Pursuing the DREAM (From DREAM.6 Onward)

[crazedfan]

DREAM's fifth offering gave us the finale of the Lightweight Grand Prix and crowned the first ever DREAM Lightweight champion. The eventual tournament winner would be Joachim Hansen, who had won earlier in the night in the reserve bout in case one of the semi-finalists were injured in their fights, and such was the case.
Shinya Aoki took home a Unanimous Decision victory over crafty veteran Caol Uno in the first Semi Final, while Eddie Alvarez took a TKO victory over Tatsuya Kawajiri, but sustained an eye injury and was unable to compete in the finals. When all the dust had settled, Hansen defeated a fatigued Aoki via TKO to secure the win, and title.
The next DREAM show will feature the semi-finals of the Middleweight tournament which were announced today by FEG President Sadaharu Tanigawa along with the venue, date and two reserve bouts. Tanigawa also announced that the Finals of the Middleweight Grand Prix would likely take place at DREAM's New Year's Eve show.
Gilbert "The Hurricane" Yvel will be making his return to Japan, after last defeating Akira Shoji at PRIDE's last show.
The much rumored Welterweight Title bout between Hayato Sakurai vs. Nick Diaz will be taking place. Diaz, despite his busy schedule, will be fighting at DREAM.6 for sure, and DREAM officials anticipate no problems this time around.

DREAM.6 "Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 Semi Finals", 8/29/08 (TBS/PPV)
Nagoya Rainbow Hall

1. Kotetsu Boku vs. Jung Bu-Kyung
2. Akitoshi Tamura vs. Hiroyuki Abe
3. Gilbert Yvel vs. Bum Chan Kang
4. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Denis Kang
5. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Jason "Mayhem" Miller
6. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Gegard Mousasi vs. Zelg Galesic
7. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Melvin Manhoef vs. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza
8. DREAM Weltwerweight Title: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai vs. Nick Diaz
OOC: Feel free to post predictions if you feel inclined, maybe there'll be a match-making prize in the future for the winner.

[D.C.]

1. Kotetsu Boku vs. Jung Bu-Kyung
2. Akitoshi Tamura vs. Hiroyuki Abe
3. Gilbert Yvel vs. Bum Chan Kang
4. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Denis Kang
5. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Jason "Mayhem" Miller
6. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Gegard Mousasi vs. Zelg Galesic
7. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Melvin Manhoef vs. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza
8. DREAM Weltwerweight Title: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai vs. Nick Diaz

[Carlzilla]

1. Kotetsu Boku vs. Jung Bu-Kyung
2. Akitoshi Tamura vs. Hiroyuki Abe
3. Gilbert Yvel vs. Bum Chan Kang
4. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Denis Kang
5. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Jason "Mayhem" Miller
6. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Gegard Mousasi vs. Zelg Galesic
7. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Melvin Manhoef vs. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza
8. DREAM Weltwerweight Title: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai vs. Nick Diaz

[crazedfan]

While the two finalists of the 2008 Middleweight Grand Prix were determined last night, neither were the main event. In the final bout of the evening, the inaugural DREAM Welterweight champion was crowned. In a night filled with decisions, the fight for the DREAM Welterweight Title went the distance with the hometown favorite taking the unanimous victory. It was largely a stand up affair with Nick Diaz opting for quantity while Hayato "Mach" Sakurai preferred power shots. Sakurai rocked Diaz on a number of occassions and this is what seemed to stick in judge's minds rather than the constant peppering of punches by Diaz. In the end, it was Sakurai who became the first DREAM Welterweight champion.
In the more anticipated of the two semi finals from the Middleweight Grand Prix, Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza was surprisingly unable to catch powerhouse Melvin Manhoef in any sort of submission as many had predicted. Jacare's superior ground skills were on full display, but Manhoef showed an affinity of avoiding any and all submissions thrown at him. While he was never able to mount any sustained offense, Manhoef showed his much improved ground game, but it was Jacare's ground control and aggressive grappling that earned him a unanimous nod from the judges.
And in the other semi final, the young Armenian Gegard Mousasi took home an easy unanimous decision over Croatian Zelg "Benkei" Galesic. While Mousasi has shown a preference to stand in the past, he took advantage of his opponents weak ground game and showed suffocating top control en route to the finals.
In the bigger reserve bout, Korean judoka Yoshihiro Akiyama beat out charismatic American Jason "Mayhem" Miller. Despite having the crowd's support, Miller and his Mayhem Monkeys couldn't overcome Akiyama's superior striking and judo throws.
Denis Kang continued his rough stretch of luck, falling to the crafty veteran Kiyoshi Tamura. Kang took the first 10 minute round fairly easily, but in the second round it was a different story. Tamura scored a takedown ending up in side control and from there it was business as usual. Tamura peppered Kang with punches before finally locking up an arm with a kimura to take the win with less than a minute to go in the fight.
In the three preliminary fights, Gilbert "The Hurricane" Yvel made a triumphant return to Japan taking home a TKO victory, while Akitoshi Tamura and Kotetsu Boku both took decision victories.

DREAM.6 "Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 Semi Finals", 8/29/08 (TBS/PPV)
Nagoya Rainbow Hall
9,100 Fans

1. Kotetsu Boku beat Jung Bu-Kyung (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
2. Akitoshi Tamura beat Hiroyuki Abe (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
3. Gilbert Yvel beat Bum Chan Kang (R1 6:59) by TKO (Punches).
4. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Kiyoshi Tamura beat Denis Kang (R2 4:19) by Submission (Kimura).
5. Middleweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Yoshihiro Akiyama beat Jason "Mayhem" Miller (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
6. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Gegard Mousasi beat Zelg "Benkei" Galesic (R2) by Unanimous Decision
7. Middleweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza beat Melvin Manhoef (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
8. DREAM Weltwerweight Title: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai beat Nick Diaz (R2) by Unanimous Decision to become the 1st champion.

