Akira Shoji　(小路晃) (born January 31, 1974) is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. He is most known as being a regular in almost all the beginning Pride Fighting Championship Shoji was in Pride 1 to Pride 7, and was part of the first Pride open weight Grand Prix in 2000. Shoji was consistently a regular in Pride, and moved from Heavyweight to Light Heavyweight (Middleweight in Pride) due to his smaller stature. Despite his losing record, Shoji was a constant favourite of the audience, and was nicknamed "Mr. Pride" for his popularity and adherence to the mixed martial arts promotion. He was known for his mic performance, die hard spirit, stellar submission escapes, razor sharp armbar and a fighting spirit demonstrated by his willingness to take on all comers. According to fight commentator Stephen Quadros and John Hyams, director of the documentary "The Smashing Machine", Shoji cleaned his house and prepared his will before every competition in case he is killed during the fight. He also worked as a judge for the Dream organization.