Former world and Olympic judo champion Hidehiko Yoshida made a successful debut in mixed martial arts fighting Wednesday, knocking out Brazil's Royce Gracie seven minutes into their bout at Tokyo's National Stadium.
Yoshida, the first Japanese Olympic gold medalist to step into the mixed martial arts ring, knocked Gracie out with a choke hold as the referee stopped the bout at 7:24 of the first round when the Brazilian jujitsu practitioner lost consciousness.
Yoshida, 32, who had retired from competitive judo in April, won the gold medal at 78 kg at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona and was also a member of the Japanese teams at the Atlanta (1996) and Sydney Games (2000).
He also won the World Championship crown at 90 kg at the 1999 meet in Birmingham, England, and has served as head coach of the judo club at his alma mater Meiji University.
An estimated 91,000 people took in the mixed martial arts show, including a number of other bouts, held outdoors in a ring set up on the grass of National Stadium.