Customer Reviews

Pride Bushido 11

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

this is the opening round of the mw tourney. one thing that i was surprised by is that dan henderson got a round 1 bye even though he was the current mw champion (185 was ww in pride technically). all in all i waited quite awhile for this dvd because it was delayed coming out... but in the end i was more than satisfied to own it. as usual this dvd was stacked up with star power with such names as- Paulo Filho, Denis Kang, Ninja Rua, Kazua Misaki, Phil Baroni, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Mach Sakari, Gegard Mousassi, Ryo Chonan and well you get the point. GET THIS along with 12 and 13!!

Bushido 11 was the first round of a three round welterweight (185 lb.) tournament (which would continue with Bushido 12 & 13). This was a solid and enjoyable event. Descriptions of matches follow below.

Murilio Bustamante v. Amar Suloev (8/10):

These two kick things off with a technical, patient striking battle. No wild punches or dramatic KOs, but an interesting fight nonetheless. Bustamante tries to bring the fight to the ground while Suloev tries to keep it standing. Things go the a decision. Good fight.

Paulo Fihlo v. Gregory Bouchelagham (7/10):

Bouchelagham is a late fill-in and makes his Pride debut against a very difficult Paulo Fihlo. Fihlo has quite an impressive ground game, and his strength and control are impressive. Bouchelagham is game but can't do a lot against such an opponent. Fight ends in decision, although if one fighter had been more aggressive and less cautious it could have ended sooner.

Joey Villasenor v. Ryo Chonan (8/10):

The momentum swings back and forth in this mostly stand up fight. Both come out a bit tentative, throwing single shots instead of combos, but things heat up and there's some good groud work as well. Goes to a close, but in my opinion correct, decision. Entertaining.

Gegard Mousasi v. Makoto Takimoto (6/10):

One fighter throws an armbar and the other reverses, then takes his opponent's back and works from there. Eventually a strike from this position causes a swollen eye and the fight is called. Disappointing ending to an unsatisfying bout.

Marcus Aurelio v. Mitsuhiro Ishida (8/10):

This is a good strike/ground mix. Ishida uses his takedowns and ground and pound while Aurelio uses his submissions to battle it out. Decision finish.

Charles 'Crazy Horse' Bennett v. Tatsuya Kawajiri (8/10):

One fighter impressively takes down the other and uses several submission attempts before locking in a knee bar. His opponent taps not long into the first round.

Olaf Alfonso v. Hayato Sakurai (8.5/10):

Both fighters throw punches, one strong knee strike is landed. Things end before too long with a huge and painful right hook! KO finish.

Hector Lombard v. Akihiro Gono (7/10):

This fight has quite the shift in momentum. Lombard comes out strong with a flurry of punches, dropping Gono. But Gono gets up and responds with strikes of his own, albeit far more reserved and patient. Things unfortunately slow down in the second round, and this fight too ends in decision.

Jason Black v. Eoh Won Jin (8.5/10):

This 'bonus' fight was not part of the original broadcast and so has no English play-by-play. It's a good fight anyway, with strikes, near submission finishes, and painful ground and pound blows. Things end in the first round with a devastating knee to a grounded opponent.

Pride Bushido 11 was the kickoff of a 16-man Grand Prix tournament designed to play out over three shows and culminate at Bushudo 13 with the crowning of a Pride middleweight champion. It featured a whole host of veteran MMA fighters and Pride-ring staples, as well as a few determined newcomers. Coming as this card did after the superb Bushido 10, which featured several epic bouts, the eleventh outing of Pride's Bushido subseries had some big shoes to fill, but unfortunately didn't quite hit the mark. Although there are three nasty knockouts on here, including a wicked face-plant, the majority of the bouts are simply okay, and it's hard not to feel a bit let down by the overall effect of the card.
A spoiler-free list of the bouts:

Murilo Bustamante vs. Amar Suloev: While this fight is no barnburner, it's a steady, snappy scrap with plenty of action.

Gregory Bouchelagam vs. Paulo Filho: If you don't like grappling, you are really going to hate this fight between a ju-jitsu/judo expert and a guy who can't stop a takedown, but has great submission defense. Pretty boring.

Ryo Chonan vs. Joey Villasenor: Chonan is one of the "Bushido aces", but he was having a run of hard-luck in the ring when he looked to ressuscitate his career against hungry newcomer Villasenor. This is a grueling standup fight, a real contest of wills.

Marcus Aurelio vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida: This was a shockingly one-sided bout, but not overly entertaining unless you like mauling.

Bennett vs. Kawajiri: People should never brag about not having a ground game. The end of this fight was extremely satisfying.

Olaf Alfonzo vs. Mach Sakurai: Don't blink. One of the most vicious one-punch KOs I have ever seen.

Gerard Mousasi vs. Makoto Takomoto: A somewhat bizarre stoppage accelerates this fight's obvious conclusion.

Gono vs. Lombard: The only thing that prevented this fight from being great is exhaustion, setting in on both fighters after a blistering pace in the first round. But still an entertaining battle.

Dennis Kang vs. Ninja Rua: Again, don't blink. The loser of this fight must have needed a bottle of Vicodan when he woke up.

Phil Baroni vs. Kazuo Misaki: With Phil Baroni, you know what you're gonna get - trash talk, flashy ring entrances, wicked punching power, a tough chin and questionable stamina. Misaki is more of an X-factor, but his flying knees and cracking leg-kicks make him a good dance partner. This is another really grueling fight and pretty entertaining.

Bonus Fight - Jason Black vs. Oh Won Jin: This fight was not part of the original broadcast and has no commentary, which is funny, because it sort of reminds you that when two men are beating the stuffing out of each other, it isn't really necessary to have any. A slow-starting but surprisingly entertaining brawl between two extremely gutsy guys.

To sum up, this is an okay card, worth paying for provided the price is modest. It's got its share of highlight-reel moments (particularly Alonzo - Sakurai and Kang - Rua) and a lot of satisfying bouts (Baroni - Misaki, Black - Jin, etc. ) but my measure of a card that I buy is "How many of these fights do I want to watch more than once?" And by that standard I give Bushido 11 somewhere between a C-plus and a B-minus.

Well, This Was My First Time Buying Something On Line So I Was Kinda Scard.. BUt I am Very Happy With The Dvd, Specialy Cuz I Got It Earlier Then Expected! Thanx