Dream (mixed martial arts)

Dream (mixed martial arts)
Dream
Type Private
Industry Mixed martial arts promotion
Founded February 13, 2008
Founder(s) Sadaharu Tanikawa (President of FEG)
Headquarters Tokyo, Japan
Key people Keiichi Sasahara, Head and Matchmaker
Daisuke Sato, Productions Director
Parent Real Entertainment
Website Dreamofficial.com

Dream (styled DREAM in capitals) is a mixed martial arts organization promoted by Fighting and Entertainment Group and co-produced with the former Pride Fighting Championships executives from Real Entertainment. It is the sister production of K-1 kick boxing. Dream replaced FEG's previous-run mixed martial arts fight series, Hero's. The series retains many of the stylistic flourishes and personnel from Pride FC broadcasts, including fight introducer Lenne Hardt. In America, the promotion is aired on HDNet.

Contents

History

Pride FC's buyout and Yarennoka!

After the Zuffa buyout of Pride FC, the former Dream Stage Entertainment executives put on a collaborative New Year's Eve mixed martial arts show with Shooto, M-1 Global, and the Fighting and Entertainment Group, called Yarennoka!. This show was intended to be a farewell show of Pride FC. However, due to its success and further petitioning by Japanese MMA fans, the FEG and the former DSE staff decided to combine their efforts and form a new Japanese promotion.

Hero's dissolution and Dream's emergence

Their new promotion was confirmed on February 13, 2008, along with Hero's dissolution. All of Hero's' fighters were confirmed (such as Hero's champions Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, Yoshihiro Akiyama and JZ Calvan) to be part of the new promotion along with the additions of Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipović, Shinya Aoki, Kazushi Sakuraba, Mitsuhiro Ishida, and Hayato "Mach" Sakurai.[1] Another notable announcement was Dream's partnership with M-1 Global, who confirmed that they would allow the last Heavyweight Champion of Pride FC (and the winner of the 2004 Heavyweight Grand Prix), Fedor Emelianenko, to fight in their events. Emelianenko was present at the Dream press conference to promote the alliance between the two shows.[2]

Partnership with HDNet

On May 2, 2008, Dream aired for the first time in the United States with a repeat of Dream 1 on HDNet. A repeat of Dream 2 was aired the following day, while Dream 3 was aired live on May 11. All future Dream events will be airing on HDNet as a part of the network's HDNet Fights series.[3]

Partnership with EliteXC

On May 10, 2008, Dream announced the working partnership with US promotion EliteXC. The two groups intended to share fighters and eventually co-promote shows. However, with EliteXC now bankrupt the alliance no longer exists.[4]

Alliance with Strikeforce

On August 5, 2009, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker announced that the two promotions had signed a formal alliance. This is reportedly a deal that has been talked about for quite some time, but has finally come to fruition. The result of this deal is that the two organizations will exchange fighters and work together to bring MMA fans the best fights possible. Also, because of Strikeforce's recent agreement with Fedor Emelianenko and M-1 Global, it is presumable that they would be involved in the alliance as well.[5] In October 2009, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker stated interest in unifying the titles between the two promotions. However Dream has yet to give a public response. It's likely all unification plans have been dropped due to Zuffa, the parent company of UFC, acquiring Stikeforce.

Rules

Weight classes

Dream has 7 weight classes. Unlike Hero's, each weight class will have a champion with a defendable title.[2]

  • 61 kilograms (134 lb) – Bantamweight
  • 65 kilograms (143 lb) – Featherweight
  • 70 kilograms (154 lb) – Lightweight
  • 76 kilograms (168 lb) – Welterweight
  • 84 kilograms (185 lb) – Middleweight
  • 93 kilograms (205 lb) – Light Heavyweight
  • no upper limit – Heavyweight

It was announced that in 2011 Dream will create a new Bantamweight class at 61 kg (134 lb), and the Featherweight class will be raised to 65 kg (143 lb).[6]

Round length

Bouts inside a ring have two rounds; the first lasts for ten minutes, and the second for five. Inside a cage, there are three 5-minute rounds.

Judging

  • Fights will be judged in their entirety by three judges, not on a round-by-round ten-point-must basis (more common to North American promotions).
  • A winner will always be declared, as draws are not possible.

