superkix

The mastery of Volk Han is obvious from his very first takedown and Yamamoto is a good opponent for him, once again feisty with the strikes. But Han is able to weather the storm in order to school Yamamoto on the mat, which is perhaps a good lesson for Kenichi. At one point, Han tries for his patented hammerlock throw but Yamamoto is able to turn it into a jujigatame attempt and when Han tries to counter out, Yamamoto counters with a triangle choke to force the rope break. Yamamoto does a pretty good job of blocking a lot of Han’s attempts and turning the tables. In fact, he puts Han on the rocks, within a point of defeat. The final minute or so is exciting stuff as Yamamoto survives the armbar, nearly snagging one of his own before Han puts him in the SINGLE LEG CRAB for the submission. This was solid.

At this point, you can't expect much out of Akira Maeda but the way Yamamoto embarrasses him with the barrage of open hands is quite something...and the escalation to the final minute with them just smacking the shit out of each other until the bell rings and they immediately fall into an embrace is quite special. There are some cool moments from Maeda, like him busting out the shoot dragon screw or some of his big knees, but he doesn't give Yamamoto much to work with on the mat. I mean, there are times when the referee has to get Maeda off from just laying on Yamamoto. The first rope break doesn't occur until 14 minutes into the match so the submission work is secondary to Yamamoto straight walloping his boss, which is something I'm sure some of us would love the opportunity to do. I love that Yamamoto keeps standing up when Maeda only wants to turtle down, even grabbing the rope to force the stand up. And Yamamoto does a really good job of selling Maeda's body punches but once Maeda gets bloodied, he seems to pick up the intensity leading to that final powerful moment. Good stuff!

Tully Blanchard revealed that he has officially acquired the services of none other than Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, a long-time rival of Kiyoshi Tamura, to further train his client, Brock Lesnar, in the shoot-stylings. Kohsaka was seen at a sparring session between Lesnar and Mikhail Ilioukhine, and when pressed for comment, he said that he was not only here to work with Lesnar but that he had another objective at hand: to defeat Kazushi Sakuraba in a match. Kohsaka left it at that and resumed his observation but Blanchard was excited to announce that Ilioukhine would make his in-ring debut this Saturday at Fighting Art 4 against...well, KiyoshI Tamura. Blanchard says this will be a good preview match for Tamura, as he believes Lesnar is excelling at a rate that is "beyond human." In other news, Naohiro Hoshikawa will also be making his in-ring debut for U-COSMOS this Saturday as he teams with Shinya Hashimoto against Toshiaki Kawada and Masanobu Fuchi. Hoshikawa had previously worked with Michinoku Pro and Osaka Pro prior to his singing with U-COSMOS. U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 4", 8/22/00 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1. UWF Rules: Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Mikhail Ilioukhine 2. Toshiaki Kawada & Masanobu Fuchi vs. Shinya Hashimoto & Naohiro Hoshikawa 3. UWF Rules: Ken Shamrock vs. Kazuyuki Fujita

With the confirmation that Ken Shamrock would be facing Minoru Suzuki under UWF Rules at HEAT OF BATTLE, Suzuki has ordered Kazuyuki Fujita to take out Shamrock this Saturday at Fighting Art 4. Fujita, who previously fought in PRIDE, is a dangerous combatant and it's Suzuki's hope that Fujita can "hurt" Shamrock prior to their match on 8/30. Fujita and Shamrock will adhere to UWF Rules but with Suzuki-gun being banned from ringside at HEAT OF BATTLE, it's very likely their presence will be felt this Saturday in a last-ditch effort to get the better of Shamrock. Shamrock was not available for comment. U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 4", 8/22/00 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1. UWF Rules: Ken Shamrock vs. Kazuyuki Fujita