[crazedfan]

The first defense of the DREAM Lightweight Title will go down, as Lightweight Grand Prix champion Joachim "Hellboy" Hansen will defend against Eddie Alvarez. Alvarez defeated Hansen via unanimous decision in the second round of the tournament and defeated Tatsuya Kawajiri in the semi final, but was unable to compete against Shinya Aoki in the final due to an injury. That is when Hansen stepped in after submitting Kultar Gill in the reserve match and went on to defeat Aoki in the finals. Alvarez, now recovered from his eye injury, will now get his chance to secure the Lightweight Title for himself.
Aleksander Emelianenko will be making his return to Japan after some mishaps in attempting to fight in America. Amidst many rumors as to why he was unable to obtain a license to fight, the younger brother of Fedor will fight for the first time in Japan in over two years and DREAM officials have assured his opponent and fans that there are no reasons for concern regarding Aleks' health.
Originally slated to happen back in June, the grappling match between Mirko Cro Cop and Ralek Gracie will take place at DREAM.7 in Cro Cop's first action since having surgery on his shoulder and knee. The match will take place under modified Abu Dhabi rules; there will be two 5-minute rounds and the only way to win will be by submission. There will be no points awarded and if there is no winner after the two rounds, the fight will be declared an automatic draw.
Further down the card, Shinya Aoki will look to earn a victory in order to return to the DREAM Lightweight Title, but it will be anything but a formality. Aoki will be fighting Naoyuki Kotani, while failing to achieve the success he would have liked in UFC, is still certainly a quality fighter.
Grappling extraordinaire Marcelo Garcia will hope to complete the transition to MMA. He was vastly undersized against middleweight opponent Dae Won Kim nearly one year ago in a losing effort, but against lightweight opponents now, we should see his true ability.
Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett, long known for his lack of commitment to training, will also be returning to Japan for the first time in over two years since losing to Tatsuya Kawajiri PRIDE's 11th edition of Bushido. He will however have his hands full with Koji Oishi, who has over 25 pro fights to his credit.
Ikuhisa Minowa will be fighting on in the evening's third bout against former pro boxer Yosuke Nishijima. Minowaman will almost certainly be looking to take this to the ground, lest he wishes to become the victim of a brutal knockout.

DREAM.7 "Lightweight Title 2nd Encounter", 10/17/08 (TBS/PPV)
Tokyo Ariake Colosseum

1. Hiroshi Nakamura vs. "Tornado" Un Sik Song
2. Hidehiko Hasegawa vs. Shungo Oyama
3. Ikuhisa "Minowaman" Minowa vs. Yosuke Nishijima
4. Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett vs. Koji Oishi
5. Marcelo Garcia vs. Andre "Dida" Amade
6. Shinya Aoki vs. Naoyuki Kotani
7. Special Grappling Match: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Ralek Gracie
8. Aleksander Japan Return: Aleksander Emelianenko vs. Tatsuya Mizuno
9. DREAM Lightweight Title: Joachim Hansen (c) vs. Eddie Alvarez

[crazedfan]

The much anticipated rematch between now DREAM Lightweight champion Joachim "Hellboy" Hansen and Eddie Alvarez was the main event last night in Tokyo and it was every bit as good as their first encounter. The beginning of the fight was a bit slow with a lengthy feeling out process before Alvarez scored a takedown, but was unable to get any offense going. After escaping during a scramble, the rest of the fight was a near carbon-copy of the first fight, with it just being an absolute slugfest. The fight eventually went to the judges scorecards, and like the first fight, Eddie Alvarez had his hand raised, but was this time awarded the DREAM Lightweight Title.
In the semi-main event of the evening, Aleksander Emelianenko, younger brother of Fedor, made a dominant return to the Japanese MMA scene. Emelianenko utilized the clinch early and often against overmatched opponent Tatsuya Mizuno landing several stinging knees and punches, but not before Mizuno scored a takedown and landed in half guard! Mizuno attempted to move to side control, but during the transition, Emelianenko took his back, before eventually winding up back in full guard. After 30 seconds, Aleks opted to stand back up and it turned out to be a smart decision as he knocked out Mizuno cold with a vicious punch.
Mirko Cro Cop made his return to competition, sort of, in a grappling exhibition against perhaps the next great Gracie fighter, Ralek Gracie. While Ralek was never able to submit Cro Cop, he did spend the most of the 10 minutes as the aggressor in the dominant position as Mirko was forced to fend off several submission attempts. In the end, the time limit was reached, and as per the rules, was declared an automatic draw. Cro Cop could not give an estimate as to when he would be back in his first FIGHT since surgery, but did say he would indeed like to fight Alistair Overeem if that is what DREAM wants.
Shinya Aoki also returned to his winning ways after losing in the finals of the 2008 Lightweight Grand Prix, although not in the fashion the crowd had anticipated. Aoki surprisingly decided to keep this fight standing which Naoyuki Kotani was all but inclined to accept. But Aoki showed much improved striking and outboxed the former UFC fighter for 15 minutes en route to a lackluster decision victory.
It was perhaps Andre "Dida" Amade's MMA experience that made the difference in his bout with Marcelo Garcia. Garcia, long touted as one of the best grapplers in the world, was unable to get Dida to the ground and was clearly frustrated as the fight was forced into a stand up affair. Dida had the obvious advantage on the feet, and took home a clear decision victory.
Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett, known for his apathy towards training, returned to Japan for the first time since PRIDE Bushido 11, this time at welterweight. This move up in weight was perhaps an ill-informed decision though, as Koji Oishi took home a unanimous decision victory while outmuscling and controlling Bennett on the ground.
Minowaman was able to avoid the far superior boxing of Yosuke Nishijima en route to a decision victory, while Hidehiko Hasegawa and Shungo Oyama went the distance as well. And two DREAM neophytes, Hiroshi Nakamura and "Tornado" Un Sik Song put on an exciting, if slightly sloppy, fight with Nakamura taking home the TKO victory.

DREAM.7 "Lightweight Title 2nd Encounter", 10/17/08 (TBS/PPV)
Tokyo Ariake Colosseum
7,700 Fans

1. Hiroshi Nakamura beat "Tornado" Un Sik Song (R1 9:10) by TKO (Punches).
2. Hidehiko Hasegawa beat Shungo Oyama (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
3. Ikuhisa "Minowaman" Minowa beat Yosuke Nishijima (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
4. Koji Oishi beat Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
5. Andre "Dida" Amade beat Marcelo Garcia (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
6. Shinya Aoki beat Naoyuki Kotani (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
7. Special Grappling Match: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Ralek Gracie (R2) went to a Draw.
8. Aleksander Japan Return Match: Aleksander Emelianenko beat Tatsuya Mizuno (R1 4:22) by KO (Punch).
9. DREAM Lightweight Title: Eddie Alvarez beat Joachim Hansen (c) (R2) by Unanimous Decision to become the 2nd champion.


