Rin Nakai Blog 6/30

† I think that everyone already knows that I, Rin Nakai, will be participating in the UFC Fight Night Japan event at Saitama Super Arena on 9/20.　♡(๑≧౪≦)!

Please come and support me at Saitama Super Arena, all of my fans should come~　Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ

From now on, I am the UFC's Rin Nakai, everyone knows the UFC, it is by far the biggest promotion in the world, they are the worlds biggest stage, for me to participate at this level is of great significance for me.

However, I am also nervous about the UFC, it is an unknown world to me, yet I also feel like my life's work is coming to fruition, it is like what they call the American Dream and I want it, so I'm full of hope and anxiety, it's a complicated state of mind.

With me being active in the UFC, I can become more famous and popular in Japan and Asia, and with that hopefully I can help the UFC get more popular over here as well.

So I am also working towards US-Japanese relations and world peace.

In entering a new organization, the UFC, I am becoming a newcomer, so  I have to be humble, I will be the newbie, the freshman, how do you say wet behind the ears. That is why I dressed up like a motif from Madonna's Like a Virgin for the press conference, a pure white swing wedding dress.

Since I'm the first women to fight for the UFC from Japan or Asia, I feel like I need to open a path for them so I will try my hardest.　ξ（✿ ☯‿☯〃）ξ

Tate and Nakai: Records and Skills

Earlier this week at a press conference for UFC Japan, the match-up between Miesha Tate and Rin Nakai was made official. This will mark the debut for the undefeated Rin Nakai and will be a high profile fight for Miesha. As Rin may be unknown to a lot of fans, I have decided to write about the upcoming fight.

Records

Let's start by analyzing their records. Without a doubt, Miesha has the more impressive record. Miesha has fought several ranked opponents and took Ronda farther than Ronda has ever been before. The impression going into the fight will probably be that Miesha is a proven top tier fighter, whereas Rin has faced a bunch of nobodies. There is a hint of truth to this, but it isn't as drastic as it may seem. Of Rin's 17 opponents, 7 have losing records. Of Miesha's 19 opponents 6 have losing records. Rin has 8 wins against opponents with winning records and while Miesha has faced 13 opponents with winning records she only won in 9 of those fights. So while Miesha has the more impressive record, Rin's accomplishments should not be diminished to the level of saying she has only fought cans. Especially considering her last 3 victories.

Skills

Having once bore the nickname "Takedown", it is pretty obvious what Miesha's background and game plan is going into most fights. Having been a solid wrestler since high school, Miesha has developed an aggressive grappling style that allows her to work for submissions and ground and pound. A look at fight metric reveals that Miesha has landed 37% of her takedowns during her career and that she lands 2.95 takedowns per 15 minutes on average. Landing a little less than half of her takedowns, Miesha aggressively goes for the takedown and usually eventually gets it. Recently, she has tended to utilize her striking more then go for the takedown. Her striking isn't terrible and going into this fight she will enjoy not only a reach/height advantage but a skill advantage in that department.

Like Miesha, Rin has been involved in martial arts since a young age. Rin was 5th in the All-Japan Judo tournament in Middle School, was ranked 3rd in High School and went to college with the hope of going to the Olympics until an injury sidelined her for awhile. Using her Judo, Rin likes to take her opponents down and either TKO them or submit them with armlocks. Rin is also a short and powerful fighter. A benefit of this is her low center of gravity which makes it harder to take her down. In addition to having a low center of gravity, Rin has worked with Seiko Yamamoto, 4x's World Wrestling Champion, in the past so her takedown defense should be pretty good. An interesting side note going into this fight is that Miesha has faced an Olympic Judoka twice before, so we will get to see if that experience will help her. Her aggressive striking played right into Ronda's Judo in their last fight so it should be interesting to see if she repeats that. As far as Rin's striking goes, she tends to circle her opponents, throw some kicks, maybe throw a one of shot punch or knee. Her height works against her in this department. In her toughest fights to date, she was stunned by her opponents but recovered well. She strikes in order to get into clinching range so she can take people down.

