It’s only November but Rizin this week announced one fight for their final show of the year, Rizin 49. The New Year’s Eve show will see Rizin featherweight champion Chihiro Suzuki defend his title once again against Kleber Koike. CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara has said he wants to see all of the belts defended on the show. What will likely be a grand end of the year of the show is bound to have at least over a dozen matches. Here are some possible matches that could fit on the NYE show that will also mark a decade of Rizin.
John Dodson vs Tatsuki Shinotsuka (BKFC rules)
When Rizin announced its partnership with BKFC, there was always the worry that it could be one-sided. So far, it has been a pretty even relationship. Three BKFC rules fights have happened on Rizin shows, with one showcasing two BKFC-signed fighters competing against each other. The first BKFC fight to be featured on Rizin involved former K-1 kickboxer Tatsuki Shinotsuka knocking out Justyn Martinez in a one-sided fight. Shinotsuka was supposed to have another BKFC fight this year but he had to pull out due to injury.
John Dodson, the BKFC flyweight champion, has showcased how good he is at both MMA and bare-knuckle in Rizin. He always puts on exciting fights no matter what the ruleset is. He brings many years of fighting experience and is one of the few guys to have given Mighty Mouse a competitive match when he ruled the UFC flyweight division.
Both fighters are undefeated in bare knuckle and they have called each other out. What better way to showcase a high-level bare-knuckle fight than have these two face each other? While Shinotsuka has not earned a title shot, putting the belt on the line would certainly up the stakes. Having it as a non-title match though gives the possibility of a rematch if Shinotsuka beats Dodson.
Seika Izawa (c) vs Rena for the Super Atomweight Championship
The Rizin super atomweight division is not the way it once was. With Kanna Asakura retiring, Seo Hee Ham in One, Saori Oshima injured, Ayaka Hamasaki possibly on the decline, and other talent going up in weight to get to UFC, it has become a division that is slowly dissolving.
Rizin Super Atomweight Champion Seika Izawa has plowed through every opponent she has faced. She has defeated the previous generations of top fighters like Asakura and Hamasaki.
Rena has been with Rizin since their second show. She was supposed to face Izawa in the promotion’s second super atomweight tournament in 2022 but had to pull out due to injury. Once the queen of Shootboxing, she has mostly successfully transitioned to MMA.
This fight should be made as there is no other top fight in Rizin in the division to make. From a fight perspective, the two could not be more different. Rena is a striker and Izawa is a grappler. Both excel in their MMA strengths and would
Nkazimulo Zulu vs Kyoji Horiguchi (c) for the Rizin Flyweight Championship
Kyoji Horiguchi’s dominance is something that will need to be studied by future MMA historians. Other than Mighty Mouse, no other flyweight has faced the highest levels of competition and dominated them in such fashion. Horiguchi’s tenure in Rizin has seen him become the Bantamweight Grand Prix champion, bantamweight champion, and currently Rizin flyweight champion.
Nkazimulo Zulu is a training partner of UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis. Zulu is currently the EFC champion and made a big splash at Rizin 48 TKOing Shooto double champion Jo Arai.
Right now, no one in flyweight has earned a title shot against Horiguchi. The closest person who is worthy is Zulu being a champion of another organization and beating a Shooto champion. It may not be the most exciting buildup, but until some other fighters get some big wins, Zulu might be able to put a challenge to Horiguchi.
Usman Nurmagomedov vs Roberto “Satoshi” de Souza (c) for the Rizin Lightweight Championship
Usman Nurmagomedov has dominated the lightweight division in Bellator. The current Bellator lightweight champion and cousin of Khabib has dominated Benson Henderson, Alexander Shabily, and Patricky Pitbull with his elite grappling and striking.
Roberto “Satoshi” de Souza has shown that an elite BJJ black belt can also be a formidable striker. In his most recent fight, he KOed Luiz Gustavo, an outcome that no one could have predicted. He is also an ADCC and multiple-time IBJJF medalist, and he is known for his incredible triangle submissions.
Both guys have cleaned out their division. Both are known for their high-level grappling and striking that is used to set up that grappling. With Bellator’s future being unknown at this point, Rizin should look at pitting two of the most dominant lightweights outside the UFC in a match that would seal who is the number two fighter in the world.
Tofiq Musayev vs Spike Carlyle
Tofiq Musayev is a former Rizin lightweight title contender and the winner of the first Rizin Lightweight Grand Prix. The Azerbaijani fighter is an iron-fisted striker with 18 KOs/TKOs on his record.
