They always save the best for last. RIZIN’s final show of 2019 on paper looks to be their best. RIZIN 20 will be live from the famous Saitama Super Arena on New Year’s Eve. The Japanese MMA promotion has booked a stacked card. You can look forward to title defenses, big kickboxing matches, and future champion contenders. The card has a main event between two of the company’s top bantamweights. The trash-talking Angolan Manel Kape takes on undefeated RIZIN fighter Kai Asakura. Due to an ACL injury, former champion Kyoji Horiguchi had to vacate the title. There will be a new bantamweight champion and in this second outing between the two, this fight will have a lot of bad blood in it.
The co-main event is a kickboxing match with special rules. Undefeated “Ninja Boy” Tenshin Nasukawa is taking on his toughest opponent a RIZIN 20. Rui Ebata is a highly ranked kickboxer who won the 2019 KING OF KNOCK OUT Super Bantamweight Championship.
The Lightweight Grand Prix finishes tonight with Johnny Case taking on Azerbaijan’s Tofiq Musayev and a Brazilian war between Luiz Gustavo and Patricky Pitbull. Two of these men move on to the finals, but only one can be crowned the first RIZIN lightweight champion.
Other matches that will be great are Patrick Mix vs. Yuki Motoya, a number one contender’s bantamweight match between Shintaro Ishiwatari vs. Hiromasa Ogikubo, a big boy match between Jake Heun vs. Satoshi Ishii and many more.
In addition to the fights, you can expect grand entrances, soccer kicks, and Lenne Hardt’s booming voice introducing each of the contestants.
If you want to get caught up on some previous RIZIN 20 content, check out our interviews with John Macapa, Lindsay VanZandt, and staff picks.
RIZIN 20 airs live from the Saitama Super Arena tonight at 1 a.m. EST. You can watch the show live on FITE.TV.
RIZIN 20 Results:
Kai Asakura vs Manel Kape – 61kg/134lbs. (Vacant Bantamweight Title fight): WINNER: Manel Kape :38 Round 2 TKO (punches)
Tenshin Nasukawa vs Rui Ebata – 56kg/123lbs (Kickboxing Special Rules): WINNER: Tenshin Nasukawa 2:44 Round 1 by TKO (3 knockdowns)
Ayaka Hamasaki (c) vs Seo Hee Ham – 49kg/108lbs. (Super Atomweight Title fight) – WINNER: Seo Hee Ham by split decision
Mikuru Asakura vs John Macapa – 66kg/145lbs (Bellator vs RIZIN) – WINNER: Mikuru Asakura by unanimous decision
Lindsey VanZandt vs Rena Kubota – 50.8kg/111lbs – WINNER: Rena Kubota 4:42 Round 3 TKO (corner stoppage)
Finals of the LW GP – Tofiq Musayev vs Patricky “Pitbull” Freire – WINNER: Tofiq Musayev by unanimous decision.
Jiri Prochazka (c) vs C.B. Dollaway – 93kg/205lbs – (Lightheavyweight Title fight] – WINNER: Jiri Prochazka 1:55 Round 1 by KO (left hook)
Vitaly Shemetov vs Simon Biyong – 93kg/205lbs – WINNER: Simon Biyong :58 Round 2 by TKO (strikes)
Shintaro Ishiwatari vs Hiromasa Ogikubo – 61kg/134lbs – WINNER: Hiromasa Ogikubo by split decision
Jake Heun vs Satoshi Ishii – 105kg/231lbs – WINNER: Jake Heun 1:12 Round 1 TKO (punches)
Yuki Motoya vs Patrick Mix – 61.2kg/134lbs – [Bellator vs RIZIN] – WINNER: Patrick Mix 1:36 Round 1 submission (guillotine choke)
Taiju Shiratori vs Taiga – 62kg/136lbs – (Kickboxing) – WINNER: Taiju Shiratori Round 2 3:00 TKO (cut)
Miyuu Yamamoto vs Amp the Rocket – 49kg/108lbs – WINNER: Miyuu Yamamoto by unanimous decision
Patricky “Pitbull” Freire vs Luiz Gustavo – 71kg/156lbs (LW GP semifinals) – WINNER: Patricky “Pitbull” Freire :28 1st Round TKO (soccer kicks)
Johnny Case vs Tofiq Musaev – 71kg/156lbs (LW GP semifinals) – WINNER: Tofiq Musayev 2:46 1st Round TKO (punches)
