New Year’s Eve in Japan, at least as far as fighting is concerned, is nowhere near what it once was during the kakutogi boom of 2003-2006. Gone are the days of superstars like Bob Sapp, Masato, Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic, Hidehiko Yoshida, and Wanderlei Silva anchoring grand spectacles that did massive television numbers on the biggest TV watching night of the year. Nonetheless, come Tuesday, RIZIN Fighting Federation will stage its annual soiree.
Last year was headlined by kickboxing ace Tenshin Nasukawa getting trounced in his exhibition boxing bout with all-time great Floyd Mayweather. This year has nothing of that sort for Rizin to promote.