James Nakashima"The shorter Nakashima utilized a crisp standup attack throughout, as he consistently beat Rencountre to the punch behind an accurate jab and one-two combinations," Sherdog.com reported. "Having already banked two rounds, Nakashima appeared to be cruising to victory when Recountre briefly dropped him late in round three. While that likely earned Recountre the frame, he was unable to further capitalize on the opportunity."
Here's how MMAJunkie.com described the battle between the two unbeaten welterweights: "The longer limbed Rencountre was never able to establish his jab throughout the bout, leading to inside exchanges that Nakashima was able to get the better of in the first two rounds. Rencountre came on strong in the final frame but it was too little, too late as the three judges awarded the decision to Nakashima ..."
A native of Dwight, Ill., Nakashima, 26, was an Illinois state championships runner-up for Dwight High School. He then wrestled at Lincoln College in Illinois, where he won the 2009 NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) 174-pound title. After two years at Lincoln, Nakashima transferred to Nebraska to wrestle at 197, in part because of the success of one of their star wrestlers, Jordan Burroughs, a two-time NCAA champ, 2012 Olympic gold medalist, and, just last week, gold medal winner at the 2015 World Championships.
"When I got to Nebraska, I learned from Jordan and benefited from his knowledge and work ethic," Nakashima told Amber Boone of CombatPress.com. "My wrestling career wasn't as successful as I wanted. I didn't reach my goals, but they did prepare me for what I want now. Now I am not willing to settle for anything but the best." (While his on-the-mat career may not have been all he had hoped for, Nakashima scored big in the classroom, earning First-Team Academic All-Big 12 in 2011,Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2012, and NWCA (National Wrestling Coaches Association) All-Academic Team in 2012, among other honors.)
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