Yoshiro Maeda

Yoshiro Maeda (前田吉朗) is a Japanese mixed martial artist who currently competes in DEEP's flyweight division, and formerly fought in DEEP's bantamweight division, the latter of which he is a former champion, recently losing the title to Daiki Hata who is still the reigning champion. With a professional career spanning 10 years, Maeda has competed in notable Japanese promotions such as Pancrase, PRIDE FC and DREAM, as well as the WEC in America.

Early career
Going 0–1–2 as an amateur in 2002, Maeda made his professional debut in 2003 with a second round technical submission of Shigeyuki Umeki. Between his pro debut and 2005, Maeda racked a record of 17–2–1, with wins coming under the Pancrase and DEEP banners.

World Extreme Cagefighting
Following a drop in weight to the bantamweight division, Maeda debuted in the WEC with a first-round KO due to a kick to the body against King of the Cage champion, Charlie Valencia. With this win, Maeda was given a title shot against bantamweight champion, Miguel Torres. In a back and forth battle, both men landed hard shots on the feet and exchanged submission attempts on the ground. Maeda would lose due to doctor stoppage in the third round due to severe swelling of his right eye. The fight earned Fight of the Night honors.

Maeda would then face BJJ black belt, Rani Yahya, in a catchweight bout of 137 pounds at WEC 36. Maeda lost by submission due to a guillotine choke in the first round. Following this loss, Maeda would be released from his WEC contract after going 1–2 in the promotion.

DREAM
In his first bout under the DREAM banner, Maeda defeated Micah Miller by unanimous decision. Followed by a controversial first-round KO loss to Hiroyuki Takaya, he rebounded with a win over former WEC champion Chase Beebe. Once again, Maeda would lose by KO, this time to former WEC champion Cole Escovedo. Maeda is 0-4 within DREAM since his loss to Escovedo in 2010.

World Victory Road
Yoshiro Maeda fought former Sengoku featherweight champion, Masanori Kanehara, in December 2010. Maeda won by first-round TKO.

Mixed martial arts

 * Deep
 * Deep Bantamweight Championship (one time; former)
 * One successful title defense
 * 2005 Deep Bantamweight Championship Tournament Runner Up
 * Pancrase
 * King of Pancrase Featherweight Championship (one time; former)
 * One successful title defense
 * 2006 King of Pancrase Featherweight Championship Tournament Winner
 * 2003 Pancrase Neo Blood Featherweight Tournament Winner
 * World Extreme Cagefighting
 * Fight of the Night (One time) vs. Miguel Torres