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Mashu Baker: Record, Net Worth, Weight, Age & More!

Posted by Benjamin Strusnik on

Who is Mashu Baker?

Mashu Baker, sometimes known by his American name Matthew, is a Japanese-American Judoka who has competed and won at the highest levels of international competition. He was born on September 25, 1994 in Tokyo to an American father and a Japanese mother and began to learn judo at only seven years old.

Who is Mashu Baker?

Mashu Baker, sometimes known by his American name Matthew, is a Japanese-American Judoka who has competed and won at the highest levels of international competition. He was born on September 25, 1994 in Tokyo to an American father and a Japanese mother and began to learn judo at only seven years old.

The Art Of Ouchi-Gari &Other Devastating Ippons by Mashu Baker

Tokyo is home to Kodokan, which is a mecca for judokas from all over the world. He fell in love with the sport in first grade and demonstrated a strong commitment through his time in school As high school approached, Mashu lobbied his mother to allow him to attend Tokai University Urayasu Senior High School because it was known as a training ground for serious judokas.

Upon entering high school, Baker found that his 66kg size was simply not sufficient. He spent the next three years bulking up, adding somewhere around a third of his body weight in competitive muscle. By senior year, Mashu Baker regularly competed at 90kgs and was known as a talented grappler.

In the years that followed, Baker would go on to achieve at the highest levels of judo. He can claim medals from the judo World Championships, several Grand Slams, the World Masters, Grand Prix events, and even Olympic gold.

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How Old is Mashu Baker?

Mashu Baker is 27 years old as of 2021. He was born on September 24th of 1994.

Mashu Baker Family

Mashu Baker was born to an American father and a Japanese mother, named Yuka. By the time he began Judo in grade school, his father and mother had parted ways. This created a very tight bond between Mashu and his mother and he was public with his desire to present her with a medal in the Rio Olympics. In the summer of 2016, he was able to do just that by bringing home the gold.

How Much is Mashu Baker Worth?

Estimates of Mashu Baker’s worth vary dramatically, but range from $300,000 thousand to $1.5 million. He has gained notoriety and sponsorships as an Olympian and World Judo Champion.

How Tall is Mashu Baker?

Baker is 5’10” tall, making him a stocky fighter for a middleweight Judoka.

How Much Does Mashu Baker Weigh? 

As an adult competitor, Mashu Baker fights at 90 kilograms, which is about 198 pounds. He has undergone a transformation from his high school days, where he began Judo at 66kg, or 145.5 pounds. He gained nearly 50 pounds before settling at middleweight.

Mashu Baker Fight List

Mashu Baker has nearly 100 fights on his record, an impractical amount to list in one place. Here are some of his career highlights as a 90kg Judoka:

  • 2013 - Grand Slam Tokyo - Gold
  • 2014 - World Team Championships Chelyabinsk - Gold
  • 2014 - All Japan Judo Championships Fukuoka - Silver
  • 2014 - Grand Slam Paris - Bronze
  • 2015 - Grand Slam Baku - Gold
  • 2015 - Grand Slam Tyumen - Gold
  • 2015 - Grand Slam Tokyo - Gold
  • 2015 - World Championships - Bronze
  • 2016 - All Japan Judo Championships Fukuoka - Silver
  • 2016 - IJF World Masters Guadalajara - Gold
  • 2016 - Rio Olympics - Gold
  • 2018 - Grand Slam Dusseldorf  - Silver
  • 2018 - Kodokan Cup Chiba - Gold
  • 2019 - Grand Prix Montreal - Gold
  • 2019 - Kodokan Cup Chiba - Silver
  • 2019 - Grand Prix Tashkent - Bronze
  • 2019 - All Japan Judo Championships Fukuoka - Bronze

Mashu Baker's Best Fight of All Time

The pinnacle of any athlete’s career is their time at the olympic games. Mashu Baker made it to Rio de Janeiro in August of 2016 and stormed his way to the finals. There, he faced Georgian judoka Varlam Liparteliani in a very close match. Neither opponent was able to score a major throw, with Baker narrowling winning by yuko, the smallest score difference in Judo.

Who Did Mashu Baker Lose To?

After losing only one match in 2015 and 2016, the judo community wondered if Baker could be beaten in his prime. He spent 2017 rehabbing a shoulder injury and, in 2018, made his return to Grand Slam competition in Dusseldorf. Here, he gave a strong showing but slipped in the finals when he lost to Mikhail Igolnikov of Russia.

Mashu Baker Record

Baker has an outstanding competition record of 82-12 and has won multiple world titles &grand slams, as well as olympic gold.

Mashu Baker Injuries

Judo is a punishing sport that takes a toll on it’s practitioners and Baker is no exception. After winning his gold in Rio, it was announced that Baker would be out for a minimum of 8 months while he recovered from shoulder surgery. Reports were that he had injured it before competing in the Rio games but had hidden the injury from the public on the recommendation of his doctors and coaches. Baker, only weeks from his olympic goals, was not ready to miss a year of his prime to surgery and rehab until after his mission was accomplished.

Is Mashu Baker Retired?

Mash Baker is not retired. At only 27 years old, and despite his surgery in 2017, he still has a lot of competing to do before he hangs up the gi for good. Even then, it’s likely that his skills and knowledge of the sport will translate easily into a fruitful coaching career. 

He’s already begun to trade on his well-earned reputation as an olympic gold medalist by designing and filming instructional content to share his unique understanding and deep passion for the sport of Judo. He recently teamed up with BJJ Fanatics to create a product dedicated to an aspect of grappling that many Jiu-Jitsu players overlook: throws. In his “The Art Of Ouchi-Gari &Other Devastating Ippons”, Mashu breaks down just what it takes to transform your takedown game into a weapon.

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