June 9, 2005 TOKYO , Japan –Two more non-tournament bouts have been announced for PRIDE FIGHTING’S next event, CRITICAL COUNTDOWN 2005. In the first bout, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic will take on Russia ’s Ibragim Magomedov and in the second Judo Olympic gold-medallist Makoto Takimoto will take on Japanese star Kiyoshi Tamura. Previously announced non-tournament bouts include Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira of the Brazilian Top Team versus Poland’s 1996 Judo Olympic gold-medallist, Pawel Nastula and Russia’s Sergei Kharitonov versus veteran heavyweight, Pedro “The Rock” Rizzo of Brazil.

In addition to these matches, there is the second round of the Grand Prix tournament. Defending tournament champion, Wanderlei Silva, reached the second round of the tournament after a hard-fought split decision victory over Hidehiko Yoshida. Yoshida’s protégé, Kazuhiro Nakamura, considered an underdog by many in the first round, advanced by defeating American Kevin Randleman by unanimous decision. Japanese fighter, Kazushi Sakuraba, advanced via a thirty-eight second first round KO of Korean judoka Yoon Dong Sik. Ricardo Arona advanced after winning a unanimous decision over Dean Lister. Chute Boxe’s rising star, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, reached the second round by knocking out 2003 tournament finalist, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, in the first round. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira of the Brazilian Top Team advanced by submitting Team Quest’s Dan Henderson via armbar. Igor Vovchanchyn advanced by winning a unanimous decision over Japanese Yuki Kondo. Golden Glory fighter Alistair Overeem advanced by submitting UFC tournament representative Vitor Belfort via guillotine.

PRIDE FIGHTING’S 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix Tournament spans three events … TOTAL ELIMINATION (opening round), CRITICAL COUNTDOWN (Second Round) and FINAL CONFLICT (Semi-Finals and Finals). The date for FINAL CONFLICT will be announced soon.

Tournament Matches: 

Wanderlei Silva ( Brazil ) vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura ( Japan )

Kazushi Sakuraba ( Japan ) vs. Ricardo Arona ( Brazil )

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua ( Brazil ) vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira ( Brazil )

Igor Vovchanchyn ( Ukraine ) vs. Alistair Overeem ( Holland )

Additional Matches (Non-Tournament): 

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira ( Brazil ) vs. Pawel Nastula ( Poland )

Sergei Kharitonov ( Russia ) vs. Pedro Rizzo ( Brazil )

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic ( Croatia ) vs. Ibragim Magomedov ( Russia )

Makoto Takimoto ( Japan ) vs. Kiyoshi Tamura ( Japan )

(Participants and Matches Subject to Change)

CRITICAL COUNTDOWN 2005 premieres on North American pay per view via iNDEMAND, DIRECTV, DISH NETWORK, UrbanXtra, TVN1, VU!, and Viewer’s Choice Canada on July 1 st at 10:00pm EST, 7:00pm PST (including a countdown show at 9:30pm EST, 6:30pm PST). For additional replay times, please contact your pay per view provider or pridefc.com.

For more information on PRIDE FC, visit pridefc.com!