seneca
16-12-2002, 13:07
Judo Champion Hidehiko Yoshida Defeats Royce Gracie
Olympic Judoka Hidehiko Yoshida defeated Brazilian Jiujitsu superstar Royce Gracie by Technical Submission in Tokyo's National Stadium on August 28. The first round defeat in Pride Shock Wave came from a gi choke applied by Yoshida while on top of Gracie (see photo). The referee called the match, awarding the win to Yoshida, and the Gracie's immediately protested.
Yoshida said, "As Royce's moving stops I tell the referee that Royce became faint. If referee didn't stop, I'm confident that I would keep on squeezing and let Royce swoon." However Yoshida also admitted that Gracie did not tap, and he offered a rematch. Although Yoshida dominated throughout the match, the ending was controversial since the effectiveness of the choke was disputed.
Hidehiko Yoshida is the highest level Judo competitor to compete in this type of event, and this was his first professional fight. The match had been touted by the organizers as a "revenge match" for the defeat of Helio Gracie, Royce's father, over 50 years ago by judoka Masahiko Kimura.
About the disputed ending, one ringside spectator wrote, "What really upset me was how childish the Gracies behaved at that point, they rushed into the ring, gave no respect to Yoshida, and then left the ring early. Then, at the end of the night, just after Mirco defeated Sakuraba, they come into the ring again to give some speech about what happened, and basically stole Mirco's moment from him. I can totally understand them being unhappy about the decision, but they behaved like spoiled 12 year olds, and I would expect more from Budoka."
Olympic Judoka Hidehiko Yoshida defeated Brazilian Jiujitsu superstar Royce Gracie by Technical Submission in Tokyo's National Stadium on August 28. The first round defeat in Pride Shock Wave came from a gi choke applied by Yoshida while on top of Gracie (see photo). The referee called the match, awarding the win to Yoshida, and the Gracie's immediately protested.
Yoshida said, "As Royce's moving stops I tell the referee that Royce became faint. If referee didn't stop, I'm confident that I would keep on squeezing and let Royce swoon." However Yoshida also admitted that Gracie did not tap, and he offered a rematch. Although Yoshida dominated throughout the match, the ending was controversial since the effectiveness of the choke was disputed.
Hidehiko Yoshida is the highest level Judo competitor to compete in this type of event, and this was his first professional fight. The match had been touted by the organizers as a "revenge match" for the defeat of Helio Gracie, Royce's father, over 50 years ago by judoka Masahiko Kimura.
About the disputed ending, one ringside spectator wrote, "What really upset me was how childish the Gracies behaved at that point, they rushed into the ring, gave no respect to Yoshida, and then left the ring early. Then, at the end of the night, just after Mirco defeated Sakuraba, they come into the ring again to give some speech about what happened, and basically stole Mirco's moment from him. I can totally understand them being unhappy about the decision, but they behaved like spoiled 12 year olds, and I would expect more from Budoka."