Dana White has always maintained a good relationship with Japanese MMA promotion RIZIN. But for the Japanese promotion, was this an organic friendship or a pre-planned business strategy?

“The UFC has fallen right into the trap of RIZIN’s strategy. The fighters that have honed their skills in RIZIN, won belts in RIZIN are actually doing well in the UFC. And that’s our strategy.  We, as a federation, really believe it’s the worst thing to take away a fighter from RIZIN based on the ego of a promoter or to bind them with a contract and keep them in storage.” Sakakibara said in an interview uploaded on the Japanese promotion’s official YouTube channel.

Their working bond dates back to the early 2000s PRIDE days, and the UFC CEO even showed interest in a potential collaboration in 2021 when the Japanese businessman visited the United States.

Following the fall of PRIDE, RIZIN grew to become the top MMA promotion in Japan. Some fighters have made a name for themselves in the Japanese promotion and ended up earning a UFC contract. Some of the names are, former RIZIN Champions Kyoji Horiguchi, Kai Asakura, Jiří Procházka, Mirko Cro Cop, Naoki Inoue, and many more.

However, it also has to be recognized that while the Japanese promotion has gained a solid reputation in the United States, Dana White’s company has benefited from that talent as well. So, that exchange looks more like an even business move than a trap.

While RIZIN welcomes a collaboration, Sakakibara believes that the UFC is making a bad move by binding fighters to contracts despite the fact that the contracts are helping RIZIN fighters to compete in more fights throughout the year.

The Japanese MMA promotion hardly conducts ten events a year. On the other hand, White’s promotion puts on over 40 shows in 365 days, which means fighters stay occupied throughout the year and don’t compete elsewhere.

“Of course, the fighters we have honed will continue to love RIZIN and fight for a long time to come. However, if a fighter wants to go somewhere else after finishing their work at RIZIN, where there’s another goal they want to aim for, we want to acknowledge that as much as possible.” Sakakibara added.

With that being said, RIZIN is growing in popularity as it sold out the historic Saitama Super Arena with a seating capacity of 37,000 during New Year’s Eve, while White struggled to sell 20,000 tickets.

The Japanese head honcho also brought up a very recent example of a fighter whom he believed the UFC put into a nasty piece of matchmaking.

Sakakibara questions the UFC’s matchmaking choice for Kyoji Horiguchi’s return

Last year, Dana White and Co. brought former RIZIN flyweight champion Kyoji Horiguchi back into the UFC. The Japanese star’s first stint with the promotion ran from 2013 to 2016, lasting a solid three years. Upon his return in 2025, Horiguchi wasted no time climbing back to the top, defeating Tagir Ulanbekov at UFC Qatar.

Currently, Horiguchi sits eighth in the flyweight rankings and is set to face Amir Albazi this February 2026. But Sakakibara believes White handed Horiguchi a nasty piece of matchmaking right out of the gate.

“Professor Horiguchi. I don’t know what everyone thinks, but I think that the UFC’s matchmaking was a bit nasty. But in terms of Horiguchi’s case, he was impressive. He instantly jumped into the top ranks of the UFC flyweight division.” The RIZIN head honcho said during an interview.

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Sakakibara didn’t explain exactly why he felt the matchup was so harsh, but it seems clear he didn’t expect Horiguchi to come out on top. He wasn’t alone either, as most of the betting action favored the Dagestani. Still, the Japanese veteran pulled off a massive upset.

That said, with RIZIN and the UFC now setting an undertone of competition, do you think they would still trade talent moving forward? Let us know in the comments section below.