Epic Dream-Team Showdown as Bloodline of Kazushi Sakuraba Clashes with the RIZIN Army!
October 9, 2024. At the press conference for the upcoming “10.19 JAPAN MARTIAL ARTS EXPO PROLOGUE,” organizers announced the main event: the “QUINTET 5 vs. 5 Survival Match: TEAM SAKU vs. TEAM RIZIN.”
It was also confirmed that the event, scheduled for October 19 at Yokohama BUNTAI, will be streamed exclusively in Japan on U-NEXT.
QUINTET’s unique format features a 5 vs. 5 team survival battle, with a total weight limit of 380 kg per team. Most matches last for 8 minutes in a single round, but if there’s a weight difference of more than 10 kg, the round time can be reduced to 4 minutes. Fighters are penalized for passive behavior, and three penalties result in disqualification.
TEAM SAKU is led by Taisei Sakuraba, son of the legendary “IQ Wrestler” Kazushi Sakuraba. At 25, Taisei has a background in judo and made his professional debut at QUINTET in September 2023, where he wowed the crowd with a knee bar victory over judo Olympic gold medalist Masato Uchishiba.
Joining Taisei on TEAM SAKU are four more skilled fighters: Shutaro Debana, Masato Uchishiba, Naoki Hirata, and Dzhumanazarov Ratbek. Together, they make a formidable team.
Their opponents on TEAM RIZIN include Yusuke Yachi, Satoru Kitaoka, Takeji Yokoyama, Kazuma Kuramoto, and Suguru Nii—all top-tier fighters active in Japan’s martial arts scene and part of RIZIN.
The QUINTET format not only highlights each fighter’s individual skill, strength, and mental resilience but also brings an added layer of excitement with its unique team dynamics. This is a truly one-of-a-kind experience that you won’t want to miss!
Here are some comments from Taisei Sakuraba of TEAM SAKU and Yusuke Yachi of TEAM RIZIN, who were present at the press conference:
TEAM SAKU, Taisei Sakuraba
“I’m thrilled to put together my own team for an event like this, especially since I’ll be facing the RIZIN team, which has experienced MMA fighters I really admire.
Being relatively new to the sport, I don’t know a lot of fighters personally. The first person who came to mind was Masato Uchishiba, who I faced last year at QUINTET. Though I barely won that match, I was so impressed by his strength and the way he incorporates judo into grappling. It’s clear why he’s a two-time Olympic champion.
So, I really wanted Uchishiba on the team, and I traveled to Kumamoto to spar with him. He mentioned that he had focused on judo this past year and hadn’t done much grappling, so he thought it might be tough. But once we started sparring, I could feel his strength, and he agreed to join us. That’s how Masato Uchishiba became our second member.
At Uchishiba’s dojo, I met a fighter from Kyrgyzstan who is about my age and size. Uchishiba encouraged me to spar with him, and I was blown away by his strength—he felt like a larger version of Uchishiba. I invited him to join, and he agreed. That’s how we added Dzhumanazarov Ratbek, an 81 kg judo champion from Kyrgyzstan, as our third member.
Since all three of us had a judo background, I decided to build a team around judo-based fighters. Uchishiba introduced me to Naoki Hirata, an MMA fighter with a judo foundation who also fought at QUINTET. Our fourth member is Naoki Hirata from Triforce.
And lastly, I was looking for another strong grappler with a judo background, and my father suggested Shutaro Debana. I remembered he almost beat my dad once, so I reached out to him. He liked the idea of competing on a team for a change and he agreed to join us. So, our fifth member is Shutaro Debana.”
