Sherdog’s Top 10: Rising Stars, 2014 First Edition

---

4. Kyoji Horiguchi (14-1)

To put it bluntly, the last several years have not been kind to MMA in Japan. Pride Fighting Championships is long dead, and its successor, Dream, likewise seems to be gone for good. The year-end New Year’s shows are but a shadow of their former selves, and an entire generation of great Japanese fighters has reached the end of even faded relevance at the top of the sport. The relative youngsters who were supposed to replace them, namely Yoshihiro Akiyama and Satoshi Ishii, have failed to develop as predicted.

Still, all is not lost for the once-vibrant MMA scene in Japan. Young prospects are rising, if not in the numbers we might expect, and foremost among them is the ultra-talented Horiguchi. The protégé of Japanese great and what-if story Norifumi Yamamoto and his Krazy Bee team, Horiguchi has the athleticism, ridiculous speed and big power that his mentor showcased before the devastating injuries that shortened his prime.

With Horiguchi now 3-0 in the UFC -- two of those victories came by devastating knockout -- there is every reason to think that the flyweight is equipped to be one of the promotion’s standard-bearers in its renewed efforts to tap into the East Asian market. The UFC will be running multiple shows in primetime in the region this year, and Horiguchi should have a boatload of opportunities to make himself into a familiar face for the Japanese fans and media.

Horiguchi certainly has the talent, and if he works hard and plays his cards right, he will have the opportunities to become a star in a market that badly needs one.

Number 3 » He can win fights in any phase. His quick hands and long kicks make him a threat at range; his clinch and wrestling skills would not shame an NCAA All-American; and his work from top position is some of the nastiest and most dangerous in the entire UFC.