The King of Pancrase tournament was a mixed martial arts event held by Pancrase Hybrid Wrestling. It took place at Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan on December 16 and 17, 1994. The event was a 16-man tournament to crown the first ever champion of Pancrase. It featured the opening round and quarterfinals of the tournament on the first day, and the semifinals and finals on the second day.

King of Pancrase tournament
PromotionPancrase
DateDecember 16 and 17, 1994[1][2]
VenueSumo Hall[1][2]
CityTokyo, Japan[1][2]
Attendance11,000 each day[3]

The tournament was one of the biggest events in mixed martial arts history to that date and featured some of the best fighters in the world at the time, including future Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions Bas Rutten, Ken Shamrock, Frank Shamrock, and Maurice Smith, and top Japanese fighters Masakatsu Funaki, Minoru Suzuki and Manabu Yamada.

Background

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The King of Pancrase tournament was a two-day openweight tournament on December 16 and 17, 1994. The opening round and quarterfinals took place on day 1 and the semifinals and finals took place on day 2. The winner of the tournament would become the first ever "King of Pancrase".

 
The King of Pancrase Tournament drew 11,000 fans each night at Tokyo's Ryōgoku Kokugikan (also known as Sumo Hall).

Results

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The tournament was seeded based on skill, matching #1 seeds with #4 seeds and #2 seeds with #3 seeds in the opening round. The tournament #1 seeds were Minoru Suzuki, Bas Rutten, Ken Shamrock and Masakatsu Funaki. The opening round saw a large upset as Frank Shamrock, who was making his MMA debut, knocked off #1 seed Bas Rutten via Majority Decision.

Masakatsu Funaki, Ken Shamrock, Manabu Yamada and Minoru Suzuki survived day 1 and advanced to day 2. Funaki and Shamrock had fought twice previously, with Shamrock winning once and Funaki winning once. It was also an example of student vs. teacher as Funaki was Shamrock's trainer and mentor and cornered Shamrock for his UFC fights in America.

In addition to the semifinals and finals of the tournament, the day 2 card also included two alternate bouts matching Katsuomi Inagaki vs. Gregory Smit and Scott Bessac vs. Larry Papadopoulos. Results are tabulated,[1][2]

 
11,000 fans packed Tokyo's Ryōgoku Kokugikan (also known as Sumo Hall) to witness the final round of the King of Pancrase tournament.

Day 1

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King of Pancrase tournament opening round
Weight class Method Round Time Notes
Masakatsu Funaki def. Todd Bjornethun Submission (armbar) 1 2:20
Vernon White def. Leon van Dijk Submission (heel hook) 1 3:45
Maurice Smith def. Takaku Fuke KO (knee) 1 2:48
Ken Shamrock def. Alex Cook Submission (heel hook) 1 1:31
Frank Shamrock def. Bas Rutten Decision (majority) 1 10:00
Manabu Yamada def. Christopher DeWeaver Submission (heel hook) 1 2:44
Jason DeLucia def. Thomas Puckett KO (head kick) 1 0:48
Minoru Suzuki def. Matt Hume Decision (lost points) 1 10:00
King of Pancrase tournament quarterfinals
Masakatsu Funaki def. Vernon White Submission (armlock) 1 5:37
Ken Shamrock def. Maurice Smith Submission (arm-triangle choke) 1 4:23
Manabu Yamada def. Frank Shamrock Submission (ankle lock) 1 8:38
Minoru Suzuki def. Jason DeLucia Submission (heel hook) 1 2:04

Day 2

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King of Pancrase tournament alternate bouts
Weight class Method Round Time Notes
Scott Bessac def. Larry Papadopoulos KO (punch to the body) 1 13:49
Katsuomi Inagaki def. Gregory Smit Submission (heel hook) 1 5:18
King of Pancrase tournament semifinals
Ken Shamrock def. Masakatsu Funaki Submission (arm-triangle choke) 1 5:50
Manabu Yamada def. Minoru Suzuki Submission (armbar) 1 14:46
King of Pancrase tournament final
Ken Shamrock def. Manabu Yamada Decision (unanimous) 1 30:00 [a]
  1. ^ Shamrock became the inaugural Openweight King of Pancrase

Tournament bracket

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Opening round Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
            
  Minoru Suzuki DEC
  Matt Hume 10:00
  Minoru Suzuki SUB
  Jason DeLucia 2:04
  Jason DeLucia KO
  Thomas Puckett 0:48
  Minoru Suzuki 14:46
  Manabu Yamada SUB
  Manabu Yamada SUB
  Christopher DeWeaver 2:44
  Manabu Yamada SUB
  Frank Shamrock 8:38
  Frank Shamrock DEC
  Bas Rutten 10:00
  Manabu Yamada 30:00
  Ken Shamrock DEC
  Ken Shamrock SUB
  Alex Cook 1:31
  Ken Shamrock SUB
  Maurice Smith 4:23
  Maurice Smith KO
  Takaku Fuke 2:48
  Ken Shamrock SUB
  Masakatsu Funaki 5:50
  Vernon White SUB
  Leon Dijk 3:45
  Vernon White 5:37
  Masakatsu Funaki SUB
  Masakatsu Funaki SUB
  Todd Bjornethun 2:20

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Pancrase – King of Pancrase Tournament Opening Round".
  2. ^ a b c d "Pancrase – King of Pancrase Tournament Second Round".
  3. ^ "Ken Shamrock's greatest hits".
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