Birthdate - 3/11/73
5'9" 194 lbs. - Japan

Athletic background - Submission Fighting

Professional background - RINGS(`94-`01), DEEP(`01-) U-Style(`03-)

Team - RINGS Japan, Evolution

Career Highlights - n/a

Favorites -
- Half Crab
- Cross Armbreaker
- Belly-to-Belly
- Spinning Chop
- Leg Kick
- Slap

Ringwork Rating -
technique - 10
science - 6
counters - 6
transitions - 7
diversity - 7
power - 7
strikes - 8

Intangible Rating -
entertainment - 7
selling - 7
toughness - 9
carrying - 7
heat - 6
potential - 6

Outlook - Wataru Sakata is one of the few RINGS young boys who is still hanging around doing things worthwhile. His training in that style has aided him well as he's one of the better workers in that style. Unfortunately, he doesn't have the platform of RINGS or other mainstream shoot-style groups, in which he can shine. Zero-One has allowed him some exposure and he's been pushed strongly in U-Style. Sakata's experience in the style gives him a leg up on many of the other young workers in the company, though they are largely a decade his junior. Wataru Sakata seems to be bouncing between those two companies with the odd MMA booking thrown in and even has a well-known relationship with model Eiko Koike. In MMA, Sakata has about broken even with his 11-12 record in over seven years of competition. He's fought his share of notable foes: Renzo Gracie, Mario Sperry and Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, and lost to them all. Valentijn Overeem is about the only name he's beaten and that was years ago. Clearly, Sakata's interests have changed and he's best suited to help the shoot-style try to thrive on a smaller level in his association with U-Style.