Kazushi Sakuraba

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The match saw the two grapplers exchange without any decisive movement. Following a barrage of light blows by Silveira, Sakuraba dropped for a low single leg takedown, but referee John McCarthy stopped the fight before Sakuraba could complete it, believing he had been knocked out by the punches. A loud protest followed from the crowd and an angry Sakuraba attempted unsuccessfully to take the microphone and address the Japanese audience. However, after reviewing tape, McCarthy changed his decision to a no-contest. As Tank Abbott, who earlier defeated Anjoh, had dropped from the tournament due to an injured hand, it was ruled that Sakuraba and Silveira faced off once more that night in what would be the championship bout of the tournament.

Silveira opened their second match taking Sakuraba's back, which the Japanese wrestler answered by attempting to apply a Kimura lock. After freeing his arm, Silveira capitalized on another Kimura attempt to try to twist it into an armbar from his guard, only for the Japanese to escape to his knees. Silveira then tried his own Kimura, but at that moment Sakuraba reversed it in the same way and locked the armbar, making the Brazilian submit. Afterwards, in the post-fight interview, Sakuraba famously stated, Puroresurā wa hontōwa tsuyoi n desu. With the victory Sakuraba remains one of the last UFC tournament champions to date.

With Nobuhiko Takada having left Kingdom to challenge Rickson Gracie in an event called Pride Fighting Championships, the still struggling promotion capitalized on Sakuraba's newly found popularity establishing him as Kingdom's top talent. He embarked on a winning streak against several foreign mixed martial arts competitors including Paul Herrera, Rene Rooze, Mark Hall and Orlando Weit. However, Kingdom continued to flounder and finally folded in March 1998.

Next, in Pride 3, Sakuraba was matched against Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Carlos Newton. Though relatively new to mixed martial arts, Newton had recently disposed of reigning Shooto light heavyweight champion Erik Paulson with a swift armbar victory and developed a reputation as a talented grappler. Accordingly, the match was a back and forth grappling affair between the two fighters. At the second round, after several exchanges on the mat, Newton looked to capture Sakuraba's back, but the Japanese trapped him in a rolling kneebar and finished him.

Eager to capitalize on Sakuraba's shoot wrestling prowess to reverse the perception that Japanese professional wrestlers were inferior to Brazilian combatants (in part perpetuated by his teammates' own defeats), Sakuraba's next three bouts were scheduled against Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts Vitor Belfort, Allan Goes and luta livre black belt Ebenezer Fontes Braga. In a trend that continued through Sakuraba's Pride career, each opponent occupied a spot near the top of the 205-pound class at the time of their fight and held a weight advantage of around 20 pounds.

Sakuraba's match against Goes was instrumental point in his fighting's style evolution, pitted against an opponent with a strong defensive guard. Through the bout, Sakuraba attempted several moves to bypass the stationary Goes's defense, including , dives and kicks to the legs, but he also has to defend, as Goes was relentless in his upkicks and submission counterattacks. Sakuraba was threatened by a rear naked choke several times, and in turn almost finished Allan with an armbar, but none of it came to fruition. Due to the absence of judges in Pride's ruleset at the time, the match was declared a draw. Sakuraba, always humble, stated "I fight his style, not mine. I think I lost the fight",Stephen Quadros, King of the World: Kazushi Sakuraba Proves that Pro Wrestlers Can Fight - and Triumph over Brazilian jujutsu, Black Belt Magazine, November 2000 although Goes, a Carlson Gracie protege, would similarly state in a later interview "I've been training my whole life on the ground, and to me, Sakuraba was the best guy I ever faced on the ground".Stephen Quadros, Allan Goes is One of Brazil's Finest, Black Belt Magazine, March 2000

Belfort was be a different matchup, as his boxing prowess was known aside from his great grappling credentials. However, despite several big flurries by the Brazilian to open the match, Sakuraba went unscathed and took Belfort down, proceeding to land ground and pound. As Belfort would not leave the mat through the match, in part due to a broken hand in one of his combos, Sakuraba deployed his improved strategy and punished Vitor with leg kicks and jumping stomps to the head, as well as landing unanswered striking combinations every time Belfort was called up by the referee. At the end, as Pride had just implemented the judges system, Sakuraba was awarded his first decision victory unanimously.