A video of Rin Nakai showing some Judo Throws

Achievements

Miesha Tate

MMA

Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion

Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Tournament Winner

FCF Bantamweight Champion

Submission Grappling

2008 FILA No-Gi Silver Medalist

2008 FILA World Team Trials Women's Gi Winner

2009 FILA Women's Team Trials Runner-Up

Amateur Wrestling

2005 WIAA State Champion 

2005 WIAA All-State

Rin Nakai

MMA

Valkyrie Champion

First Queen of Pancrase

Undefeated

Judo

All Japan Middle School Judo 5th

Ranked #3 in HighSchool

Rena and Little Tiger on Ninja Warrior

Rena and Little Tiger are both confirmed contestants for this year's Sasuke, Ninja Warrior in the States. Looking at the roster of 100 people it looks like Rena is representing Shoot Boxing and Little Tiger will be representing Muay Thai. I didn't recognize any other women as martial artists on the list. This will be Rena's 2nd time on the course to my knowledge, having actually done pretty well her first time. She just wasn't able to jump from the trampoline to the rope net. I am fairly certain that this is Little Tiger's first time. Sasuke is not only a popular show in Japan, but the world. This is some good exposure for the two.

Miesha Tate vs Rin Nakai Offical

It is Offical!! 

Rin Nakai vs Miesha Tate set for UFC Japan

Emi Fujino Blog: It was a Decision

I've returned to Japan safely.

I went down like a sinking ship in my WSOF 10 title match.

I was utterly defeated in a 5 round decision.

I am sorry.

Jessica was very strong.

But the fight was a lot of fun!

I am so thankful for the chance to fight the best in the world.

I probably have some damage here and there and I bled more than usual.

During the fight I had some pain here and there, and to actually fight 5 rounds was difficult.

In the middle of the fight I hit her with a punch and injured my hand. （汗）

I would really like to thank those that supported me!!

Even though I was far away, receiving everyone's messages was really reassuring.

Everything was going well, I didn't have any mental strains going into the fight.

I had worried about my stamina, but thanks to my hard training at GODS and Martial Arts's Gym, I was able to go 5 rounds.

Now I'm going to watch the fight, look at all my mistakes, and continue to do my best.

I'm feeling good even though I'm all lumpy, time to go forward (lol)

It was really a blessing to get to fight at that place.

To stand in such a place, to get here now I've had to overcome so many things, to the officials of Deep Jewels. those that I train with at Gods, Martial Art's Gym, Hearts, Wajutsu Keishukai, my trainers, to those who supported me, I was able to do this because of you.

That is why I had to accept every round.

Thank you so much.

In the car on the way back, Jon Fitch was behind us.

There was so many famous fighters that for myself to be in the middle of it was a beyond strange.

Good bye Las Vegas.

I will have my revenge.

Team Las Vegas.

This is my favorite picture that the photographer took and gave us.

Mei and Taiyou-kun, thank you so much for coming.

And I would also like to thank Tsuda who because he wasn't a second didn't come, but still came with me to the airport. Instead of going, you helped me shave time and have helped me with my training.

Thank you for always supporting me.

It is a great thing that I do Martial Arts.

I have a sense of my reflexes, and it isn't anything but myself, it's good that I've continued.

I like Martial Arts.

I didn't have any jet lag today when I got out of bed.

I have to work today (tears)

It's the same every time, after a fight I have a sense of meaninglessness.

It is such a boring time.

Even more because I lost.

J-Girls 2014 ~ The Shining Wild Angels 2nd results

撮影 石井晃（gravity）

On Sunday, J-Girls held a kick boxing event that had some interesting fights. The two fights that really stood out to me were Ai Takahashi vs Madoka Jinnai and Yukari Yamaguchi vs Megumi. Takahashi seems to have really turned the jets on recently since her losses to Mizuki. Her fight with Jinnai looks like it was a very close fight requiring an extension round, which 1 judge scored for Jinnai. It was nice to see Takahashi fighting some high level talent instead of some of the imports she fights in Shoot Boxing for a change. Mizuki's training partner Yukari Yamaguchi looked about as good as you can in a Pro Debut fight. The 15 year old, cornered by Mizuki, required only a little more than a minute to KO her opponent. She is one to keep your eyes on.