Fouls and violations

  • Stomps and soccer kicks to the head of a grounded opponent are not allowed (unless both fighters are on the ground), but they are allowed to the rest of the body.
  • Elbows to the head are prohibited.
  • If there is a 15 kilograms (33 lb) or more weight difference between the fighters, knees to the head of a grounded opponent are not allowed.
  • A grounded opponent is defined as one in a three-point position. If a fighter has, for example, both knees and one hand on the floor facing the mat, then no kicks to the head are allowed.
  • Strikes to the back of the head are not allowed

Tournament substitutions

  • In case of a "No Contest" or injury, the fighter who can continue will go through to the next round, if neither fighter is able to continue the promoter will choose a replacement fighter to go through.

Current champions

Main article: List of Dream champions
Division Upper weight limit Champion Since Nationality Title Defenses
Heavyweight no limit Vacant
Light Heavyweight 93 kg (205 lb) Gegard Mousasi September 25, 2010 Dutch 1
Middleweight 84 kg (185 lb) Vacant
Welterweight 76 kg (168 lb) Marius Zaromskis July 20, 2009 Lithuanian 1
Lightweight 70 kg (154 lb) Shinya Aoki October 6, 2009 Japanese 1
Featherweight 65 kg (143 lb) Hiroyuki Takaya December 31, 2010 Japanese 1
Bantamweight 61 kg (134 lb)

Tournament Finalists

Year Weight Division Champion Nationality Finalist Nationality
2008 Lightweight Joachim Hansen Norwegian Shinya Aoki Japanese
2008 Middleweight Gegard Mousasi Dutch Ronaldo Souza Brazilian
2009 Welterweight Marius Zaromskis Lithuanian Jason High American
2009 Featherweight Bibiano Fernandes Brazilian Hiroyuki Takaya Japanese
2009 Superhulk Ikuhisa Minowa Japanese Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Cameroonian
2010 Light Heavyweight Gegard Mousasi Dutch Tatsuya Mizuno Japanese
2011 JP Bantamweight Hideo Tokoro Japanese Masakazu Imanari Japanese
2011 Bantamweight N/A N/A N/A N/A

Current Roster

Bantamweight

From Japan:

From Brazil:

  • Bibiano Fernandes
  • Rodolfo Marques

Featherweight

From Norway:

  • Joachim Hansen

From Japan:

Lightweight

From the United States:

From Brazil:

From Japan:

Welterweight

From Lithuania:

From the United States:

  • Jason High

From Belgium:

  • Tarec Saffiedine

From Brazil:

  • Andrews Nakahara

From South Korea:

From Nigeria:

  • Andy Ologun

From Japan:

Middleweight

From France:

  • Karl Amoussou

From Croatia:

From the United States:

  • Ian Murphy
  • Gerald Harris

From South Korea:

  • Dong Sik Yoon

From Japan:

Light Heavyweight

From the Netherlands:

From Brazil:

From Cameroon:

From Japan:

From South Africa:

Heavyweight

From France:

From the United States:

From England:

From South Korea:

  • Hong Man Choi

From Japan:

Events

[7]

