With so much uncertainty in his native country's MMA scene, Ikuhisa Minowa began branching off from his usual stomping grounds.
The U.S. was always an attractive option, but he was always under contract with the biggest Japanese promotions, who relentlessly employed him for his showmanship and willingness to fight anyone – really, anyone.
When those promotions fell into disrepair, Minowa had talks with the UFC to appear in the promotion's return to Japan at UFC 144. His profile popped up on their website. But the contract never got done.
"So here we are," Minowa told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) through a translator.
"Here" is ProElite, where Minowa signed a three-fight, one-year deal this past November. The revamped promotion holds its third event, ProElite 3, tonight at Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. HDNet broadcasts the show.
ProElite is already rolling out the welcome pants, so to speak. The promotion recently announced that fans who show up to the fight wearing the red speedos for which Minowa is known will get lifetime free tickets to their events.
"I had wanted to fight on U.S. soil for a long time," Minowa said. "I've fought in other countries besides Japan, like Thailand, Korea, U.K., and Brazil. But as far as MMA goes, MMA's popularity here is huge. It's amazing, so I wanted to test my skills here as a fighter."
Minowa (51-32) faces Kendall Grove (13-9), who's trying to reinvent his career after a long, seesawing stint with the UFC. The middleweight limit puts them on equal footing in weight, but Grove's 6-foot-6 frame puts the 5-foot-9 Minowa at a huge disadvantage in height.
If he wasn't so used to that, Minowa might have an issue. Renowned (and sometimes ridiculed) for taking on sideshow opponents such as Bob Sapp and Hong Man Choi, he's no stranger to being the smaller guy.
Minowa wasn't familiar with Grove, who won "The Ultimate Fighter 3," when he signed with ProElite but was intrigued by the challenge after watching footage.
"Everyone is different, so I can adjust myself for the fight," he said.
For his part, Grove has only promised to make Minowa pay for his mistakes inside the cage. Known for all manner of unpredictability, the Japanese fighter isn't committing to any type of attack, either, though it seems he's interested in the possibility of using Grove's limbs against him.
"He has a really unique physicality with long limbs for a middleweight, so it's going to make an interesting challenge for me," Minowa said.
The prospect of fighting in the UFC still interests Minowa, particularly if the promotion returns to Japan. He anticipates UFC 144 will be successful.
"That's a great move for the UFC, so hopefully I have a chance sometime in the future," Minowa said. "But I'm focusing on ProElite, so I can't really look to far ahead. I would love to fight in the U.S. again. Hopefully after this fight on Saturday, more opportunities will come to me in the U.S."
And the sight of a few red speedos will undoubtedly spur him on. If he wins, count on his signature celebration: fist-pumping to the crowd's chants.
"I'm not even sure if the American fans know about it," Minowa said. "I do it whenever I feel like it. I might. I might not. If there's a vibe for that when I win, I'm probably going to raise my fist. So, I'm probably going to do it."
Source: 'Minowaman' happy to be fighting on U.S. soil, hopes to one day fight for UFC in Japan