Pro Fights

Ai Takahashi defeated Madoka Jinnai via Majority Decision

The fight was a draw so went to an extension round

Aki Gureisha defeated Kumi Nanba via Unanimous Decision

In the 3rd Rd, Nanba was knocked down

Crusher Keiko Matsukawa defeated Date Nori via Majority Decision

Yoko Odamaki defeated Haruka Asai via Majority Decision

Ruri Shiraishi defeated Basara Nisiya via Unanimous Decision

Kaori Sebata defeated Date Hana via Unanimous Decision

Due to a draw the fight went to an extension round

In the extension round Date received a red card for using an elbow

Fuuka Yoshino defeated Momoka via Unanimous Decision

Yukari Yamaguchi defeated Megumi via KO in 1:08 of RD 1

Amateur Fights

Norika Ryuu defeated Noriko Soutome via KO in :47 of RD 1

Saho Yoshino defeated Midori Katou via Unanimous Decision

Katou was downed in RD 1

Kawani Amano defeated Date Riaru via Unanimous Decision

Reiko Tanaka defeated Husae Harada via Unanimous Decision

Hinata Terayama defeated Miki Kametsu via KO :49 of RD 2

Kemetsu went down in RD 1

Deep Jewels 5 Announcement

In addition to the previously mentioned matches on Deep Jewels 5, other participants have been announced.

Additions:

Saori Ishioka (13-7)

Shizuka Sugiyama (11-4)

Yuko "Amiba" Oya (7-3)

Ayaka Miura (1-0)

Sachiko Fujimori (3-0)

As often is the case, Deep Jewels announced the participants and will announce the match-ups at a later date. These are some pretty solid additions to the card.  The event takes place on August 9th.

Aguilar-Fujino Guide

From MMAFIGHTCORNER

Later tonight, on NBC Sports, #1 ranked Strawweight and WSOF Champion Jessica Aguilar (17-4) will be defending her title against the 10 year veteran of the sport Emi Fujino (13-7). This is a Championship match so it will be 5x5 minute rounds.

Jessica Aguilar announced her presence to the MMA world during her run in the Bellator 115lb tournament. Despite losing a contentious decision to Zoila Frausto, she went on to beat a who's who in the promotion including Carla Esparza, Lisa Ellis and Megumi Fujii. Following this initial success, Jag eventually became a victim to Bellator simply not utilizing their female fighters and was eventually released after Bellator released all of their female fighters. This has definitely worked in Jag's favor as she got the opportunity to fight in Megumi Fujii's retirement fight and is now the WSOF Champion. To say that she looked dominant in her title-winning effort would be an understatement, as she submitted the previously undefeated Alida Gray in under 3 minutes. With the UFC adding the Strawweight division, Jag is in an interesting position. However as long as she continues to look impressive against good opponents, she should retain her ranking. With 8 wins by submission and 2 by TKO, it is safe to say that Aguilar is a good boxer who prefers to finish it on the ground. 5 of those 8 submissions are chokes and 3 of those are arm-triangle chokes. Defensively, especially in her first fight with Fujii, we saw that Aguilar has no problem counter-punching and is very hard to takedown. If you get her down, it is hard to keep her there. 

Photo Courtesy of LadyGo!