Unlike the previous two matches, Kazushi faced in Braga a consistently aggressive opponent, with the luta livre practitioner landing effective muay thai knees and kicks until Sakuraba put him down. The Japanese wrestler continued his signature guard assault, but also outstruck Braga in his last standing segment before taking him down again and lock an armbar for the tap out.

Sakuraba's victory over Royler constituted the first loss by a Gracie in professional fighting in several decades and as such, sent ripples of shock and controversy through the mixed martial arts community. Some protested that the victory was tainted because Royler (although placed in a debilitating submission hold) never conceded defeat and was little time away from the final bell when the bout was stopped. It is worth noting that the last Japanese athlete to defeat a Gracie prior to Sakuraba's win against Royler, legendary Masahiko Kimura, used the same technique Sakuraba utilized to beat Royler. That time, the recipient had been Royler's father, Hélio Gracie, who like Royler refused to submit but likewise lost.

In his first fight of the 2000 Pride tournament Sakuraba once again found himself matched up against a heavier opponent, this time the well-regarded 205 pound fighter, former King of Pancrase Guy Mezger. After a closely fought 15 minutes the judges requested an overtime round, and the fight ended in controversy when Mezger's coach Ken Shamrock forced his fighter back to the locker room claiming that no additional rounds were agreed upon in the contract. Sakuraba ended up winning the match by forfeit. Meanwhile, Royce defeated Nobuhiko Takada by unanimous decision and thus set the stage for their much anticipated showdown.

In the tournament quarterfinals Royce and Sakuraba battled for an hour and a half (six 15-minute rounds). Gracie opened the fight aggressively, raining punches from Kazushi's back while the Japanese fighter worked an armlock from standing, but Sakuraba kept calm, knowing Royce had no knockout power and expecting him to waste his energy; he even came to the point of smiling to the cameras during the attack. Towards the end of the round, Sakuraba nearly ended the match with a kneebar, while Gracie came back with a guillotine choke at the second, but Kazushi again joked to show he was out of danger by simulating to Debagging Royce's gi pants. Sakuraba switched to attack at the third round, dominating the stand up and making Royce lie repeatedly on the ground to avoid him. As the confrontation stretched on, the Gracies' own no time-limit rules began to work against Royce as Sakuraba's wrestling skills and balance nullified Royce's ability to score a takedown and—in some instances—even pull guard. Even Royce's ever-present jiu-jitsu Keikogi became a weapon for the wrestler as Sakuraba used it to help him control Gracie when the fight did come to the ground. However, with Sakuraba's control of the takedown, these instances of ground warfare became increasingly sporadic. After Kazushi landed a long series of punishing in the fifth and sixth rounds, Royce's brother Rorion threw in the towel.

Exhausted from his battle with Royce, Sakuraba surprised many when he emerged from the locker room for the tournament semi-finals. His opponent, Igor Vovchanchyn, outweighed him by close to sixty pounds (Sakuraba had come into the bout with Royce lighter than usual, at 176 pounds) and was considered the top heavyweight striker of the day. Sakuraba surprised many by taking Vovchanchyn down and nearly finishing him with an armbar. Sakuraba was actually leading the fight past the 10-minute mark, but near the end Igor reversed a takedown and drew the first round even with ground strikes. After the first round was declared a draw, Sakuraba's corner threw in the towel before the beginning of overtime, primarily due to fatigue.

At the time of his bout with Sakuraba, Renzo's only loss in 10 bouts was a closely contested decision to Sakuraba's former UWFi stablemate and rival, Kiyoshi Tamura while Maurice Smith, Oleg Taktarov and Abu Dhabi champion Sanae Kikuta numbered amongst his victims. Renzo's stylistic differences from his cousins were in evidence from the outset of his contest against Sakuraba, as he pressed the pace of the bout with a variety of kicks and punches, although few connected. Sakuraba responded in kind, and the striking seemed to go to a stalemate. Throwing his wrestling into the equation, Sakuraba timed a number of double and single leg takedowns against Renzo's flurries from where he alternately attempted to cartwheel past Gracie's guard, malign his legs with from the standing position and even attack with a baseball slide. However, Renzo's defensive skills from bottom nullified the entire gamut of Sakuraba's offensive attempts, and after using an entry derived from the De la Riva guard, he took the wrestler's back, pressing him against the turnbuckle as mere seconds remained in the battle. With time ticking away, Sakuraba locked in a Kimura lock from the back and spun around, flipping Renzo to the canvas even as he wrenched his arm behind his back. Like Royler and Helio before him, Renzo refused to submit to the hold despite his elbow being snapped prior to hitting the ground and, even as the referee stopped the contest due to the injury, which awarded victory to Sakuraba.

