Big Stoo MC: Big in Japan

The archipelago of Japan (the name means sun-origin) encompasses four large islands and 4,000 smaller ones, with a population of over 148m people, making it one of the most densely populated places on earth. The country is also well known for its cultural difference to the West - whether or not this is just a cliché or a result of Japan's advanced culture. What's it like to live there? Stewart Fulton, aka Big Stoo (he's 6'5", and generally, well, big), a former Edinburgh resident, was the man to ask. Stoo moved to Tokyo in 2001 to pursue his dream to fight pro Mixed Martial Arts, and has been living there since.

Stoo started teaching English and trained in MMA in his spare time. Within six months he was invited to join the Takada-dojo, and following this brief meeting and physical test he was asked to move into the dojo and train under combat expert Kazushi Sakuraba. However, he didn't continue this path for long, leaving the dojo to make his own professional debut in 2003. Big Stoo has fought in Demolition, D.O.G (cage fighting), Rise, Shootboxing, and is currently training under the famous UFC fighter, Kosaka Tsuyoshi. He's hard as girders.

Konnichiwa Stoo. I just cannot imagine the culture shock you would have experienced when you moved to Tokyo for the first time, can you tell me your immediate thoughts when you arrived?

"I was struck by the signs, the street signs and everything around me. It was just so foreign, not being able to read ANYTHING. There are three different writing systems here, and I'd only mastered two of them (the easy ones) before I arrived, so that was the biggest thing for me."

How are you treated as an individual? Is there a stereotypical tag attached to a British/Scottish man? I've just read an article that states that British men are often thought to be of the Hugh Grant ilk – regardless of class or individual personality. Is this true?

"There is a slight Hugh Grant image of the English in particular, but when they hear you're from Scotland, it changes things. There is still some racism against foreigners, although this seems to be dying out with the older generations. However, being my size does work in my favour and many natives guess that I am a fighter, so they're quite interested in the lifestyle."

How have you found the change of diet?

"The diet is incredible here. Since living here, I'm the healthiest I've ever been. It's so well balanced and makes it easy for me gaining muscle or cutting fat for fights. I was 13 and a half stone when I left, and I'm about 18 stone now - no fat."

Unless you're up late watching Ultimate Fighting Championship's Chuck Liddell on cable, few people here are exposed to the kind of fighting you do. Especially cage fighting.

"My training involves three or four sparring sessions a week. Sparring can be just wrestling/grappling, boxing, kick-boxing, or any combination of the above. Obviously, for MMA sparring you need open-finger gloves so you can strike and grapple. I also weight train two or three times a week, and do more running leading up to a fight. I like to have four to six weeks of intense training before a fight but sometimes they offer one up last minute. I've gone into many fights already injured and not fully prepared but that's just the nature of the game. Things can't always be perfect."

I've heard single British men are highly sought after in Japan.

"If you're a foreign guy out here, you won't find any problem in finding a beautiful young girl who will adore you and look after you. This can make some guys' egos swell beyond all reasonable proportions. Most girls are very shy and will not approach you, but some can be very forceful and quite determined to get you, even steal you from your girl."

When you were here, you ran with the Scotland Yard MCs under the moniker Mr Jinx. There is no doubt that the Yard Emcees have left quite an imprint on the scene here, encouraging a lot of people to pick up mics. How are you finding the music scene in Tokyo?

"I miss the scene back home, and in the six years I've been away, it's really good to see how it has grown and how healthy it is now. Here, the underground scene is strong, especially in Tokyo and Osaka, and the vibe is good. They understand the music, the DJing, the breaking. I jam every now and then at underground clubs, and have done a couple of tracks with guys out here from England and New Zealand. If I wasn't fighting I'd like to get into working more with Japanese producers and MCs 'cause their attitude is very healthy. They love a good party and a good vibe."

Have a look at www.myspace.com/jedicelt for footage of Big Stoo in action. It's impressive to the point of being terrifying. To check out where Big Stoo has come from, www.myspace.com/scotlandyardrecordings will clue you in. Happy wrestling.