Three huge matches have been confirmed for U-COSMOS special event, "HEAT OF BATTLE", taking place on 8/30 at Tokyo Nippon Budokan. The matches were confirmed following yesterday's Fighting Art, and more are likely to be announced after next Saturday's show. First and foremost, Ken Shamrock and Minoru Suzuki will finally clash under UWF Rules after weeks of Suzuki-gun attacks on Shamrock. Nobuhiko Takada made it clear that Suzuki-gun would be banned from ringside for the match. In addition, Toshiaki Kawada and Shinya Hashimoto will battle it out following Hashimoto's challenge. Kawada answered the challenge, stating that Hashimoto has had this coming for "quite some time" and won't apologize for what happens to him in the ring. And finally, the young and ambitious Brock Lesnar, while undefeated thus far in U-COSMOS, may have bitten off more than he can chew when he challenged Kiyoshi Tamura to a match under UWF Rules. Lesnar's manager, Tully Blanchard, revealed that Brock is receiving all the training he needs to be able to beat Tamura, and confirmed the previous rumor that he had acquired the services of "one of Tamura's greatest rivals" to help prepare Lesnar for the match. U-COSMOS "HEAT OF BATTLE", 8/30/00 Tokyo Nippon Budokan 1. UWF Rules: Brock Lesnar (w/ Tully Blanchard) vs. Kiyoshi Tamura 2. Toshiaki Kawada vs. Shinya Hashimoto 3. UWF Rules: Ken Shamrock vs. Minoru Suzuki

One of Naruse's most dominant performances thus far, with Yamamoto again playing the wily challenger, trying to grab whatever he can, however he can. The strike exchanges get pretty wild at times, but Naruse doesn't seem in danger of losing the match, and stays in control of the unpredictable situation in Yamamoto, finally tapping him with some sort of arm hold. Easily overshadowed by the main event but still a fun watch.

Just incredible stuff. I haven't seen this match in like...I don't know, 10-15 years? But everything builds to this beautiful crescendo of submission wrestling until exhaustion and apprehension take hold in an attempt to outpace, outmaneuver, and outsmart the opponent. The opening matwork sets the stage, with these sudden bursts into position, especially from Tamura, and whenever either is able to grab onto something, the crowd bites on with anticipation. The awareness from both guys is off the charts and they manage to work themselves out of predicaments - I mean, the first rope break doesn't come until 13 minutes into the match. And then the strikes start-up, with Tamura popping TK in the corner with open palms to get him down in a prone position, yet it’s TK that sends him to the ropes with the kneebar, acknowledging the crowd afterwards like "yeah, I got answers too." And that's really the story of the match...Tamura has the answer to TK, who has the answer to Tamura, and it leads to a draw because...well, no one has the correct answer. The intensity picks up around the 20:00 mark, with Tamura rocking TK's world with a barrage of hard palms (sold wonderfully by TK) and yet, when TK fires back a bit later with high kicks to the head, Tamura still manages to snag a foot and put him in the kneebar. As the time dwindles, each rope breaks becomes that much more meaningful, hard strikes are thrown with wild abandon. I loved TK's desperation judo throw but again, Tamura is able to roll through it into an armbar attempt, which TK counters with his own armbar to force the rope break. Answers! Tamura's toe on the ropes to break TK's front necklock was very dramatic, the crowd buying it as a possible finish. But just the ability to switch gears so deftly, like TK slipping on his second throw attempt but instinctually rolling Tamura up with another kneebar. And the final few minutes of last-ditch submission attempts - the counters and reversals, yet no resolve - so so good. The mutual respect. The crowd appreciation. A fuckin' plus.