At the post fight press conference, FEG President Sadaharu Tanigawa along with other DREAM officials preceded the fighters to announce this year's New Year's Eve show, Yarennoka! II at the Saitama Super Arena, the site of the first three DREAM shows. Tanigawa also announced the first two participants, Fedor Emelianenko and Takanori Gomi! Tanigawa though, would not elaborate as to how Gomi, who was thought to have been contracted to World Victory Road's Sengoku, will be fighting on New Year's Eve for DREAM.

DREAM "Yarennoka! II", 12/31/08 (PPV)
Saitama Super Arena

- Fedor Emelianenko, Takanori Gomi

[crazedfan]

Headlining this year's big New Year's Eve show will be the fight that should have been the final for the Lightweight Grand Prix back in July. Eddie Alvarez, after beating Joachim Hansen for the second time two months ago, took the DREAM Lightweight Title that he so valiantly fought for during the tournament. Opposite from Alvarez will be perhaps the best jiu-jitsu player in the world, Shinya Aoki. Aoki defeated former UFC fighter Naoyuki Kotani two months ago to get back on the right track and will certainly need to put to use all of his skills to neutralize the aggressive attack of Alvarez. It was also announced that starting with tonight's title fight, all future title fights will be held for a duration of 3 rounds, rather than 2. In addition to the first 10 minute round and the second 5 minute, there will be a third 5 minute round added on for all title matches.
The penultimate bout of the evening will see 'The Last Emperor' Fedor Emelianenko return to Japan for his traditional New Year's Eve fight. Against him will be an opponent who, while not as tall, weighs just as much as Fedor's last opponent Hong-Man Choi. On the other side of the ring will be 'The Beast' Bob Sapp! While some fans might be disappointed with the matchup, Sapp has much more MMA experience than Choi did and will certainly pose many problems to Emelianenko.
In what could be the most anticipated fight on the entire card, Takanori Gomi will make his DREAM debut in what should be the first of several exciting match-ups. 'The Fireball Kid' will certainly have his hands full though with the crafty veteran Caol Uno, whose last fight was in July in a losing effort against Shinya Aoki. This will also be Gomi's first fight since March on the first Sengoku show where he defeated heavy-handed American Duane Ludwig.
The second edition of Yarennoka! will see a rematch from one year ago that ended in controversial fashion. Kazuo Misaki seemed to have KO'd Yoshihiro Akiyama with a vicious front kick, but after much debate and review, it was determined that Akiyama was not standing and was indeed on the ground when the kick ocurred. The fight was ruled a No Contest and now fight fans will finally see the rematch they've been waiting a year for!
In a rare light heavyweight bout, at least for DREAM, Ricardo Arona will be fighting for the first time since losing to the upstart Sokoudjou over a year and a half ago. It's been a while since Arona has been in a fight and whether ring rust will play a factor remains to be seen. His opponent will be judoka Kazuhiro Nakamura, who after an unsuccessful stint in UFC, is returning to Japan for the first time in two years since PRIDE was closed. Nakamura's last fight was also a loss to Sokoudjou, and we'll see which fighter can bounce back.
The big midcard fight will be surely be a battle between two MMA legends. There will be 80 years of experience in this one, Renzo Gracie comes in at 41 years old and Masakatsu Funaki is 39. While Funaki just came out of retirement last New Year's Eve, he has shown he still has some fight left in his tank. If Funaki is to have an advantage over Gracie, as strange as it may sound, it would be his experience, Funaki has fought in over 50 MMA competitoins. But that isn't to say his opponent is a rookie, far from it. One of the foremost Gracie Jiu-Jitsu practicioners, Renzo last fought in February of 2007 against Frank Shamrock in a winning performance, albeit by disqualification. A victory from either fighter could put them in contention for a title shot, when the Middleweight Grand Prix is finalized in the coming months.
Further down the card, Gesias "JZ" Cavalcante will return to action after partially tearing his ACL some months ago. And while many might think he will be given an easy fight, that most certainly won't be the case with Katsuhiko Nagata, a former Olympic wrestling silver medalist. Both men last fought Shinya Aoki, both losing efforts.
Another unique match-up further down, as Tatsuya Kawajiri, after being stopped for the first time in his career by T/KO to Eddie Alvarez, will fight a former UFC fighter in Michihiro Omigawa. The Yoshida Dojo product went 0-2 against stiff competition in the American promotion, and will look to get back in the win column, and a win against "Crusher" would be a big one.
Gilbert Melendez has fought in Japan two years in a row now on New Year's Eve, his first time defeating Tatsuya Kawajiri, but last year he was not so fortunate. Melendez suffered his first career loss to Mitsuhiro Ishida at Yarennoka! and has since lost again, losing the Strikeforce Lightweight Title to Josh Thomson. Melendez could most certainly use a victory, but it will won't be easy. Opposite him, fighting for the first time in DREAM, is Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro. Ribeiro last lost to 'JZ' in the K-1 HERO'S Tournament Final, and after over a year of inactivity, will hope to get back to a regular fight schedule.
Another former UFC fighter will be making his DREAM debut, as Dokonjonosuke Mishima will fight Urijah Faber understudy Joseph Benavidez. Mishima went 0-2 in UFC, albeit against extremely tough competition, losing to Joe Stevenson and Kenny Florian. Now, back in Japan, Mishima has dropped to 145 pounds and will definitely have his hands full with the American Benavidez who won his DREAM debut back in July. If Benavidez is victorious, the originally scheduled July fight against Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, who is close to recovering after surgery, could be in the books soon.
It's time for TV personality Bobby Ologun's annual... fight, if one can call it that. Ologun's tradition started in 2005 when he defeated Chad "Akebono" Rowan, but has gone down in the 1st round the last two years to Hong-Man Choi and Bob Sapp. This year, Ologun will have his hands just as full as in previous years. His opponent will be none other than the near 400 pounds Zuluzinho! Zulu hasn't fought since last New Year's Eve.
In the opening fight of the evening, it should be an exciting one. Featherweight Hideo Tokoro will be fighting former lightweight, Russian Artur Oumakhanov. Oumakhanov lost in the opening round of the Lightweight Grand Prix to Katsuhiko Nagata, and will be dropping weight to fight at 145. Tokoro is 2-0 so far in DREAM, and will look to continue his undefeated streak.