Emi Fujino has been a staple of the Japanese Martial Arts scene since her debut back in 2004. I say Martial Arts because she has also competed in Kickboxing and Shoot Boxing. When one looks at her record several things stick out. First would be a 2 year gap in her record where she did not fight. Fujino was in a bad car accident that forced her out of the sport for more than 2 years. Also, Fujino opened her career going 8-0 then all of a sudden lost 4 in a row. During an interview I asked her about it and she said it was because of her training. Since she wasn't losing she didn't change anything in her training and as a result she suffered for it. Since the 4 fight losing streak Fujino has gone 5-3. However this is in some ways deceptive. Her 3 losses were to Megumi Fujii, Ayaka Hamasaki and Mizuki Inoue, 3 of the best fighters in the world.  Fujino admits to not being a technical fighter. She is a strong fighter who knows what she does well and forces her opponents to play her game. She likes to rush her opponents with strikes and then force them to the ground. She holds 6 victories by submission, most of which were either rear-naked chokes or neck-cranks. The questions that arise in relation to this fight with Fujino are that she has never fought a 5 round fight before. Her stamina normally looks good but a 5 round fight is a big step up for her.

Breakdown

Striking

I would give the technical edge to Aguilar. Aguilar has show a good jab and is an effective counter puncher which may work well against an aggressive Fujino. Fujino will try to turn it into a brawl and if she can, she will take the edge.

Grappling

I would give the edge to Aguilar. Aguilar has impressive takedown defense and will be hard to take down. That being said Fujino has very good submission defense.

Power

I give the edge to Fujino. Fujino is a very strong fighter. She is one of the few Japanese fighters that cut weight and it shows.

Stamina

I would say it is equal. Neither fighter has noticeably gassed in a fight. This will be Fujino's first 5 round fight but I do not expect it to be an issue.

Experience

Both fighters have fought elite fighters throughout their career. This will be Fujino's first fight in the states so that may affect her but I don't think it will.

X Factor

Fujino is a very tough fighter who is a grinder. If she can tire Aguilar out she will take over. Aguilar is the Champion for a reason and is a tough fighter as well.

In the Park with Emi

The Kamikaze Angel Cometh

Photo Courtesy of LadyGo!

This Saturday, one of Japan's top fighters, Emi Fujino will be stepping into the cage to challenge Jessica Aguilar for the WSOF 115lb Championship. A veteran of 30 MMA, Kickboxing and Shoot Boxing fights, Fujino has made her mark on the Japanese scene. Because of the difficulty in acquiring video of these fights, a lot of fight fans outside of Japan will not know what to expect when Fujino steps into the cage on Saturday night. I can tell you that her nickname, "The Kamikaze Angel" fits her style well. Throughout her career, Fujino has been the aggressor. She has been willing to take a strike to give a strike. As a result, her fights excited the Japanese fans. The way she charged at then Jewels Champion Ayaka Hamasaki, the way she stuck in the pocket and traded with Ham Seo Hee and Mizuki, it left an impression in your mind that lasted long after the event was over. In an interview I conducted with Emi several years ago, I asked her to describe her fight style. She told me she isn't a technician. She's a grinder. The moves she knows, she knows well. Fujino is the physically strongest fighter in the Japanese 115lb division. Unlike a lot of Japanese fighters, Fujino cuts weight. Fujino has fought in a cage several times. All of this has lead people to think that she would do well internationally. Fujino has tried again and again to get a fight outside of Japan but the offers always fell through. Well the wait was worth it because for her first fight outside of Japan, Fujino will be fighting the #1 ranked woman in the world for the Championship on national television.

Past Opponents:

Amber Brown

Mizuki Inoue 

Ayaka Hamasaki

Mika Nagano 

Celine Haga

Megumi Fujii

"V.V" Mei

Despite facing this gauntlet of fighters, the Kamikaze Angel has never been finished. 

Rena Blog: Christmas (._.)♡★

Yesterday 

Was it…Martial Arts Christmas (._.)? 

I got to talk with Rumina Sato ♡

We went to Roots Gym,  trained a little, did some Judo Locks I can use in SB, then he taught me some techniques for the Shime-Waza (Judo Choke) (°_°)♡

When I got a good feeling for it, I repeated it! Once I could catch the neck and the arm I would squeeze till the tap ψ(｀∇´)ψ (lol)

Then, then the flying warrior!! 

