Rumina Sato later moved to amateur wrestling after being admitted in the Nippon Sport Science University, and after graduating in 1994 and competing in the All Japan Amateur Shoot Championships, he joined professionally the company.
18 Facts About Rumina Sato
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2.
Rumina Sato ascended fastly in the roster by winning 10 straight matches, becoming a fan favourite for his aggressive and spectacular style of grappling.
3.
Rumina Sato defeated another big name of the art when he beat John Lewis, who he submitted in revenge for a match at the Vale Tudo Japan which ended in a draw.
4.
Rumina Sato would become a usual fighter for this event, representing Shooto in six out of the nine years it had place.
5.
Rumina Sato's winning streak finally broke in 1998 when he lost a highly publicized match to Canadian Jiu-Jitsu Champion Joel Gerson by a surprising armbar in the first round of a non-title event in 1998.
6.
Rumina Sato avenged his defeat in the next Canadian Jiu-Jitsu open tournament the same year, where he faced Gerson again at the finals and submitted him with an ankle lock.
7.
At Vale Tudo Japan 1998, Rumina Sato went against Andre Pederneiras of the Nova Uniao in a vale tudo rules match.
8.
Rumina Sato suffered the first takedown, but he almost caught Pederneiras with a persistent armbar.
9.
However, suddenly Pederneiras sidestepped Rumina Sato and landed a soccer kick to the head, following with heavy punches to the face for the doctor stoppage.
10.
Rumina Sato captured Uno's back mere two minutes into the match and pursued the rear naked choke, but despite threatening to lock the hold at several points, Uno managed to escape free.
11.
At the third round, Uno started controlling the wrestling game and solidifying his assault to Sato's guard, and ultimately, when a clearly tired Rumina attempted a takedown, Caol took his back and locked a rear naked choke for the tap out.
12.
Rumina Sato returned to Vale Tudo Japan in 1999 fighting Rafael Cordeiro, founder and instructor for the famed Chute Boxe team.
13.
The match was short, as Rumina Sato scored a belly to belly suplex and right after locked a kneebar, making Cordeiro tap out.
14.
However, when Rumina Sato finally released him, Uno capitalized on his bad position and landed a knee strike to the face and a right punch to the temple, knocking Rumina Sato out.
15.
In December 2001, Rumina Sato faced rising star Takanori Gomi for the vacated Shooto World Lightweight Championship.
16.
The second round saw Gomi landing damaging punches, as well as Rumina Sato utilizing an active guard to counterattack, and the striker eventually bypassing his defenses and controlling the pace.
17.
Rumina Sato won the Shooto Pacific Rim Lightweight Tournament on March 11,2005, from Makoto Ishikawa, but still remained in the promotion until his retirement in May 2014.
18.
Rumina Sato was primarily a grappler whose main strength was found in his offensive skills.