DREAM "Yarennoka! II", 12/31/08 (PPV)
Saitama Super Arena

1. Hideo Tokoro vs. Artur Oumakhanov
2. Zuluzinho vs. Bobby Ologun
3. Dokonjonosuke Mishima vs. Joseph Benavidez
4. Gilbert Melendez vs. Vitor Ribeiro
5. Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Michihiro Omigawa
6. JZ Return Match: Gesias "JZ" Cavalcante vs. Katsuhiko Nagata
7. Masakatsu Funaki vs. Renzo Gracie
8. Kazuhiro Nakamura vs. Ricardo Arona
9. Yarennoka! Rematch: Kazuo Misaki vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama
10. Gomi DREAM Debut: Takanori Gomi vs. Caol Uno
11. Fedor Japan Return: Fedor Emelianenko vs. Bob Sapp
12. DREAM Lightweight Title: Eddie Alvarez (c) vs. Shinya Aoki

[crazedfan]

The fight that should have finalized the Lightweight Grand Prix headlined DREAM's New Year's Eve show and it did not disappoint. Shinya Aoki was unable to get Eddie Alvarez down to the ground and as a result, the first round was spent standing for the most part. Alvarez, with the obvious advantage, used a surprising arsenal of kicks, the likes of which we haven't seen before. Aoki's continued attempts in the second round for the takedown were also unsuccessful, as the two clinched against the ropes. The referee finally stepped in and separated the two and Alvarez once again took the advantage, pulverizing Aoki with punches. Alvarez came out in the third and final round with guns ablazing, but Aoki finally starting moving his feet, showing some defense. Aoki initiated another clinch, and this time got the trip, landing in half-guard. From this point forward it was all Aoki as he put to work some ground and pound while throwing out some last ditch submission attempts, but this final round wasn't enough to sway the judges, all three judges awarded the victory to Alvarez.
The crowd was electric for the return of 'The Last Emperor' Fedor Emelianenko, but they were also equally supportive of 'The Beast' Bob Sapp. Sapp immediately closed the distance and clinched until Fedor was able to quickly break away. It wasn't long before it was Fedor's turn to rush in, shoving Sapp up against the ropes before using the momentum and picking Sapp for a big slam! The crowd absolutely exploded and from here on out, it was business as usual for Fedor who then proceeded to decimated Sapp with vicious ground and pound befor referee Yuji Shimada finally stepped in at just under 5 minutes.
'The Fireball Kid' Takanori Gomi fought for the first time in nine months, and he did not disappoint! Caol Uno just didn't have the firepower to hang around with Gomi and was completely overmatched in the striking department. Gomi showed good footwork and looked calm and relaxed en route to a TKO victory.
In a rematch from last year's Yarennoka!, we saw two Top 10 middleweight candidates do battle once again. Kazuo Misaki put his striking on display and was able to out-point Yoshihiro Akiyama as the 'Grabaka Hitman' took home the unanimous decision victory. This is just Akiyama's second loss in his career.
Ricardo Arona and Kazuhiro Nakamura both returned to Japan for a big light heavyweight bout. Arona showed he hasn't lost a step despite his long layoff, and utilized the clinch and suffocating top control to win the first round. Nakamura attempted several armbars but were all well defended by Arona. Nakamura, knowing he was behind on the judges scorecards, came out throwing bombs, but Arona was able to weather the storm and get a single leg takedown. From here, it was business as usual Arona pounded Nakamura out until the referee stepped in, calling the fight.
Renzo Gracie showed he still has some fight left in the tank, as he battered and bruised Masakatsu Funaki before getting the submission victory. Gracie used his obviously strong ground-game and completely outclassed Funaki until finishing him with a kimura.
Gesias Cavalcante looked solid, if unspectacular in his first fight since having knee surgery. 'JZ' outstruck and outworked Katsuhiko Nagata to a unanimous win and will certainly be looking to get back into the title hunt.
Tatsuya Kawajiri also got back to his winning ways by defeating a game Michihiro Omigawa. Kawajiri landed a quick jab and Omigawa fell to the floor and Kawajiri was quick to capitalize. Omigawa desperately grabbed for a guillotine but was unable to fend off the ground and pound of 'Crusher'.
American Gilbert 'El Nino' Melendez returned to Japan, hoping to erase the memories of last year's Yarennoka!, where he lost his first career fight to Mitsuhiro Ishida. And he didn't disappoint against another tough fighter, Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro, taking home another unanimous decision.
Dokonjonosuke Mishima was successful in his featherweight debut, comedian Bobby Ologun defeated superheavyweight Zuluzinho, and Artur Oumakhanov, also dropping down to 145 pounds, was also victorious.

DREAM "Yarennoka! II", 12/31/08 (PPV)
Saitama Super Arena
35,000 Fans

1. Artur Oumakhanov beat Hideo Tokoro (R1 8:41) by TKO (Punches).
2. Bobby Ologun beat Zuluzinho (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
3. Dokonjonosuke Mishima beat Joseph Benavidez (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
4. Gilbert Melendez beat Vitor Ribeiro (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
5. Tatsuya Kawajiri beat Michihiro Omigawa (R1 6:58) by TKO (Punches).
6. JZ Return Match: Gesias "JZ" Cavalcante beat Katsuhiko Nagata (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
7. Renzo Gracie beat Masakatsu Funaki (R2 4:22) by Submission (Kimura).
8. Ricardo Arona beat Kazuhiro Nakamura (R2 1:09) by TKO (Punches).
9. Yarennoka! Rematch: Kazuo Misaki beat Yoshihiro Akiyama (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
10. Gomi DREAM Debut: Takanori Gomi beat Caol Uno (R1 6:57) by TKO (Kicks and Punches).
11. Fedor Japan Return: Fedor Emelianenko beat Bob Sapp (R1 4:58) by TKO (Punches).
12. DREAM Lightweight Title: Eddie Alvarez (c) beat Shinya Aoki (R3) by Unanimous Decision (1st Defense).


DREAM officials gathered after the show tonight to announce their next tournament, a Heavyweight Grand Prix! There will be 16 participants in all, and the first round matches will begin in the coming months, and the first 8 fighters were also revealed.


