Satoru Kitaoka's grappling at Sengoku 11 *spoilers*

[TastyLumpia]

The entire fight he utilized his signature style of wrestling to leglock transitions. He had some very close submissions attempts, but was ultimately pounded out. Too bad, like other superstar grapplers he was content to be completely one-dimensional and this time he paid for it, in the face.

I think this perfectly illustrates the difference between MMA and pure submission grappling. In grappling Kitaoka playing footsies would've been fine and he might've even finished, except that he was completely overcommitted, latching both arms on Masvidal's feet leaving his head completely exposed, which Jorge promptly took full advantage of.

The ending of the fight had Kitaoka doing his best Aoki impression (second fights against Hansen or Sakurai) as a collapsed heap in the middle of the ring. He joins the ranks of Maia, Imanari and Filho who finally paid for having nearly nonexistent striking offense or defense.

At least Shinya has some pretty good kicks now. It seems like the rest of Nippon Top Team is content to dive for legs and hope they don't get KOd in the process. At the very least Kitaoka can learn to cover up a little. Take a cue from Aoki, who does try to block his face when on bottom, or Filho, who's defense allowed him to weather Manhoef's initial storm.

[Shooto Panama]

Kitaoka is a 25-10-9 fighter that most wins and fighting tactics comes out of what you mentioned before, going for the takedown early and committed 100% to the submission.

It`s hard to break old pattern but he`s still very young so he can learn a couple of new tricks down the road. What I believe he really needs to work is his cardio. Kitaoka lately has been the kind of fighter who totally gas out and act like a rag doll if he doesn`t submit you in the first round. In fact, he`s getting worse now because he`s getting tired after two scrambles early on.

To his credit, he still owns one of the best single leg takedowns at his weight division and his grappling is second to none. It just like I mentioned that his cardio lately just really suck and he doesn`t have a plan B once his opponents scramble out of position.

[Kforcer]

I think the relatively late notice for the fight hurt his cut, SP. That's his problem, but he looked drawn at the weigh-ins. Meanwhile, in the Sengoku GP, he looked great in terms of gas.

[TastyLumpia]

You guys are probably right, he did look gassed. The late notice and weight-cutting definitely did not help.

I still think that hugging legs with your head exposed is never a good idea, though.

[Kforcer]

Originally Posted by TastyLumpia

You guys are probably right, he did look gassed. The late notice and weight-cutting definitely did not help.

I still think that hugging legs with your head exposed is never a good idea, though.

Well, you have a point; "hugging legs" is definitely a poor strategy, but that's a pretty prejudicial way to describe what his technique is called, i.e. applying leglocks. When you've earned submission victories with them over the likes of Gomi and Carlos Condit, applying leglocks probably looks much more reasonable. Is it a risky strategy? Yes, but so are most offense-based strategies, such as throwing punches, kicks and taking shots. Normally, Kitaoka embarks upon ripping apart the achilles fast enough so that any attempts at ground and pound by his opponent quickly end in said person being put in danger and usually submitted.

Adjusting one's strategy to avoid getting hit so much would seem a sensible alternative, but to do so at the cost of losing the fastest, most powerful and devastating weapon in one's arsenal would be tantamount to solving the "getting hit" problem by turning the back to one's opponent at the fight's start and then taking off for the nearest exit.

[TastyLumpia]

I know that Kitaoka is a leglock specialistic and it's his primary submission, but I've seen Aoki, Jacare, Shields, Toquinho and more all go for leglocks while doing a much better job of not getting hit well as exercise judgement while abandoning them if they started getting punished.

My perspective of grabbing onto a leg while you're getting pounded is this decision making process: If you have a good hold, do you quickly try to finish while exposing yourself, attempt to readjust for a slightly better position then finish, scramble or sweep to get into a dominant position, or completely abandon and back out? Another thing with leglocks is if you have a good lock and your opponent is busy punching you, from your perspective he's committed his hands away from defense, so it's extremely enticing to try to finish.

Obviously this is completely situation specific and in most situations Satoru has been successful. The moment he ate the biggest shots was a very similar position to what he had Gomi in and he finished then. The difference was he didn't have enough leverage and he ended up paying dearly for it. In a slightly different situation, or if he was a little better conditioned, it might've been the right decision for Kitaoka. I guess that's just how it goes.

[paolo27th]

It was terrible to watch. If this doesn`t convince Kitaoka to start working on his cardio and striking I dunno what will.

[Shooto Panama]

Originally Posted by Kforcer

I think the relatively late notice for the fight hurt his cut, SP. That's his problem, but he looked drawn at the weigh-ins. Meanwhile, in the Sengoku GP, he looked great in terms of gas.

He also gassed in the title match against Hirota so I don`t really think short notice was a big factor here. I`m starting to believe that Kitaoka is just victim of the current weight classes. The main problem IMO is Kitaoka is too small for welter but too big for lightweight.

Like for Welter, he`s really too short but he can make the weight. In fact, I remember Kitaoka fighting in Pancrase as high as 180lb. so he`s really a big heavy guy inside a small frame. Now, he`s definitely showing problems with the weight cut to 155 and his gas tank.

About the leglock thing. I believe is just a matter of bad strategy from Kitaoka rather than bad technique or something similar. When you compare Kitaoka, Aoki and Imanari, you will notice out of the three, Imanari has the best defense when in comes to avoid damage while applying leg attacks. Granted he`s lighter and faster than Aoki and Kitaoka but also he does implement a faster but safer technique with leglocks.

Aoki is kinda like in the middle and Kitaoka is just plain horrible when it comes to defense just because he commits 100% to the technique without care about punches or what happen next.

If he could, somehow fix his cardio-weight problems and implement basic ground defense, he will be totally unstoppable, at least grappling wise and a big pain for any top ten lightweight.

[TastyLumpia]

I honestly think he should either slim down a little or bulk and fight 170.

For grapplers, height is no hindering factor. Both Filho and Palhares are 5'8 and fight at 185. Hell, Jeff Monson is that height and a HW.

[randomg1t]

this fight shows exactly why i think leglocks are a bad idea in MMA.

now i know, he's subbed some monsters with them, and he is a nasty fighter, as are aoki and imanari. but all these guys are wildcards. they'll get the sub agressively, or they'll get pounded out silly.

when he first went for the leg and got hit pretty hard i was screaming "LET GO OF IT!!!" at the screen. he then put masvidal on his back and i relaxed, i was sure he'd just play a smart top game, pass guard, get mount, pound. but instead, he lost positioning and again went for the legs, again getting pounded.

it's this stubborness that annoys me. you went for the leg and had your brain tickled. you then had top position where you were the one applying the damage. and instead of keeping it that way, you go for leglocks, getting your face rearranged in the process again.

why didn't he adjust his strategy during the fight?!