Following the traditional competitor’s parade to open the show, Akira Maeda and Nobuhiko Takada announced a special event on Sunday, 8/30, entitled “HEAT OF BATTLE”, which will take place at Tokyo Nippon Budokan. While no matches were officially announced, Takada indicated that this event would essentially “kick-off” the race for the coveted U-COSMOS Crown. The opening contest saw the undefeated Brock Lesnar take on Katsuyori Shibata under the UWF Rules. Shibata’s strategy was simple: keep Lesnar at bay with kicks and strikes, and try to take out the legs for a ground submission. Lesnar, however, was trying to get in for a suplex, or an amateur-style takedown into a choke. Shibata was able to avoid many of Lesnar’s throw attempts but after a belly-to-belly suplex stunned him, Lesnar launched Shibata with a release German suplex, keeping him down for the 10 count. Blanchard bragged about his client backstage, saying Lesnar could fight anyone, under any set of rules. When asked who he’d like to fight, Brock called out Kiyoshi Tamura! In tag team action, Shinjiro Ohtani and Koji Kanemoto defeated Alexander Otsuka and Takehiro Murahama in a fast-paced, back-and-forth match-up. Otsuka was obviously the biggest threat in the match, and Ohtani and Kanemoto had to work to isolate Murahama. Murahama fought well, trading kicks with both opponents and even taking out Kanemoto with a beautiful dive to the outside. Otsuka cleaned house off of a hot tag and tried to submit Kanemoto with a front necklock but Ohtani made the save for his partner. In the end, Murahama tried to finish off Ohtani with a brainbuster but Ohtani was able to slip out into a full nelson and snap Murahama over with a dragon suplex hold for the pinfall. Otsuka was clearly frustrated with the loss but made sure Murahama was alright. Kiyoshi Tamura battled Katsumi Usuda in a stiff, strike-heavy UWF Rules match. Usuda knew he was no match for Tamura on the ground so his goal was to kick Tamura as hard as possible, looking to pick up a KO victory. And boy, did he try, blasting Tamura with a ton of kicks, from all angles and directions. At one point, he staged Tamura with a high kick in the corner. But his fatal flaw came when he tried to turn that into a cross armbreaker on the mat, which Tamura was able to overpower and turn into the double wristlock for the quick tapout. Backstage, Tamura was briefly asked about the potential of facing Brock Lesnar, and Tamura responded that he would take on any challenger. Suzuki-gun’s Daisuke Ikeda and Kendo Kashin were in tag team action against Yuji Nagata and Kazuo Yamazaki. Ikeda and Kashin were accompanied to the ring by Kazuyuki Fujita, who worked as the ringside enforcer. Nagata and Yamazaki had the fans firmly behind them as they rallied around the shenanigans and pulled off the win following a backdrop hold by Nagata on Kashin. The exchanges between Ikeda and Nagata stood out, in terms of their intensity, while Kashin was, more or less, trying to get his opponent outside of the ring and into the hands of Fujita. Shinya Hashimoto had his hands full with a feisty Masahito Kakihara in Hash’s first UWF Rules match for the promotion. Kakihara answered Hashimoto’s challenge and Hash had to withstand the constant barrages of open-handed slaps and kicks from the quicker Kakihara, the fans once again interested in seeing Hashimoto work outside of his element. No stranger to hard kicks, Hashimoto dished out plenty against Kakihara but nearly found himself caught by an armbar on the mat, in which he had to utilize a rope break. At one point, a palm thrust by Kakihara bust Hashimoto’s nose, and with the release of blood came the unleashing of Hashimoto’s anger. As Kakihara charged in for an attack in the corner, Shinya blasted out with a huge roundhouse kick that cut Kakihara down like a tree. After the match, Hashimoto grabbed a microphone and issued a challenge to Toshiaki Kawada for a singles match at HEAT OF BATTLE. Yuki Ishikawa teamed with his former PWFG cohorts against Suzuki-gun’s Minoru Suzuki, Kazuyuki Fujita and Kazunari Murakami. A brutally hard-hitting six-man tag, with Ishikawa getting busted open from a shoot headbutt by Fujita. Of course, the major focus was on the feud between Shamrock and Suzuki, but also Funaki and Murakami had some heated exchanges. Kendo Kashin and Daisuke Ikeda were at ringside and tried to intervene when given the opportunity but referee Kyohei Wada kept them from too many shenanigans. Ishikawa at one point had Suzuki in the octopus hold, and the fans were losing it at the thought of Suzuki submitting as Shamrock and Funaki held the others back. But Suzuki was able to roll through in a counter and very quickly spiked Ishikawa with the Gotch-style piledriver for the three count. After the match, Shamrock grabbed a microphone and demanded a match with Suzuki at HEAT OF BATTLE, to which Suzuki happily accepted. The main event was about as King’s Road as it gets, with Hiroshi Hase giving his all in his performance against Kensuke Sasaki, with tons of head dropping bombs thrown by both men. Sasaki was the heavy aggressor of the match, with Hase working as the sympathetic elder statesman, but when he got fired up, he dumped Sasaki with ura-nages and even got the crowd chanting for his giant swing. He managed to survive not one but two lariats from Sasaki, and scored his final nearfall with a beautiful Northern Lights suplex hold. But after a third lariat, Sasaki put Hase away with the Northern Lights Bomb. Hase bowed to the crowd following his loss, and Sasaki cut a promo, thanking Hase, and once again, reiterating his goal to capture the U-COSMOS Crown. U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 3", 8/15/00 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 2,000 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House UWF Rules: Brock Lesnar (w/ Tully Blanchard) beat Katsuyori Shibata (8:56) by KO (German suplex). Shinjiro Ohtani & Koji Kanemoto beat Alexander Otsuka & Takehiro Murahama (11:29) when Ohtani used a dragon suplex hold on Murahama. UWF Rules: Kiyoshi Tamura beat Katsumi Usuda (9: 08) with the double wristlock. Yuji Nagata & Kazuo Yamazaki beat Daisuke Ikeda & Kendo Kashin (10:23) when Nagata used a backdrop hold on Kashin. UWF Rules: Shinya Hashimoto beat Masahito Kakihara (7:38) by KO (roundhouse kick). Minoru Suzuki, Kazunari Murakami & Kazuyuki Fujita beat Ken Shamrock, Masakatsu Funaki & Yuki Ishikawa (14:34) when Suzuki used the Gotch-style piledriver on Ishikawa. Kensuke Sasaki beat Hiroshi Hase (18:33) with the Northern Lights Bomb.

