Kazuo Misaki Still Fights Kazuhiro Nakamura at Sengoku

Despite his current legal woes, Kazuo Misaki will still fight fellow middleweight Kazuhiro Nakamura at World Victory Road: Sengoku 10 event.

But he'll receive no pay for the bout, he no longer will earn a title shot with current champ Jorge Santiago if he wins, and an indefinite suspension goes into effect immediately after the fight.

Yet, he's agreed to the stipulations.

WVR's commission of executives today held a press conference to announce Misaki's punishment, which follows news of his recent guilty plea for interfering with the duties of a public official.

Officers pulled over Misaki on March 19 for driving while using his cellphone, which is illegal in Tokyo. However, after pulling over, Misaki fled the scene and injured an officer's wrist when it was struck by the fighter's driver's-side mirror.

Misaki was arrested two months later in May and was indicted and posted bail on June 4. On June 26, the Tokyo District Court sentenced him to one year of prison, which has been suspended for three years.

The Aug. 2 bout with Nakamura was originally scheduled to determine a No. 1 contender for champ Santiago. Although Misaki's indefinite suspension goes into effect after the fight, Nakamura will still receive a title shot if he wins.

Misaki's pay for the bout will be donated to the Japan Foundation for AIDS Prevention charity.

Misaki, the 2006 PRIDE welterweight grand prix winner, turned pro in 2001 and has spent most of his career in Japan. However, he signed with and made his debut for the U.S. - based Strikeforce organization in 2008. He most recently competed in January and suffered a fifth-round submission loss to Jorge Santiago in a fight for Sengoku's first-ever middleweight title.

Source: mmajunkie.com