Naoya Ogawa

Naoya Ogawa (小川 直也 Ogawa Naoya, born 31 March 1968) is a Japanese former world judo champion, Olympic silver medalist, professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. He won a total of seven medals at the All-Japan Judo Championships (second only behind Yasuhiro Yamashita), and a set a record of seven medals at the World Judo Championships (tied with Robert van de Walle).

In professional wrestling, Ogawa was two-time National Wrestling Alliance world heavyweight champion.

Life and career

Ogawa first started in Judo in his high school years. He continued on in college attending Meiji University in 1986. In his second year at school he became a world freeclass champion, youngest in the history of Judo. He would go on to win many more championships before graduating from the College of Business Administration at Meiji University. Ogawa was Silver medalist in judo of 1992 Summer Olympics, and placed fifth at the 1996 Summer Olympics.

In 1997 he was recruited by Antonio Inoki and was sent to train with Satoru Sayama. Ogawa made his debut against Shinya Hashimoto on April 12, 1997 at the Tokyo Dome wrestling with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Subsequently he was billed as Hashimoto's nemesis.

AJ Banal

Alex John Banal (born December 28, 1988), more commonly known as A.J. “Bazooka” Banal, is a Filipino professional boxer. Banal resides in Ermita, Cebu City, Cebu, where he trains in the city's famed ALA Boxing Gym.

Early life

Banal's interest in boxing began through the inspiration of his uncle, Roselito Campaña, who was also a boxer for the ALA Boxing Gym. At the age of three, Banal joined the ALA team as an amateur, and has been with the organization ever since.

Professional career

Super Flyweight

Banal, aspiring to succeed in the sport, turned pro during the year of 2005. His first opponent being unheralded Sonny Saguing. The bout ended with a technical draw, with Banal suffering a big cut on his eyebrow due to an unintentional headbutt. Banal was very disappointed in the outcome of the fight, and aspired to keep his then undefeated record intact.

Banal underwent a huge change in competition in only his second year as a pro. He faced tougher opposition, compared to the fighters he previously faced at the time, fighting prospects, who like him, were undefeated. Banal had a record of 7-0-1 when he faced undefeated Indonesian prospect Ali Rochmad (13-0), whom Banal easily defeated with a 5th round knockout (KO). Two months later, he faced undefeated Thai prospect Janesuk King Sports (11-0), who retired from the bout after the sixth round. And just a month after fighting the then undefeated Thai, Banal fought and defeated highly rated Indonesian contender, Angky Angkota, who sported a record of 17-3 before he lost to Banal by unanimous decision (UD).

Mirko Filipović

Mirko Filipović (Croatian pronunciation: [mîrko fǐːlipɔːʋitɕ]; born 10 September 1974) is a retired Croatian heavyweight mixed martial artist, kickboxer, boxer, politician, and law enforcement officer.

Filipović is the 2006 Pride Open-Weight Grand Prix Champion and the 2012 K-1 World Grand Prix Champion becoming the second fighter in the world to win mixed martial arts and kickboxing championships and tournaments. He is also a former IGF World Heavyweight Champion. His nickname, Cro Cop, short for "Croatian Cop", comes from his membership in the Lučko Anti-Terrorist Unit, Croatia's elite Police Special Forces tactical unit.

Filipović's signature move was his lightning quick left head-kick, once famously described as "right leg, hospital; left leg, cemetery." He was a successful amateur boxer and medalled numerous times in international competition, and was also a member of Croatia's world team when he competed at the 1997 Amateur Boxing World Championships.

From 23 December 2003 until 11 January 2008 he served as a Member of Parliament for the 1st electoral district. He was elected as an independent candidate on the party list of the Social Democratic Party.

James Kirkland

James Kirkland may refer to:

Diosdado Gabi

Diosdado Gabi, nicknamed Prince (born September 9, 1979 in Davao City, Philippines) is a retired Filipino professional boxer.

Personal life

Gabi is married and has a young son that he left back in the Philippines to fight overseas in the United States. "We come from a very poor family. My father is a fisherman. All we eat sometimes is what he catches. I try to send them as much money as often as I can".

Boxing career

Early career

On May 8, 2001, after building an undefeated record of 11-0, Gabi fought for the minor World Boxing Federation (WBF) super flyweight title against the then holder of the title, Samson Dutch Boy Gym (40-0) of Thailand. Gabi suffered his first loss as a professional, losing on points to Dutch Boy Gym, who later retired undefeated with a record of 43-0. After two wins following his loss to Dutch Boy Gym, he suffered yet another setback when he faced another undefeated Thai, Peesaddaeng Kiatsakthanee (11-0), whom he lost to by unanimous decision (UD) for the latter's WBC Asian Boxing Council Super Flyweight title.