Naoyuki Kotani

Naoyuki Kotani (born December 8, 1981) is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently competing in the Lightweight division. A professional competitor since 2000, he has formerly competed in PRIDE, Pancrase, UFC, Vale Tudo Japan, and RINGS.

Mixed martial arts career Early career Kotani made his professional MMA debut in September 2000 for the RINGS promotion. He was unbeaten for the first three years of his career, earning a record of 13–0–2.

From 2004 to 2005, Kotani suffered a rough patch in his career as he went 3-5-1 against several UFC fighters including Roger Huerta, Yves Edwards, Marcus Aurélio and Rich Clementi.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Kotani was signed by the UFC in 2007. In his debut, he faced Thiago Tavares at UFC Fight Night: Stevenson vs Guillard on April 5, 2007. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

For his second fight with the promotion, Kotani faced Dennis Siver at UFC 75 on September 8, 2007. He lost the fight via knockout in the second round. Following this loss, Kotani was released by the promotion.

Post-UFC Following his release, Kotani encountered another rough streak as he went 3-3-2 from November 2007 until April 2010. However, beginning in September 2010, Kotani started an undefeated streak of 13–0 over the next three and a half years in his native Japan.

UFC return In May 2014, it was announced that Kotani had re-signed with the UFC. He made his return against Norman Parke on July 19, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 46. He lost the fight via TKO in the second round.

Kotani then faced Yan Cabral at UFC 179 on October 25, 2014. He lost the fight via submission in the second round.

Kotani next faced Kajan Johnson on September 27, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 75. He lost the fight by unanimous decision and was subsequently released from the promotion.

Mixed martial arts record Loss

Shin Haraguchi TKO (elbows and punches) Grachan 59 × Brave Fight 27

Tokyo, Japan Win

Yutaka Ueda Decision (unanimous) Grachan 45

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Koshi Matsumoto TKO (knee and punches) Shooto 30th Anniversary Tour at Korakuen Hall

Tokyo, Japan Win

Shutaro Debana Submission (rear-naked choke) Shooto 11/17

Tokyo, Japan Win

Akihito Mamiya TKO (punches) Grachan 35.5

Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan Loss

Marif Piraev Decision (unanimous) WCFA 44

Grozny, Chechnya, Russia Loss

Yuki Kawana Decision (majority) Shooto: Professional Shooto 10/15

Chiba, Japan Win

Yoichi Fukumoto Submission (Armbar) Shooto - Professional Shooto 4/23

Chiba, Japan Loss

Dmitriy Parubchenko TKO (punches) Real 5: Real Fight Championship 5

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Kajan Johnson Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Barnett vs. Nelson

Saitama, Japan Loss

Yan Cabral Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC 179

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Loss

Norman Parke TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: McGregor vs. Brandao

Dublin, Ireland Win

Yoshihiro Koyama Decision (unanimous) Vale Tudo Japan: VTJ 4th

Tokyo, Japan Win

Daisuke Hoshino Submission (armbar) Vale Tudo Japan: VTJ 3rd

Tokyo, Japan Win

Vitali Krat Submission (armbar) RINGS: The Outsider

Yokohama, Japan Win

Jung Min Kang Submission (rear-naked choke) ZST.35

Tokyo, Japan Win

Koji Mori Submission (kneebar) ZST.33: 10th Anniversary

Tokyo, Japan Win

Shinichi Taira Decision (unanimous) ZST.33: 10th Anniversary

Tokyo, Japan Win

Darius Minkevicius Submission (kimura) ZST.32

Tokyo, Japan Win

Ryuki Ueyama TKO (punches) RINGS: Reincarnation

Tokyo, Japan Win

Daisuke Hanazawa TKO (punches) Rings - Battle Genesis Vol. 9

Tokyo, Japan Win

Katsuya Inoue Submission (armbar) Pancrase: Impressive Tour 9

Tokyo, Japan Win

Ryo Asami TKO (doctor stoppage) RINGS: The Outsider 17

Tokyo, Japan Win

Keigo Hirayama Submission (guillotine choke) ZST.27

Tokyo, Japan Win

Eriya Matsuda Submission (heel hook) ZST.25

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Jorge Masvidal Decision (split) Astra

