It was headlined by a fight between former Pride heavyweight champion and 2004 heavyweight Grand Prix champion Fedor Emelianenko and K-1 2007 World Grand Prix Finalist Hong-man Choi. The undercard showcased many top lightweight fighters and was also marked by a marquee matchup of the Pride 2006 Welterweight Grand Prix Champion Kazuo Misaki and the Hero's 2006 Light Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion Yoshihiro Akiyama.[4][5] The event was a farewell show to Pride fans after their acquisition by the Ultimate Fighting Championship in early 2007.[6]
It is also credited for inspiring the former Pride executives and the Fighting and Entertainment Group to create the new fight series, Dream.
^Misaki was originally declared the winner by knockout, but Akiyama's camp protested, claiming that it was an illegal soccer kick. The decision was later overturned to a No Contest.
The knockout in the Misaki-Akiyama match was the result of a controversial head kick delivered as Akiyama was standing up from the mat after being previously knocked down by Misaki.[10] Akiyama's camp later indicated that they believed the kick was an illegal soccer kick, since they claimed Akiyama was in the four points position at the time of the kick.[11] The event's head referee Yuji Shimada indicated the timing was close but after a video review, the result was overturned and declared No contest[12]
Closing Ceremony and New Years Celebration at Yarennoka!
Before the last fight between Aoki and Jung, M-1 President and CEO Monte Cox thanked the crowd and praised the Japanese fans. He announced that M-1 Global would be back in Japan during 2008. Also, all of the fighters appeared in the ring after the final match to count down to the New Year and give fans their best wishes.[13]