He taught me a flying arm bar ♡

It was way too much fun ♡

If I'm able to do it during a fight maybe I want to try and see ♫ (lol)

Then I was given some of Rumina's Shirts and Goods (;_;)♡

I became pretty close with Rumina's lovely dog Chuck ♡

At the end we went to dinner

I received so much, I am really really thankful (;_;)

Thank you for so many things!!

Such a life in luxury

We will be in the next Fight&Life (magazine) so don't forget to check it out ♡

And Tsutsua, I want to be serious, how often how many times excuse me. (;_;)

Thank you so much!

Rumina, Tsutsuya, every one at Roots Gym, Fight&Life, Thank you so much ♡

It was a lot of fun ♡\(//∇//)

Thoughts on Tate-Nakai

Photo Courtesy of LadyGo!

Ariel Helwani announced today that the UFC is looking to book a match between Pancrase Queen Rin Nakai (16-0-1) and former Strikeforce Champion Miesha Tate (14-5). Miesha Tate is well known to most casual MMA fans in the States but Rin Nakai's name probably doesn't ring a bell. Interestingly, if you go to Japan, most casual MMA fans will have heard of Rin Nakai but will not know Miesha Tate. From what I have heard, read and observed the UFC has a hard time sinking into the Japanese market. UFC appears on WOWOW in Japan, a premium channel and often via delay. The main audience watching that are die-hard fans and fighters. Now I may be wrong, but from what I have witnessed, Japanese fans really like watching Japanese fighters. There are of course exceptions to this rule, but as a general rule they like watching their own countrymen. PRIDE had Sakuraba, Gomi, and Yoshida. K-1 had Kid and Genki Sudo. 

Here is a story that illustrates my point; when I was in Japan, I went to UFC 144. I was in the middle of a Japanese crowd. The people were there to see Gomi, Kid and Rampage. When Anthony Pettis came out to fight Joe Lauzon, I literally heard a group of people talking to each other say, "They aren't Japanese, let's go get some food" They paid more attention when Tamura Issei fought Tiequan Zhang. I will also never forget the bitterness in the air when Kid lost. The point being, for the UFC to be successful in Japan they are going to need Japanese fighters that do well. Rin Nakai is a fighter who does well.

Since there hasn't been any word that Rin Nakai has officially signed to the UFC, I will assume that they are still negotiating. This is where some of my questions arise. It is well known that Pancrase has a tight-grip on Rin Nakai. Sakai, the CEO of Pancrase, has invested a lot of money in Nakai and promoted her to a level that she is now one of Pancrase's bigger draws. Pancrase has done a lot for Nakai during her time there, including flying her to the main-island to train. So I'm wondering what kind of deal the UFC is making with him. Sakai is a successful businessman. He has turned Pancrase around and he cares about one thing; Money. Could he be using the Pancrase-WSOF deal, especially with an upcoming WSOF show in Japan to drive Nakai's price up? (I'm referring to the UFC having to buy her out of her Pancrase Contract)

If the UFC succeeds in signing Rin Nakai, that will be a step towards getting the UFC more popular in Japan. Matching her up with Miesha Tate is both a good move and a terrible move in my opinion. On the positive side: Miesha Tate is popular in the U.S. By pairing Rin with a popular fighter in the States it increases her name value and exposure. It does the same for Tate in Japan. On the negative: this is a huge step up in competition for Rin. She is coming off of victories over Tara Larosa and Sarah D'Aleio. Miesha is ranked #3 in the UFC and has taken Ronda farther than any other opponent. One of my pet-peeves is when fighters are rushed along too quickly. I would like to see Rin against a lower ranked opponent. This would give Rin both the opportunity and time to properly acclimate to fighting in the UFC and the caliber of opponents.

