With rumors of their demise abound, DREAM has finally announced matchups for their upcoming September 25 card.

The first and most prominent bout features the always popular and controversial Shinya Aoki. In his first fight since the monumental showdown with Tatsuya Kawajiri in July, the “Tobikan Judan” will take on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt Marcus Aurelio.

Aurelio had a brief UFC run, going 2-4 in the promotion and has racked up two victories since leaving the company. He is most well known for being the first man to submit former lightweight kingpin Takanori Gomi in April of 2006.

A battle of two black belts in jiu-jitsu always produces an interesting style clash. It was last July when Aoki took on BJJ Black Belt Vitor “Shaolin” Ribiero in what was expected to be a battle of ground wizardry. Instead, a kickboxing bout broke out, with Aoki edging his opponent.

Submission grappler and mixed martial arts legend Kazushi Sakuraba will take on the always entertaining Jason “Mayhem” Miller. A quick look at the resumes might lead you to believe that Sakuraba has a significant advantage heading into this bout, but fifteen years of beatings at the hands of Wanderlei Silva, Mirko Filipovic, Antonio Nogueira and Melvin Manhoef have left the legend in an extremely deprecated state.

Miller on the other hand is on the cusp of becoming a star in Japan. His over-the-top personality and flashy entrances fit perfectly with the extraordinary stage entrances often associated with the DREAM promotion. Despite a mediocre 1-1-1 in the promotion, Millers presence has forced the Japanese promotion to bring him back, even if it is to put Old Yeller out of his misery.

Although Kazuyuki Miyata and “Lion” Takeshi Inoue may not be as well known by the mixed martial arts populous, both men have extensive resumes in the sport and are sure to put on an exciting featherweight bout. Inoue is coming off his second run as Shooto Lightweight Champion defeating such greats as Rumina Sato, Cole Miller, Hiroyuki Abe, and Alexandre France Nogueira along the way. He was most recently defeated for his title by Sengoku phenom Hatsu Hioki in May.

Although only 9-7 professionally, Miyata has amassed a four fight winning streak and will be looking to keep it going against the Shooto veteran. His record is deceiving as has taken on the best Japanese mixed martial arts has to offer. His record includes losses to Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto, Genki Sudo, Joachim Hansen and Vitor Ribiero just to name a few. Now in an attempt to carve out his own legacy and move one step closer to a shot at the DREAM Featherweight Title, Miyata will have to overcome his toughest test in quite some time.

The other bout announced yesterday will feature “Hellboy” Joachim Hansen taking on Japanese journeyman Hideo Tokoro in a featherweight bout. This will be Hansen’s first bout since a surprising defeat at the hands of Hiroyuki Takaya in May. A year ago, Hansen was a top five lightweight however three straight losses have dropped him off the map.

The move to featherweight has not proven fruitful as he lost to DREAM champ Bibiano Fernandes in March. If Hansen wants to continue to be a factor on the major stage, a win is necessary in this bout.

With a 26-22-1 record, Tokoro is quite deceiving. A record like this would lead most to believe that Tokoro is a mediocre fighter at best; however he has any of the sports best. Like Hansen, Tokoro has fallen on tough times as of late. Losing five of his last seven has taken Tokoro out of contention for the featherweight title for the foreseeable future. A victory over a top name talent like Hansen will put Tokoro right back into the fight for a title shot.

Formerly announced is the final of the light-heavyweight grand-prix between former DREAM 185lb. Champion Gegard Mousasi and surprise finalist Tatsuya Mizuno. Most thought that Melvin Manhoef would have his way with the 8-5 Mizuno, but Manhoef’s Achilles heel again submission game was his detriment yet again as Mizuno was able to lock in a kimura, cementing his spot in the finals.

Another bout which was not confirmed but is expected to be announced is between new Bellator Featherweight Champion Joe Warren and Judoka Michihiro Omigawa.

Official Card:
Light-heavyweight grand-prix finals: Tatsuya Mizuno vs. Gegard Mousasi

Shinya Aoki vs. Marcus Aurelio
Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Jason Miller
Joachim Hansen vs. Hideo Tokoro
Takeshi Inoue vs. Kazayuki Miyata