2019 in Rizin Fighting Federation

The year 2019 was the fifth year in the history of the Rizin Fighting Federation, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. The year began with Rizin 15 in Yokohama on April 21, 2019.

2019 in Rizin Fighting Federation
Information
First date	April 21, 2019
Last date	December 31, 2019
Events
Total events	6
Fights
Total fights	79
Title fights	6
Chronology
2018 in Rizin Fighting Federation 2019 in Rizin Fighting Federation 2020 in Rizin Fighting Federation

Rizin events are broadcast through a television agreement with Fuji Television. In North America and Europe, Rizin events are available via PPV on FITE TV.^[1]

Background

Nobuyuki Sakakibara announced that Rizin will do 6 events in 2019: April, June, July, August, October, and the usual December 31 show.

He also announced that they will do a lightweight Grand Prix this year. Bellator MMA CEO Scott Coker has announced that he will be sending Patricky Freire to participate in the opening round.

Rizin's Lightweight grand prix will begin on October 12 at the Osaka-jo Hall, with the four opening rounds bouts of the tournament bracket. The semifinals and finals will be held on Dec. 31, at Saitama Super Arena.

List of events

#	Event	Date	Venue	Location	Attendance
1	Rizin 15 - Yokohama	April 21, 2019	Yokohama Arena	Yokohama, Japan	12,914
2	Rizin 16 - Kobe	June 2, 2019	World Memorial Hall	Kobe, Japan	8,107
3	Rizin 17 - Saitama	July 28, 2019	Saitama Super Arena	Saitama, Japan	16,930
4	Rizin 18 - Nagoya	August 18, 2019	Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium	Nagoya, Japan	6,281
5	Rizin 19 - Osaka	October 12, 2019	Edion Arena	Osaka, Japan	5,098
6	Rizin 20 - Saitama	December 31, 2019	Saitama Super Arena	Saitama, Japan	29,315[2]

Title fights

Title fights in 2019
#	Weight Class				Method	Round	Time	Event	Notes
1	Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Jiří Procházka	def.	Muhammed Lawal	TKO (Punches)	3	13:02	Rizin 15	For the inaugural Rizin Light Heavyweight Championship
2	Super Atomweight 49 kg	Ayaka Hamasaki (c)	def.	Jinh Yu Frey	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00	Rizin 16	For the Rizin Super Atomweight Championship
3	Featherweight 57 kg	Tenshin Nasukawa	def.	Martin Blanco	KO (Knee to the Body)	2	5:19	Rizin 16	For the ISKA Featherweight Championship
4	Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Jiří Procházka (c)	def.	C. B. Dollaway	KO (Punches)	1	1:55	Rizin 20	For the Rizin Light Heavyweight Championship
5	Super Atomweight 49 kg	Seo Hee Ham	def.	Ayaka Hamasaki (c)	Decision (Split)	3	15:00	Rizin 20	For the Rizin Super Atomweight Championship
6	Bantamweight 61 kg	Manel Kape	def.	Kai Asakura	TKO (Punches)	2	5:38	Rizin 20	For the vacant Rizin Bantamweight Championship

Rizin Lightweight Grand Prix

8-Man Lightweight Grand Prix Participant

• Hiroto Uesako
• Damien Brown
• Johnny Case
• Patricky Freire
• Roberto de Souza
• Tatsuya Kawajiri
• Luiz Gustavo

Rizin Lightweight Grand Prix bracket

1st Round

Semifinals

Final

Tofiq Musayev

TKO

Damien Brown

1R.

Tofiq Musayev

TKO

Johnny Case

1R.

Johnny Case

TKO

Roberto de Souza

1R.

Tofiq Musayev

UD

Patricky Freire

3R.

Patricky Freire

TKO

Tatsuya Kawajiri

1R.

Patricky Freire

TKO

Luiz Gustavo

1R.

Luiz Gustavo

TKO

Hiroto Uesako

1R.

Rizin 15 - Yokohama

Rizin 15 - Yokohama
Promotion	Rizin Fighting Federation
Date	April 21, 2019
Venue	Yokohama Arena
City	Yokohama, Japan

Rizin 15 - Yokohama was a Combat sport event held by the Rizin Fighting Federation on April 21, 2019 at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan.

