Former Champion Diaz in support of Veteran Sakurai
Hayato Sakurai still has fight left in him, believes Nick Diaz, Strikeforce welterweight champion. This Saturday, at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, the Cesar Gracie fighter faces “Mach” at Dream 14.
“I think he’s a lot better than Takanori Gomi and the other Japanese fighters, He’s a lot better than Shinya Aoki. He beat him twice, so you’re not going to count this guy out now, are you?” said Diaz.
Sakurai is one of the standout fighters of his generation and he began a hefty double-digit career in Shooto in 1996. The 34-year-old Sakurai is a veteran of Deep and Pride Fighting Championships. In March 2002, he was in the Octagon at UFC 36. He lost to the champion then, Matt Hughes, in a fourth-round stoppage.
Sakurai had three consecutive victories against Dream lightweight champion Shinya Aoki, top-ranked Joachim Hansen and the former UFC champion Jens Pulver. His career also includes his famous and lengthy 14-fight win streak.
To Dream welterweight champion Marius Zaromskis and showman Akihiro Gono, Sakurai dropped his last two outings that made few believe that Sakurai’s best days might be behind him.
In Dream’s “White Cage,” a modified structure built from a material primarily used for Japanese tuna fishing, the bout will be held, rather than inside the traditional steel or aluminum. Diaz is very excited for the match up.
“At the same time, though, I want to fight the best Sakurai. I don’t want to fight ‘old, washed-up Sakurai,’ as some might refer to him, he’s a Japanese superstar and I want to fight him at his best”, said Diaz.