This was really solid. Haseman with some impressive looking kicks, including a crazy high savate that catches Kenichi in the side of the head and crumples him. But Kenichi is wily and throws some pretty stiff kicks of his own and manages a few nice takedowns. At one point, Yamamoto just straight chokes him. Some funny moments, like Haseman whiffing on a German suplex attempt and Yamamoto trying to goad him onto the mat for grappletime. But Haseman would rather strike and whaps Yamamoto upside the head with an open hand. Haseman gets a couple of slams but can't capitalize on the mat, and Yamamoto ends up choking him out.

A fun Ilioukhine showcase. He's so good at selling the strikes and the way he works for his holds throughout really add to the sense of realism. Naruse's shine is starting to fade...maybe it was the haircut...but he's still decent enough here.

Tamura's punishment for losing against Overeem. What a waste.

This was great, up until the finish. I mean, the way Han keeps pushing TK away as he’s got the full extension on the armbar is the definition of ring awareness, which Han co-wrote the book on. Just slick work as usual from both guys - the dueling holds on the mat were flawless and compelling. Loved Han putting some spicy mustard on his strikes at the end, popping TK with open hands and downing him with a big knee, which you don't see often. Clearly, Han was frustrated with how things ended and it seemed like a mistake on his part, either inadvertently tapping or tapping before TK could fully lock in the hold. Regardless, there was excellent wrestling taking place.

If you need your suplex fix in RINGS, Bakouri is your guy. He's just suplexing all day long while Sakata is working through the textbook holds on the mat. Sakata tries to heat up with the open hands and the kicks but Bakouri keeps squashing those attempts, eventually suplexing him to the ground and tapping him with a heel hold. Fun little match-up.

Man, Volk's selling of Maeda's submission attempts is so good - he really makes Maeda still look like a legitimate threat on the mat, and the way this progressed was the perfect momentum to keep the Maeda's aura strong while giving Volk his revenge in the armbar. About as solid as five minutes of matwork can get.

Poor Tamura. Outclassed in the striking department, nearly gets choked out at least two or three times before he taps to the kneebar. Spoiler alert: Maeda isn't happy about the result.

Not one to be outdone by anybody, Shinya Hashimoto issued an open challenge for a UWF Rules match-up at this Saturday's Fighting Art 3 at Korakuen Hall. Hashimoto has been engaged in a bit of rivalry against Toshiaki Kawada and upon seeing Kawada's success in the UWF style last week against Kazuo Yamazaki, Hashimoto wanted to prove that he too could work under that particular set of rules. Hashimoto doesn't care who steps up to the challenge but promised a victory, stating the old "Annie Get Your Gun" adage of "anything Kawada can do, I can do better." Hashimoto won't be satisfied until he gets the opportunity to face Kawada one-on-one in the ring, regardless of the match rules. U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 3", 8/15/00 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1. UWF Rules: Brock Lesnar (w/ Tully Blanchard) vs. Katsuyori Shibata 2. UWF Rules: Shinya Hashimoto vs. X 3. Kensuke Sasaki vs. Hiroshi Hase

Loved Zouev just clinging to that early armbar, not letting go for the life of him as TK tries to find a way out. Very competitive and smart matwork, whether it's fighting over holds, leveraging themselves for more pressure or positioning their opponents away from the ropes. Good stuff!