Background

A light heavyweight bout between RIZIN top contender Jiří Procházka and former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight champion Muhammed Lawal will serve as the Rizin 15 - Yokohama main event. The bout will crown the inaugural RIZIN Light Heavyweight champion.^[3]

Ulka Sasaki has been forced to withdraw from his schedule fight against Kai Asakura due to a visceral infection and Justin Scoggins has stepped in as a replacement.^[4] Unfortunately, Scoggins has suffered a knee injury during training and has been unable to compete, that forced his fight against Kai Asakura to be cancelled.^[5]

Shinju Nozawa-Auclair was supposed to face Saray Orozco. However, Nozawa-Auclair suffered an ankle injury during training and was forced to withdraw from the fight. Kanako Murata has stepped in on short notice against Orozco.^[6]

Results

Rizin 15
Weight Class				Method	Round	T.Time	Notes
Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Jiří Procházka	def.	Muhammed Lawal	TKO (Punches)	3	13:02	For the inaugural Rizin Light Heavyweight Championship
Catchweight 59 kg	Tenshin Nasukawa	def.	Fritz Aldin Biagtan	TKO (3 Knockdown Rule)	3	7:24	Kickboxing
Intermission
Catchweight 60 kg	Kyoji Horiguchi	def.	Ben Nguyen	TKO (Punches)	1	2:53
Catchweight 71 kg	Roberto de Souza	def.	Satoru Kitaoka	TKO (Punches)	2	8:56
Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Karl Albrektsson	def.	Christiano Frohlich	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Catchweight 51 kg	Rena Kubota	def.	Samantha Jean-Francois	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Catchweight 68 kg	Mikuru Asakura	def.	Luiz Gustavo	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Flyweight 57 kg	Kana Watanabe	def.	Justyna Haba	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Lightweight 70 kg	Damien Brown	def.	Koji Takeda	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Flyweight 58 kg	Manel Kape	def.	Seiichiro Ito	TKO (Punches)	2	8:59
Flyweight 57 kg	Kanako Murata	def.	Saray Orozco	Submission (Von Flue choke)	2	7:12
Bantamweight 61 kg	Thalisson Gomes Ferreira	def.	Taiga	TKO (3 Knockdown Rule)	2	5:34	Kickboxing

^[7]

Rizin 16 - Kobe

Rizin 16 - Kobe
Promotion	Rizin Fighting Federation
Date	June 2, 2019
Venue	World Memorial Hall
City	Kobe, Japan

Rizin 16 - Kobe was a Combat sport event held by the Rizin Fighting Federation on June 2, 2019 at the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan.

Background

ISKA Featherweight Ahmed Ferradji was scheduled to defend his title against Tenshin Nasukawa at RIZIN 16, but Ferradji withdrew from the scheduled fight. As a result, ISKA has stripped the title from Ferradji and ISKA Bantamweight Champion Martin Blanco has stepped in on short notice to face Nasukawa for the vacant ISKA Featherweight World Title.^[8]

Kizaemon Saiga was scheduled to face Kunitaka Fujiwara at RIZIN 16, but was not medically cleared for the event due to vision issues. Stepping in on a few days' notice to fight Fujiwara was the former K-1 Krush champion Ryuji Horio.^[9]

Results

Rizin 16
Weight Class				Method	Round	T.Time	Notes
Featherweight 57 kg	Tenshin Nasukawa	def.	Martin Blanco	KO (Knee to the Body)	2	5:19	For the ISKA Featherweight Championship
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Ayaka Hamasaki (c)	def.	Jinh Yu Frey	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00	For the Rizin Super Atomweight Championship
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Miyuu Yamamoto	def.	Kanna Asakura	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Intermission
Heavyweight 120 kg	Jake Heun	def.	Roque Martinez	Decision (Split)	3	15:00
Flyweight 57 kg	Yusaku Nakamura	def.	Topnoi Thanongsaklek	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Lightweight 71 kg	Tofiq Musayev	def.	Daron Cruickshank	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Intermission
Bantamweight 61 kg	Mamoru Uoi	def.	Kana Hayatt	TKO (Punches and Soccer Kicks)	3	14:32
Catchweight 59 kg	Ryuji Horio	def.	Kunitaka Fujiwara	Decision (Unanimous)	3	9:00	Kickboxing
Bantamweight 61 kg	Erson Yamamoto	def.	Tim Eschtruth	KO (Elbow and Punches)	1	2:04
Catchweight 63 kg	Taiju Shiratori	def.	Hiroto Yamaguchi	Decision (Unanimous)	3	9:00	Kickboxing
Catchweight 59 kg	Takaki Soya	def.	Namiki Kawahara	KO (Punch and Soccer Kick)	1	4:05
Catchweight 60 kg	Kan Nakamura	def.	Itto	KO (Head Kick)	2	3:18	Kickboxing
Catchweight 56 kg	Seiki Ueyama	def.	Kengo	TKO (3 Knockdown Rule)	1	2:42	Kickboxing
Catchweight 69 kg	Yuya	def.	Yuki Tanaka	TKO (3 Knockdown Rule)	1	2:45	Kickboxing

Rizin 17 - Saitama

Rizin 17 - Saitama
Promotion	Rizin Fighting Federation
Date	July 28, 2019
Venue	Saitama Super Arena
City	Saitama, Japan