Renzo took the microphone and, before the 35,000 fans assembled at the Seibu Dome, stated that Sakuraba was "the Japanese version of the Gracie family." Renzo has called the bout as his proudest moment in mixed martial arts.[5] Similarly, years later Gracie called Sakuraba "his hero" and remembered their match as "one of the biggest lessons he learned in his life". Commentator Stephen Quadros stated too: "if any fans still doubted the abilities of Kazushi Sakuraba in MMA competition, they are now silent." Ryan Gracie, who fought on the same card and emerged victorious, jumped into the ring to challenge Sakuraba, who accepted. Vitor Belfort also demanded a rematch, although Sakuraba stated he was not interested in rematches because he wanted to face Frank Shamrock, Tito Ortiz and Dan Henderson.Stephen Quadros, Pride Fighting Championship Hosts its Best Show Ever, Black Belt magazine, December 2000

The fight between Sakuraba and Ryan was scheduled for Pride 12. Due to a shoulder injury, the fight was limited to a single 10-minute round, where Ryan's spirited efforts were generally stymied and controlled by Sakuraba, who noticeably avoided attacks on his younger opponent's injured arm. Despite it, Kazushi later argued in an interview that he believed Ryan was faking the injury to catch him off guard. Nonetheless, the Japanese threw some of his usual antics during the match, at some points delivering chops to Ryan's rear while controlling him.

Following the win against Ryan, Sakuraba was slated to battle Pancrase veteran Bas Rutten, but Rutten declined and was replaced by Brazilian muay thai specialist Wanderlei Silva. Sakuraba was a heavy favorite to win, but he was fighting through a significant weight disadvantage. The bout was also contested under Pride's new rules, which allowed kicks and knees to the head of a downed opponent, a change that greatly benefitted Wanderlei.Stephen Quadros, Silva Stops Sakuraba, Telligman Upsets Vovchanchyn, Black Belt magazine, July 2001 During the match, a Sakuraba willing to trade strikes managed to knock Wanderlei down with a right hook, but the Brazilian recovered and dropped the wrestler with a barrage of punches and kicks. As Sakuraba turtled while attempted a takedown, Silva delivered multiple knees to his head and ultimately finished him off with kicks to the face. It marked Sakuraba's second defeat in mixed martial arts and his first loss in the 205-pound division. Sakuraba then shocked the audience further by giving Silva his belt with Saku engraved on it. Wanderlei then stated that he would willingly give Sakuraba a rematch if Sakuraba wanted one, which the Japanese accepted.

After sitting out the next Pride to recuperate, Sakuraba found himself across the ring from Quinton Jackson, a former collegiate wrestler who had compiled a record of 10–1 on the American circuit. At the sound of the bell, Sakuraba immediately took the bigger man to the canvas with a low single-leg takedown. However, Jackson's superior size and enormous physical strength allowed him to muscle out of Sakuraba's submission attempts. After locking his legs around Jackson for a triangle choke, Sakuraba found himself hefted into the air and repeatedly slammed to the canvas in the way of a powerbomb. Later, he attempted an armbar against Jackson, only for the Tennessee native to again lift him up and this time attempt to drop him from the ring. His expression unchanging through the course of Jackson's assault, Sakuraba continued to flow from one lock to another. Eventually, he took the back of an exhausted Jackson and submitted him with his first rear naked choke victory. The contest was a launchpad for Jackson's career, leading to a long-term contract with Pride where he eventually became regarded as a top middleweight competitor, and later, a UFC champion.

