And the winner is...!!!

Ladies and gentlemen, we here at Athletes and Eras have been conducting countless research, digging up as many facts as possible about these two fighters. Lyoto Machida and Antonio Inoki both have incredible skills and assets that we're sure would be utilized to the fullest in a fight against each other. That is why we are forced to declare that this fight is a tie! That's right, fans! We have our first tie in a fight.

You see, we've concluded that Machida's technical skill and ring mastership can only be matched by Inoki's versatility and wide range of martial arts mastery. Originally, we figured that Machida's lighter weight and superior speed giving him the advantage, but then we carefully watched the footage of the 220-pound Inoki running and jump-kicking the great Hulk Hogan, who is by no means a small man.This convinced us that Inoki, despite his heavier frame, could keep up with Machida in a fight.

In conclusion, we simply couldn't find an area where one fighter had a decisive advantage over the other. It would be an incredible and entertaining fight that would keep all fans on the edge of their respective seats. We here would love to see it.

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Inoki vs. Machida: Inoki Profile 2

Antonio Inoki was an instant smash sensation from the get-go. He first began working for the Japan Wrestling Association, where he was unfortunately overshadowed by Giant Baba, his fellow wrestling classmate under Rikidozan. From there, he moved on to Tokyo Pro Wrestling in 1966, where he became their biggest star. Unfortunately, Inoki's timing was poor; Tokyo Pro Wrestling folded a year later. Inoki returned to the Japan Wrestling Association, where he became Giant Baba's tag-team partner. They two dominated the tag-team ranks for many years until Inoki was fired from the JWA for trying to plan a takeover.

Following this, Inoki made the best move of his career: he founded New Japan Pro Wrestling, bringing in several thousand fans on a weekly draw. They were only rivaled by America's WWE, and had several cross-promotional matches, resulting in several of Inoki's most historical matches, including this unforgettable image of Inoki fighting the great Hulk Hogan.

But, while Inoki wasn't busy ranking up wins against wrestlers, he was also involved in several historic mixed-skills matches. A mixed-skill match is when a fighter of one discipline fights a fighter of another discipline (i.e. boxer vs. wrestler, karate vs. muay thai, etc.). Inoki fought everyone under the sun: boxers, karate fighters, judo fighters, sumo wrestlers, kung fu fighters, and more. He was very successful in these fights, knocking out the likes of Everett Eddy and severely damaging the legs of Muhammad Ali. This was the very beginning of Mixed Martial Arts, and Inoki is regarded today as a true pioneer of professional fighting. He founded Kansuiryu Karate, and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2010,. the first Japanese person to be inducted. 

Antonio Inoki now spends his days on the managing side of fighting, promoting several MMA events and guiding young fighters on their way to the top. Such fighters include his opponent this Sunday, Lyoto Machida. What's going to happen when these two warriors finally meet up in the ring? We here at Athletes and Eras are so excited, we can't think straight! Don't forget to tune in!

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Inoki vs. Machida: Inoki Profile 1

In the history of professional wrestling, or perhaps even the history of all combat sports, you may never find someone who has had more influence on the way we view fighting than Antonio Inoki. for over 30 years, he dominated professional wrestling in the Japan, and founded Japan's biggest wrestling company: New Japan Pro Wrestling.

"But wait, pro wrestling's fake, isn't it?" Yes, folks. We all know about how fights are organized and blah blah blah. But, in addition to professional wrestling, Inoki was a pioneer of MMA. He is one of the founders of Kansuiryu Karate, which is one of the few karate techniques to actually utilize full contact training. And at 6'2", 220 pounds in his prime, he was a powerhouse of grappling. He was also one of the earliest wrestlers to actively practice both shoot and catch wrestling. That is, he would often break away from the scripted fights and would frequently utilize an array of submission holds. His fight with Lyoto Machida, who he would later manage as a young MMA fighter, should prove to be exciting.

Antonio Inoki was born Kanji Inoki on February 20th, 1943. He was born into a well-off family and had a pretty typical youth. He began training in Karate during the 6th grade, as well as winning awards for track and field competition. When he was 14, his family moved to Brazil to get away from the harsh post-war times. There, he met Mitsuhiro Momota, also known as the wrestler Rikidōzan. It was this meeting that led to Inoki's beginning in the evolving t of professional wrestling.

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Machida vs. Inoki: Machida Profile 1

You know, not many people out there can claim that they've been training in martial arts since they were three years old. Lyoto Machida is NOT one of those people.

Born in Brazil on May 30th, 1978, Lyoto Machida is the son of Yoshizo Machida, a high-ranking member of the Japan Karate Association. Yoshizo began training his son, Lyoto, in Shotokan Karate when he was only three years old. Shotokan is one of the five sacred forms of karate, and one of the few to successfully utilize elbows, knees, take-downs, and even a few submissions. Machida has said "It is a very traditional form. It differs from sports karate which we usually see in Karate schools and competitions as it has many elements which were lost in the style..."


In addition to training in Karate (he earned his black-belt at the age of 13), Machida began training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a highly explosive submission-based style. He also began training in, believe it or not, Sumo wrestling. Does Lyoto Machida look like a traditional sumo wrestler? We don't think so...

Around the late 1990's and early 2000's, Machida began winning several amateur karate tournaments, as well as other martial arts tournaments, including the 2001 Pan American Karate tournament. He is also a two-time Brazilian champion in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He even once was victorious in a great fight against Chinzo Machida,m his own younger brother and fellow Shotokan Karate fighter. After compiling several wins and few losses, Machida decided to enter the world of MMA, being managed by none other than legendary wrestler and MMA pioneer... Antonio Inoki! That's right, fans, the man who guided a young Machida into the MMA world is none other than the man he will be facing this sunday on Athletes and Eras! Let's get excited!

We're back! And it's Lyoto Machida vs. Antonio Inoki!!

Hey, fans! Hope your turkey was good, ours was fantastic! Anyway, we're back again and all of our internal work is finished! We figured out what exactly we wanted to do here, and we've decided to change our focus to be only on the exciting worlds of MMA and Boxing! And now, let's build some excitement for next week's match-up: Lyoto Machida vs. Antonio Inoki! Who will win? Will it be Machida with his tactical Machida Karate fighting style; or will it be Inoki, a powerful wrestler with a leg kick that could cripple you? Find out next week, only on Athletes and Eras!
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