Rizin 17 - Saitama was a Combat sport event held by the Rizin Fighting Federation on July 28, 2019 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Background

Daiki Watabe was due to fight Kevin Ross in a kickboxing bout, but the American fighter withdrew due to a hand injury. Watabe instead faced the Bolivian fighter Hideki, who stepped in on 3 weeks notice for this encounter.^[10]

Results

Rizin 17
Weight Class				Method	Round	T.Time	Notes
Lightweight 70 kg	Mikuru Asakura	def.	Yusuke Yachi	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Bantamweight 61 kg	Shintaro Ishiwatari	def.	Ulka Sasaki	Submission (North-South Choke	2	8:57
Bantamweight 61 kg	Hiromasa Ougikubo	def.	Yuki Motoya	Decision (Split)	3	15:00
Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Ivan Shtyrkov	def.	Hoon Kim	TKO (Punches)	2	9:05
Catchweight 62 kg	Taiga	def.	Hikaru Machida	Decision (Unanimous)	3	9:00	Kickboxing
Intermission
Lightweight 71 kg	Johnny Case	def.	Satoru Kitaoka	TKO (Retirement)	1	5:00	Lightweight GP Qualifying Round
Lightweight 71 kg	Tatsuya Kawajiri	def.	Ali Abdulkhalikov	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00	Lightweight GP Qualifying Round
Lightweight 71 kg	Roberto de Souza	def.	Mizuto Hirota	KO (Punches)	1	3:04	Lightweight GP Qualifying Round
Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Jake Heun	def.	Vitaly Shemetov	TKO (Cut)	3	12:20
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Seo Hee Ham	def.	Tomo Maesawa	TKO (Knees)	1	3:12
Catchweight 63 kg	Stephanie Egger	def.	Reina Miura	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Catchweight 67 kg	Hideki	def.	Daiki Watabe	Decision (Majority)	3	9:00	Kickboxing

Rizin 18 - Nagoya

Rizin 18 - Nagoya
Promotion	Rizin Fighting Federation
Date	August 18, 2019
Venue	Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium
City	Nagoya, Japan

Rizin 18 - Nagoya was a Combat sport event held by the Rizin Fighting Federation on August 18, 2019 at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium in Nagoya, Japan.

Background

Marcos de Souza, was set to fight at RIZIN 18, but his debut was pushed back because of an injury.^[11]

Kazuma Sone was expected to face Erson Yamamoto, But plans have changed for undisclosed reasons. That forced the fight to be cancelled. Justin Scoggins has stepped in as a replacement.

Results

Rizin 18
Weight Class				Method	Round	T.Time	Notes
Bantamweight 61 kg	Kai Asakura	def.	Kyoji Horiguchi	KO (Punches)	1	1:07
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Ayaka Hamasaki	def.	Suwanan Boonsorn	Submission (Armbar)	1	3:20
Bantamweight 61 kg	Victor Henry	def.	Trent Girdham	Submission (Inverted Triangle Choke)	3	12:14
Bantamweight 61 kg	Manel Kape	def.	Takeya Mizugaki	KO (punch)	2	6:35
Catchweight 75 kg	Danilo Zanolini	def.	John Wayne Parr	Decision (Split)	3	9:00	Kickboxing
Intermission
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Kanna Asakura	def.	Alesha Zappitella	Decision (Split)	3	15:00
Strawweight 53 kg	Haruo Ochi	vs.	Jarred Brooks	No Contest (Accidental Headbutt)	1	0:11
Lightweight 71 kg	Hiroto Uesako	def.	Yves Landu	TKO (Punches)	2	8:45	Lightweight GP Qualifying Round
Bantamweight 61 kg	Justin Scoggins	def.	Kazuma Sone	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Catchweight 59 kg	Takaki Soya	def.	Yutaro Muramoto	TKO (Punches)	2	6:27
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Ai Shimizu	def.	Tabatha Watkins	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Strawweight 53 kg	Kazuki Osaki	def.	Shota Takiya	Decision (Unanimous)	3	9:00	Kickboxing
Flyweight 57 kg	Ryuji Horio	def.	Uchu Sakurai	Decision (Unanimous)	3	9:00	Kickboxing

Rizin 19 - Osaka

Rizin 19 - Osaka
Promotion	Rizin Fighting Federation
Date	October 12, 2019
Venue	Edion Arena
City	Osaka, Japan

Rizin 19 - Osaka was a Combat sport event held by the Rizin Fighting Federation on October 12, 2019 at the Edion Arena in Osaka, Japan.

Background

Rena Kubota's original opponent, Shawna Ram suffered a concussion during training. Alexandra Alvare steps in to face Kubota.^[12]

Shintaro Matsukura originally supposed to face Takuma Konishi but he suffered an eye injury. His teammate, Hiroya, will be the replacement to face Konishi.

