Former RIZIN featherweight champion Kleber Koike will fight Masanori Kanehara, and UFC veteran Todd Duffee will make his debut against Tsuyoshi Sudario in the upcoming RIZIN 44 event.
Former RIZIN featherweight champion Kleber Koike will return to the ring on September 24, set to face off against Masanori Kanehara. Previously heralded as the featherweight champion, Koike lost his title earlier in the year after failing to make weight before his championship bout with another fighter, Chihiro Suzuki. Despite this setback, Koike convincingly ended his match with Suzuki in the first round via submission, though the result was officially declared a no-contest due to the prior weight discrepancy.
Kanehara brings substantial experience to the table, with 30 wins, 14 losses and 5 draws under his belt from his time in the MMA. Having competed in various Japanese promotions such as UFC and Sengoku, he boasts a successful track record, particularly having achieved four straight victories within RIZIN since he parted ways with the UFC back in 2016. On the day, he will be gunning for his fifth consecutive win under the RIZIN banner at the forthcoming RIZIN 44 event.
In addition to this headlining match, the Japanese promotion has also announced seven other match-ups for RIZIN 44, among them the anticipated debut of UFC veteran and former KSW heavyweight competitor Todd Duffee. Duffee has recently returned to the sport after a three-year hiatus, facing off against Phil De Fries at KSW only to be defeated in the first round. His first match in Japan since 2010 will see him up against Tsuyoshi Sudario, a former sumo wrestler with a 7-2 record in MMA. The current RIZIN 44 lineup includes Kleber Koike vs. Masanori Kanehara, Juntaro Ushiku vs. Kyohei Hagiwara, Spike Carlyle vs. Yoshinori Horie, Yoshiki Nakahara vs. Rikuto Shirakawa, Kazumasa Majima vs. Takeji Yokoyama, Taichi Nakajima vs. Ryo Okada, Shoma Shibisai vs. Janos Csukas, and Tsuyoshi Sudario vs. Todd Duffee.