Nothing super fancy here but a good, competitive match-up with Hiromitsu bringing the heavy strikes and Ilioukhine holding his ground on the mat. By the end of it, Hiromitsu is on E but I liked that he was still trying to slap Mikhail as he’s being dragged down into the final submission hold, to which he taps out in anticlimactic fashion.

This ruled. Mikhail looked like a legitimate threat on the ground whereas Tamura on his feet is so quick and dangerous. When Mikhail's able to grab a hold of something (i.e. the head-and-arm choke takedown), it looks brutal but Tamura's beautiful escapes (and failed attempts) keep you on the edge of your seat. Never a dull moment. Tamura just cracks him with kicks and later on, crumples him with some gnarly knee strikes to the dome. But there was a lot to love here. 1) Mikhail grabbing the straight armbar and when Tamura tries to slip out, Mikhail rodeos him down to the ground, forcing the rope break. 2) The German suplex tease and Tamura's lightning-quick counter. 3) Tamura staying in control of the leg as Mikhail scrambles for a way out. World-class athleticism from Tamura and a strong victory. And yeah, Volk Han berating the losing Ilioukhine with water was very good.

At this point, Maeda still can't go as well as 1995 but the fans still love him and Volk Han does such a good job of putting the early pressure on Maeda, who tries to crawl out of each hold only to find himself in a new predicament thanks to Han's impeccable resourcefulness. Maeda knows the weak point on Han is his knee and tries to take It out with kicks to set up his famous kneebar and when he finally grabs it good, Volk yelps and taps in under five minutes. This was very good while it lasted, and maybe Maeda in these short bursts the best Maeda circa '98.

Tully Blanchard, the American liaison to U-COSMOS, invited the media to a training session featuring Brock Lesnar, and Russian sambo expert and former RINGS wrestler, Mikhail Ilioukhine. Blanchard revealed that he had acquired the services of Ilioukhine to "further enhance" his client's abilities in the ring, and seemingly indicated that Mikhail had signed a contract with U-COSMOS as an active competitor. Blanchard narrated as the media watched Lesnar and Ilioukhine spar in the ring, with Lesnar working through a series of transitions and holds, while Ilioukhine dished out a few throws and takedowns. Blanchard hinted that he was looking to bring in a "dangerous striker" to work with his client but that the deal was still "in the works". Following the workout, Lesnar was asked what his goals were in U-COSMOS and Lesnar's response: "to be the best." Blanchard said that Lesnar will compete in his first UWF Rules match-up this Saturday against another young rookie in Katsuyori Shibata. According to Blanchard, Shibata has been working with the likes of Kazuo Yamazaki and Yuji Nagata, and is showing a lot of promise..."but obviously, not to level of Brock Lesnar." Obviously. U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 3", 8/15/00 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1. UWF Rules: Brock Lesnar (w/ Tully Blanchard) vs. Katsuyori Shibata 2. Kensuke Sasaki vs. Hiroshi Hase

This was solid tag action, if not a hair too long. I thought Makabe looked pretty good, between the suplexes and his big ass slaps. Takaiwa didn't do a whole lot, which is fine - he's good for a clobbering or two - but I thought Minoru in particular looked really good here. His armbar takedown always looks super slick. I mean, I won't remember this match a month from now but it was fun for what it was.

