KIAI Editorial

KIAI Editorial
  • Japan-based editorial team
  • Primary sources, cited
  • Variable facts dated

The KIAI editorial desk. We work from primary sources and date every claim that can change.

Latest

Tomoki Kameda — 42-5 (23 KOs), challenges Brandon Figueroa for the WBA featherweight title on Oct. 17

Former WBO bantamweight champion Tomoki Kameda (35, 42-5, 23 KOs) challenges WBA featherweight champion Brandon Figueroa on October 17, 2026, at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

KIAI Editorial ·

Ryosuke Nishida — 11-1 former IBF champion faces Sam Goodman for the IBF interim title on Sept 27

Ryosuke Nishida is an 11-1 (2 KOs) southpaw and former IBF bantamweight champion. On 27 September 2026 he fights Sam Goodman for the IBF interim super bantamweight title at TOYOTA ARENA TOKYO, live on Prime Video.

KIAI Editorial ·

Tomoya Tsuboi — 3-0 (2 KOs, 1 NC), WBC Super Flyweight Title Bout on Sept 27

Tomoya Tsuboi (Teiken, 30) is 3-0 with 2 KOs and one no contest as a pro, and won bantamweight gold at the 2021 amateur World Championships. On September 27, 2026, he fights Ricardo Malajika for the vacant WBC super flyweight title at TOYOTA ARENA TOKYO.

KIAI Editorial ·

Shinjuku FACE Closes 30 September 2026: The Final Nine Shows

Shinjuku FACE closes on Wednesday 30 September 2026, its building lease having run out. The Kabukicho hall opened in 2005, seats 511 in combat-sports configuration, and as of 2026-09-22 its official site still lists nine shows between 22 and 30 September — the last of them on closing day. Japan Kickboxing's KICK Insist 28 on 20 September was that promotion's final card at the venue.

KIAI Editorial ·

Beynoa — 6-4 in MMA, Faces Hide Mason Usami at Super RIZIN.5

Beynoa, the 31-year-old American striker known as "Black Panther", is 6-4 in MMA as of 8 September 2026 and went 18-5 (9 KO) in kickboxing as the second RISE welterweight champion. He opens Super RIZIN.5 at Kyocera Dome Osaka on 10 September 2026 against Hide Mason Usami under RIZIN open-finger-glove kickboxing rules at a 71.0 kg contract weight.

KIAI Editorial ·

Hide Mason Usami — RISE Welterweight Champion, 9-0-2 in Kickboxing

Hide Mason Usami, 25, of team VASILEUS is the 4th RISE Welterweight Champion, with a kickboxing record of 9-0-2 (5 KOs) in 11 bouts as of 8 September 2026. He faces Beynoa at Super RIZIN.5 on 10 September 2026 at Kyocera Dome Osaka, at a 71.0kg catchweight under RIZIN kickboxing rules (open-finger gloves, 3min x 3R).

KIAI Editorial ·

Natasha Kuziutina — RIZIN Super Atomweight, 10-1 in MMA

Natasha Kuziutina, the Rio 2016 Olympic judo bronze medalist at -52kg, is 10-1 in professional MMA as of 8 September 2026. She faces RENA at Super RIZIN.5 in Kyocera Dome Osaka on 10 September at 49.0kg — a tournament eliminator, not a title fight, according to RIZIN.

KIAI Editorial ·

RENA (Rena Kubota) — RIZIN Super Atomweight, 15-6 in MMA

RENA (Rena Kubota) is a 35-year-old striker out of Caesar Gym with a 15-6-0 professional MMA record as of 8 September 2026. On 10 September 2026 she faces Rio 2016 judo bronze medallist Natasha Kuziutina in bout two of Super RIZIN.5 at Kyocera Dome Osaka, at a 49.0 kg contract weight under RIZIN MMA rules.

KIAI Editorial ·

Ryo Takagi — RIZIN Featherweight, 11-3, Faces Vugar Karamov at Super RIZIN.5

Ryo Takagi is a Japanese featherweight (66.0 kg) with an 11-3 professional MMA record — 8 wins by KO/TKO, as of September 8, 2026 — and three straight RIZIN wins. He meets Vugar Karamov in the third bout of Super RIZIN.5 at Kyocera Dome Osaka on September 10, 2026. Born September 12, 1999 in Chiba Prefecture, he is 26.

