Seichi Ikemoto retained his DEEP title by defeating Hidetaka Monma by TKO on Friday, also earning a spot in Dream's upcoming welterweight tournament set to begin on April 5.
Ikemoto (18-14-5) is on a three-fight win streak since fighting to a draw with Kiuma Kunioku in 2007. In his recent appearances he has submitted Do Won So, decisioned Hidehiko Hasegawa, and now finished Monma.
Ikemoto holds an additional win over Hasegawa. Despite recent success Ikemoto struggled earlier in his career with losses coming to Yves Edwards, Daisuke Nakamura, Shinya Aoki, and Eddie Alvarez.
Dream's Welterweight Grand Prix is set to also feature WAMMA lightweight champion Shinya Aoki – who currently holds Shooto's 168-pound title, and Hayato “Mach” Sakurai.
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