Inoki vs. Machida: Machida Profile 2

On May 2, 2003, Lyoto Machida made his MMA debut against Kengo Watanabe in Tokyo, and so began an undefeated streak that would last seven years and 16 fights. He defeated Watanabe by decision, and then proceeded to knock out Stephan Bonnar, an American MMA fighter. Then, in possible the biggest fight of his rising career, Machida TKO'd Rich Franklin in front of 40,000 fans in Kobe, Japan with a powerful kick follpowed by several punches...

Incredible... Notice that Machida fights in a southpaw stance, utilizing the awkward right lead to confuse orthodox opponents, then followed by the powerful left, which orthodox fighters aren't used to blocking. From here on, Machida began competing in K-1, a respected MMA venue where many fighters get their start. It was also here at K-1 that Machida demonstrated his grappling prowess, defeating Sam Greco by unanimous decision.

Machida made his debut in the Ultimate Fighting Championship in February 2007, beating Same Hoger by unanimous decision. He kept the decisions coming by beating David Heath and Kazuhiro Nakamura.

Before moving on to Machida's championship fight with Rashad Evans, let's take a second to analyze his unique fighting style. Unlike many other fights who are going for the stoppage, either by knockout or submission, Machida emphasizes technical skill and prefers to defeat opponents by decision rather than go for the stoppage. While he does have a few notable knockouts and stoppage wins, the majority of his victories have come by decision. And with a 17-2 record, why change a winning recipe? And now, onto Machida's first championship victory over Rashad Evans...

Wow...What else can we say? With that incredible knockout, Machida earned the UFC Light heavyweight Championship, a title he would hold for nearly a year. His fight with Evans, though, earned Machida the Knockout of the Night Award, which we all believe he righteously deserved. Machida went on to have a pair of epic fights with Mauricio Rua, winning one and losing the other. His most recent fight, a knockout win over MMA living legend Randy Couture, earned him his second Knockout of the Night Award. Machida has truly earned the name "The Dragon." Let's see how he does this Sunday against Antonio Inoki.


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