Aoki Returns To RIZIN Seeking Closure After Decade

Shinya Aoki headlined the inaugural RIZIN card in 2015 with a six-minute destruction of Kazushi Sakuraba. Ten years later, the 43-year-old grappling specialist steps back into a Japanese ring he thought he'd left for good.

Aoki meets Mikuru Asakura in the co-main event of Super RIZIN 5 on Thursday at Kyocera Dome Osaka. Per MMA Fighting, Aoki frames the booking as a chance to settle business left open when DREAM folded without ceremony in 2012. "The main reason for 2026 is to fight and to make a full closure of what DREAM was supposed to do," he said through an interpreter. "So that is my No. 1 priority in my return."

Aoki on Japanese MMA History and ONE Chapter

DREAM ran 24 events between 2008 and 2012 before fading out. Former PRIDE chief Nobuyuki Sakakibara launched RIZIN in its place, but Aoki had already moved to ONE Championship by then. He won the lightweight title there and defended it multiple times. His last three fights under the Singapore-based banner took place on Japanese soil but felt separate from the domestic MMA lineage, Aoki told MMA Fighting. "I was fighting for an international company making content towards internationally," he said. "I wasn't fighting in a Japanese historical company targeted for the Japanese audience."

Aoki admitted surprise when RIZIN extended the offer. He wondered whether current fans even knew he existed. A month into the promotional cycle, the reception has reassured him. "I kind of felt that I would never fight in Japan again," he said. "I'm very grateful that I was given this opportunity to fight on such a big prestigious event."

Asakura carries a 13-5 RIZIN record and holds wins over current champion Luiz Gustavo plus former titleholders Kleber Koike and Chihiro Suzuki. The 34-year-old striker lost his most recent bout to Razhabali Shaydullaev in a title challenge last September. Aoki was already competing when Asakura was nine years old. "A lot of the current fighters have a dad my age," Aoki said. "I fought Antonio McKee, and his son is AJ McKee and he's fighting on the same card. That itself kind of explains how time passes."

Aoki ruled out chasing belts but left the door open for legacy bouts in Brazil or Russia. A legend slot at MVP's new MMA venture could also appeal. Super RIZIN 5 airs Thursday night from Osaka.

Reported via:

• MMA Fighting — A decade later, Shinya Aoki returns to RIZIN looking for full closure