Japanese MMA promotion, Sengoku (戦極）, when written in Japanese, consists of two characters: The first character (戦) means “war” or “battle,” while the second character (極) means “extreme” or “attainment of a highest level of mastery.” Thus Sengoku means something to the effect of “extreme battle,” or “battle of the highest caliber.”
Sengoku, presumably, is a tweaking of a homophonic term (戦国）that translates to “warring states,” and refers to a time of nearly constant military conflict in Japanese history from the 15th to the 17th century.
During this period, due to the weakening of central authority, scores of regional war lords throughout Japan rose to fill the vacuum. While some established clans expanded their spheres of influence, many others saw their influences erode and usurped by more capable underlings.
Just as with the American “Wild West,” the “Sengoku” period has been used as the setting for a myriad of books, films, anime, and video games.
Regardless of the origin of its name, Sengoku has come to bear an uncanny resemblance to the aforementioned era of warfare.
Thanks to World Victory Road officials’ knack for spotting rising stars, promising newcomers, and underrated veterans, Sengoku is rapidly becoming a battlefield occupied by hungry warriors ready to move up the ladder and make a name for themselves.
Most notably, the winners of last year’s Middleweight and Lightweight Grand Prix, Jorge Santiago and Satoru Kitaoka, embody Sengoku’s reenactment of the topsy-turvy of the said historical era in the realm of MMA.
Founded in late 2007, Sengoku, along with DREAM, emerged in the wake of PRIDE’s untimely demise.
Sengoku welcomed on board several PRIDE stars, the most notable among which were Takanori Gomi, the undisputed Lightweight king of PRIDE and Kazuo Misaki, the former PRIDE Welterweight GP winner.
Josh Barnett, Kevin Randleman, Frank Trigg, Hidehiko Yoshida, Sanae Kikuta, Kazuyuki Fujita, and Antonio Rogerio Noguiera also came on board.
Having secured the torchbearers to draw audience and revenue to the fledgling promotion, the WVR officials proceeded to populate the roster with capable yet under-the-radar talent from various Japanese and overseas promotions.
Hence the emergence of Sengoku—an enthralling battleground where commanding veterans and a cadre of lesser-known talent jostle each other for dominance.
As the battles erupted in 2008, veterans such as Bodog/Elite XC/UFC veteran Nick Thompson, KOTC/Cage Force/PRIDE veteran Eiji Mitsuoka, and Randy Couture protege Mike Pyle staked out their claim for spotlight.
Sengoku has also served as a grand stage for the rise of the American Top Team prospect, Jorge Masvidal, the current Absolute World Jiu Jitsu Champion, Alexandre Ribeiro, and the flamboyant former wrestling national team member, Muhammed Lawal aka King Mo.
Mirroring the hierarchical upheaval that characterized the historical era of its namesake, Sengoku has seen a number of major upsets.
In his professional debut, Mo Lawal not only entered the ring with panache—with his now patented crown, robe, and dancers—but delivered inside the ring, too: He defeated Travis Wiuff, a veteran of over 60 professional fights, via first round TKO.
In no instance did the reversal of hierarchy unfold more distinctly than Takanori Gomi’s and Kazuo Misaki’s tumble from the throne.
As two of the Sengoku’s flagship fighters, Gomi and Misaki were rewarded the challenge of taking on the winners of the promotion’s Lightweight and Middleweight Grand Prix, respectively.
At Sengoku 6, Gomi fought an unheralded Russian kickboxer, Sergey Golyaev, in a tune-up fight before facing the winner of the Lightweight Tournament. No one gave Golyaev a chance against Gomi: Golyaev’s split decision win thus sent a shockwave throughout the MMA world.
Seemingly a shell of his former self, Gomi subsequently lost to the Lightweight GP winner, Satoru Kitaoka, in less than two minutes at Sengoku Rebellion 2009.
In the same event, Kazuo Misaki faced the Middleweight GP winner, Jorge Santiago. Througout the fight, Misaki used his superior kickboxing to keep Santiago at bay. However, in the fifth round, Santiago scored a take down, quickly took Misaki’s back, and sank in a rear naked choke to end the bout at 3:26 of the round.
Kitaoka and Santiago have become not only Sengoku’s Lightweight and Middleweight champions, but also the embodiment of the promotion’s emerging modus operandi: Rising stars conquering the veterans. While Gomi’s losses are attributed to his loss of motivation, they came about at an uncanny timing, as if to fit the script.
Some veterans, such as Josh Barnett and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, look to continue their illustrious careers at Sengoku. However, there are many who are in their mid to late 30s, and by all accounts, past their prime: Kevin Randleman, Hidehiko Yoshida, Sanae Kikuta, Kazuyuki Fujita, and Frank Trigg some notable examples.
If the Featherweight Grand Prix that will enter its second round in two weeks is any indication, the influx of rising talent will continue.
The Featherweight GP promises to be nothing less than a coming out party for the participants, as the Featherweight division takes shape as a new battle zone.
As the dominance of the veterans wane, Sengoku’s battlefield will seethe with rivalry among the stars on the rise.
In the history book, the period of political instability and warfare eventually came to an end, and Japan was unified under a dominant general. In MMA, fans can only hope that the rough-and-tumble will continue among the veterans and up-and-comers. If Sengoku continues to live up to its name, it will dazzle the MMA world with the battles of the highest caliber.