- Fedor Emelianenko
- Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic
- Roman Zentsov
- Aleksander Emelianenko
- Alistair Overeem
- Gilbert Yvel
- Mark Hunt
- Semmy Schilt

[crazedfan]

The eighth DREAM card will feature the finale of the Middleweight Grand Prix, and in the final fight are two foreigners, grappling extraodinaire Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza and young Armenian Gegard Mousasi. Jacare defeated Ian Murphy, Jason Miller and Melvin Manhoef en route to the finals, while Mousasi had an equally tough path, against Denis Kang, Dong Sik Yoon and Zelg Galesic. Jacare will almost certainly look to avoid the dangerous hands of Mousasi and take this to the ground as he has in all his fights thus far, but Mousasi has shown an aptitude for the ground game in his two victories over Kang and Yoon.
Also, the Heavyweight Grand Prix will kick off and is already perhaps the most anticipated tournament in the past several years. The first big fight in the grand prix will be a fight that has been in the making for a while now, with Mirko "Cro Cop" and Alistair "Demolition Man" Overeem. Overeem has called out Cro Cop after his last two victories and now the fight will finally come to fruition. Cro Cop defeated an overmatched Tatsuya Mizuno in his DREAM Debut while Overeem last fought, and submitted Mark Hunt.
Speaking of Hunt, he will look to get back in win column against another PRIDE veteran Gilbert "Hurricane" Yvel. It is uncertain whether the winners of these two matches will face off, or if future match-ups will be determined after the rest of the Round 1 fights are finished.
Plus, the "New York Bad Ass" Phil Baroni will return to Japan for the first time since 2006 after several appearances on the Bushido cards of PRIDE. Although since then, Baroni has not had the success he would like, and has since dropped down to Welterweight, and has already found success with two knockout victories. Opposite of him will be Shooto, DEEP and PRIDE veteran Seichi Ikemoto.
Mitsuhiro Ishida will also fighting for the first time in over half a year after being submitted by Caol Uno in the second round of the Lightweight Grand Prix. Another veteran in Ryuki Ueyama will surely put up a good fight for "The Endless Warrior."
Further down the card, Ralek Gracie will be fighting Daijiro Matsui, and leglock master Masakazu Imanari will go up against Hideki Kadowaki. Also renowned judoka Hector Lombard will bring his mesmerizing throws to DREAM against popular pro wrestling Katsuyori Shibata and Luiz Azeredo will fight Kazuyuki Miyata in the first fight of the card.

DREAM.8 "Middleweight Grand Prix Finals", 1/30/09 (TBS/PPV)
Yokohama Arena

1. Luiz Azeredo vs. Kazuyuki Miyata
2. Hector Lombard vs. Katsuyori Shibata
3. Masakazu Imanari vs. Hideki Kadowaki
4. Daijiro Matsui vs. Ralek Gracie
5. Mitsuhiro Ishida vs. Ryuki Ueyama
6. Phil Baroni vs. Seichi Ikemoto
7. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Mark Hunt vs. Gilbert Yvel
8. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Alistair Overeem
9. Middleweight Grand Prix Final - DREAM Middleweight Title: Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza vs. Gegard Mousasi

[crazedfan]

The Middleweight Grand Prix came to a close in front of a large crowd in Yokohama and there is now a DREAM Middleweight champion. Gegard Mousasi came out firing punches while Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza backpedaled, avoiding nearly all the strikes. After a lull in the action, the two fighters clinch where Jacare gets the trip to land in half guard. From here it was a jiu-jitsu clinic, as Jacare attempted several submissions and armbars before the bell finally rings. Jacare caught a kick at the beginning of round 2 and used it to get another takedown before taking side control. At this point it was all but academic as Mousasi tried to punch his way out rather than focus entirely on defense and ended up getting choked out.
The Mirko Cro Cop of old may be back after a dominant win over Alistair Overeem in a first round fight in DREAM's Heavyweight Grand Prix. While Cro Cop couldn't get the knock out like he had hoped, he showed his striking is still up there with the best and rattled Overeem several times with a great array of kicks and punches. Overeem was never able to gain any momentum and paid the price.
Another converted K-1 star, Mark Hunt also advanced to the second round of the grand prix, taking home an easy decision victory over Gilbert Yvel. Hunt looked very calm and relaxed and used his superior striking to pepper Yvel throughout the entire 15 minutes. Hunt's hands were simply quicker and more powerful.
The New York Bad Ass made a triumphant return to Japan, this time as a Welterweight notching a fairly quick KO victory over Seichi Ikemoto. Phil Baroni said afterwards that he wants a title shot against current champ, Hayato "Mach" Sakurai.
Mitsuhiro Ishida, known best for his smothering top control as a wrestler, used this fight to show off his improved striking as Ryuki Ueyama was completely outmatched, losing a unanimous decision to Ishida.
Ralek Gracie, while surely a grappling phenom, showed he still a lot of work to do on his entire MMA game. Gracie seemed to slip during a clinch and this was all Daijiro Matsui needed to seize the opportunity to take home perhaps the biggest win of his career.
Masakazu Imanari took home an impressive submission victory, while judoka Hector Lombard won by, of all things, a knock out and Luiz Azeredo beat Kazuyuki Miyata.

DREAM.8 "Middleweight Grand Prix Finals", 1/30/09 (TBS/PPV)
Yokohama Arena
12,300 Fans

1. Luiz Azeredo beat Kazuyuki Miyata (R1 5:19) by TKO (Punches).
2. Hector Lombard beat Katsuyori Shibata (R2 2:22) by KO (Punch).
3. Masakazu Imanari beat Hideki Kadowaki (R2 3:52) by Submission (Armbar).
4. Daijiro Matsui beat Ralek Gracie (R1 1:13) by TKO (Punches).
5. Mitsuhiro Ishida beat Ryuki Ueyama (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
6. Phil Baroni beat Seichi Ikemoto (R1 4:29) by KO (Punch).
7. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Mark Hunt beat Gilbert Yvel (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
8. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic beat Alistair Overeem (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
9. Middleweight Grand Prix Finals - DREAM Middleweight Title: Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza beat Gegard Mousasi (R2 2:49) by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) to become the 1st champion.

After the eighth edition of DREAM, the final 8 participants in the DREAM Heavyweight Grand Prix were announced!


- Josh Barnett
- Sergei Kharitonov
- Kazuyuki Fujita
- Naoya Ogawa
- Marcio Cruz
- Roger Gracie
- Yoshihiro Nakao
- Kevin Randleman

[crazedfan]

DREAM.9 "Heavyweight Grand Prix Round 1", 2/27/09 (TBS/PPV)
Saitama Super Arena

1. Jung Bu-Kyung vs. Kultar Gill
2. Tenkei Fujimiya vs. Rafael Assuncao
3. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Roger Gracie vs. Yoshihiro Nakao
4. Akira Shoji Retirement Match: Akira Shoji vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
5. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Sergei Kharitonov vs. Kevin Randleman
6. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Naoya Ogawa vs. Semmy Schilt
7. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Kazuyuki Fujita vs. Aleksander Emelianenko
8. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Josh Barnett vs. Roman Zentsov
9. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Fedor Emelianenko vs. Marcio Cruz


OOC: Sorry no write-up this time, I'm gonna go with a different format after this show. After the results of each show, I'm gonna post the next show's card and this will hopefully speed things up a bit.