Mizuki Inoue Comments from Press Conference

Courtesy of Sherdog

The Following is from the Deep Jewels Press Conference:

I am Hakushinkai's Mizuki. Last time, I didn't act as a professional so to the officials and the fans, the trouble I have caused you is inexcusable. Even during those circumstances my fans swung my towels in the air, the officials who gave me various considerations, my seniors who taught me to fight, I have thought about all of you and how I acted is extremely regrettable and pathetic, that is how I feel. From now on, I will face this in from of me, I will do what I can do, I'm not going to decrease the value of the fight, I'm going to regulate my body so it is perfect and I'm going to go into this fight and throw down the gauntlet. Honestly, I didn't think that I would be fighting Tomimatsu again in my next fight, it bewildered me, I am very thankful to the Deep Jewels officials for matching me up with Tomimatsu. I think the fight will be similar to the last fight so everyone, please continue to support me.

Thanks to LadyGo!

Emi Tomimatsu Blog: Gotta Polish the Belt

At evening I've fallen into a situation where I can't go without taking my socks off…

However after this I have to go outside…

I wonder if it's ok to go to customer's places in sandals?

However, I go with the same things as always on my feet…

Pointed boots…

Should I put them on?

No, it'll be to stuffy!!!

But…

Sandals?

(I think she means not wearing socks in her boots)

Yesss!

At this point my dad says…

"If you put those on, you'll look like Junichi Ishida!"

(Junichi Ishida is famous for not wearing socks)

(´Д` )

Junichi Ishida, well he wears normal leather shoes…I wear boots (´Д`)

But when I heard what my dad said, I chose to go in my leather boots with no socks!!!

I thought…

I've beaten Junichi Ishida!!

And…

It didn't make me happy (lol)

So, yesterday Deep Jewels had a press-conference!!!

And my opponent was chosen!!　

Now there is only this!!!

The picture is big so I wasn't able to get it all in (´Д` ) I'm sorry I couldn't get the whole faces on there!

I don't have any bad intentions! 

It's a rematch from February! The Teen-Girl Prodigy! Mizuki!

So, personally I think it's really good that the rematch will be at 52kg. The world knows her name and she is one of Japan's strongest fighters so I didn't think I would get a second chance…

It would be accurate to say I have trauma!! (lol)

(From the last fight)

But when I think of fighters at 52kg, I think it's now or never!

I want to get rid of this temporary (Championship)!! (lol)

You won't be seeing the same half-finished woman!!

I have certainly changed, I will show you this half-finished woman's evolutionary tree!!

So am I just a attractive older woman?!(´Д` )

Nooo!

So after this fight I'm gonna look at and fix myself!! I've become stupid (lol)

What! I look like a person during their time off…I made a mistake! Ago-Nerd! Metaler (Heavy Metal)! Rie a.k.a. Suzaku fans should definitely come to the Deep Jewels show on 8/9!!!

Here's the event info!!

Deep Jewels Light-Weight Title Match

Emi Tomimatsu vs Mizuki

Deep Jewels 5

8/9/14

Open 5:30 Start 6:00

Shinjuku Face

VIP Ticket 10,000 Yen

Counter 8,000 Yen

A Section 6,000 Yen

B Section 5,000 Yen

+500 Yen if bought at venue

Those of you that know me and want to come should buy Ago-Ticktets!!!

Your Name! Your Address!What kind of Ticket! And How Many!

tommyemiagonist@yahoo.co.jp

I'll get you the tickets at the venue smoothly, don't be reluctant!!

If she's in a good mood, Rie a.k.a Suzaku will be there to display and cell her CD's!! (lol)

If I win, I'll Metal with all of you!!!

Impossible letter, I don't know!!!!

So, please support this blooming flower this half-finished woman!!!

I'll be sure to not eat too much fried food!!!

I'm over weight!!!! (´Д`)

Emi Tomimatsu Blog: Izzy-Sensei!

Emi Tomimatsu Blog Post

*chan after a name shows friendship i.e Mei-Chan

*She refers to herself as ago, ago-matsu, half-finished girl

____________________________________________________________________

It's the rainy season…as far as martial artists are concerned, it's the worst season!!

