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I just watched this battle again and considering that Takada was known for his Pro Wrestling and not NHB I think he was very impressive.
Think how Steve Austin would do in his first NHB fight against a top NHB competitor of similar size.
In the opening of the fight Rickson was scared to shoot in on Takada.When Takada was dancing around like Severn in Shamrock V Severn2, Rickson stood in the center of the ring and dropped his hands as if to say "Bring the fight to me". I wonder why Rickson was scared to take the fight to Takada?
Takada scored the first strike of the fight with a leg kick and then he scored the first punch.
When Rickson tried to take down Takada he had a lot of difficulty although I concede that he eventually did slam him . It impressed me how difficult Takada was to take down.
When they did go to the ground Takada traps one of Ricksons arms in his armpit. He keeps it trapped for a good amount of time.
Takada took a lot of punishment to the ribs but would not turn over or let go of Rickson, his position was not bad for somebody who was mounted. He almost bridged Rickson off twice.
Sure Rickson got an armbar in the end but Takada was no pushover. Rickson was sweating like a pig after the fight and was clearly tired.
It is no wonder that Takada gave Rickson a much better fight in the rematch. It is also no wonder that Takada improved so much in his next fights that he defeated UFC Champ Mark "The Hammer" Coleman and had a controversial loss to Mark "The Speciman" Kerr.The Kerr fight is now known to have been a work to create American interest in the event.
After these fights Takada went the distance with Royce Gracie and many people feel he actually won the fight. Takada gave Igor Vovchanchin his toughest fight ever, his kicks causing huge welts to Igors thighs. Sakuraba states that Takada taps him every time they spar.
I think its about time Takada received some respect in the MMA world.
Think how Steve Austin would do in his first NHB fight against a top NHB competitor of similar size.
In the opening of the fight Rickson was scared to shoot in on Takada.When Takada was dancing around like Severn in Shamrock V Severn2, Rickson stood in the center of the ring and dropped his hands as if to say "Bring the fight to me". I wonder why Rickson was scared to take the fight to Takada?
Takada scored the first strike of the fight with a leg kick and then he scored the first punch.
When Rickson tried to take down Takada he had a lot of difficulty although I concede that he eventually did slam him . It impressed me how difficult Takada was to take down.
When they did go to the ground Takada traps one of Ricksons arms in his armpit. He keeps it trapped for a good amount of time.
Takada took a lot of punishment to the ribs but would not turn over or let go of Rickson, his position was not bad for somebody who was mounted. He almost bridged Rickson off twice.
Sure Rickson got an armbar in the end but Takada was no pushover. Rickson was sweating like a pig after the fight and was clearly tired.
It is no wonder that Takada gave Rickson a much better fight in the rematch. It is also no wonder that Takada improved so much in his next fights that he defeated UFC Champ Mark "The Hammer" Coleman and had a controversial loss to Mark "The Speciman" Kerr.The Kerr fight is now known to have been a work to create American interest in the event.
After these fights Takada went the distance with Royce Gracie and many people feel he actually won the fight. Takada gave Igor Vovchanchin his toughest fight ever, his kicks causing huge welts to Igors thighs. Sakuraba states that Takada taps him every time they spar.
I think its about time Takada received some respect in the MMA world.
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