In July 2021, the MMA competition known as, “Breaking Down” made its debut. Based in Japan, it is produced by branding business RADIOBOOK Co., Ltd. and was created by former RINGS 65kg Champion and former RINGS 70kg Champion Mikuru Asakura, former Rizin Bantamweight Champion Kai Asakura, and MMA gym Triforce Akasaka owner Teppei Hori.
Teppei Hori is the representative lawyer of Breaking Down. Hori has formed a joint venture with RADIOBOOK Co., Ltd. CEO YUGO, and together they run Breaking Down. Mikuru & Kai Asakura are involved with Breaking Down in the capacity of advisors.
Breaking Down’s unique format is that the strongest man is decided in 1 round with a duration of 1 minute. The fighters (professional and amateur) come from a variety of backgrounds, including boxing, karate, judo, Nippon Kempo, and sumo.
The first Breaking Down event featured 20 fights, including Kazuaki Nojiri vs. Katsunori Kikuno (both previously seen in DEEP). Highlights from this event can be seen here.
The second Breaking Down event took place in September 2021 and featured 26 fights, including Hiromitsu Miura (former Welterweight King of Pancrase) vs. Masahiro Sakamoto (former sumo wrestler).
The third Breaking Down event took place in November 2021, and was a middleweight 1Day tournament, which was ultimately won by pro-wrestler Tetsuya Izuchi.
Along with professional athletes and amateur fighters, Breaking Down also features entertainers who are very well known in Japan, such as YouTubers ゲンキ GENKI, Minamikawa, and Purotan.
Like most other MMA events, Breaking Down has its own ring girls. The Breaking Girls are model Akane Aono, actress Asuka Ozaki, idol Hana Takeuchi, and gravure models Mayu Tsukishiro and Mine Sakitsuki.
With Breaking Down growing in popularity, the fourth event (which took place in March of this year) sold out on the same day that tickets went on sale, it experienced the highest number of PPV sales ever for a Breaking Down event, and it trended on Twitter the day of the event.
The next Breaking Down event will take place on Sunday, July 17. Their events are broadcast live on the Japanese live TV streaming website ABEMA (not available in all countries).
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