You have to get a lot of workout clothes, they don't dry!!!

In someway or another if they get dry or half-dry they smell terrible!! 

I don't smell bad! So, don't hate me for it!! (´Д` )

There is no drying machine, even if I did it would take so much time to dry, the electric bill would go way up…

So I have no choice but to rely on a teruterubozu!!!

 (paper doll which children pray to for fine weather)

Even though I have concerns about that, I am training so it is fine (lol)

Yesterday it was reported that on 8/9, at Deep Jewels 5, this half-finished girl will be departing for the front!!

Well, I get hurt here and there so I have no choice but to whip/encourage this old body!!

I've been thinking about the amount I train, from how I used to train I have changed my training style little by little.

It doesn't matter how often I train, if the techniques and foundation aren't solid I can't evolve.

Can this half-finished woman still evolve?

Actually, since I originally fought with such a poor foundation successively, I now feel like I can raise my level everyday!

Well I can also thank Collagen…

Yesterday at CAVE, an MMA Coach from Jackson's came to visit Japan, Izzy, he had a seminar and I received his teaching and participated!

A lot of our (Japan's) top fighters attended, it was a hot, intense, and fun seminar!

Hell, it was probably the first time I've been shy at a seminar (´Д` )

Even amongst the top fighters,  there were fighters on the forefront who fight for the UFC, I listened to the foundation of the technique and practiced/studied it. Even for the top fighters it is to their advantage to evolve and process, so I think it is really important to to make the kind of environment where you can level up.

Thanks to Mei-chan's easy to understand translating, I was able to understand even the finest techniques!! Thank you Mei-chan!!

Izzy was a pleasant and awesome person!! He held a seminar that everyone was satisfied with,   even the top fighters were able to raise their abilities!!

There were a lot of participants from OTOKOGOI! DEEP 6/22's Ochi was there, Ueda whose flourished all over the world was there! At the last Deep Jewels show, even though Ueda was busy he came to support me, during the seminar he brought the Ago-Matsu towel that this half-finished  privileged girl gave him, he specifically brought my towel and told me he likes to use it! Ueda is so kind!! 

If I only went to the seminar and received techniques I wouldn't get stronger, so I'm going to review what I learned and incorporate it into my techniques!!

I met Izzy, and Ishiwatari, who trained at Jackson's with Hirota! And I'd like to thank everyone at Cave for participating, thank you always!!

To improve one's skills burdens one's time and money, I am becoming stronger and investing in myself! During times like this I would really like to thank my sponsors again! Thank you always!! Yes!! Again, from today forward I'll yell (fighting spirit)! I'm going to work and train!!

Deep Jewels 5 Matches Announced!!

There have been some big announcements about Deep Jewels 5.

Despite what she said in an interview with me earlier this year, Ayaka Hamasaki is dropping down to 105 pounds. The AACC standout at 115, will be making her 105 debut against former Jewels Champion Naho "Sugirock" Sugiyama. This is very interesting and good for Deep Jewels. With the numbers of retirements recently, it seems that the a number of the often oversized Japanese 115ers are dropping down to 105 and creating a very solid division. At 105, Hamasaki will have a size advantage over Sugirock and it should be an interesting match.

Also, Emi Tomimatsu will be having a rematch against Mizuki Inoue. People may remember that Mizuki missed weight, and despite finishing Tomimatsu was not able to win the title. This is a big match, that I think Deep Jewels expects Mizuki to win. With her past performance it is hard to argue. That being said, with every fight she's been in, Tomimatsu has looked better and better. She is improving. With the circumstances of the last fight, I felt bad for her kind of being stuck in the middle so I feel like she wants this fight just as much as Mizuki. It should be an exciting fight.

105

Ayaka Hamasaki vs Naho Sugiyama

115 Title Match

Emi Tomimatsu vs Mizuki Inoue

Emi Fujino Blog: Just a little longer

Emi Fujino Blog Translation

Japanese to English

____________________________________

I only have to lose 5 more kilos!

