# Takeya Mizugaki

Takeya Mizugaki (Japanese: 水垣偉弥, Mizugaki Takeya) (born December 16, 1983) is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist who most notably competed in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor from 2005 to 2020, Mizugaki also competed for Absolute Championship Berkut, WEC, Shooto, and Cage Force.

## Mixed martial arts career

Mizugaki began his mixed martial arts career and competed in respected Japanese promotions Shooto and Cage Force. He was the Shooto Rookie of the Year in 2005 and winner of the Cage Force Bantamweight Tournament.

### World Extreme Cagefighting

Mizugaki made his World Extreme Cagefighting debut on April 5, 2009, against Miguel Torres for the WEC Bantamweight Championship in which he lost by unanimous decision in the fifth round; he can lay claim as the first to push Torres all five rounds. He fought Jeff Curran on August 9, 2009, at WEC 42, he won by decision.
Mizugaki was expected to face Damacio Page on December 19, 2009, at WEC 45, but Page was forced off the card due to an injury. Mizugaki instead faced Scott Jorgensen and lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Mizugaki faced Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Rani Yahya on April 24, 2010, at WEC 48. He won the fight via unanimous decision (29–28, 30–27, 29-28).
Mizugaki was set to face former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber, who was to be making his bantamweight debut, on August 18, 2010, at WEC 50. However, Faber was forced off the card with an injury. As a result, Mizugaki was also pulled from the event.
Mizugaki was defeated by Faber via first round submission November 11, 2010, at WEC 52. Mizugaki showed good take down defense but was hurt via punches toward the end of the first round, allowing Faber to take his back. After Faber was able to sink in a rear naked choke, Mizugaki refused to tap and as a result, was rendered unconscious.

### Ultimate Fighting Championship

On October 28, 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, most WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.
Mizugaki was expected to face Francisco Rivera on March 3, 2011, at UFC Live: Sanchez vs. Kampmann. However, Rivera had to withdraw from the bout due to injury, and was replaced by UFC newcomer Reuben Duran. Mizugaki defeated Duran via split decision.
Mizugaki faced Brian Bowles on July 2, 2011, at UFC 132. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Mizugaki faced Cole Escovedo on September 24, 2011, at UFC 135. Mizugaki utilized his crisp boxing to defeat Escovedo at 4:30 of the 2nd round via TKO.
Mizugaki faced Chris Cariaso on February 26, 2012, at UFC 144. Cariaso defeated Mizugaki via a controversial unanimous decision. Despite the loss on the scorecards, UFC president Dana White felt Mizugaki won the bout and stated in the post-fight press conference that he would be paid a win bonus.
Mizugaki was expected to face Jeff Hougland on September 1, 2012, at UFC 151. However, after UFC 151 was cancelled, Mizugaki/Hougland was rescheduled and took place on November 10, 2012, at UFC on Fuel TV 6. Mizugaki won the fight via unanimous decision.
Mizugaki faced Bryan Caraway on March 3, 2013, at UFC on Fuel TV 8. He won the fight via split decision, with two of the judges giving him the first and third rounds where he outstruck Caraway. This marked Mizugaki's first back-to-back wins since 2008.
Mizugaki faced Érik Pérez on August 28, 2013, at UFC Fight Night 27. He won the fight via split decision.
Mizugaki fought Nam Phan on December 7, 2013, at UFC Fight Night 33. He won the fight via unanimous decision.
Mizugaki was expected to face T.J. Dillashaw on May 24, 2014, at UFC 173. However, on March 27, the UFC announced that Dillashaw was moved up to the main event to face Bantamweight champion Renan Barão. Mizugaki instead faced Francisco Rivera. He won the fight via unanimous decision.
Mizugaki faced Dominick Cruz on September 27, 2014, at UFC 178. Mizugaki lost the fight via TKO in the first round after Cruz got a take-down and landed several punches against the cage.
Mizugaki faced Aljamain Sterling on April 18, 2015, at UFC on Fox 15, replacing an injured Manvel Gamburyan. He lost the fight via submission in the third round.
Mizugaki faced George Roop on September 27, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 75. He won the fight by unanimous decision.
Mizugaki next faced Cody Garbrandt on August 20, 2016, at UFC 202. He lost the fight via TKO in the opening minute of the first round.
Mizugaki faced Eddie Wineland on December 17, 2016, at UFC on Fox 22. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round and was subsequently released from the promotion.

