Fighters fight for many reasons. Some fight to test themselves, some fight to make money, and some fight because they believe it is what they are supposed to do. Satomi Takano fights as a way to express herself. At just 31 years old, she has been fighting for close to a decade and she is now set to face Mina Kurobe for the Shooto Super Atomweight Championship. This upcoming title match will not only be her 28th fight, it will be her third with Kurobe. This match provides a chance for Satomi to not only avenge those losses, she also feels that winning the belt will open up other opportunities where she can represent Japan in various promotions across the globe. (The header photo is courtesy of LadyGo!)
As a staple of the Japanese MMA scene, Satomi has not only fought for most of the promotions in the region, she has also fought most of the big names as well. This includes wins over the former Deep Jewels Champion Tomo Maesawa (3x’s), Megumi Sugimoto, and former reality star Ga Yeong Song. Recently, she’s been competing for Quintet and fighting for Shooto, where she defeated Miku Nakamura via TKO in the 2nd round. This is her second victory via finish, since leaving the One Championship Warrior Series and joining the promotion less than a year ago. It was this victory that earned her a title shot and we had a chance to speak to her afterwards. (下に日本語がある)
You can follow Satomi on Instagram and Twitter.
CJ: First off, thank you for taking the time to speak to us. Can you talk a little about your last fight?
ST: It was a very good win for me. I was able to time my takedowns correctly and get them, I think I was able to keep my composure and react accordingly.
CJ: I see! Since you won your last match, it looks like you will be fighting Kurobe next for the title. What do you think about this upcoming fight? Did you want to fight Kurobe again?
ST: I didn’t expect to do it a third time, so I have mixed feelings about it. After I lost the last time at Deep Jewels, I realized that I was defeated by Kurobe’s humanity rather than by my ability. Since then, I’ve been rethinking myself and improving not only my MMA skills and physicality, but also my human power. That’s why I’m determined to win the next fight and wear the belt as a representative of Japan.
CJ: That’s interesting. Can you tell me more about the “humanity” thing? Do you have an example?
ST: She was friendly to me after we fought and we even trained together, she’s well-spoken, and there are a lot of fighters that want to train with her. I think she’s liked by a lot of people, she doesn’t hurt anyone’s feelings, and as a result, she’s a fighter that has a lot of support.
CJ: How did you improve this area?
ST: What have I improved? I used to be very selfish and focused on myself in my training. I’ve changed that, and I’ve tried to talk and cooperate with the team more.
Also, I’ve been taking advantage of the coaches, while also trying to think for myself and express my opinions a lot more in practice.
CJ: Interesting. You wrote that you want to represent Japan. Where is that? Overseas? Japan?
ST: I am currently in Shooto, but I would like to fight overseas in the near future. After COVID settles down, I would like to have a chance to fight overseas. Because of that, I believe I need to get the Shooto belt around my waist.
CJ: I see! Do you still have a contract with One?
ST: I was told that OWS is gone, so I had two fights left on my contract, but I don’t think I have a contract anymore. It’s not an exclusive contract, so if I can get a chance elsewhere, I’d like to fight there.
CJ: I see. Are there any promotions or places that you would like to fight? Do you have any other goals in martial arts?
ST: Anywhere you can fight in the Atomweight division. I’m not particular about that. I don’t have any goals other than martial arts at the moment.
CJ: Your goals as a martial artist?
ST: To express myself!
CJ: Like an artist?
ST: Yes, I think of myself as an artist. I’m able to put all of my feelings into martial arts.
CJ: That’s interesting. On to your next fight, how are you preparing for it?
ST: I’m working on improving my striking skill, my ground skills, and my physicality. I’m also doing things to strengthen my mentality. This is the most important thing for me to work on.
CJ: Speaking of your training, who is your main training these days? Is it Kitaoka?
ST: Yes, Kitaoka is the main trainer, Ryo Kawamura is my striking coach and I go to Carpe Diem in Mita for my ground game.
CJ: Speaking of your coaches, they used to dance with you when you walked to the ring/cage in the past. Can we expect to see that in the future?
ST: I won’t do it again because I need to focus on the fight!
CJ: I see, what is distracting you?
ST: Not really, but I want to pay attention/focus on the fight.
CJ: That’s interesting. How do you prepare for a match backstage these days? Do you do mental exercises?
ST: I try not to be too self-conscious and just talk and laugh a lot as usual. When I warm up, I try to move around so I can get my breathing ready for the match.