Event Date Location Venue Attendance Broadcast
Dream 1: Lightweight Grand Prix 2008 First Round 02008-03-15 March 15, 2008 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 19,120 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 2: Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 First Round 02008-04-29 April 29, 2008 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 21,397 SkyPerfect
HDNet
Dream 3: Lightweight Grand Prix 2008 Second Round 02008-05-11 May 11, 2008 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 21,789 SkyPerfect
HDNet
Dream 4: Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 Second Round 02008-06-15 June 15, 2008 Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan Yokohama Arena 14,037 SkyPerfect
HDNet
Dream 5: Lightweight Grand Prix 2008 Final Round 02008-07-21 July 21, 2008 Osaka, Osaka, Japan Osaka-jo Hall 11,986 SkyPerfect
HDNet
Dream 6: Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 Final Round 02008-09-23 September 23, 2008 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 20,929 SkyPerfect
HDNet
Fields Dynamite!! 2008 02008-12-31 December 31, 2008 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 25,634 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 7: Featherweight Grand Prix 2009 First Round 02009-03-08 March 8, 2009 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 19,528[8] Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 8: Welterweight Grand Prix 2009 First Round 02009-04-05 April 5, 2009 Nagoya, Aichi, Japan Nippon Gaishi Hall 9,129 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 9: Featherweight Grand Prix 2009 Second Round 02009-05-26 May 26, 2009 Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan Yokohama Arena 15,009 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 10: Welterweight Grand Prix 2009 Final Round 02009-07-20 July 20, 2009 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 11,970[9] Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 11: Featherweight Grand Prix 2009 Final Round 02009-10-06 October 6, 2009 Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan Yokohama Arena 14,039[10] Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 12 02009-10-25 October 25, 2009 Osaka, Osaka, Japan Osaka-jo Hall 10,112 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Fields Dynamite!! The Power of Courage 2009 02009-12-31 December 31, 2009 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 45,606 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 13 02010-03-22 March 22, 2010 Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan Yokohama Arena 13,712 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 14 02010-05-29 May 29, 2010 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 12,712 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 15 02010-07-10 July 10, 2010 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 13,028 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream 16 02010-09-25 September 25, 2010 Nagoya, Aichi, Japan Nippon Gaishi Hall 9,304 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dynamite!! 2010 02010-12-31 December 31, 2010 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 26,729 Tokyo Broadcasting System
HDNet
Dream: Fight for Japan! 02011-05-29 May 29, 2011 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 6,522 HDNet
Dream: Japan GP Final 02011-07-16 July 16, 2011 Tokyo, Japan Ariake Coliseum 8,142 HDNet
Dream 17 02011-09-24 September 24, 2011 Saitama, Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena 9,270 HDNet

Event locations

  • Total event number: 20

These cities have hosted the following numbers of Dream events as of Dream 17:

Saitama – 13
Yokohama – 4
Nagoya – 2
Osaka – 2
Tokyo - 1

References

  1. ^ "K-1's new Dream includes Cro Cop". Mma Weekly. February 13, 2008. http://mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=5691&zoneid=1. Retrieved February 25, 2009. 
  2. ^ a b Loiseleur, Tony (February 13, 2008). "'Dream' Come True?". Sherdog.com. http://www.sherdog.com/news/pictures.asp?n_id=11302. Retrieved February 25, 2009. 
  3. ^ "Mark Cuban's HDNET to air Japan's Dream". Mma Weekly. http://mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=6167&zoneid=13. Retrieved February 25, 2009. 
  4. ^ "PRO ELITE & Dream ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP". MMAWeekly. 2008. http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=6248&zoneid=13. Retrieved June 11, 2008. 
  5. ^ "STRIKEFORCE AND DREAM FORMALIZING "ALLIANCE"". MMAWeekly. 2009. http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=9288&zoneid=2. Retrieved August 5, 2009. 
  6. ^ Loiseleur, Tony (2011-04-20). "‘Dream: Fight For Japan’ Bantamweight Tournament Bracket Set". Sherdog.com. http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/Dream-Fight-For-Japan-Bantamweight-Tournament-Bracket-Set-31784. Retrieved 2011-04-20. 
  7. ^ "新格闘技イベント「Dream」誕生！ミルコの参戦も決定3.15さいたまで旗揚げ、総勢23選手が会見に出席". Sportsnavi.yahoo.co.jp. 2008-02-14. http://sportsnavi.yahoo.co.jp/fight/other/column/200802/at00016352.html. Retrieved February 25, 2009. 
  8. ^ DiPietro, Monty (March 8, 2009). "HELLO JAPAN! SHINYA AOKI WINS AT Dream 7". MMAWeekly.com. http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=8342&zoneid=13. Retrieved March 10, 2009. 
  9. ^ Dream Run: Zaromskis Wins Grand Prix
  10. ^ Tony Loiseleur. "Aoki Subs Hansen; Fernandes Wins Dream GP". http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/aoki-subs-hansen-fernandes-wins-dream-gp-20173. 

External links

v · d · eDream events
upcoming events are in italics
Major Events
1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10 · 11 · 12 · 13 · 14 · 15  · 16  · FFJ · JGPF · 17
Dynamite!!
2008 · 2009 · 2010

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