Results

Rizin 19
Weight Class				Method	Round	T.Time	Notes
Catchweight 100 kg	Jiří Procházka	def.	Fábio Maldonado	TKO (Punches)	1	1:49
Bantamweight 61 kg	Kai Asakura	def.	Ulka Sasaki	TKO (Doctor Stoppage)	1	0:54
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Seo Hee Ham	def.	Miyuu Yamamoto	TKO (Punches)	2	9:42
Catchweight 51 kg	Rena Kubota	def.	Alexandra Alvare	TKO (Punches)	1	0:20
Intermission
Lightweight 71 kg	Johnny Case	def.	Roberto de Souza	TKO (Punches)	1	1:15	Lightweight Grand Prix Quarter-Finals
Lightweight 71 kg	Patricky Freire	def.	Tatsuya Kawajiri	TKO (Knee and Punches)	1	1:10	Lightweight Grand Prix Quarter-Finals
Lightweight 71 kg	Luiz Gustavo	def.	Hiroto Uesako	TKO (Doctor Stoppage)	1	3:55	Lightweight Grand Prix Quarter-Finals
Lightweight 71 kg	Tofiq Musayev	def.	Damien Brown	TKO (Punches)	1	4:14	Lightweight Grand Prix Quarter-Finals
Welterweight 77 kg	Keita Nakamura	def.	Marcos de Souza	TKO (Punches)	1	1:18
Catchweight 62 kg	Taiju Shiratori	def.	Taiga	Decision (Unanimous)	3	9:00	Kickboxing
Welterweight 77 kg	Takuma Konishi	def.	Hiroya	TKO (Knee)	1	1:20	Kickboxing
Openweight	Shoma Shibisai	def.	Chang Hee Kim	Submission (Kimura)	1	1:09
Catchweight 56 kg	Seiki Ueyama	def.	Taisei Umei	Decision (Unanimous)	3	9:00	Kickboxing

Rizin 20 - Saitama

Rizin 20 - Saitama
Promotion	Rizin Fighting Federation
Date	December 31, 2019
Venue	Saitama Super Arena
City	Saitama, Japan

Rizin 20 - Saitama was a Combat sport event by Rizin Fighting Federation that took place on December 31, 2019 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Background

Kyoji Horiguchi was scheduled to defend his RIZIN Bantamweight Championship against Kai Asakura on this card. However, Horoguchi pulled out of the fight in mid-November citing a knee injury that is expected to keep him out of action for approximately 10 – 12 months. In turn, his bantamweight title has been vacated.^[13]

Results

Rizin 20
Weight Class				Method	Round	T.Time	Notes
Bantamweight 61 kg	Manel Kape	def.	Kai Asakura	TKO (Punches)	2	5:38	For the vacant Rizin Bantamweight Championship
Catchweight 56 kg	Tenshin Nasukawa	def.	Rui Ebata	TKO (3 Knockdown Rule)	1	2:44	Kickboxing
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Seo Hee Ham	def.	Ayaka Hamasaki (c)	Decision (Split)	3	15:00	For the Rizin Super Atomweight Championship
Featherweight 66 kg	Mikuru Asakura	def.	John Teixeira	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Catchweight 50.8 kg	Rena Kubota	def.	Lindsey VanZandt	TKO (Corner Stoppage)	3	14:42
Intermission
Lightweight 71 kg	Tofiq Musayev	def.	Patricky Freire	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00	Lightweight Grand Prix Final
Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Jiří Procházka (c)	def.	C. B. Dollaway	KO (Punches)	1	1:55	For the Rizin Light Heavyweight Championship
Light Heavyweight 93 kg	Simon Biyong	def.	Vitaly Shemetov	TKO (Elbows and Punches)	2	0:58
Bantamweight 61 kg	Hiromasa Ougikubo	def.	Shintaro Ishiwatari	Decision (Split)	3	15:00
Intermission
Catchweight 105 kg	Jake Heun	def.	Satoshi Ishii	TKO (Punches)	1	1:12
Bantamweight 61 kg	Patchy Mix	def.	Yuki Motoya	Submission (Guillotine Choke)	1	1:36
Catchweight 62 kg	Taiju Shiratori	def.	Taiga	TKO (Cut)	2	6:00	Kickboxing
Super Atomweight 49 kg	Miyuu Yamamoto	def.	Suwanan Boonsorn	Decision (Unanimous)	3	15:00
Lightweight 71 kg	Patricky Freire	def.	Luiz Gustavo	TKO (Punches and Soccer Kick)	1	0:28	Lightweight Grand Prix Semi-Finals
Lightweight 71 kg	Tofiq Musayev	def.	Johnny Case	TKO (Punches)	1	2:46	Lightweight Grand Prix Semi-Finals