[2008-10-25-BattlARTS] Munenori Sawa vs Mitsuya Nagai

I really liked the old-school late 1970's feel to the hybridized style of BattlARTS, with Nagai playing the mean surly veteran and laying it into the spunky Sawa. Classic psychology and showmanship combined with stiff kicks and submission attempts. Sawa hangs with him awhile on the mat before Nagai takes over, working him with hard kicks and leg holds. While Sawa's in-the-moment selling is good, Nagai's grunting and yelling as he exerts more pressure on the holds really gets the crowd behind Sawa's eventual escapes. Great escalation of back half with tons of nasty strikes and suplexes and by the end of it, that total exhaustion factor that plays so well into many BattlARTS matches. Loved the final knee strike from Nagai and Sawa’s selling on the ten count with the fans firmly behind him. Really great match.