[crazedfan]

Fedor "The Last Emperor" Emelianenko once again took the stage in the main event at the Saitama Super Arena this time against jiu-jitsu expert Marcio "Pe de Pano" Cruz. And once again, Fedor was dominant. Cruz would obviously want to take this to the ground, but Fedor used his ability to quickly transition to avoid any and all trips and takedowns. While it took a bit longer than people may have thought, Fedor took home the TKO victory just over halfway through the second round.
In the semi-final fight, Josh Barnett triumphantly returned to Japan, submitting Russian Roman Zentsov late in the first round. Barnett used his size advantage to muscle Zentsov around the ring before getting the takedown and eventually securing a choke.
In the fastest fight of the evening, Aleksander Emelianenko improved to 2-0 in DREAM, taking home a convincing TKO victory over Japanese fighter "Ironhead" Kazuyuki Fujita. Fujita gave the elder Fedor one of his toughest fights in PRIDE, but this time it was the younger brother taking care of business.
Things were looking good for Naoya Ogawa until kickboxer Semmy Schilt fired off a huge roundhouse kick. Ogawa is of a course a former Olympic silver medalist in judo and this was also his first professional MMA match in over three years. Ogawa won the first round handily using his judo to keep the tallest competitor on the ground, but was perhaps overconfident in the second round, choosing to stand with Schilt before getting cracked in the ear with a thunderous kick.
A third Russian also advanced to the second round as Sergei Kharitonov showed despite the layoff, he is still a dangerous fighter, taking out veteran Kevin Randleman.
Akira Shoji participated in his final MMA contest in the fourth fight of the night and while it didn't have the ending he had hoped for, Shoji received a very nice sendoff. Shoji lost via armbar to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.
And in the first Heavyweight Grand Prix bout, the young Roger Gracie submitted Yoshihiro "Kiss" Nakao. Gracie, while raw, certainly has darkhorse potential to make it very far in the tournament.
Shooto fighter Tenkei Fujimiya handily defeated Rafael Assuncao in a featherweight fight, and Korean judoka and former silver medalist earned his first career victory, defeating Kultar "Black Mamba" Gill.

DREAM.9 "Heavyweight Grand Prix Round 1", 2/27/09 (TBS/PPV)
Saitama Super Arena
23,500 Fans

1. Jung Bu-Kyung beat Kultar Gill (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
2. Tenkei Fujimiya beat Rafael Assuncao (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
3. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Roger Gracie beat Yoshihiro Nakao (R2 3:20) by Submission (Armbar).
4. Akira Shoji Retirement Match: Antonio Rogerio Nogueira beat Akira Shoji (R2 0:45) by Submission (Armbar).
5. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Sergei Kharitonov beat Kevin Randleman (R2 2:13) by TKO (Punches).
6. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Semmy Schilt beat Naoya Ogawa (R2 1:20) by KO (Head Kick).
7. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Aleksander Emelianenko beat Kazuyuki Fujita (R1 1:57) by TKO (Punches).
8. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Josh Barnett beat Roman Zentsov (R1 8:51) by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
9. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 1: Fedor Emelianenko beat Marcio Cruz (R2 2:40) by TKO (Punches).


-

DREAM.10 "Titles, Returns, Retirements", 4/17/09 (TBS/PPV)
Osaka Castle Hall

1. Tetsuji Kato vs. Marcelo Garcia
2. Daisuke Nakamura vs. Jutaro Nakao
3. Dong Sik Yoon vs. Hidetaka Monma
4. Michihiro Omigawa vs. Kotetsu Boku
5. Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos vs. Riki Fukuda
6. Sakuraba Return Match: Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Damir Mirenic
7. Yamamoto Return Match: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto vs. Hiroshi Nakamura
8. Masakatsu Funaki Retirement Match: Masakatsu Funaki vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama
9. DREAM Welterweight Title: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka

[crazedfan]

Hayato "Mach" Sakurai, after winning the DREAM Welterweight Title back in August, returned to DREAM to defend his title against former UFC fighter Kuniyoshi Hironaka in a return to Japan. But Sakurai showed why he is the champion, using his large experience advantage, winning virtually every aspect of the fight. Sakurai showed he still has some quickness and power in his hands, and showed strong ground and pound en route to the unanimous decision from the judges.
Masakatsu Funaki fought for the last time... for now anyways. Funaki returned just over a year ago at K-1's Dynamite show, and unfortunately did not achive much success. Yoshihiro Akiyama showed why he is one of the top up and coming fighters in the world when he secured a quick armbar from the bottom.
Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto also made his return from injury, fighting youngster Hiroshi Nakamura in what was by far the biggest fight of his career thus far. But the Kid came back with avengeance, controlling much of the first round before throwing a huge head kick to get the KO victory.
Kazushi Sakuraba also returned from injury against Croatian Damir "Wolf" Mirenic. But unlike Yamamoto, Sakuraba's return wasn't successful. Sakuraba dominated the majority of the match, scoring a takedown and controlling the action before Mirenic got to his feet during a scramble and landed with a big uppercut right down the pipe. Mirenic quickly followed up before getting shoved away, earning the biggest victory of his career.
Riki Fukuda, after fighting in America a few times, returned to Japan in a big way, scoring a big TKO win over Chute Boxe slugger Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos.
Michihiro Omigawa, after losing to Tatsuya Kawajiri at Yarennoka! II, evened out his DREAM record to 1-1 with a decision win over Kotetsu Boku.
Dong Sik Yoon also saw his first action in ten months, receiving a decision victory over Hidetaka Monma. Daisuke Nakamura defeated Jutaro Nakao to win his third straight fight, and grappling extraodinaire Marcelo Garcia won by, of course, submission over Shooto fighter Tetsuji Kato.

DREAM.10 "Titles, Returns, Retirements", 4/17/09 (TBS/PPV)
Osaka Castle Hall
11,000 Fans

1. Marcelo Garcia beat Tetsuji Kato (R1 5:13) by Submission (Armbar).
2. Daisuke Nakamura beat Jutaro Nakao (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
3. Dong Sik Yoon beat Hidetaka Monma (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
4. Michihiro Omigawa beat Kotetsu Boku (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
5. Riki Fukuda beat Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos (R1 1:37) by TKO (Punches).
6. Sakuraba Return Match: Damir Mirenic beat Kazushi Sakuraba (R1 6:54) by TKO (Punches).
7. Yamamoto Return Match: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto beat Hiroshi Nakamura (R2 1:46) by KO (Head Kick).
8. Masakatsu Funaki Retirement Match: Yoshihiro Akiyama beat Masakatsu Funaki (R1 2:34) by Submission (Armbar)
9. DREAM Welterweight Title: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai beat Kuniyoshi Hironaka (R3) by Unanimous Decision (1st Defense).

