Norifumi "KID" Yamamoto was a Japanese mixed martial artist and kickboxer who competed in the bantamweight division of the UFC.
40 Facts About Norifumi Yamamoto
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Norifumi Yamamoto quickly gained popularity in the Shooto organization due to his aggressive, well-rounded style and controversial persona.
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Norifumi Yamamoto moved on to K-1 Hero's, where he became the K-1 Hero's 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix Tournament Champion in December, 2005 after defeating Genki Sudo via a controversial TKO due to punches.
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Later in his career, Norifumi Yamamoto competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship in the bantamweight division, although he did not perform well there, going winless in his four fights with the promotion.
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At the age of 21, Norifumi Yamamoto made a transition from wrestling to mixed martial arts despite his father's opinion that MMA is not a real sport.
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Norifumi Yamamoto made his professional mixed martial arts debut on March 2,2001, against Masato Shiozawa at Shooto - To The Top 2, where he won by unanimous decision.
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Norifumi Yamamoto would go on to win his next two fights, both by TKO in the first round.
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Norifumi Yamamoto dominated Thomson with takedowns and strikes but caught an accidental kick to the groin three minutes into round two, causing the bout to be ruled a no contest.
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On May 5,2002, Norifumi Yamamoto suffered his first loss by TKO to Stephen Palling.
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The doctors determined that Norifumi Yamamoto was unable to continue and Palling was declared the winner.
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Norifumi Yamamoto made his K-1 Hero's debut on April 7,2004, at the K-1 World MAX 2004 World Tournament Open, where he choked out Tony Valente only 58 seconds into the fight.
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On May 3,2006, Norifumi Yamamoto made mixed martial arts history when he knocked out Kazuyuki Miyata four seconds into the fight with a flying knee moments after the bell sounded.
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In early 2007, Norifumi Yamamoto announced an indefinite leave of absence from MMA to go back to his roots and train for and compete in freestyle wrestling for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
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Norifumi Yamamoto had hoped to win the Olympic Gold medal for freestyle wrestling ever since he was a child, as his father Ikuei Yamamoto represented Japan in the 1972 Olympic games in Munich.
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In qualifying, Norifumi Yamamoto began with an impressive win over Japanese Self Defense Forces member Akihiro Tsuchida.
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Norifumi Yamamoto looked nimble and explosive against Tsuchida, who had taken third in the 132-pound freestyle class at the 2006 Emperor's Cup.
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However disaster struck in the semifinals against 2004 Athens Bronze Medalist Kenji Inoue, when in the first move of the match, an arm-whip takedown by Inoue, Norifumi Yamamoto dislocated his right elbow, and was consequently prone for the easy pinfall.
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Norifumi Yamamoto won in the second round via TKO due to soccer and ground kicks.
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Norifumi Yamamoto was one of the many former Pride and Hero's fighters that was announced to be competing in the new promotion.
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Norifumi Yamamoto was supposed to make his Dream debut at Dream 5 against Joseph Benavidez, but the bout was abruptly called off three days before the event to a knee injury suffered by Yamamoto.
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Norifumi Yamamoto next announced his participation in the Dream Featherweight Grand Prix, which began at Dream.
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Norifumi Yamamoto was expected to make his Strikeforce debut against Team Quest fighter Federico Lopez at Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery, but was later pulled out by DREAM and fought Lopez at Dream 14 instead.
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Norifumi Yamamoto defeated Lopez via TKO, claiming his first victory after two consecutive upset losses.
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In preparation for the fight Norifumi Yamamoto decided to "reinvent" himself, moving to Okinawa to train under former WBA Light Welterweight Champion Akinobu Hiranaka.
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Norifumi Yamamoto made his UFC debut against future UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson at UFC 126.
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Norifumi Yamamoto was then expected to face Chris Cariaso on May 28,2011, at UFC 130.
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However, Norifumi Yamamoto was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced by Michael McDonald.
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Norifumi Yamamoto then fought Darren Uyenoyama on November 12,2011, at UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs Dos Santos.
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Norifumi Yamamoto rocked Lee early in the opening round with a right hand, but minutes later was wobbled by a right hook-uppercut combination from the Brit.
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Norifumi Yamamoto immediately took Lee down, but got caught in a triangle choke; Lee then switched to an armbar, handing Yamamoto his first ever loss by submission.
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Norifumi Yamamoto was expected to face Ivan Menjivar on September 21,2013, at UFC 165.
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However, Norifumi Yamamoto was removed from the bout and was replaced by Wilson Reis.
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Norifumi Yamamoto returned from a three-year hiatus to face Roman Salazar on February 28,2015, at UFC 184.
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The bout was declared a no contest after an accidental eye poke by Norifumi Yamamoto rendered Salazar unable to continue midway through the second round.
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Norifumi Yamamoto was expected to face Matt Hobar on September 27,2015, at UFC Fight Night 75.
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Norifumi Yamamoto was scheduled to face Chris Beal on June 18,2016, at UFC Fight Night 89.
37.
Kid Norifumi Yamamoto lost to Amateur Kickboxer Percy Ramos, at the Fighter of the Year tournament, 2006 by TKO into the fourth round.
38.
Norifumi Yamamoto then faced Mike Zambidis at the K-1 World Max 2005 Tournament, he would lose this bout by KO early into the third round.
39.
On July 13,2009, Norifumi Yamamoto was defeated by Korean kickboxer Jae Hee Cheon via KO at K-1 World MAX 2009 World Championship Tournament Final 8.
40.
Norifumi Yamamoto was married to Japanese female fashion model MALIA, with whom he had two sons and a daughter.