Birthdate - 9/10/71
5'10" 205 lbs. - Narima, Japan
Team - Pancrase Grabaka
Style - Judo

Career Highlights - n/a

Striking - Sanae Kikuta is a cautious fighter who is lacking in several ways, his strikes being the major one. His predictable game just doesn't have much room for throwing anything. He really only uses punches and he's very slowly added them to his game. Kikuta actually has a few strike-related wins, but against pretty unskilled fighters.

Wrestling - Stephen Quadros once said that if anyone in MMA is predictable, it is Sanae Kikuta. He comes in with a double-underhook bodylock, spins them away from the ropes and trips them. It has been an effective takedown method for Kikuta as it depends that he come out quick (often the only all-out aggressiveness you seen in his fights), use his strength (which is good for his size), use his balance (which is a strong attribute) and he be tenacious with it (which is one major quality of his). On the ground, Kikuta maintains positioning well and is, to put it kindly, patient.

Hooking - A competant submission fighter, Kikuta's record says something for his versitility and ability. Like many Pancrase fighters, he likes leg locks a lot and he's won fights with a variety of them. He's had much success with armbars as well. Chokes are another area as Kikuta has fell to them before and only used the basic side choke with any success. Like many judo players turned MMA fighters, he relies on very simple submissions and has really only added the leglocks, which has been an important element to him. His learning curve seems limited, but those things he seems to learn are amongst his best tools.

Strengthes - Kikuta has some really strong qualities that have made him a known fighter. He has a limitedness that he's used effectively to his credit. Mainly his balance and power allows him to get takedowns and get things done on the mat. His record is really good and he's gotten many good opportunties in the big shows in spite of various things.

Weaknesses - Kikuta is something of a dull, limited fighter. He takes people down and holds them there, but seems to be slow on the submissions and limited on the strikes to really get it done. Kikuta is just not particularly aggressive and it not only hurts his marketability, it hurts his game. He waits and waits for apparently golden opportunities that sometimes never come.

Outlook - Sanae Kikuta is an interesting character. He's amongst the most boring fighters because he tends to rely on the same game plan with limited improvement, yet Kikuta remains somewhat competitive. He seems to be struggling to crack the upper tier as he's never gotten big convincing wins against the right people. Those people with strong technique have given him problems as he's used to the banged up foes of Pancrase. Though not particularly old for a fighter, Kikuta has been fighting for over eight years and had around thirty fights the plurality of them in Pancrase, but others with Pride and UFC. He will probably continue along the same path with the same results for at least a while now.