Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on December 2011

MMA aficionados in Tokyo will get a rare opportunity to see top level cage-fighting when Nagoya-based production “Heat” brings its 20th anniversary show to the capital later this month. Topping the bill for the event at Differ Ariake is former sumo star-turned-kickboxer Henry Miller (pictured). After a recent training session at Endo’s Gym in Sumida Ward, the St. Louis, Missouri native spoke to Metropolis about what fans can expect to see on Dec 17.

“The way Heat do their event is kinda interesting,” Miller explained. “It’s an octagon but inside you also have kickboxing fights. You’ll see some great fights. I prefer fighting in a cage because in a ring your head goes through the ropes and you have to keep stopping the fight.”

Although his upcoming bout with Shunsuke Inoue will be fought under MMA rules, it’s no surprise that, coming from a sumo background, Miller usually prefers the upright nature of kickboxing.

“I’m more of a stand-up fighter,” he admits. “I do MMA but I’m not much of a ground fighter. [Inoue] is a brawler, but I don’t think he’s gonna go toe-to-toe with me. He is a judo guy. I think he’s gonna try and take me down. There are not too many Japanese fighters who want to go heads-up MMA and throw bombs. They want to take you down on the ground where they are safer.”

That lack of quality stand-up opportunities (one kickboxing event in September had the rules changed to MMA just hours before the fight) added to a losing streak that recently caused Miller to question his future in the sport.

“I was thinking about retiring. As time goes by and K1 is going downhill, my big dreams are also going downhill. I can’t make a living off fighting no more.” But a first-round knockout win in his last fight seems to have given him renewed motivation and he has started training at Endo’s to improve his all-round skills. The Kinshicho-based gym, with its old-school approach to training has been a favorite of professional wrestlers, yokozuna and top-level athletes for over 50 years.

“In other gyms I was mostly using machines, but here it’s almost all free weights and specialized exercises,” Miller said moments before lying on a bench and having a trainer pull down hard on his head in a resistance drill designed to strengthen the neck. The intensity of the session left no doubt that Miller is in excellent shape, but at 42 he is fast approaching the twilight of his career. With that in mind he recently branched out into acting, and has a part in the new movie Kaibutsukun. The fighting and entertainment industries in Japan have of course long been closely linked and anyone who has seen a year-end Pride or K1 event knows those links run in both directions.

Heat20 will showcase those connections on December 17 with entertainment planned outside the ring, too. Rapper Ak69 will perform a special live show at the intermission. The hip-hop star also hails from Nagoya and trains at the Heat gym there. Those focused on the fights are in for a treat as the ten bouts on the night will feature a variety of rules and styles with fighters from Mongolia, Brazil and Korea and, of course, Japan taking part.