PRIDE recently announced several fighters that will participate in matches at the April 8th show being dubbed “Kamikaze.”
We already know from a report yesterday that Ricardo Arona vs. Sokoudjou is a good possibility.
In addition to that, the following fighters were confirmed for the card:
-Mark Hunt
-Sergei Kharitonov
-Josh Barnett
-Vanderlei Silva (despite being on medical suspension by the NSAC through the scheduled date of the show)
-Kazuyuki Fujita
-Hidehiko Yoshida
-Denis Kang (although he recently fought and injured his hand, so this one is unlikely, but we'll see)
-Ikuhisa Minowa
-Makoto Takimoto
-Zulu
-Eric “Butterbean” Esch (rumored to be challenging Fedor Emelianenko for the Heavyweight title, but with Fedor's Bodog booking and the bout seeming unlikely just on paper alone – I don't really believe that one)
One will wonder how the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) will react when/if PRIDE decides to return to the United States for a show, as most organizations honor NSAC rulings everywhere they promote shows. This is a direct violation of the suspension they handed down to Silva for his knockout loss to Dan Henderson back in February.
PRIDE 34 “Kamikaze” is scheduled for April 8th at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. The card will be aired in the U.S. on pay-per view. More details can be found at PrideFC.com.
