Oct-20-2009

'Zenko' Yoshida taking it Day by Day

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By Thomas Gerbasi

At 35 years old, Yoshiyuki ‘Zenko’ Yoshida is one of the welterweight division’s elder statesmen, a fact that will no doubt be mentioned several times in the lead-up to his UFC 104 bout this Saturday against 25-year old Anthony Johnson. But as far as the native of Tokyo is concerned, age has little to no bearing on his status today or in the near future when it comes to his life in the UFC.

“I made my pro debut just four years ago so I am still young in terms of ring age,” said Yoshida through manager / translator Shu Hirata. “And I respect Randy Couture tremendously and want to be just like him, fighting when I’m in my 40's.”

It may not be the answer you’d expect from a fighter who suffered a frightening knockout loss nearly a year ago against Josh Koscheck in December of 2008, but Yoshida shook off the setback, got back in the gym, and just five months later showed impressive form in submitting Brandon Wolff for his second UFC victory and 11th overall (against three losses). Yeah, it’s safe to say that ‘Zenko’ has a fighter’s heart.

“I decided to train two full months at Jackson's for that fight because I just wanted to change,” said Yoshida, who relocated from Japan to Albuquerque to train with Greg Jackson’s camp. “After I lost to Josh Koscheck, if I stayed in Japan and trained in the same environment, I would think too much about that fight, so I decided to change my environment completely.”

“And by working out with so many UFC and WEC fighters at Jackson's, I gained confidence back, and even going to Las Vegas to fight, I went just from New Mexico to Vegas, so compared to coming all the way from Tokyo to fight, I felt it was like a couple train rides to get to the fight, just like when I used to fight in Japan. And also, so many fighters I met and trained with at Jackson's, many of them were at the show, so I was like, "Hey, how are you". And that made me feel totally comfortable.”

Yoshida showed it in the Octagon, easing into the bout before rushing Wolff into the fence and finishing him off with a guillotine choke. It may have been the most important bout of Yoshida’s career, as he showed the ability to rebound from adversity while removing any hints of being gun-shy in his first post-Koscheck bout.

But this Saturday’s bout may be the true test for the skilled judoka, as he steps in with perhaps the biggest puncher in the 170-pound division in Johnson, a huge 170-pounder who also holds a three-inch height advantage. Yoshida is well aware of what ‘Rumble’ – whose four UFC wins have come by knockout – brings to the table.

“He is going to be the tallest opponent I faced in my career. I have seen his fights and I know he has natural physical strength.”

Yet the beauty of Yoshida’s style is that via judo, he can use his opponent’s strength as a tool to implement his own attack, with a couple of his throws able to discourage even the most confident fighter. Of course, he has to get close to grab hold of Johnson, so that will be the trick – getting inside without getting blasted first. But have no doubt that ‘The Maestro’, Greg Jackson, will have a plan for nullifying Johnson’s attack, even though he’s only had Yoshida in New Mexico for two weeks. That’s not to say Yoshida’s been partying and getting fat since the Wolff fight; on the contrary, he competed in the Abu Dhabi submission grappling tournament in September, losing to Leonardo Santos via points, and has also put in time at Yoshida Dojo and Keishukai Gym in Japan with the likes of Makoto Takimoto, Hidehiko Yoshida, Michihiro Omigawa, and Yushin Okami.

“This time, I am only spending two weeks in New Mexico because I had to compete in the ADCC at the end of September,” he said. “So it’s much shorter than the last time but it’s always great to train here at Greg Jackson's MMA. So many top fighters come here and train, so it always gives me a good confidence. And everything is good here, but the conditioning program here is just unbelievably good.”

That’s a nice way of saying that Yoshida is ready for war on Saturday night, and he will have to dig deep to turn back the talented Johnson. As for what happens after this weekend, Yoshida will take it day by day.

“I don't think I am one of the top fighters in the welterweight division yet, so I have to win this fight first, and even then I am not going to ask for a bigger name fighter,” he said. “I am just going to win the fights one by one, and that is the only thing I am thinking right now.”