(Before I weighed my self I drank a lot of water)

Since today was my last sparring at Hearts, I worked on conditioning.

After that I tuned some things and I was done.

I would really like to thank you all, I am so grateful. 

Thank you.

I will do my best to be your clumsy representative.

There are some things I have to do till the end, so I will be leaving on the 18th.

I don't really have any fatigue, I don't have any unusual injuries, and my physical condition is perfect.

Just a little longer.

Little Tiger Victorious

Photo Courtesy of LadyGo!

In Muay Thai news, Little Tiger defeated Hongkhao from Thailand over the weekend. I haven't been able to find a play-by-play of the fight but it seems that it was an interesting bout. Little Tiger remained the aggressor throughout the fight but Hongkhao for the most part was able to deal with it. That is until the 4th round. It was in the 4th that Little Tiger knocked Hongkhao down with a flying knee.

Photo Courtesy of LadyGo!

Little Tiger won the fight via UD (50-47, 49-47, 49-46)

Also on the card, a Meri from Thailand picked up a UD over Tomoko Weerasakreck.

Photo Courtesy of LadyGo!

All photo's used in this post are from LadyGo!

Deep Jewels 5 Announced

Courtesy of Sherdog

Some details for Deep Jewels 5 have been announced. The event will take place on August 9th. 

Athletes on the card:

Ayaka Hamasaki

Emi Tomimatsu

Mizuki Inoue

Naho "Sugirock" Sugiyama

Miyoko Kusaka

Yuko "Ameba" Ohya

Tamaki Usui

The big news is that Japanese stand-out Ayaka Hamasaki is returning to the ring. After a long lay-off to rehabilitate her knee, she is coming back. Her opponent is yet to be known but a title match with Tomimatsu or a rematch with Mizuki would both be intriguing. It is also nice to see Mizuki on the card. As much as she is known for being a striker, she has been entering BJJ and grappling tournaments and looks to have improved a lot in that area of her game. 

Even at this stage, the card looks to have a nice amount of star power. Hamasaki and Mizuki aside, it will be nice to see Tomimatsu's improving skills and to see Sugirock's attempt to climb back up the ladder after falling down. An addition that I would like to see added to the card is Ayaka Miura. After her impressive performance at the last event, I would like to see Deep Jewels gradually build her up.

Rika Thongkraisaen Becomes WMC Lightflyweight Champion

Rika Thongkraisaen defeated Seetar Por.Petchnumthong by TKO in the 2nd round to win the WMC Lightflyweight Champion. The fight took place on June 8th, 2014.

From what I have read, it seems that people were surprised that Rika was even getting a title match. The article described how she had less than 8 fights and had yet to fight and defeat a known fighter. Well someone forgot to tell Rika that she didn't belong in this Champion deciding match as she looked very impressive. Going into the fight she was 7-0 in Kickboxing with 2 KO's and 5-0 in Boxing with 5 KO's. She was born in Thailand but fights out of Saenchai Gym in Tokyo. A look at her gym's website shows she has several belts: in 4/9/14 AEC Sawn Vagas Belt in Laos, 10/3/13 WBC Asian Light Flyweight Boxing Champion, 10/21/12 Muay Thai Warriors Light Flyweight Champion.

Here is a breakdown of the fight:

Round 1

Seetar left kicked to the front and threw 2 right middle kicks in rapid procession. Rika responded quickly with a nice combination. She threw a low kick, then a left body kick then a right straight that backed Seetar up and put her on the defense. Damage from the punch was visible on Seetar's face.

Round 2

Rika threw a right straight and moved forward using elbows. At the same time Seetar also threw an elbow. Their elbows struck and Seetar looked hurt. The elbow to elbow strike dislocated Seetar's shoulder. Afterwards, Rika, joined in the ring with her parents and gym members, expressed her gratitude towards the fans.

Part of the fight ending exchange

An injured Seetar