Going into sports as the child of a major athlete comes with its ups and downs. While some relish the extra attention, others find that their parents’ legacy is a significant source of unnecessary additional pressure.
However, this has not been a problem for Kota Miura, the son of legendary Japanese footballer “King Kazu” Kazuyoshi Miura. Even though he doesn’t play football like his father, he’s still an athlete, having just recently registered his debut victory on the MMA stage on New Year’s Eve 2021.
Although many people chose not to use their father’s name for their own sake, Kota fully embraced his father’s legacy on his path to becoming a fighter.
Find out more about Kota’s rise in the MMA world with Main Stand
The apple (doesn’t) fall far from the tree
Since he was a boy, Kota Miura’s life has revolved around sports. He’s the second son of “King Kazu” Kazuyoshi Miura, a legendary footballer who holds the record of the oldest player to feature in the J.League, after turning for Yokohama FC in a match against Urawa Reds when he was 54 years and 12 days old.
Kota was born in Kobe in 2002, while father Kazuyoshi was still playing with Vissel Kobe. He was pushed to play football like his father and was a member of his school team in his younger days.
However, Kota soon found that his passion for martial arts outstripped his desire to follow in his father’s footsteps. Interestingly, Kazuyoshi was also an avid boxing fan.
With K-1 fighter Kazuhisa Watanabe as his idol, Kota decided to train in a boxing gym in his spare time away from football practice since middle school.
“I started to like it (Martial Arts) when I was in elementary school. But I haven’t done it for like 10 years, only 8 years I would say,” Kota revealed in RIZIN CONFESSIONS #87
After high school, Kota realized well that martial arts were what he loved the most. He dedicated himself to this path and undertook an apprenticeship with Brave Gym, run by Olympian wrestler Kazuyuki Miyata.
He was so dedicated to his training that he chose to abandon the comfort of his home and commit to “Uchideshi”, a training method that requires a student to live with their sensei and other pupils full-time.
“His signature is his heavy hits, I think it would be great if he could fight without losing at all,” Kazuyuki Miyata, head of Brave Gym, said of his student.
Eventually, Kota signed with RIZIN Fighting Federation, a famous Japanese martial arts organization. This meant that he had a chance to debut as a new fighter of the federation and escape from being the “son of King Kazu” his entire life.
However, things don’t always pan out so simply.
By his father’s namesake
Kota knows more than anyone just how famous his father is. No matter how hard he tries to push himself out of the shadow of King Kazu, he knows it's something he can’t avoid.
Late last year, RIZIN hatched a plan to debut him as a new fighter in their new year’s eve match at Saitama Super Arena. However, the federation decided to promote Kota before the tournament as ‘the son of a legendary footballer.’
“Of course, victory is important, but it still needs entertainment, so I chose to use my father’s name in this path because skills are not enough,” Kota explained in an interview with Numbers.
RIZIN’s marketing ploy worked to a tee, as he garnered overwhelming attention in the lead-up to the big day. He also made multiple media appearances, earning his fair share of female fans.
While he may have first earned publicity thanks to his father, those who knew Kota were confident that he had the skills to back it up and make a name for himself in his own right.
“He can really do well in boxing, with his wits and speed and the impact he has created,” Yuichi Kazai, a representative from Glove Cadio Boxing, explained in RIZIN CONFESSIONS #87.
Finally, on the 31st of December 2021, Kota had the chance to come into his own.
Follow the way
Kota Miura was set to fight in the final match in the RIZIN’s new year’s eve tournament, called “RIZIN 33,” in the featherweight division. Originally slated to face off against a Brazilian fighter, the omicron variant’s spread saw him face off against a local opponent instead.
With father Kazu and mother Rizako in the audience, Kota didn’t disappoint. He was charged by his opponent right after the bell sounded but countered with constant low kicks to his opponent’s calf.
When his opposite number tried to grapple him, he hit back with a Guillotine Choke (using the arm to encircle the neck) and then changed to Triangle Choke, which uses both his legs and ankles to hold the opponent until he’s unable to move.
“The opponent charged at me so I charged back. I was sure I had a stronger body so even though he charged at me I was able to usually hit him back, which gave me the advantage in the end,” Kota revealed.
At the end of the first round, while his rival was still dizzy from his punches, Kota whipped out the “Soccer Ball Kick”, a move that mimics the motion in football, and followed up with enough punches to seal the contest.
“When I got the chance, I wanted to create hype with the ‘soccer ball kick’. Whenever the face of the opponent is in the right position, I’ll instantly use that kick because football has a faster movement (than martial arts), so practicing is very important.”
Just before his opponent went down, Kota took a chance to pay one more homage to his father, celebrating with the famous ‘Kazu Dance.’
“I was hesitant whether to do it or not,” Kota revealed. “The celebration is a creation of my father who loved football more than anyone. It was also in front of the fans and the move is not easy, so I copied his pose at the end instead.”
The memorable victory from his debut fight made the name Kota Miura trend on social media, both in Japan and other countries, including Thailand. However, for Kota, this is just the beginning.
King of martial arts
To tell the truth, Kota felt pressure when he realized that he would be debuted as a son of ‘King Kazu.’ However, his father quickly encouraged him: “If the big guys already made up their mind, just embrace it with elegance.”
Kota did just that and took the chance to prove himself to be more than just the son of a famous footballer. His decision to pay homage to his father also proved to be a headline-grabber.
“The New year’s eve event is very special not just for the athletes, but also the martial arts fans too,” a staff member anonymously told JP Prime. “So it’s no surprise to hear that his debut was a huge success.”
“Talking about the competition in this match, it was both Kota and the opponent's first match, so I first thought that the competitiveness wouldn’t get this high,” said Koji Fuse, a veteran MMA journalist.
“I think he’s an athlete who can ‘prolong his fight’ before the end of the round. He ended his match with total decisiveness and has made it in the history of the Miura family. I think he has a bright future ahead.”
However, Kota knows that he has a long way to go and much to learn before achieving his goal of becoming a leading name in Japanese MMA.
And his next lesson is not very far away, as Kota will fight in kickboxing for the first time against a legendary Thai fighter “Buakaw Banchamek” in the Rajadamnern World Series on the 19th of August 2022.
“He’s an uncut gem that will shine after the polish, I want him to grow from his opponent and become more than just a strong fighter,” Fuse added.
However, Kota desires most to become a ‘king’ of his sport, just like his father. When that day comes, Kota will no longer just be the “son of Kazu” - maybe Kazuyoshi will be known as the “father of Kota” instead.
“When I left (to enter RIZIN), I got many complaints but afterward the support slowly started to come, it helped me a lot.”
“When I was young I caused many troubles for my parents, but I’m grateful they came to see my first fight.”
“From now on I will work hard to become ‘King’ of martial arts, please keep on supporting me,” Kota concluded.
References:
https://number.bunshun.jp/articles/-/851510
https://www.jprime.jp/articles/-/22927
https://www.sponichi.co.jp/battle/news/2021/12/31/kiji/20211225s00003000484000c.html
https://the-ans.jp/news/210444/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DilXFBN9w2U
https://jp.rizinff.com/_tags/%E4%B8%89%E6%B5%A6%E5%AD%9D%E5%A4%AA
https://asianmma.com/kota-miura-to-debut-at-rizin-33/