With the announcement of the U-COSMOS Crown, one name that has been in the conversation for top contenders is Kensuke Sasaki, formally of New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Sasaki was enjoying quite the success in NJPW prior to the promotion's collapse and it seems Sasaki wants to carry that momentum forward into U-COSMOS. On the heels of another sold out show this past Saturday at Korakuen Hall, Sasaki was quick to issue a challenge for this Saturday's Fighting Art 3. "It's nothing personal," said Sasaki in a post-match interview, "but if I want to be the strongest, I must defeat those I admire the most." On 8/15, Sasaki will face none other than his former tag team partner, Hiroshi Hase, in standard singles action. Sasaki hopes that a win over his former partner will secure him a spot in the U-COSMOS Crown tournament in the near future. When asked about his relationship with rookie Takehiro Murahama, Sasaki said that Murahama has all the tools to succeed in U-COSMOS and he plans to mentor him as part of the aforementioned Kensuke Office. Another name associated with "the office" is Alexander Otsuka, who Sasaki said is one of the most dangerous competitors in the promotion and he'd rather have him as a friend than an enemy. When asked if any other names would be joining his office, Sasaki remained vague and thanked the press before making his exit. U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 3", 8/15/2000 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1. Kensuke Sasaki vs. Hiroshi Hase

U-COSMOS returned in front of another sold out crowd at Korakuen Hall, and as per custom, the parade of windbreaker-adorning competitors made their way to the ring to open the show. Nobuhiko Takada and Akira Maeda once again thanked the fans for their attendance, and promised a very special show tonight, hyping the “dream match” main event. The show opened with a big six-man tag match, featuring Jun Akiyama, Hiroshi Hase and Minoru Tanaka teaming up against Kensuke Sasaki, Alexander Otsuka and Takehiro Murahama. While Akiyama and Hase were on opposing sides last week, it’s seems the two have come together to take on what Sasaki is calling his “Kensuke Office”. Tons of suplex throws throughout, and an excellent exchange between Akiyama and Otsuka which saw Otsuka fold him in half with a release German suplex. Murahama gave Akiyama some fire during the finishing stretch, rallying the crowd behind him, and while he survived one Exploder suplex, the wrist-clutch variation was enough to put him away. Brock Lesnar, lead to the ring by his manager, Tully Blanchard, took on a former Olympic wrestler in Tamon Honda. Despite Brock’s size, Honda put Lesnar to the test on the mat as the two put on an amateur clinic, with tons of holds, counters, reversals, escapes, and some big throws toward the end of the match. After a belly-to-belly suplex by Brock, Tamon was able to grab an armbar upon impact but Brock used his strength to turn it into a rear naked choke, and Honda had no choice but to tap out. Backstage, Blanchard bragged that Lesnar “mopped the floor” with an Olympic athlete, and that he would do that with everyone here in U-COSMOS. In an UWF Rules exhibition, Yoshihisa Yamamoto and Masayuki Naruse, formally of Fighting Network RINGS, worked very hard to get the crowd invested in their match-up. Tons of stiff strikes from both guys – kicks, knees, open palms. Yamamoto, sporting his signature yellow trunks, seemed to have the clear advantage over Naruse in blue. Naruse did catch him with a nasty spinning backhand but Yamamoto was able to recover and rolled him up into a kneebar for the submission. Midway through the match, the rumored Golden Cups made their way through the crowd to sit in the front row and watch the remainder of the match. Following his win, Yamamoto told reporters that he would once again rise through the ranks and be considered at the top of the UWF style. The legend Tatsumi Fujinami made his in-ring debut for U-COSMOS in competition against another legend in Yoshiaki Fujiwara. Fujinami, who teamed with Osamu Nishimura against Fujiwara and his former trainee, Yuki Ishikawa. A very old-school feel to the match, a slow burn to a hot finish, with Fujinami getting fed up with the feisty Ishikawa and slapping the shit out of him before submitting him with the signature dragon sleeper. But the exchanges with Fujiwara, between both Fujinami and Nishimura, were very entertaining. All four men shook hands after the match, with Fujinami seemingly indicated that he would like to face Fujiwara in a singles match. Kazuo Yamazaki laid out the challenge to Toshiaki Kawada for a UWF Rules match, and Kawada came in ready to do battle. Yamazaki overwhelmed him right out of the gate with some