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Josh Barnett (Pictures) will battle his longtime compatriot Jeff Monson (Pictures) at Sengoku II. World Victory Road (WVR) announced the bout, slated for May 18, on its Web site Thursday.

Barnett’s fight with Monson marks the second time in two WVR events that the “Babyface Assassin” will have fought a friend. At the inaugural event in March he squared off with Hidehiko Yoshida (Pictures).

While Barnett does have friendly ties to the Japanese Olympic judo gold medalist, his relationship with Monson (24-7) is even closer. Having trained together on numerous occasions, Barnett appeared in Monson’s corner for his UFC championship challenge against Tim Sylvia (Pictures) in 2006.

Barnett (21-5) was last in action in March, submitting Yoshida with a heelhook near the end of the third round. The 30-year-old heavyweight sat out all of 2007 because of a contract dispute with his old employer Pride Fighting Championships.

The 37-year-old Monson, one of the most decorated heavyweight grapplers in the history of the sport, last fought in December, taking a unanimous decision victory over Hakim Goram in Manila.

Previously announced was the opponent for Kevin Randleman (Pictures). The American wrestler will square off against Japanese striker Ryo Kawamura (Pictures) in his debut fight for World Victory Road. Also scheduled to appear on the card, but still without an opponent, is Brazilian jiu-jitsu wunderkind Roger Gracie (Pictures).

World Victory Road on Tuesday announced that Kevin Randleman will face Ryo Kawamura at Sengoku II on May 18 in Tokyo.

Randleman has not fought in a year and a half. He lost to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at Pride Fighting Championships’ inaugural American event, after which, he was suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for allegedly providing a fake urine sample for his required drug test.

Since then, the former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight titleholder has been hospitalized twice, once due to complications stemming from several surgeries and prolonged use of antibiotics and, more recently, due to a severe staph infection.

Kawamura is a teammate of Yuki Kondo on the PANCRASEism fight team. He is currently ranked No. 2 in the Pancrase light heavyweight division. He brings to the ring a heavy-handed, brawling style that has lead him to an 8-2-2 professional record, with five of his wins coming by way of knockout.

Kawamura fought at WVR’s inaugural event in March of this year, where he handed Antonio Braga Neto his first professional loss in six bouts.

On Monday, it was announced that highly touted free agent Josh Barnett would also be participating on the Sengoku II fight card. No opponent was named for Barnett, although an announcement is expected later this week.

Sengoku II Bouts (officially announced):
-Jorge Santiago vs. Yuki Sasaki
-Satoru Kitaoka vs. Ian Schaffa
-Eiji Mitsuoka vs. Kwang Hee Lee
-Mike Pyle vs. Dan Hornbuckle
-Yoshihiro Nakao vs. Jim York
-Kevin Randleman vs. Ryo Kawamura
-Josh Barnett vs. TBA
-Roger Gracie vs. TBA

World Victory Road on Thursday officially announced the participation of former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Kevin Randleman and New Zealander Jim York for its May 18 Sengoku II fight card. The event is scheduled to take place at the Ariake Colosseum in Tokyo.

Randleman confirmed his participation to MMAWeekly.com early in March, but his opponent has yet to be announced. He hasn’t competed since losing to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in October 2006.

Randleman is also signed to face Jeff Monson in June at the Global Fighting Championships in Charlotte, N.C.

Based out of New Zealand, York has fought his past three fights in Asia, including his last two in Tokyo. He has amassed a 9-1 professional record without ever going to a decision.

After a successful debut show, World Victory Road has announced a few of the participants expected to fight on its next Sengoku event scheduled for May 18, according to the official Sengoku website.The fighters announced include Roger Gracie, Satoru Kitaoka, Yoshihiro Nakao, and Yuki Sasaki.U.S. fighter Kevin Randleman is also expected to be on the card, as he previously announced in an interview with MMAWeekly.com, but no official announcement has been made as of yet about his debut with the promotion.More fighters will be announced for the Sengoku II event in the coming weeks. 