Tokyo, Japan Draw

Kenichi Ito Draw ZST.23

Tokyo, Japan Win

Daisuke Nakamura Submission (leg scissor choke) ZST.22

Tokyo, Japan Win

Yojiro Uchimura Submission (achilles lock) ZST.21

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Kuniyoshi Hironaka Submission (reverse full-nelson) ZST.20

Tokyo, Japan Win

Katsuhiko Nagata Submission (heel hook) ZST.18: Sixth Anniversary

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Koji Oishi Decision (unanimous) Pancrase: Shining 8

Tokyo, Japan Draw

Masanori Kanehara Draw ZST.15: Fifth Anniversary

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Dennis Siver KO (punch) UFC 75

London, England Loss

Thiago Tavares Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Stevenson vs. Guillard

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Masayuki Okude Submission (armbar) ZST.12

Tokyo, Japan Draw

Erikas Petraitis Draw ZST.11

Tokyo, Japan Win

Shinya Sato Submission (armbar) ZST: GT-F2

Tokyo, Japan Draw

Darius Skliaudys Draw ZST.9

Tokyo, Japan Win

Vito Woods Submission (armbar) Xtreme Fighting Organization 8

Illinois, United States Loss

Luiz Azeredo KO (punch) PRIDE Bushido 9

Tokyo, Japan Draw

Darius Skliaudys Draw ZST Grand Prix 2: Final Round

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Roger Huerta TKO (punches) Xtreme Fighting Organization 4

Illinois, United States Loss

Yves Edwards TKO (head kick and punches) Euphoria: Road to the Titles

New Jersey, United States Win

Hideo Tokoro Submission (heel hook) ZST.6

Tokyo, Japan Win

Remigijus Morkevicius Submission (armbar) ZST: Battle Hazard 1

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Marcus Aurélio TKO (doctor stoppage) ZST.5

Tokyo, Japan Loss

Rich Clementi Decision (unanimous) ZST Grand Prix: Final Round

Tokyo, Japan Win

Mindaugas Smirnovas Submission (armbar) ZST Grand Prix: Opening Round

Tokyo, Japan Win

Mindaugas Smirnovas Technical Submission (heel hook) ZST 4: The Battle Field 4

Tokyo, Japan Draw

Mindaugas Smirnovas Draw RINGS Lithuania: Bushido RINGS 7: Adrenalinas

Vilnius, Lithuania Win

Antoine Skinner Submission (toe hold) ZST 2: The Battle Field 2

Tokyo, Japan Win

Mindaugas Laurinaitis Technical Submission (triangle choke) ZST 1: The Battle Field 1

Tokyo, Japan Win

Kenichi Serizawa TKO (punches) GCM: Demolition 1

Japan Win

Masaya Takita Submission (triangle armbar) GCM: ORG 3rd

Tokyo, Japan Win

Yoshinobu Ota Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) RINGS: World Title Series Grand Final

Yokohama, Japan Win

Takahito Iida Submission (armbar) RINGS: World Title Series 5

Yokohama, Japan Win

Hideo Tokoro Decision (majority) RINGS: Battle Genesis Vol. 8

Tokyo, Japan Draw

Jiro Wakabayashi Draw RINGS: World Title Series 1

Tokyo, Japan Win

Curtis Brigham Submission (kimura) RINGS USA: Battle of Champions

Iowa, United States Win

Tashiro Nishiuchi Submission (armbar) RINGS: Battle Genesis Vol. 6

Tokyo, Japan Win

Kiyohito Sugata TKO (doctor stoppage) RINGS: Battle Genesis Vol. 6

Tokyo, Japan