Birthdate - 7/14/68
6' 203 lbs. - Tokyo, Japan

Athletic background - Submission Wrestling, Muay Thai Kickboxing, Wrestling

Professional background - UWFi(`94-`96), Kingdom(`96-`98), UFC(`97), Pride(`98-)

Team - Team Kingdom, Takada Dojo

Career Highlights - n/a

Favorites -
- Cross Armbreaker
- German Suplex
- Rear Naked Choke
- Clenched Knees
- Mid Kick
- Punches

Ringwork Rating -
technique - 10
science - 5
counters - 7
transitions - 8
diversity - 7
power - 7
strikes - 8

Intangible Rating -
entertainment - 6
selling - 8
toughness - 8
carrying - 7
heat - 6
star level - 5

Serious Injuries - Knee

Place in History - Before Kazushi Sakuraba was the greatest junior heavyweight draw of all-time and one of the biggest MMA stars, he was just another shoot-style wrestler. Coming off a strong amateur run, Sakuraba broke in with the UWFi and was one of their better young talents. Ironically, they didn't push Sakuraba and he wasn't given much room to grow until Kingdom. Midway through his run there, Saku won a UFC tournament in his first MMA showing and the next year he began his climb to the top with Pride. Seeing Sakuraba in retrospect is quite strange with moderate fan support, a straightforward game and in smaller companies, but he was a skilled worker at the style for sure. His contribution to MMA are far more important though and his years of pro-wrestling were crucial to his image in Pride, but were largely uneventful.