the professional wrestling promotion ZERO-ONE. He gained the nickname "Kaibutsu-kun" (meaning "Monster-kun") for his physical resemblance to the title character from 1980s anime series Kaibutsu-kun.[1]
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Yokoi made his professional debut in 2000 and won his first eights fights, mostly fighting in the RINGS organization before moving to compete in PRIDE.
PRIDE
Yokoi made his debut for the organization on November 24, 2002 at Pride 23 against Dutch kickboxer Jerrel Venetiaan and won in the third round via armbar submission.
After picking up a TKO win over Wilson Gouveia, the undefeated Yokoi fought former Pride Heavyweight Champion, Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira in the opening round of the Pride Total Elimination 2004 tournament. Yokoi performed unexpectedly well,[1] taking Nogueira down with judo throws and pulling out reversals and occasional ground and pound over the Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert, but he was ultimately fell to an anaconda choke in the second round for the first loss of his career.
At PRIDE 28, Yokoi faced Heath Herring, but he was soon overwhelmed with a right hook and multiple knees, including illegal strikes to the back to the head which granted Herring a warning. He eventually lost the fight by TKO in the same way. Yokoi looked to compensate his defeat at the next event taking on Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Mario Sperry, but after an uneventful round of clinch striking, Yokoi was again downed and hit with knees and soccer kicks.
Yokoi's final fight in PRIDE was at PRIDE 30, where he faced Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. Yokoi again showed himself active, gaining dominant position with an early omoplata sweep, but Jackson used his superior strength to reverse him and threw heavies punches and kicks, until the referee stopped the match for a TKO victory.
Post-PRIDE
Yokoi bounced back with a win via rear-naked choke submission win a year after last fight and then fought again a year later in Finland, losing via TKO. With a career record of 11-5, having won only one of his last six fights, Yokoi retired.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
Championship and accomplishments
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 16 matches | 11 wins | 5 losses |
| By knockout | 2 | 4 |
| By submission | 5 | 1 |
| By decision | 4 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 11–5 | Mikko Rupponen | TKO | Fight Festival 21 | March 17, 2007 | 1 | 2:51 | Finland | |
| Win | 11–4 | Andre Fyeet | Submission (rear naked choke) | World Pro Fighting Championships 1 | September 15, 2006 | 1 | 3:11 | Nevada, United States | |
| Loss | 10–4 | Quinton Jackson | TKO (punches and stomps) | PRIDE 30 | October 23, 2005 | 1 | 4:05 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Loss | 10–3 | Mario Sperry | TKO (knees) | PRIDE 29 | February 20, 2005 | 1 | 9:08 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Loss | 10–2 | Heath Herring | TKO (knees) | PRIDE 28 | October 31, 2004 | 1 | 1:55 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Loss | 10–1 | Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira | Submission (anaconda choke) | PRIDE Total Elimination 2004 | April 25, 2004 | 2 | 1:25 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Win | 10–0 | Wilson Gouveia | TKO (punches) | HOOKnSHOOT: Absolute Fighting Championships 2 | March 28, 2003 | 3 | 2:26 | Florida, United States | |
| Win | 9–0 | Jerrel Venetiaan | Submission (armbar) | PRIDE 23 | November 24, 2002 | 2 | 3:29 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 8–0 | Bulldozer George | Submission (rear naked choke) | UFO: Legend | August 8, 2002 | 1 | 0:47 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 7–0 | Memo Diaz | Decision (unanimous) | Deep - 4th Impact | March 30, 2002 | 3 | 5:00 | Nagoya, Japan | |
| Win | 6–0 | Katsuhisa Fujii | Decision (unanimous) | Rings: World Title Series Grand Final | February 15, 2002 | 3 | 5:00 | Yokohama, Japan | |
| Win | 5–0 | Kestutis Smirnovas | Decision | Rings Lithuania: Bushido Rings 3 | November 10, 2001 | 2 | 5:00 | Lithuania | |
| Win | 4–0 | Ken Orihashi | TKO (lost points) | Rings: World Title Series 4 | October 20, 2001 | 1 | 3:14 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 3–0 | Masaya Kojima | Submission (armlock) | Rings: Battle Genesis Vol. 8 | September 21, 2001 | 1 | 2:12 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 2–0 | Ricardo Fyeet | Submission (armbar) | Rings: 10th Anniversary | August 11, 2001 | 1 | 2:34 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 1–0 | Masaya Inoue | Decision (majority) | Shooto: R.E.A.D. 8 | August 4, 2000 | 2 | 5:00 | Osaka, Japan |
References
External links
- Professional MMA record for Hirotaka Yokoi from Sherdog
- PRIDE profile
- Official blog
- ZERO1 USA English language website
- ZERO1 Japanese language website