【TEAM RIZIN, Yusuke Yachi】
“When I was asked to lead the team, I felt the weight of the responsibility, but I accepted anyway (laughs). This will be my first time competing in a grappling match, so it’s a different environment for me, but I’m really looking forward to it. Thank you.”
| QUINTET Rules 5 vs 5 elimination match / Grappling, single 8-minute match | ||
 | X |  |
TEAM SAKU｜Fighter Profiles
Taisei Sakuraba（Judo/Japan)
Date of Birth: November 12, 1998
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 75 kg
Son of the legendary “IQ Wrestler” Kazushi Sakuraba. Made his professional martial arts debut at QUINTET in September 2023, securing a knee bar victory over judo Olympic gold medalist Masato Uchishiba.
Shutaro Debana (Judo/Japan)
Date of Birth: January 30, 1985
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 77 kg
Placed 3rd in the -73 kg division at the All Japan Judo Weight Category Championship (Athens Olympic Qualifier) in 2004. Also placed 3rd in the 75 kg division at the World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Asian Qualifier.
Masato Uchishiba (Judo/Japan)
Date of Birth: June 17, 1978
Height: 160 cm
Weight: 74 kg
Gold Medalist in Men’s Judo 66 kg at the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Naoki Hirata (Judo/Japan)
Date of Birth: December 19, 1997
Height: 168 cm
Weight: 72 kg
His sister is martial artist Itsuki Hirata. Champion of the DEEP Future King Tournament Featherweight Division (2019).
Won the Light and Open Class Divisions in the Blue Belt category at the 2022 All Japan Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Dzhumanazarov Ratbek (Judo/Kyrgyzstan)
Date of Birth: March 16, 2000
Height: 180 cm Weight: 81 kg
Kyrgyzstan Judo Champion in the 81 kg division.
TEAM RIZIN ｜Fighter Profiles
矢地祐介｜ Yusuke Yachi（MMA／日本）
Date of Birth: May 13, 1990
Height: 179 cm
Weight: 71 kg
Made his professional debut in Shooto in 2009. In 2012, he won the Shooto Pacific Rim Lightweight Title. In his 2016 RIZIN debut, he scored a quick knockout victory in just 19 seconds of the first round. In 2017, he continued his success by defeating Daron Cruickshank, Satoru Kitaoka, and Takanori Gomi
Satoru Kitaoka (MMA/Japan)
Date of Birth: February 4, 1980
Height: 168 cm
Weight: 71 kg
First Sengoku Lightweight Champion and 8th DEEP Lightweight Champion.
Takeji Yokoyama (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu/Japan)
Date of Birth: July 2, 1996
Height: 174 cm
Weight: 66 kg
Winner of the All Japan Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championship, Adult Black Belt Featherweight Division. Second Featherweight Champion in Fighting NEXUS.
Kazuma Kuramoto (Wrestling/Japan)
Date of Birth: October 29, 1986 Height: 163 cm Weight: 61 kg
1st Place at the 2013 All Japan Championships in Greco-Roman 60 kg category.
1st Place at the 2014 All Japan Championships in Greco-Roman 59 kg category.
Suguru Nii (Judo/Japan)
Date of Birth: January 13, 199
Height: 173 cm Weight: 66 kg
10th Featherweight King of Pancrase Champion.
– Event Details –
Noto Peninsula Earthquake Charity Event
JAPAN MARTIAL ARTS EXPO PROLOGUE
Date & Time: Saturday, October 19th, 2024. Doors open at 12:30 PM, Event starts at 2:00 PM.
Venue: Yokohama BUNTAI
2-7-1 Furo-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 231-0032
Organizer: Japan Martial Arts Consortium
Ticket Prices: Arena Reserved Seating: ¥10,000 (excl. tax) (Reserved Seating)
General Admission: ¥3,000 (excl. tax) (Open Seating)
Ticket Sales: Tickets will be available starting Tuesday, October 1st, 2024, through e-plus and other outlets:
e-plus (from Oct 1st)
Ticket Pia (from Oct 2nd)
Lawson Ticket (from Oct 2nd)
Official Event Website: https://jmaexpo.com/
For the latest updates, be sure to follow our official social media channels!