A Celebration of RIZIN’s 10-year Anniversary

A Celebration of RIZIN’s 10-year Anniversary
By PDG Staff

RIZIN is the crème of the crop when it comes to Japanese mixed martial arts organizations and was created back in 2015 (RIZIN World Grand Prix 2015: Part 1 – Saraba) by the former PRIDE Fighting Championships and DREAM Stage Entertainment president Nobuyuki Sakakibara.

Founded to be the spiritual successor of PRIDE FC and DREAM, RIZIN carries much of the philosophy and ambition of its two predecessors as its events are promoted as larger-than-life events with elaborate opening ceremonies and fighter entrances. The matches are fought in a boxing-type ring, and it has a rule set inherited from PRIDE and DREAM (Soccer Kicks, Open Weight Fights, etc.). The organization regularly promotes “Grand Prix Tournaments” – single-elimination tournaments where fighters have to fight multiple opponents on the same night or on subsequent events.

In addition to MMA bouts, RIZIN fight cards usually also feature kickboxing matches and Muay Thai fights. The promotion’s name, RIZIN, is a combination of “Raijin”, the Japanese god of lightning; the word “rising”, meaning “to prosper and thrive”; and the letter, ‘Z’, meaning “ultimate”.

Now enjoy a look back at the first 10 years of RIZIN’s history:

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