Hero's was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion operated by Fighting and Entertainment Group, the parent entity behind kickboxing organization K-1. Grown from and branched off of K-1's earlier experiments in MMA, including the K-1 Romanex event and various MMA fights on its regular K-1 kickboxing cards, it held its first show on March 26, 2005. The promotion was handled by former Rings head Akira Maeda. At a press conference on February 13, 2008, FEG announced that they had discontinued Hero's and were creating a new mixed martial arts franchise, Dream, in collaboration with former Pride FC executives from Dream Stage Entertainment.
History Although not as popular worldwide as the Ultimate Fighting Championship or the now defunct Pride Fighting Championships, Hero's was very recognizable in the Japanese mixed martial arts scene, thanks in large part to the visibility and resources of FEG and K-1. Hero's events were sometimes co-sponsored and broadcast on the TBS national television network in Japan. In contrast to PRIDE and the UFC, Hero's promoted only three weight classes: middleweight (-70 kg/-154 lbs), light heavyweight (-85 kg/-187 lbs) and heavyweight (+85 kg/+187 lbs).
United States On March 27, 2007, FEG (the Fighting Entertainment Group) held a press conference at the Los Angeles Coliseum to announce their first US event which was to be held on June 2, 2007. The show, named K-1 Dynamite!! USA, was a joint operated venture with the newly formed Elite XC, British MMA organization Cage Rage, BoDog Fight and the Korean-based Spirit MC. The show was broken down into two parts, with the first part (made up of three fights) being aired for free Showtime and the second part on pay-per-view.
Reformation into Dream At a press conference on February 13, 2008, FEG announced that they discontinued Hero's and were creating a new mixed martial arts franchise, Dream, in collaboration with former Pride FC executives from Dream Stage Entertainment. In addition to established Hero's stars, (such as Calvancante, Akiyama, and Yamamoto) many other top fighters from around the world (such as Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipović and Shinya Aoki) joined the new promotion.
Notable fighters Many notable mixed martial artists competed in Hero's, including:
Sam Greco Antônio Silva Gesias Calvancante Hermes Franca Lyoto Machida Rani Yahya Royce Gracie Vítor Ribeiro Carlos Newton Denis Kang Ivan Menjivar Caol Uno Genki Sudo Hideo Tokoro Hiroyuki Takaya Kazuo Misaki Kazushi Sakuraba Kiuma Kunioku Michihiro Omigawa Norifumi Yamamoto Shungo Oyama Yoshihiro Akiyama Yushin Okami Jerome Le Banner Alistair Overeem Melvin Manhoef Peter Aerts Ray Sefo Joachim Hansen Sergei Kharitonov Jan Nortje Kotetsu Boku Gary Goodridge Brad Pickett B.J. Penn Bob Sapp Don Frye Heath Herring Jake Shields Nam Phan Rich Clementi Brock Lesnar
Hero's Grand Prix Champions
Year Weight class Champion Runner-up 2005 Middleweight () Norifumi Yamamoto Genki Sudo 2006 Light heavyweight () Yoshihiro Akiyama Melvin Manhoef 2006 Middleweight () Gesias Calvancante Caol Uno 2007 Middleweight () Gesias Calvancante André Amado
Events EventDateLocationVenueAttendance Hero's 1 Saitama, Japan Saitama Super Arena13,000 Hero's 2 Tokyo, Japan Yoyogi National Gymnasium Hero's 3 Tokyo, Japan Ariake Coliseum Hero's 2005 in Seoul Seoul, South Korea Olympic Gymnastics Arena7,460 Hero's Lithuania 2005 Vilnius, Lithuania Siemens Arena K-1 PREMIUM 2005 Dynamite!! Osaka, Japan Osaka Dome53,025 Hero's 4 Tokyo, Japan Nippon Budokan Hero's 5 Tokyo, Japan Yoyogi National Gymnasium Hero's 6 Tokyo, Japan Ariake Coliseum Hero's 7 Yokohama, Japan Yokohama Arena Hero's Lithuania 2006 Vilnius, Lithuania Siemens Arena K-1 PREMIUM 2006 Dynamite!! Osaka, Japan Osaka Dome51,930 Hero's 8 Nagoya, Japan Nippon Gaishi Hall Dynamite!! USA Los Angeles, California, USA Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum18,340 Hero's 9: Middleweight Tournament Opening Round Yokohama, Japan Yokohama Arena Hero's 10: Middleweight Tournament Final Yokohama, Japan Yokohama Arena Hero's 2007 in Korea Seoul, South Korea Jangchung Gymnasium Hero's Lithuania 2007 Vilnius, Lithuania Siemens Arena K-1 PREMIUM 2007 Dynamite!! Osaka, Japan Osaka Dome47,928
Event locations * Total event number: 19
Japan (13) Tokyo – 5 Yokohama – 3 Osaka – 3 Nagoya – 1 Saitama – 1
Lithuania (3) Vilnius – 3
South Korea (2) Seoul – 2
United States (1) Los Angeles, California – 1
References
External links Hero's official website Bushido FC's official website