 Former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champion and Pride fighter Kevin Randleman recently announced on MMAWeekly Radio that he has signed or agreed to contracts with two different companies and will be fighting in the very near future.After much speculation, he confirmed that he has signed with Global Fighting Championships and will make his debut with that organization in June.“As of right now, I am fighting Jeff Monson, June 21 in North Carolina in Bobcat Arena,” said Randleman.First things first though, he is expected to make his return to fighting in Japan, a place he called home for many years while fighting in Pride Fighting Championships.“My first fight is going to be May 18 in the new Japanese organization, it is not Pride, (but) World Victory Road,” he continued.Randleman, who hasn’t fought since October 2006 in a loss to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, has not yet been given an opponent for the World Victory Road fight. World Victory Road held its first event on Wednesday and announced that both Randleman and Roger Gracie would be fighting on its May event, but it is not yet clear that they would be facing each other.Contacted for comment, a representative of Randleman’s said that they were working on the final details of his World Victory Road contract and that an opponent would be named shortly after everything is finalized.reported by MMAWeekly 

Heavyweight Bout:

Hidehiko Yoshida vs. Josh Barnett

 

Olympic gold medalist Hidehiko Yoshida takes on former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett. Yoshida has a 7-5 record and trains out of the Yoshida Dojo with Kazuhiro Nakamura. Barnett has a 20-5 record and trains out of CSW with Erik Paulson.

 

Yoshida comes off a stoppage loss to James Thompson at Pride Shockwave 2006, while Barnett comes off a decision loss to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at Pride Shockwave 2006.

 

Neither fighter has fought since the end of 2006, so both might have some ring rust to start off the fight. Yoshida is one of the most popular fighters in Japan and he will have the crowd’s support.

 

Barnett is the better fighter on the ground when it comes to submissions, while Yoshida has the edge when it comes to takedowns. On the feet, Barnett has a slight edge because of his size and reach advantage.

 

The fight will all come down to Barnett’s size advantage and Yoshida being a small heavyweight. He hasn’t fared well against bigger opponents and it will continue here, Barnett will control Yoshida from the top en route to a decision.

 

Prediction: Josh Barnett by decision.

 

 

Lightweight Bout:

Takanori Gomi vs. Duane Ludwig

 

Pride lightweight champion Takanori Gomi takes on UFC and K-1 Max veteran Duane “Bang” Ludwig. Gomi has a 27-3 record and trains out of Team Rascal with Nobuhiro Obiya. Ludwig has a 16-7 record and trains out of Jackson’s Submission Fighting with Donald Cerrone.

 

Gomi comes off a no contest with Nick Diaz at Pride 33, while Ludwig comes off a knockout over Mario Stapel at Ring of Fire 30.

 

Gomi makes his return to fighting after a year out of the ring. Ludwig was one of the better up and coming lightweights a couple of years ago, but inconsistency has held him back from reaching his full potential.

 

Neither fighter has much of an advantage on the ground, but Gomi is the better wrestler of the two. On the feet, Gomi is the striker with power and Ludwig is the more technical and precise.

 

These two are going to get in an all out striking battle and it that happens the advantage goes to Gomi, he will land that big powerful shot that puts Ludwig out for good.

 

Prediction: Takanori Gomi by knockout in the first round.

 

 

Middleweight Bout:

Kazuo Misaki vs. Siyar Bahadurzada

 

Pride Welterweight Grand Prix 2006 champion Kazuo Misaki takes on Shooto light heavyweight champion Siyar Bahadurzada. Misaki has an 18-8-2 record and trains out of Team Grabaka with Akihiro Gono. Bahadurzada has a 13-1-1 record and trains out of the Tatsujin Dojo with Martin De Jong.

 

Misaki comes off a no contest with Yoshihiro Akiyama at Yarennoka, while Bahadurzada submitted Nathan Schouteren with strikes at Ultimate Glory 6.

 

This is an interesting fight between champions and should be an action packed fight. Misaki is one of the better middleweights in the world and has proved that in the past several years.

 

Bahadurzada is a young and talented fighter that has a bright future ahead of him, but inexperience against quality opposition might be his downfall. Both fighters are strikers, Misaki being an elusive technical striker and Bahadurzada being the powerful striker.

 

On the ground, Misaki is the better fighter at submissions, while Bahadurzada is the better wrestler. Miskai should be able to tag Bahadurzada with shots while avoiding any punishment and outwork him en route to a decision.

 

Prediction: Kazuo Misaki by decision.

 

 

Heavyweight Bout:

Kazuyuki Fujita vs. Peter Graham

 

Pride veteran Kazuyuki Fujita takes on K-1 veteran Peter Graham. Fujita has a 14-6 record and trains out of Japan with Marco Ruas. Graham will be making his MMA debut and trains out of Xtreme Couture with Ray Sefo.

