[1998-05-29-RINGS] Mikhail Ilioukhine vs Masayuki Naruse

[Jetlag]

East Europeans were pretty much carrying the RINGS undercard in 1998. This was a genuinely great Ilioukhine performance as he basically manhandles Naruse for your amusement. I wouldn't say Naruse was carried but he wasn't doing anything super exciting either. Atleast he has a nice backhand. Some really good exchanges in this one.

[superkix]

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.