We’re missing about three minutes of this to clipping, but there’s just enough here to make out the cohesive narrative of the match. As far as that goes, it’s the familiar story between these two of Ikeda focusing on his powerful striking while Ishikawa tries to ground the affair. There’s some great kicks from Ikeda in this–sadly nerfed somewhat by the loud post-production commentary–that seem to really rock Ishikawa especially deep in the match. The kicks are a weakness to though, as Ikeda’s so reliant on them that it allows Ishikawa to prepare for them, grab the leg and bring Ikeda down to the mat.
Even then, it’s not an open and shut domination from Ishikawa here. Ikeda constantly frustrates him. There’s nothing quite like how these convey aggression in the smallest ways. I’m especially a fan of how they attack each other’s faces. The punching and striking, yes, but also when trying to escape a hold on the mat, both tend to push and claw at the other’s face in their attempts to get leverage. Just looks nasty every time.
Really strong finish here with Ishikawa kicking into another gear after a series of big blows from Ikeda nearly drop him for a knockdown loss. Once the switch flips and he taps into his own aggression, he’s able to handily drop Ikeda and choke him out for a win.
Rating: ***3/4
