RIZIN 53 Results: Full Card & Who Won
📺 Watch on: RIZIN.TV / U-NEXT (Japan)
RIZIN 53 at Glion Arena Kobe: in the lightweight title main event, Luiz Gustavo knocked out Ilkhom Nozimov in Round 1 to take the belt.
Key points
- Luiz Gustavo blasted Ilkhom Nozimov out in Round 1 to claim the RIZIN Lightweight title
- The co-main, Ren Hiramoto vs Kouzi (special standing rules), ended in a draw
- A finish-heavy night at Kobe's Glion Arena — five of the headline bouts ended inside the distance
- Veteran Shinobu Ota and Ryo Takagi both delivered statement wins on the undercard
Fight card
- MAIN🏆 RIZIN Lightweight ChampionshipLightweightLuiz GustavovsIlkhom Nozimov
Gustavo def. Nozimov — KO (punches) R1
- Special Rules (Standing, Openweight)
Draw
- BantamweightShinobu OtavsKintaro
Ota def. Kintaro — Submission (arm-triangle) R2
- BantamweightRyo TakagivsLi Kaiwen
Takagi def. Li — KO (punches) R1
- FeatherweightRyan CafarovsKoyomi Matsushima
Cafaro def. Matsushima — Submission (guillotine) R3
- FlyweightSho Patrick UsamivsTatsuya Saika
Usami def. Saika — TKO R1
- LightweightKouki NakagawavsJake Wilkins
Nakagawa def. Wilkins — Decision (unanimous)
Report
RIZIN returned to Kobe's Glion Arena for RIZIN 53, and the lightweight title fight was over almost before it began. Challenger-turned-champion Luiz Gustavo caught Ilkhom Nozimov early and finished him by knockout in the very first round, taking the RIZIN Lightweight Championship in emphatic fashion.
The co-main event was a different kind of theatre: Ren Hiramoto and the kickboxer Kouzi met under special standing rules in an openweight bout that went the distance and was scored a draw — a result that leaves the door open for a rematch.
The rest of the card matched the main event's urgency. Ryo Takagi opened with a first-round KO, Shinobu Ota submitted Kintaro with an arm-triangle in the second, Sho Patrick Usami stopped Tatsuya Saika in the first, and Ryan Cafaro took out Koyomi Matsushima with a third-round guillotine. Kouki Nakagawa closed out his bout on the cards with a unanimous decision over Jake Wilkins.
For the bigger picture — where RIZIN 53 sits in the promotion's packed 2026 calendar — see our RIZIN 2026 schedule and card hub.