Former RIZIN champions Kleber Koike and Juan Archuleta battle Sunday (12 a.m. ET) in Tokyo in a three-round fight with title implications.
Koike isn’t convinced the winner automatically earns a shot at Chihiro Suzuki’s RIZIN featherweight belt, but he predicts it’s a matter of time until he claims that title.
“RIZIN owner [Nobuyuki Sakakibara] changed his stance now, saying there’s also [Mikuru] Asakura and Ren [Hiramoto] in the conversation,” Koike told MMA Fighting. “They’re superstars here in Japan. They’re not as good as we are as fighters, but they sell. I understand it, that’s business. RIZIN is promoting Chihiro and they want him as champion.
“He’s done a good job, I’ll give him that. He knocked out [Patricio] Pitbull, even though I think it was a lucky shot. He went to Azerbaijan and won [against Vugar Karamov], and he just defeated a guy that defeated me [Masanori Kanehara], but RIZIN knows if he fights Archuleta or me, he won’t hold that belt. If he fights Mikuru or Ren, he can win. But he knows that whoever wins this fight between Archuleta and me will be the future champion of Japan, no doubt about it.”
Koike and Archuleta both lost their titles on the scale in 2023, missing weight for title defenses against Suzuki and Kai Asakura, respectively. Unlike Archuleta, who held the bantamweight belt and lost by knockout, the Brazilian submitted Suzuki in less than three minutes with an armbar, but had the victory automatically overturned into a no-contest due to the weight miss. Koike also finished Asakura in June 2021.
“Ren is polarizing, many people like him but others hate him and want him to lose,” Koike said. “He came from kickboxing and has good striking, but his level in MMA is horrible. He lost every time he had a tough challenge in MMA. RIZIN protects him just like they protect Asakura.
“Sakakibara can make their path as easy as they want, but they won’t be champions. It won’t happen. It’s all about levels, you know? I don’t think they are championship material, they’re not elite. And even if they do win the belt, they won’t keep it for that long. Archuleta would beat both Asakura and Ren. Nobody wants to fight Archuleta, and that’s why I asked for this fight. I want challenges. He’s tough, experienced, a well-rounded MMA fighter, and a win over him elevates me to another level.”