 

Fujita comes off a submission loss to Jeff Monson at Pride 34, while Graham recently fought at the K-1 World Grand Prix Final in a kickboxing bout.

 

Fujita is one of Japan’s better heavyweights and will look to get back on track with a win over the respected Graham. Graham has recently relocated to Las Vegas and now has started to train for an MMA career, but he has a big task ahead of him.

 

Fujita has the distinct advantage on the ground over Graham, who hasn’t had much time to prepare for his MMA debut. On the feet, Graham has advantage, but Fujita is known to be able to take a shot.

 

Graham will look good early, landing several shots as Fujita tries to get the fight on the ground, but once it does go to the ground, look for Fujita to submit the MMA newcomer.

 

Prediction: Kazuyuki Fujita by submission in the first round.

 

 

Middleweight Bout:

Makoto Takimoto vs. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos

 

Olympic gold medalist Makoto Takimoto takes on the wild Brazilian striker Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos. Takimoto has a 4-3 record and trains out of the Yoshida Dojo with Michihiro Omigawa. Santos has a 15-11 record and trains out of the Chute Boxe Academy with Fabio Silva.

 

Takimoto comes off a decision victory over Murilo Bustamante at Yarennoka, while Santos was stopped by Gegard Mousasi with strikes at Hardcore Fighting Championships: Destiny.

 

Takimoto had a rough beginning to his MMA career, but has settled into a promising fighter. Santos has been known for his ultra aggressive style but inconsistency has held him back as a fighter.

 

This is a classic grappler vs. striker match-up.

 

Takimoto has a huge advantage on the ground and will look to exploit Santos’ lack of a ground game. Santos has a slight edge on the feet, but it isn’t by much. He is an aggressive, powerful striker, while Takimoto has become a technical striker.

 

Santos’s aggression will work against him. He will charge wildly with strikes and be taken down by Takimoto, who will end it shortly thereafter with a submission.

 

Prediction: Makoto Takimoto by submission in the first round.

 

 

Welterweight Bout:

Nick Thompson vs. Fabricio Monteiro

 

Bodog Fight welterweight champion Nick Thompson takes on DEEP veteran Fabricio Monteiro. Thompson has a 34-9-1 record and trains out of the Minnesota Martial Arts Academy with Sean Sherk. Monteiro has a 16-6 record and trains out of Gracie Fusion with Antonio Braga Neto.

 

Thompson comes off a submission victory over John Troyer at Bodog Fight: Thompson vs. Troyer, while Monteiro was stopped by Mohamed Khacha with strikes at Fury FC 4.

 

Thompson makes his return to Japan and hopes that this time it well goes better then it did the first time, having lost to Yushin Okami in June 2005. Monteiro looked to be a promising prospect, but has hit a streak of bad luck, dropping two straight fights.

 

Thompson is the better fighter on the feet and the better wrestler, while Monteiro has a slight edge in submissions. Thompson is the bigger fighter of the two and will look to utilize his size advantage.

 

Thompson will dictate the fight on feet and wear down Monteiro before taking him down and finishing him off with strikes midway through the fight.

 

Prediction: Nick Thompson by TKO in the second round.

 

 

Middleweight Bout:

Ryo Kawamura vs. Antonio Braga Neto

 

Promising Pancrase prospect Ryo Kawamura takes on Brazilian submission fighter Antonio Braga Neto. Kawamura has a 7-2 record and trains out of PANCRASEism with Yuki Kondo. Neto has a 4-0 record and trains out of Gracie Fusion with Fabricio Monteiro.

 

Kawamura comes off a decision loss to Keiichiro Yamamiya at Pancrase Rising 10, while Neto submitted Fabiano Astorino at Fury FC 5.

 

This is an interesting fight between two prospects, who both have something to prove as they open World Victory Road’s debut event. There might be some pressure on both fighters to put on an entertaining fight to get the night off with a bang.

 

Kawamura is primarily a striker and hasn’t been tested by a submission grappler, but Neto will be the man to test him. Neto is still somewhat green and this will be his biggest test to date after easily going through his opponents in Brazil.

 

Kawamura didn’t look good on the ground in his last fight, exposing his weak ground game. Neto will take advantage of that. He will take the fight to the ground and control Kawamura with positioning and submission attempts en route to a decision.

 

Prediction: Antonio Braga Neto by decision.

 

reported by MMAWeekly