DREAM.18 – NEW YEAR'S EVE SPECIAL



Date: December 31, 2012
Location: Saitama, Japan
Venue: Saitama Super Arena
Broadcast: TBA

Fight card:

Former top-ranked lightweight Tatsuya "Crusher" Kawajiri (31-7-2) will meet big-show vet Michihiro Omigawa (13-12-1) in a featherweight bout later this month. Officials today announced the bout as part of the "DREAM.18 and GLORY 4 Tokyo – New Year's Eve Special" event. DREAM.18, which features both MMA bouts and the "GLORY 4 Tokyo – Heavyweight Grand Slam" kickboxing tournament, takes place Dec. 31 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Shinya Aoki and Antonio McKee headline the MMA portion of the card. Plans for a possible broadcast in North America have not yet been announced. Kawajiri, a former PRIDE fighter who's been with DREAM since its 2008 launch, is riding a four-fight win streak with five wins in his past six fights (the lone defeat came in a 2011 Strikeforce title fight with Gilbert Melendez). In his lone bout of 2012, he earned a submission victory over KOTC champ Donald Sanchez at ONE FC 3. Omigawa, meanwhile, fights for the first time since a disappointing 1-4 run in the UFC, where his only victory came over Jason Young. It was his second stint in the UFC, where he went 1-6 overall. The latest stint came after Omigawa briefly resurrected his career with a runner-up finish in Sengoku's 2009 world featherweight grand prix. He lost in the final to Masanori Kanehara via split decision.