CJ: I see, by the way, I forgot to ask, how has the pandemic impacted your training?
ST: The Pancrasism Yokohama gym was open, so I was able to train without any problems at all.
CJ: I’m glad to hear that. Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions, do you have a message for the readers?
ST: I want to show that I am still getting stronger. Please pay attention and support me.
Japanese Below
CJ: インタビューをして、ありがとうございます！7月25日の試合の事を話していいですか？試合がどうだった思っていますか？
Takano選手: とてもいい内容で勝てました。打撃もいい位置をとって攻防できましたし、相手のパンチも全て見えていました。テイクダウンもタイミングで倒すことができたので落ち着いて対応できたと思います。相手がテイクダウンディフェンスやグランドポジションを頑張ってくる事は想定内だったので焦らず丁寧にフィニッシュまで持っていくことができました。
CJ: なるほど！今、勝ったから、黒部選手とタイトルマーチをする見たいですね。どんな気分ですか?
Takano選手: 3度目をやると思っていなかったので、複雑な気持ちもあります。前回のDEEPJEWELS で負けた後、実力で負けたというよりは黒部さんの人間性に負けたんだと痛感しました。
それから自分自身を見つめなおして、MMAの技術やフィジカルはもちろん人間力も高めてきました。だから次は必ず勝って、日本を代表する選手としてベルトを巻きたいと思っています。
CJ: 面白いですね。「人間性」の事が詳細を教えていいですか? 例がありますか?
Takano選手: 闘った私にも親切にしてくれたり練習もしてくれる、話しがうまい、黒部さんと練習したいという選手が沢山いる。たくさんの人に好かれていて、人を傷つけない、応援されている選手だと思います。
CJ: その部分をどのように改善しましたか？
Takano選手: 私が改善した点は。今まですごくわがままで自分中心に練習してきました。そこを見直して、チームのみんなと話し合ったり協力する様にした事。
またいつもコーチ達に甘えていたのを、甘えずに自分で考えて沢山意見を言って練習に取り組むようにしまし。
CJ: 面白いです。日本を代表したいと書きましたね。どこですか?海外ですか?日本ですか?
Takano選手: 今は修斗に出ていますが近いうちに海外で試合がしたいです。コロナが落ち着いたら海外で戦うチャンスを私に欲しいです。
そのためにも必ずこのベルトは巻かないと行けないと思っています。
CJ: なるほど！Oneの契約はまだありますか？
Takano選手: OWSは無くなってしまったという話なので、残り2試合の契約が残っていましたが、もう契約は無いと思います。独占契約ではないので，他でチャンスをもらえるならそこで戦いたいです。
CJ: なるほどね。戦ってみたいプロモーションや場所はありますか？格闘技の他の目標がありますか?
Takano選手: アトム級で戦える所でしたらどこでも。こだわりはないです。格闘技以外の目標は今は無いです。
CJ: 格闘技の目的は?
Takano選手: 自己表現です！
CJ: アーティストのように？
Takano選手: はい、アーティストだと思っています。自分の気持ちを全てぶつけられるから。
CJ: 面白いです！次の試合に向けてどのような準備をしますか？
Takano選手: 打撃・寝技・フィジカル全てでレベルアップする事。そして強いメンタルをつくる事。これを1番大事にして取り組んでいきます。
CJ: 最近のメイントレーナーは誰ですか？北岡選手ですか？
Takano選手: はい、北岡さんがメイントレーナー、打撃は川村亮さん、寝技はカルペディエム三田道場で練習しています。
CJ: 過去の試合では、試合の前にセコンドとダンスをしましたね。次の試合は?
Takano選手: 試合に集中したいので、もうやりません！
CJ: なるほどね。ダンスが気が散りましたか?
Takano選手: そうでは無いのですが，試合を見て注目してもらいたいので。
CJ: 面白いです。最近、バックステージで試合の前にどうやって準備をしますか? メンタルの準備がありますか?
Takano選手: あまり気負いせず，いつも通り話をしながら沢山笑って過ごすようにしています。ウォーミングアップでは1試合終えた後くらい息が上がるように動くようにしています。
CJ: なるほど。コロナだからトレーニングを難しくなりましたか？
Takano選手: パンクラスイズム横浜のジムはコロナ中も開いていましたので、全く問題なく練習できました。
CJ: よかったです！インタビューして、ありがとうございます。ファンにメッセージがありますか?
Takano選手: まだまだ強くなった姿を見せたいです。注目して，応援してください。
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