-

DREAM.11 "Heavyweight Grand Prix Round 2", 6/5/09 (TBS/PPV)
Saitama Super Arena

1. Takeshi Inoue vs. Un Sik Song
2. Dae Won Kim vs. Alavutdin Gadzhiyev
3. Taiei Kin vs. Gerald Harris
4. Jason Miller vs. Alexandre Ferreira
5. Naoyuki Kotani vs. Andre "Dida" Amade
6. Melvin Manhoef vs. Makoto Takimoto
7. Naoya Ogawa Retirement Match: Naoya Ogawa vs. Michael Russow
8. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Aleksander Emelianenko vs. Mark Hunt
9. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Josh Barnett vs. Roger Gracie
10. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Semmy Schilt
11. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Fedor Emelianenko vs. Sergei Kharitonov

[crazedfan]

Two Russians headlined the Saitama Super Arena and did not disappoint the fans. Fedor Emelianenko headlined for the third time in six months, this time opposite of fellow countryman Sergei Kharitonov. Fedor used his superior ground game to control where this fight went and nearly caught Kharitonov in a couple of armbars, but in the end, Fedor won both rounds handily and took home the decision victory, moving on to the semi-finals of the Heavyweight Grand Prix.
Aside from Fedor's victory, each of the other three second round fights were all arguably upsets! Two K-1 kickboxers took the stage in the semi-final, with Semmy Schilt, the 6'11" Dutch fighter taking home a knockout victory over Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic! The fight, as expected, never hit the ground, but it was Schilt who eventually caught Cro Cop with a vicious right hook, knocking out Cro Cop cold.
In probably the biggest upset thus far, the young jiu-jitsu fighter Roger Gracie proved he may very well be the next big thing in MMA, taking home a tough decision over the veteran Josh Barnett! Barnett, perhaps smartly, opted not to go to the ground and turned it into a boxing match, but it was Gracie who showed the sharper, crisper striking ability and dished out more damage by a large margin. In the end, all three judges gave the fight to the young Gracie fighter who could be on a collision course with Fedor!
Mark Hunt also advanced to the semi-finals defeating the younger Emelianenko, Aleksander. This also was a stand up affair, as expected, and it was the more powerful Hunt who took home the unanimous decision. Once Aleks wanted to take the fight down, he was already too bruised and battered and fatigued to get the large Samoan to the canvas.
Judoka and professional wrestler Naoya Ogawa, after being knocked out by Schilt in the first round of the grand prix, took on one last fight before retiring from MMA entirely, he took on American Michael Russow who defeated Roman Zentsov at the first Yarennoka show. Russow was aggressive right from the start though landing punches and eventually a takedown before finishing off Ogawa with some vicious ground and pound in under two minutes.
Melvin Manhoef also returned to fight for the first time since last August when he lost to eventual Middleweight Grand Prix winner "Jacare" Souza and he returned scoring a TKO victory.
Naoyuki Kotani fell to 0-2 in DREAM after losing to "Dida" Amade. Jason "Mayhem" Miller returned to DREAM, this time at light heavyweight and could be looking to a big fight in the future with Ricardo Arona. Former TUF contestant Gerald Harris made his Japanese debt and drew comparisons to Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. Harris will almost definitely be booked for a return engagement in the future. Alavutdin Gadzhiyev and Lion Takeshi each took home decision victories in the opening fights of the evening.

DREAM.11 "Heavyweight Grand Prix Round 2", 6/5/09 (TBS/PPV)
Saitama Super Arena
25,200 Fans

1. Takeshi Inoue beat Un Sik Song (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
2. Alavutdin Gadzhiyev beat Dae Won Kim (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
3. Gerald Harris beat Taiei Kin (R2 3:49) by TKO (Punches).
4. Jason Miller beat Alexandre Ferreira (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
5. Andre "Dida" Amade beat Naoyuki Kotani (R1 5:57) by TKO (Punches).
6. Melvin Manhoef beat Makoto Takimoto (R2 1:53) by TKO (Punches)
7. Naoya Ogawa Retirement Match: Michael Russow beat Naoya Ogawa (R1 1:56) by TKO (Punches).
8. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Mark Hunt beat Aleksander Emelianenko (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
9. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Roger Gracie beat Josh Barnett (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
10. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Semmy Schilt beat Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic (R1 8:20) by KO (Punch).
11. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Round 2: Fedor Emelianenko beat Sergei Kharitonov (R2) by Unanimous Decision.



DREAM.12 "Alvarez vs. Gomi" 7/10/09 (TBS/PPV)
Yokohama Arena

1. Leonard Garcia vs. Hiroyuki Abe
2. Dokonjonosuke Mishima vs. Eddie Wineland
3. Denis Kang vs. Daiju Takase
4. Akitoshi Tamura vs. Artur Oumakhanov
5. Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Ryuta Sakurai
6. Ikuhisa "Minowaman" Minowa vs. Zelg "Benkei" Galesic
7. Joachim Hansen vs. Katsuhiko Nagata
8. Phil Baroni vs. Koji Oishi
9. Shinya Aoki vs. Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett
10. DREAM Lightweight Title: Eddie Alvarez (c) vs. Takanori Gomi

[crazedfan]

It was the biggest match of the year headlining the Yokohama Arena with the DREAM Lightweight Title on the line. Second champion, American Eddie Alvarez took on one of the best in the world in "The Fireball Kid" Takanori Gomi. While it lasted less than five minutes, it was certainly the slugfest that most had anticipated, but it was the challenger who got the better of the exchange. Gomi was backpedaling away from Alvarez before throwing a big roundhouse kick, catching Alvarez in the ear, knocking him out cold.
In the semi-main event, it was Shinya Aoki returning to action against another American, Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett. Bennett lost at welterweight in his first DREAM fight, and wisely decided to drop to lightweight. While it was certainly an easy win for Aoki, many expected him to catch Bennett with a submission. Instead the fight went to the judges scorecards where Aoki was given the unanimous decision.
Phil Baroni perhaps solidified his status at number one contender to the DREAM Welterweight title and its champion Hayato "Mach" Sakurai, scoring a quick knockout punch over Koji Oishi.
The first lightweight champion, Joachim "Hellboy" Hansen also returned to DREAM for the first time since losing the title on New Year's Eve, and easily handled Katsuhiko Nagata en route to a unanimous decision victory.
Zelg "Benkei" Galesic also returned to victory with a decision win over the ever-charismatic Minowaman.
Kiyoshi Tamura also could have perhaps gotten a Middleweight title shot as he went for his fourth straight win, but it was not meant to be as Ryuta Sakurai took the fight with the stronger striking.
Akitoshi Tamura also took his second straight win in DREAM at the 145 weight class, and could find himself on a collision course with "Kid" Yamamoto soon to determine the first DREAM Featherweight champion.
Denis Kang finally was able to score a win after three straight losses, Dokonjonosuke Mishima took his second straight win at 145 in DREAM also, while former UFC and WEC fighter Leonard "Bad Boy" Garcia took a submission win in his Japanese debut.

