RIZIN 13: Nasukawa vs. Horiguchi, is a mixed martial arts event to be held on Sunday, September 30, 2018, at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan .
Fight Card
Main Card
Kintaro Osunaarashi vs. Bob Sapp Special Rules Openweight Fight
Tenshin Nasukawa vs. Kyoji Horiguchi 128 lbs Kickboxing bout
Taiga Kawabe vs. Kento Haraguchi 130 lbs Kickboxing bout
Mirko Filipović vs. Roque Martinez 243 lbs
Ayaka Hamasaki vs. Mina Kurobe 108 lbs
Mitsuhisa Sunabe vs. Haruo Ochi 117 lbs
Kai Asakura vs. T. Tiger Muay Thai 130 lbs
Mikuru Asakura vs. Karshyga Dautbek 146 lbs
Yusaku Nakamura vs. Manel Kape 126 lbs
Andy Nguyen vs. Miyuu Yamamoto 108 lbs
Jiří Procházka vs. Jake Heun 205 lbs
Daron Cruickshank vs. Diego Brandão 154 lbss
Background
RIZIN.13 will be taking place at the Saitama Super Arena on September 30th. This event will mark the promotion’s 4th event in 2018.
RIZIN’s biggest announcement was the super fight between the undefeated kickboxing Phenom and RIZIN 2017 -59kg Kickboxing GP champion Tenshin Nasukawa (4-0 MMA / 25-0 KB) and RIZIN 2017 Bantam weight GP champion Kyoji Horiguchi (25-2 MMA / 0-0 KB) under kickboxing rules. Nasukawa who just turned 20 years old, has been the highest praised kickboxer that Japan has seen in decades while 27 year old Horiguchi has been unstoppable in his division in MMA, who is currently riding a 10 fight winning streak. This fight has gathered immediate attention and the reports say that over 10,000 tickets were sold within 24 hours of tickets going on sale.
This will be the promotion’s first time selling out the scheduled venue before the event, and with more than 2 weeks to go, RIZIN FF looks to set their new attendance record, gathering over 20,000 spectators at the Saitama Super Arena. The ceiling of the Arena will be raised at the Saitama Super Arena for the first time since for a MMA event since 2011 new Year’s Eve’s “Genkidesuka” event.
A champion vs champion affair kicks off the card, as current Pancrase Strawweight Champion Mitsuhisa Sunabe takes on reigning DEEP Strawweight Champion Haruo Ochi. Jiri Prochazka looks to continue his winning streak against WSOF/PFL veteran Jake Heun. Brothers Mikuru and Kai Asakura are set to fight Karshyga Dautbek and Topnoi Thanongsaklek respectively. 4-time K-1 champion Taiga Kawabe makes his RIZIN debut against fellow debutant Kento Haraguchi.
Miyuu Yamamoto will rematch former King of the Cage Atomweight Champion Andy Nguyen; Nguyen defeated Yamamoto at RIZIN's 2016 New Year Eve card. Manel Kape returns to the RIZIN ring for a 5th time, and will face DEEP Flyweight Champion Yusaku Nakamura. Former Invicta Atomweight Champion Ayaka Hamasaki makes her second appearance for RIZIN, this time fighting the current DEEP Jewels Atomweight Champion - Mina Kurobe. UFC veterans Daron Cruickshank and Diego Brandao face off in a lightweight bout.
Mirko Cro Cop returns after a 4-month injury lay-off against DEEP Megaton Champion, Roque Martinez. The first African professional sumo wrestler, Osunaarashi, fights fan-favorite Bob Sapp. The card is headlined by kickboxing sensation Tenshin Nasukawa and Bantamweight Grand Prix Champion Kyoji Horiguchi, in a kickboxing rules bout.
29 Sep - Updated Fight Order & background