K-1 'Dynamite 2009' Preview

Hideo Tokoro vs. Marlon Sandro

The Storyline: “Cinderella Boy” Hideo Tokoro, like Shibata, is a fighter whose record is everything but overly impressive, yet he has managed to captivate the hearts of the Japanese fans and come up big in clashes with Brazilian fighters. In 2005 he knocked out longtime Shooto king “Pequeno” Nogueira with a spinning back fist before drawing with Royce Gracie and outpointing Royler Gracie in the 2005 and 2006 Dynamite events. Those performances set the tone for his confrontation with “King of Pancrase” Marlon Sandro, who will be humorlessly defending the honor of Brazil.

The Breakdown: Tokoro is a high-octane grappler with a style that is very pleasing to watch, even for fans who are not the biggest lovers of ground fighting. His fight with Abel Cullum during the quarterfinal round of the Dream featherweight grand prix is a serious candidate for “Fight of the Year” for that matter. Despite his grappling prowess, you always have the impression that he is too frail and too feeble, even for the 143-pound weight class, despite having fought as high as middleweight in the past.

Nova União black belt Sandro is quite the opposite, a muscular and powerful fighter who is strong enough to control his opponents on the ground before either knocking or choking them out. Due to his string of fights going the distance, critics have mockingly dubbed him “Featherweight Arona.” Nevertheless, the 32-year-old Rio de Janeiro native has yet to show a glaring weakness in his game.

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The Prediction: Should Sandro have preserved some of the anger from the judges’ decision that gave Michihiro Omigawa a win over him on points following their semifinal clash at the Sengoku featherweight tournament, Tokoro could be in for a short night. Tokoro has always had problems with fighters who are able to grapple with him and also able to punch. It is likely that Sandro will stop the “Cinderella Boy” on strikes in the first round.