DREAM.12 "Alvarez vs. Gomi" 7/10/09 (TBS/PPV)
Yokohama Arena
13,300 Fans

1. Leonard Garcia beat Hiroyuki Abe (R2 4:25) by Submission (Armbar).
2. Dokonjonosuke Mishima beat Eddie Wineland (R2 1:43) by TKO (Punches).
3. Denis Kang beat Daiju Takase (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
4. Akitoshi Tamura beat Artur Oumakhanov (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
5. Ryuta Sakurai beat Kiyoshi Tamura (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
6. Zelg "Benkei" Galesic beat Ikuhisa "Minowaman" Minowa (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
7. Joachim Hansen beat Katsuhiko Nagata (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
8. Phil Baroni beat Koji Oishi (R1 1:36) by KO (Punch).
9. Shinya Aoki beat Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
10. DREAM Lightweight Title: Takanori Gomi beat Eddie Alvarez (c) (R1 4:31) by KO (Head Kick) to become the 3rd Champion.

[crazedfan]

An absolutely huge upset that nobody expected to happen, happened. Fedor Emelianenko, the heavy favorite of the Heavyweight Grand Prix was defeated by the 6'11" Dutch kickboxer Semmy Schilt! The Last Emperor, perhaps unwisely, decided to test the waters standing, and was more than holding his own, until both men threw punches, and it happened to be Schilt who connected first with a solid shot. From here on out there was nothing Fedor could do to recover and the referee had to pull Schilt off.
In the first semi-final, it was the darkhorse Roger Gracie who advanced to the finals to face Schilt. Perhaps the next great Gracie fighter, Roger showed fantastic takedowns, top control, and of course jiu-jitsu against the Samoan Mark Hunt. Gracie controlled the entire first round on the ground, never able to quite catch Hunt in a submission, but the second round was more of the same, as Gracie caught and arm and torqued it for the win.
In the reserve bout, Alistair Overeem took a unanimous decision over Kazuyuki Fujita. Overeem won the stand-up battle against "Ironhead" and all three judges saw the bout in favor of the Dutchman.
Kazuo Misaki, perhaps in a tune-up fight, fought for the first time in nearly 8 months and took home an easy victory over Hidehiko Hasegawa. The only disappointing fact may have been that Misaki was unable to finish Hasegawa, who showed another level of toughness getting battered and bruised for 15 minutes, but was never out of the fight.
An age difference of 19 years was the big story between the veteran Murilo Bustamante and Gegard Mousasi, and it was experience that reigned supreme in this bout. Mousasi won the first round behind his strong stand up, but Bustamante was able to catch Mousasi with a straight right. Mousasi was backing up, glassy eyed with his hands by his side before the referee stepped in and ended the fight.
Caol Uno suffered his second straight loss, this time to Luiz "Buscape" Firmino in his first fight since DREAM.4. Uno was unable to get the fight to the ground and was entirely outclassed on the feet by Firmino.
Ralek Gracie came back with a win after suffering the first defeat in his career his last fight out. Kin was unable to prevent the takedowns and was simply overmatched on the ground and was submitted.
Cuban judoka Hector Lombard scored his second straight knock out win in impressive fashion. Lombard is quickly showing to have a very well-rounded game and could soon be a title-threat in the middleweight division.
Vitor Ribeiro returned after losing to Gilbert Melendez at Yarennoka! II, and easily defeated Ryuki Ueyama who lost his second straight fight.
Hideo Tokoro stormed back after a disappointing first round to defeat Rafael Assuncao, and welterweight prospect Shizue Numajiri defeated former UFC fighter Dorian Price in his debut.

DREAM.13 "Heavyweight Grand Prix Semi Finals" 8/21/09 (TBS/PPV)
Saitama Super Arena
27,500 Fans

1. Shizue Numajiri beat Dorian Price (R2 1:54) by TKO (Punches).
2. Hideo Tokoro beat Rafael Assuncao (R2 1:46) by TKO (Punches).
3. Vitor Ribeiro beat Ryuki Ueyama (R1 1:27) by Submission (Rear Naked Choke).
4. Hector Lombard beat Daijiro Matsui (R1 4:12) by TKO (Punches).
5. Ralek Gracie beat Taiei Kin (R2 1:33) by Submission (Kimura).
6. Luiz Firmino beat Caol Uno (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
7. Murilo Bustamante beat Gegard Mousasi (R2 2:55) by TKO (Referee Stoppage).
8. Kazuo Misaki beat Hidehiko Hasegawa (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
9. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Reserve Match: Alistair Overeem beat Kazuyuki Fujita (R2) by Unanimous Decision.
10. Heavweight Grand Prix - Semi Finals: Roger Gracie beat Mark Hunt (R2 3:17) by Submission (Kimura).
11. Heavyweight Grand Prix - Semi Final: Semmy Schilt beat Fedor Emelianenko (R1 8:36) by TKO (Punches).


DREAM.14 "Farewell Gracie Hunter!" 10/3/09 (TBS/PPV)
Tokyo Ariake Colosseum

1. Yosuke Nishijima vs. Alessio Sakara
2. Seichi Ikemoto vs. Jeff Joslin
3. Masakazu Imanari vs. Matt Fiordirosa
4. Jason MacDonald vs. Daniel Acacio
5. Tenkei Fujimiya vs. Joseph Benavidez
6. Damir Mirenic vs. Kazuhiro Hamanaka
7. Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Tetsuji Kato
8. Gesias "JZ" Cavalcante vs. Kazuyuki Miyata
9. Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Dong Sik Yoon
10. DREAM Middleweight Title: Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza vs. Vitor Belfort
11. Sakuraba Retirement Match: Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Renzo Gracie