big kicks and jumping knee strikes. He backed Kawada into a corner, and forced him to fire back with a flurry of mid kicks and a rolling wheel kick. The fans were super into the idea of Kawada being forced to work outside of his comfort zone, but Yamazaki wasn’t having it and kept trying to submit Kawada with a cross armbreaker. After a big German suiplex, Yamazaki tried one last time to secure the armbar but Kawada fought out, punted Yamazaki in the head and nearly took it clean off his shoulders with a roundhouse kick for the KO. After the match, Shinya Hashimoto made his way out to the ring to confront Kawada. The two went nose-to-nose but before anything could escalate, Takada intervened. In the semi-main event, Ken Shamrock and Masakatsu Funaki joined together to do battle against Minoru Suzuki and Kazunari Murakami. Suzuki and Murakami, who were accompanied to the ring by Kazuyuki Fujita and Daisuke Ikeda, jumped Shamrock and Funaki before the bell and controlled the first part of the match. Funaki was isolated and prevented from making the tag to his partner, and when thrown outside the ring, was double teamed by Fujita and Ikeda while Suzuki distracted the ref. Eventually, Funaki was able to fight off Suzuki and Murakami, making the hot tag to Shamrock, who hit belly-to-belly suplexes on both Suzuki and Murakami. Murakami eventually succumbed to the ankle hold but before Shamrock and Funaki could celebrate, they were overwhelmed by Suzuki-gun. And right when it seemed like they were getting control of the situation, Kendo Kashin entered ringside through the crowd and cracked Shamrock the back of the head with a kendo stick, which led to all five men beating them down. Kashin officially joined Suzuki-gun as Minoru stood over Shamrock and Funaki, grinning like a mad man. The main event saw Kazushi Sakuraba make is in-ring debut against the Russian sambo expert, Volk Han. Despite the age difference, Han more than held his own against Sakuraba and the two exceeded expectations in a match that went over 15:00. Han pulled out all the tricks, including the scissors takedown into the kneebar, the split-legged hold, and even a hammerlock throw. Sakuraba, however, was in much better shape and managed to slip through most of Han’s serious submission attempts. The fans, of course, ate everything up and were split on who to support, as Han’s popularity in Japan is immense. Both men were driven to the ropes numerous times but in the end, Sakuraba emerged victorious when he caught Han with the kimura and cinched in it. The two embraced after the match and Sakuraba bowed to Han, thanking him for the match. U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 2", 8/8/2000 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 2,000 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House 1. Jun Akiyama, Hiroshi Hase & Minoru Tanaka beat Kensuke Sasaki, Alexander Otsuka & Takehiro Murahama (11:33) when Akiyama used the wrist-clutch Exploder on Murahama. 2. Brock Lesnar (w/ Tully Blanchard) beat Tamon Honda (7:42) with a rear naked choke. 3. UWF Rules: Yoshihisa Yamamoto beat Masayuki Naruse (9:50) with a kneebar. 4. Tatsumi Fujinami & Osamu Nishimura beat Yoshiaki Fujiwara & Yuki Ishikawa (12:56) when Fujinami used the dragon sleeper on Ishikawa. 5. UWF Rules: Toshiaki Kawada beat Kazuo Yamazaki (10:14) by KO (roundhouse kick). 6. Ken Shamrock & Masakatu Funaki beat Minoru Suzuki & Kazunari Murakami (14:38) when Shamrock used the ankle hold on Murakami. 7. UWF Rules: Kazushi Sakuraba beat Volk Han (16:09) with the kimura.

The legendary "Dragon", Tatsumi Fujinami, will make his in-ring debut for U-COSMOS this Saturday in tag team action. Fujinami will team with Osamu Nishimura in what he hopes will be a "classic" catch-as-catch-can match against another stalwart legend in Yoshiaki Fujiwara and Fujiwara's former trainee, Yuki Ishikawa. All four men are renowned for their grappling ability, and while Fujinami admitted that he's nearing 50 years old, he feels like he has much to give back to the Japanese fans and the younger wrestlers in the industry looking to uphold the traditional style. Fujinami, who was spotted at the U-COSMOS Gym with Nishimura, has put his faith in the promotion as a means to restore professional wrestling in Japan after the widespread collapse of the industry. "Going back to the basics", Fujinami said, "is a simple but powerful idea." U-COSMOS "Fighting Art 2", 8/8/2000 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1. Tatsumi Fujinami & Osamu Nishimura vs. Yoshiaki Fujiwara & Yuki Ishikawa 2. UWF Rules: Toshiaki Kawada vs. Kazuo Yamazaki 3. Ken Shamrock & Masakatu Funaki vs. Minoru Suzuki & Kazunari Murakami 4. UWF Rules: Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Volk Han