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Top Japanese combat sports promotion RIZIN is back this weekend, presenting a lengthy evening of MMA and kickboxing in the form of RIZIN 43.
RIZIN Featherweight Champion Kleber Koike will make his return this weekend, taking on Chihiro Suzuki in the main event of a card from the Makomanai Sekisui Heim Arena in Sapporo, Japan. The fight will give Koike a chance to bounce back from a loss, as Patricio Pitbull beat him in a non-title fight at the promotion’s New Year’s Eve card in 2022.
Lower in the lineup, notable talents like Yusuke Yachi, Minoru Kimura, Saori Oshima, Genji Umeno, Hideki Sekine, and many others will also appear.
Bloody Elbow will have a results article as the event progresses this weekend. In preparation for the night (or morning, or day, depending on where you are) of festivities, we have outlined how and where to watch, plus who you can expect inside the RIZIN ring.
Where to watch, start time and date
RIZIN 43 will take place on Sunday, starting in the afternoon in Japan and concluding later that evening. The prelims are scheduled to begin at 11:30 pm ET on Friday night in the U.S. An hour and 30 minutes later, at 1 a.m. ET on Saturday morning, the main card will kick off.
In Japan, the prelims will start just after noon, with the main card beginning at 2 p.m.
An English feed for RIZIN 43 can be purchased internationally on FITE. The service is currently offering a pay-per-view broadcast of the show that costs $19.99 USD.
If you’re in Japan, you’re in for a rare treat: RIZIN 43 will actually be free to watch via Youtube or SkyPerfect TV on Sunday night. While the promotion has focused primarily on PPV in recent years, Sunday will be an entirely free card for anyone who wants to watch live. However, if you’re outside of Japan, sadly the free opportunity isn’t available.
RIZIN 43 fight card, bout order
A whopping 17 bouts are expected to take place as part of RIZIN 43 on Saturday night. The show will open with a quick four-bout lineup of prelims before they dive into the main card at the usual start time.
The event will notably have an intermission after the kickboxing bout between former K-1 star Minoru Kimura and multi-combat sport journeyman Daryl Lokoku. After a break, they’ll come back for the final five matchups of the evening, including a title fight.
With the main event at the top, here’s how the evening is set to run:
Main Card (1 a.m. ET / 2 p.m. JST)
- RIZIN Featherweight Championship: Kleber Koike (31-6-1) vs. Chihiro Suzuki (10-3)
- Lightweight: Yusuke Yachi (24-13) vs. Zach Zane (15-14)
- Heavyweight: Hideki Sekine (12-6) vs. Mikio Ueda (1-1)
- Featherweight: Hiroaki Suzuki (2-3) vs. Taisei Nishitani (6-5)
- Bantamweight Kickboxing: Genji Umeno vs. Hiroki Suzuki
- Catchweight 161lbs Kickboxing: Minoru Kimura vs. Daryl Lokoku
- Featherweight: Yuta Kubo (1-1) vs. Takeaki Kinoshita (6-6-1)
- Strawweight: Saori Oshima (11-3) vs. SALT (3-2)
- Featherweight: Suguru Nii (14-12) vs. Tateo Iida (12-6-2
- Featherweight: Tetsuya Seki (15-9-1) vs. Raiki Endo (15-11-5)
- Bantamweight: Trent Girdham (13-4) vs. Joji Goto (14-6-1)
- Bantamweight: Marina Kumagai (3-4) vs. Aoi Kuriyama (4-5-1) (Bantamweight)
- Flyweight Kickboxing: Kensei Yamakawa vs. Ryoga Hirano
Opening Card (11:30 p.m. ET / 12:30 p.m. JST)
- Lightweight: Toshiki Watanabe (19-7-4) vs. Kento Azumi (2-1)
- Catchweight 121lbs: Daiki Maruyama vs. Suguru Hayasaka (19-15-5)
- Bantamweight Kickboxing: Aito vs. Ryuya Koide
- Flyweight Kickboxing: Syouki Hoshikubo vs. Ganbare! Furukawakun
Make sure to check out the site’s live coverage piece this weekend for RIZIN 42. We’ll have results, highlights, and an open discussion for those that are watching along or want to stay informed but can’t catch the show live.