Three Dream Grand Prix Matchups Set
Dream parent company Fight Entertainment Group has confirmed the
first three matchups for its April 29 middleweight grand prix
opener at Saitama Super Arena.
Denis Kang (Pictures) will take on Gegard Mousasi (Pictures), Japanese MMA icons Kiyoshi Tamura (Pictures) and Masakatsu Funaki (Pictures) will do battle, and Kazushi Sakuraba (Pictures) will enter the tournament against Andrews Nakahara.
For Kang, it will be his first action since last October, when he suffered a crushing knockout loss to Yoshihiro Akiyama (Pictures) in Seoul, South Korea. The Armenian-born, Dutch-bred Mousasi is on a seven-fight winning streak, having halted his last four opponents, including Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos and Kyacey Uscola (Pictures) with strikes in the first round.
The 38-year-old Tamura took his last victory on New Year's Eve, submitting the massively outsized Hideo Tokoro (Pictures) in the third round. The same evening, Funaki, 39, made his return to the sport after seven and a half years away. Kazushi Sakuraba (Pictures) submitted him via kimura in the first round.
Sakuraba had been unconfirmed for the grand prix. However, Dream producer Keiichi Sasahara told the media following Dream's March 15 debut that FEG would continue negotiations with the "Gracie Hunter" in hopes of having him compete in the tournament.
Sakuraba's opponent, Nakahara, is a Brazilian-born kyokushin karate fighter who will be making his MMA debut. He captured the All American Open Karate Championships in 2006 and has been a runner-up at the tournament twice.
Denis Kang (Pictures) will take on Gegard Mousasi (Pictures), Japanese MMA icons Kiyoshi Tamura (Pictures) and Masakatsu Funaki (Pictures) will do battle, and Kazushi Sakuraba (Pictures) will enter the tournament against Andrews Nakahara.
For Kang, it will be his first action since last October, when he suffered a crushing knockout loss to Yoshihiro Akiyama (Pictures) in Seoul, South Korea. The Armenian-born, Dutch-bred Mousasi is on a seven-fight winning streak, having halted his last four opponents, including Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos and Kyacey Uscola (Pictures) with strikes in the first round.
The 38-year-old Tamura took his last victory on New Year's Eve, submitting the massively outsized Hideo Tokoro (Pictures) in the third round. The same evening, Funaki, 39, made his return to the sport after seven and a half years away. Kazushi Sakuraba (Pictures) submitted him via kimura in the first round.
Sakuraba had been unconfirmed for the grand prix. However, Dream producer Keiichi Sasahara told the media following Dream's March 15 debut that FEG would continue negotiations with the "Gracie Hunter" in hopes of having him compete in the tournament.
Sakuraba's opponent, Nakahara, is a Brazilian-born kyokushin karate fighter who will be making his MMA debut. He captured the All American Open Karate Championships in 2006 and has been a runner-up at the tournament twice.
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