Spike Carlyle doesn’t know the meaning of the word “quit.” Even when he seemingly will lose he can muster a second wind and get a win as he did in his most recent fight against Kyung-Po Kim. A former UFC and Bellator fighter, he is one of the most exciting, if not the most, in the lightweight division.
Both fighters are known for their exciting pace and always come forward style. Pitting the two fighters against each other would guarantee an incredibly exciting fight. As well both have lost to champion Satoshi and the winner of this could be one step closer to getting a rematch.
Ren Hiramoto (c) vs Ryo Takagi for the Last Man Standing championship
When Ren Hiramoto beat Mikuru Asakura for the inaugural Last Man Standing title, it cemented Hiramoto as the next big star in Rizin. The LMS title is basically Rizin’s BMF title. But it is fought under a different ruleset. This potentially allows it to be used as an open-weight belt rather than a weight division and also should be used exclusively for fighters that can’t fight for division belts.
Ryo Takagi has made a splash in Rizin going 2-1 and has finished all his fights but one in his career. All his finishes but one come in the first round. A do-or-die fighter, he has hands made of stone that can result in one-punch knockouts.
As long as Chihiro Suzuki is the champion, there is no way that Takagi will fight for the belt as they are training partners. The LMS belt and fights should be designated for fighters known for brawling or high-level striking. As both fighters bring such a style, it would make for an exciting fight.
Yutaka Saito vs Mikuru Asakura 3
Rizin did very well during the pandemic. Unlike other promotions that didn’t figure out a way to adapt, Rizin positioned fighters who had found notoriety thanks to YouTube, one of those being Mikuru Asakura.
With Asakura’s status unknown since his loss to Ren Hiramoto (he has hinted he’s retired one moment, then seemingly changed his mind), his positive business impact in Rizin can’t be denied. At one point he was one of the top dogs at featherweight but then fighting fulltime was no longer on his mind as his skills in the ring clearly declined and his energy seemed empty. His most recent wins were him out-point striking and taking down and laying down on his opponents.
Yutaka Saito is a former featherweight champion in the promotion. After beating Asakura on NYE, his popularity skyrocketed. He then would go on to lose the title and win only one fight since June 2021. Like Asakura, his athletic drive seems on the decline.
Pitting these two against each other may not result in an exciting fight, but a double retirement fight between the two on NYE would be a gold watch for both. They both helped keep Rizin afloat during the pandemic and their names sold tickets when many Japanese promotions were not able to do so. However, all good things must come to an end. What better way to say thank you than to book the rubber match and see them both off into the sunset?
Taisei Sakuraba vs (Insert Gracie Family Member Here)
Earlier this year Taisei Sakuraba, the son of MMA legend Kazushi Sakuraba, announced he would be fighting to Rizin. This is such an important and big show what better way to commemorate a decade of Rizin than the son of Sakuraba taking on a Gracie family member? Like his father before him, the Sakuraba/Gracie feud was one for the ages. One of those Gracie’s used on a Bellator show would be the best to book.
Buakaw vs Anpo 2
42-year-old Buakaw is still able to hang with high-level kickboxers. Despite losing, he put up a tough fight against Stoyan Koprivlenski in the K-1 in their 70 kg tournament this year. Before that, he hadn’t lost a match since 2018. He still possesses power in his fists and legs.
Rukiya Anpo was one of K-1’s biggest stars when he left the promotion. Since going to Rizin, he has gotten one win in kickboxing, one loss in MMA, and put up a valiant effort against Manny Pacquiao in an exhibition boxing match.
When these two fought at Rizin 42, it went to a draw in a pretty even back-and-forth match. With the likelihood of the Anpo and Minoru Kimura match never happening due to Kimura’s recent arrest, these two need to settle that draw.
Patchy Mix vs Naoki Inoue for the Rizin bantamweight championship
Bellator bantamweight champion Patchy Mix is the number two bantamweight outside UFC. His resume includes two wins over Magomed Magomedov, Kyoji Horiguchi, and Sergio Pettis. The way he is able to control and submit so many opponents with ease with his grappling is a sight to see.
Former UFC fighter Naoki Inoue made his debut when he was 17 and is now 27. Like Mix, he has submitted most of his opponents in his wins but has recently shown a much better striking acumen in his offense.
A fight between these two would declare the number two bantamweight outside the UFC. Both fighters high level grappling that would make for an exciting affair