KIAI Editorial ·

Vugar Karamov — Former RIZIN Featherweight Champion, 21-7

Vugar Karamov is a 34-year-old MMA fighter from Baku, Azerbaijan with a 21-7 record as of September 8, 2026. The former 4th RIZIN featherweight champion, who took the belt by submitting Mikuru Asakura in 2023, faces Ryo Takagi at 66.0kg on the September 10 Super RIZIN.5 card at Kyocera Dome Osaka.

KIAI Editorial ·

YA-MAN — 3-2 in MMA, RISE Open Finger Glove -65kg Champion

YA-MAN (Ren Sugiyama, 30) is 3-2 in MMA — all three wins by KO/TKO — as of Sept 8, 2026, and faces Yutaka Saito at Super RIZIN.5 on Sept 10 at Kyocera Dome Osaka, an MMA featherweight bout at 66.0 kg over three five-minute rounds. He is the inaugural RISE Open Finger Glove -65 kg champion and returns from a layoff dating to July 2025.

KIAI Editorial ·

Karshyga Dautbek — RIZIN Featherweight, 19-3 With 1 No Contest

Karshyga Dautbek is a 32-year-old featherweight from Shymkent, Kazakhstan with a 19-3 record and 1 no contest as of September 8, 2026, 15 of those wins by KO/TKO. He faces Ren Hiramoto at a 66.0kg contract weight at Super RIZIN.5 on September 10, 2026 at Kyocera Dome Osaka, riding an 11-fight winning streak since March 2019.

KIAI Editorial ·

Shunta Nomura — RIZIN Lightweight, 10-2, DEEP Lightweight Champion

Shunta Nomura is a 28-year-old Japanese lightweight who is 10-2 (4 KO/TKO, 6 decisions) as of September 8, 2026 and holds the DEEP lightweight belt as the promotion's 13th champion. He returns from roughly 13 months out to meet former RIZIN champion Roberto Satoshi Souza in a non-title 71.0 kg bout at Super RIZIN.5, Kyocera Dome Osaka, on September 10, 2026.

KIAI Editorial ·

Rei Tsuruya

Rei Tsuruya is 12-1 (6 submissions). He submitted Kevin Borjas at 4:14 of round one at UFC Shanghai on 29 August 2026 — his second first-round submission in three months. He is 24.

KIAI Editorial ·

Song Yadong

"The Kung Fu Kid" is 24-9-1 and ranked No. 6 at UFC bantamweight. He debuted in the Octagon at 19 and knocked out Umar Nurmagomedov at 1:48 of round two in the UFC Shanghai main event on home soil on August 29, 2026.

KIAI Editorial ·

Umar Nurmagomedov

A 20-2 Russian bantamweight ranked No. 3 by the UFC. He was knocked out by Song Yadong at 1:48 of round two in the UFC Shanghai main event on August 29, 2026 — his second defeat, after a January 2025 title challenge.

KIAI Editorial ·

Alibek Gadzhammatov

Dagestani flyweight, 6-2, a 2025 RIZIN Flyweight GP semifinalist. Returning after about 11 months at RIZIN.54 on 11 August 2026, he was stopped by Yuki Ito in round two of bout 6.

KIAI Editorial ·

Azizbek Temirov

Uzbek bantamweight, 6-3 with all six wins by KO/TKO. At RIZIN.54 on 11 August 2026 he was submitted by Joji Goto with a rear-naked choke at 3:41 of round one. His older brother is UFC flyweight Ramazan Temirov.

KIAI Editorial ·

Kaiwen Li

Chinese featherweight, 17-8, nicknamed 'the Chinese Takanori Gomi.' In his second RIZIN appearance he stopped Arata Mizuno at 4:27 of round one in bout 1 of RIZIN.54 (11 August 2026).

KIAI Editorial ·

Joji Goto

Bantamweight, 20-9. He challenged for the RIZIN title in April 2026; in his first fight back he submitted Azizbek Temirov at 3:41 of round one in bout 4 of RIZIN.54 (11 August 2026).

KIAI Editorial ·