Sakuraba took time off to let his shoulder heal, also briefly training basic Brazilian jiu-jitsu with Sergio Penha at Takada Dojo. GTR Dojo Jiu-Jitsu He then returned against heavyweight kickboxer Mirko Cro Cop. Sakuraba was proposed a special ruleset of no strikes on the ground as part of the "K-1 vs Pride theme", but he rejected the offer, not wanting any special rule for him. Ironically, although he managed to take Cro Cop down through hard kicks, Sakuraba would end losing the match while exchanging strikes on Mirko's guard when an upkick from the kickboxer broke his orbital bone.Keith Vargo, Courage and Controversy reign at Shockwave event, Black Belt Magazine, January 2003

Finally assenting to place him in competition against fighters of his own weight class, Pride management put him against French jiu-jitsu champion Gilles Arsene in a bout Sakuraba dominated and then against Rickson Gracie protege Nino Schembri. With a win over Schembri, it was speculated that Sakuraba might be then groomed for a championship fight in a new weight division for fighters of his size. Sakuraba controlled the fight initially, landing plenty of hits and breaking Antônio's nose, but when he was going for one of his trademark Mongolian chops, Schembri stunned him with a series of knee strikes (controversially preceded by an illegal headbutt), winning by TKO.

After the defeat to Schembri, Sakuraba expressed desire to gain weight and move up to the heavyweight division, hoping to fight either Bob Sapp or PRIDE Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko. However, nothing of this was realized, and instead Sakuraba faced Wanderlei Silva for the third time at Pride Total Elimination. The bout reminisced their first encounter, as Sakuraba flashed again a comical entrance and traded strikes with Silva in his own field of specialty. The Japanese utilized a strategy of faking takedowns and attacking with , followed by a real takedown attempt which Silva blocked with knees to the head. Sakuraba escaped and kept trading hits, but despite his best efforts to match his opponent's striking acumen, Wanderlei knocked him out with a jab-cross combination.Keith Vargo, PRIDE Total Elimination 2003, Black Belt magazine, November 2003 After the fight, there was talk of Kazushi planning to retire, but nothing came from it.

Those defeats seemed to mark a turning point in Sakuraba's career; though he was unbeaten in his first nine Pride bouts, he thereafter split his next six matches. He had a notable victory over Kevin Randleman, a former UFC Heavyweight Champion, widely remembered due to his ring entrance as Mario, a pun intended to reflect the Japanese media referring to Randleman as Donkey Kong. In the match itself, Randleman was fast in showing his wrestling accolades at taking down Sakuraba, but the Japanese countered by setting submissions from every available position, until the American made a mistake and was caught in an armbar in the third round.

At Pride Shockwave 2003, Sakuraba would face Antônio Rogério Nogueira, brother to the famous Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira. The Brazilian, having promised to knock out the Japanese, opened the match lunging at him with punches, but Kazushi answered in kind and opened a cut on Nogueira's eye which almost stopped the bout. The action resumed, both men battled for several minutes, with Rogério gaining the upper hand in striking and Sakuraba in wrestling, allowing him to get in Nogueira's guard and inflict significant damage again. During the second round, Nogueira managed to catch Sakuraba in a triangle choke/armbar combo, but the Japanese escaped the hold and sought his own submission, to no effect. Finally, the third round saw Nogueira taking over with punches and knees, exchanging strikes with Sakuraba almost until the last minute, and ultimately winning the decision.

Following the loss, Pride president Sakakibara suggested Sakuraba might move down in weight to compete in their newly formed 183-pound division. However, instead of moving down in weight, Sakuraba began training at Chute Boxe Academy in Brazil alongside his one-time rival Wanderlei Silva. The move had also a symbolic value, as Chute Boxe was at the time in a rivalry with Arona's Brazilian Top Team.

Prior to Pride's Shockwave 2005 New Year's Eve event, Sakuraba strongly petitioned for a match against fellow shoot wrestler and professional wrestling proponent, Kiyoshi Tamura, even going so far as to publicly request a bout with Tamura. However, with Tamura refusing to face him, Sakuraba recommended another shoot wrestler, Ikuhisa Minowa, who referred to himself as a "real pro wrestler." Sakuraba did not request the match due to any grudge against Minowa, but rather because he believed that he and Minowa would put on a fight worthy of the Shockwave event. The bout was a competitive one, with Sakuraba choosing to fight from the bottom and using both men's submission attempts to force scrambles. After long minutes pinned under Sakuraba, Minowa escaped and took his back, but Kazushi applied a Kimura lock which, although Minowa would not tap to it, nonetheless prompted the referee to halt the contest. The victory marked his final bout under the Pride banner; it also marked one of the few times he was matched against an opponent of his own size from the 183-pound division and his first bout against a Japanese fighter.