### Absolute Championship Berkut

Mizugaki made his debut in the ACB against Russia's Rustam Kerimov on September 30, 2017, at ACB 71. He lost the fight via TKO at 3:19 of the first round.
Next, he faced Murad Kalamov at ACB 80 on February 16, 2018. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.
In his final fight in the ACB, Mizugaki faced Pietro Menga at ACB 87 on May 19, 2018. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

### Last fights and retirement

Mizugaki was expected to face Guangyou Ning at Rebel FC 9 on September 7, 2018, but the event was eventually cancelled.
Mizugaki faced Shoji Maruyama at DEEP 89 Impact on May 12, 2019, winning the fight via unanimous decision.
He then signed with Rizin and made his promotional debut against Manel Kape at Rizin 18 on August 18, 2019. He lost the fight via technical knockout in the second round. Mizugaki retired from mixed martial arts after the fight, but announced the retirement not until early June 2020.

## Personal life

Mizugaki holds a master's degree in electrical engineering from Kanto Gakuin University.
In 2021, Mizugaki opened his gym, the Belva Fight and Fitness.

## Championships and Accomplishments

* Cage Force
** Cage Force Bantamweight Championship (One time)
* Shooto
** 2005 Shooto Bantamweight Rookie Tournament Winner
* World Extreme Cagefighting
** Fight of the Night (Two times)

## Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown :
| 39 matches | 23 wins | 14 losses |
| By knockout | 5 | 6 |
| By submission | 1 | 2 |
| By decision | 17 | 6 |
| Draws | 2 | 2 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| Loss | 23–14–2 | Manel Kape | KO (punch) | Rizin 18 | August 18, 2019 | 2 | 1:36 | Nagoya, Japan | |
| Win | 23–13–2 | Shoji Maruyama | Decision (unanimous) | DEEP 89 Impact | May 12, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 22–13–2 | Pietro Menga | Decision (unanimous) | ACB 87: Nottingham | May 19, 2018 | 3 | 5:00 | Nottingham, England | |
| Loss | 21–13–2 | Murad Kalamov | Decision (unanimous) | ACB 80: Tumenov vs. Burrell | February 16, 2018 | 3 | 5:00 | Krasnodar, Russia | |
| Loss | 21–12–2 | Rustam Kerimov | TKO (punches) | ACB 71: Yan vs. Mattos | September 30, 2017 | 1 | 3:19 | Moscow, Russia | |
| Loss | 21–11–2 | Eddie Wineland | TKO (punches) | UFC on Fox: VanZant vs. Waterson | December 17, 2016 | 1 | 3:04 | Sacramento, California, United States | |
| Loss | 21–10–2 | Cody Garbrandt | TKO (punches) | UFC 202 | August 20, 2016 | 1 | 0:48 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 21–9–2 | George Roop | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Barnett vs. Nelson | September 27, 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Loss | 20–9–2 | Aljamain Sterling | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | UFC on Fox: Machida vs. Rockhold | April 18, 2015 | 3 | 2:11 | Newark, New Jersey, United States | |
| Loss | 20–8–2 | Dominick Cruz | KO (punches) | UFC 178 | September 27, 2014 | 1 | 1:01 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 20–7–2 | Francisco Rivera | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 173 | May 24, 2014 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 19–7–2 | Nam Phan | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Bigfoot | December 7, 2013 | 3 | 5:00 | Brisbane, Australia | |
| Win | 18–7–2 | Érik Pérez | Decision (split) | UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Kampmann 2 | August 28, 2013 | 3 | 5:00 | Indianapolis, Indiana, United States | |
| Win | 17–7–2 | Bryan Caraway | Decision (split) | UFC on Fuel TV: Silva vs. Stann | March 3, 2013 | 3 | 5:00 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Win | 16–7–2 | Jeff Hougland | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on Fuel TV: Franklin vs. Le | November 10, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Macau, SAR, China | |
| Loss | 15–7–2 | Chris Cariaso | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 144 | February 26, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Win | 15–6–2 | Cole Escovedo | TKO (punches) | UFC 135 | September 24, 2011 | 2 | 4:30 | Denver, Colorado, United States | |
| Loss | 14–6–2 | Brian Bowles | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 132 | July 2, 2011 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 14–5–2 | Reuben Duran | Decision (split) | UFC Live: Sanchez vs. Kampmann | March 3, 2011 | 3 | 5:00 | Louisville, Kentucky, United States | |
| Loss | 13–5–2 | Urijah Faber | Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) | WEC 52 | November 11, 2010 | 1 | 4:50 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 13–4–2 | Rani Yahya | Decision (unanimous) | WEC 48 | April 24, 2010 | 3 | 5:00 | Sacramento, California, United States | |
| Loss | 12–4–2 | Scott Jorgensen | Decision (unanimous) | WEC 45 | December 19, 2009 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Fight of the Night. |
| Win | 12–3–2 | Jeff Curran | Decision (split) | WEC 42 | August 9, 2009 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Loss | 11–3–2 | Miguel Torres | Decision (unanimous) | WEC 40 | April 5, 2009 | 5 | 5:00 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | For the WEC Bantamweight Championship. Fight of the Night. |
| Win | 11–2–2 | Masahiro Oishi | TKO (punches) | GCM: Cage Force 9 | December 6, 2008 | 2 | 0:57 | Tokyo, Japan | Won the Cage Force Bantamweight Championship. |
| Win | 10–2–2 | Daisuke Endo | Submission (rear-naked choke) | GCM: Cage Force 8 | September 27, 2008 | 1 | 4:34 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 9–2–2 | Daichi Fujiwara | KO (punch) | GCM: Cage Force 7 | June 22, 2008 | 1 | 2:38 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 8–2–2 | Seiji Ozuka | Decision (unanimous) | GCM: Cage Force 5 | December 1, 2007 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 7–2–2 | Kentaro Imaizumi | Decision (unanimous) | GCM: Cage Force 4 | September 8, 2007 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Draw | 6–2–2 | Masakatsu Ueda | Draw | Shooto: Back To Our Roots 4 | July 15, 2007 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Loss | 6–2–1 | Atsushi Yamamoto | Decision (unanimous) | Shooto: Back To Our Roots 1 | February 17, 2007 | 3 | 5:00 | Yokohama, Japan | |
| Loss | 6–1–1 | Kenji Osawa | TKO (punches and knees) | Shooto: 11/10 in Korakuen Hall | November 10, 2006 | 2 | 0:59 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Draw | 6–0–1 | Ryota Matsune | Draw | Shooto 2006: 7/21 in Korakuen Hall | July 21, 2006 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 6–0 | Takamaro Watari | TKO (punches) | Shooto: The Devilock | May 12, 2006 | 1 | 3:49 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 5–0 | Tetsu Suzuki | Decision (unanimous) | Shooto: 12/17 in Shinjuku Face | December 17, 2005 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 4–0 | Teriyuki Matsumoto | KO (punch) | Shooto 2005: 11/6 in Korakuen Hall | November 6, 2005 | 1 | 0:13 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 3–0 | Shin Kato | Decision (majority) | Shooto: 9/23 in Korakuen Hall | September 23, 2005 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 2–0 | Naoki Yahagi | Decision (unanimous) | Shooto: 6/3 in Kitazawa Town Hall | June 3, 2005 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 1–0 | Satoshi Yamashita | Decision (unanimous) | Shooto: 2/6 in Kitazawa Town Hall | February 6, 2005 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |