Five years removed from their first fight, Rena Kubota finished Miyuu Yamamoto once again.
[autotag]Miyuu Yamamoto[/autotag] entered Rizin FF 32 hoping to exact a measure of revenge some five years later. Instead, she ended up on the wrong side of another finish.
[autotag]Rena Kubota[/autotag], 30, won Saturday’s main event over 47-year-old Yamamoto, defeating her by knockout at Okinawa, Arena, in Okanawa, Japan.
After a solid first round for Yamamoto (6-6) where she controlled the ground, the end game in the second. With both women standing, Yamamoto shot in for a takedown, which Kubota (12-3) countered with a perfectly timed knee that landed flush on the face. It hurt Yamamoto, and the fight was over at the 3:35 after several more punches went unanswered.
You can watch Kubota’s finish below (via Twitter):
This marked the second time that Kubota has stopped Yamamoto. In September 2016, Kubota won by first-round guillotine choke.
Rizin FF 32 featured a mix of MMA and kickboxing. Six of the 10 MMA bouts were finishes, which included Tanner Lourenco winning his debut when he choked Shinya Kumazawa by using his opponent’s gi against him.
Returning to the sport after a one-year injury hiatus, Kyoji Horiguchi reclaimed the Rizin FF bantamweight title with a first-round finish of Kai Asakura in Saitama.
[autotag]Kyoji Horiguchi[/autotag] exacted sweet revenge on his nemesis with a stunning first-round TKO to dethrone [autotag]Kai Asakura[/autotag] and mark his return to action by reclaiming the Rizin FF bantamweight title.
Horiguchi (29-3) faced off against Asakura (16-3) in the main event of Rizin FF 26, which took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and the former UFC title challenger showed no signs of ring rust as he made his return from a one-year injury hiatus to stun the champion and reclaim the title he never lost in the ring.
Horiguchi was shocked in 68 seconds by Asakura in a non-title fight at Rizin FF 18 in August 2019. The rematch for the title was scrapped when Horiguchi sustained a torn ACL that required surgery and forced him out of action for more than a year. As a result, he also relinquished his Rizin and Bellator bantamweight titles.
After an unsuccessful first attempt to claim the vacant belt against Manel Kape, Asakura eventually won the belt during Horiguchi’s absence to set up an eagerly anticipated rematch upon Horiguchi’s return, and the 30-year-old rose to the occasion to finish Asakura in the first round and return to the bantamweight throne once again.
Perhaps a little wary of Asakura’s power after their first meeting, Horiguchi stayed largely on the outside and looked to pick off the champion as he attempted to close the distance. Asakura, meanwhile, looked to load up with powerful punches from the very start.
The 10,000-strong crowd inside the Saitama Super Arena gasped as a Horiguchi low kick appeared to briefly trouble the champion, and that gasp turned into a roar when he connected perfectly with a counter right hand as Asakura leaped in with a flying knee attempt.
Horiguchi then grabbed the back of the stunned champion’s neck and connected with two more hard rights to the temple that sent Asakura down to the canvas. A couple of ground strikes were all the referee needed to see before he dived in to wave off the bout at the 2:48 mark of the opening round.
It means that Horiguchi has now reclaimed one of the two titles he relinquished due to his injury, and it’s likely he’ll be keen to arrange a return to the Bellator cage to challenge Juan Archuleta for the Bellator crown in 2021.
At the age of 46, Miyuu Yamamoto says she’s never been more prepared to capture Rizin FF championship gold.
[autotag]Miyuu Yamamoto[/autotag] heads into the biggest fight of her career with the words of her legendary brother still fresh in her mind.
Yamamoto (6-4) will challenge for the vacant Rizin FF super atomweight title when she takes on former champion Ayaka Hamasaki (20-3) at Rizin FF 26 on Dec. 31 in Saitama, Japan. It’s the opportunity she has been hoping for ever since she transitioned from freestyle wrestling to MMA in 2016, and, at the age of 46, she says she’s never felt better.
Yamamoto’s title tilt comes exactly one year after her last appearance, when she outpointed Thailand’s Suwanan Boonsorn at Rizin FF 20. Since then, she’s been in Guam, sharpening her skills while the island has remained largely locked down due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Guam is more strict than Japan and is currently under lockdown,” she explained during Rizin’s pre-fight YouTube series, “Rizin Confessions.” “There are limits for gatherings (and) my kids are still attending online classes.”
But that isolation, out of the competitive cycle and left to work on her skills, has proved to be a blessing for Yamamoto, who has used the time to sharpen her skills ahead of her return.
“Because there was no fight lined up, I didn’t have to think about my opponent,” she said. “I was able to focus on what I needed to work on. So it worked out well.”
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The extra time to work on her game has proved invaluable, as Yamamoto looks to fulfill the potential she brought to the sport after capturing four freestyle wrestling world championships earlier in her career.
As she explained, her start to life in MMA was a tough one, as she struggled to fully adapt to the sport. But, after suffering some early setbacks, she was boosted by the confidence of her brother, the late Japanese MMA legend Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto.
“I started off with back-to-back losses,” she recalled. “‘Kid’ told me, ‘Your physical strengths, your natural instincts, your speed and gifts, nobody can match that. So believe in yourself.'”
The advice clearly worked. After starting out 1-3 with Rizin, Yamamoto hit form and heads into the New Year’s Eve title clash with Hamasaki having won five of her last six outings.
“I started winning and finally started to climb the ladder,” she said. “I have come this far (and feel) the strongest in my life at 46 years old. … Now I need to start finishing things.”
Rizin FF 26 takes place on Thursday, Dec. 31 at Saitama Super Arena and streams via pay-per-view on LIVENow.
MMA Junkie’s Simon Head looks ahead to Rizin FF’s end-of-year spectacular at the Saitama Super Arena on New Year’s Eve.
Things didn’t work out as originally planned for Rizin FF, but the Japanese promotion’s New Year’s Eve spectacular at the Saitama Super Arena will still finish with a wild scrap for their bantamweight title.
Rizin FF 20 was all set to feature the hotly-anticipated rematch between Kyoji Horiguchi and the man who shocked the MMA world when he finished the two-promotion bantamweight champion in their non-title meeting at Rizin FF 18 in October, [autotag]Kai Asakura[/autotag].
Asakura’s 68-second demolition of Horiguchi in Nagoya stunned the Japanese MMA community, and when Asakura (14-1, 6-0 Rizin FF) repeated the trick with a 54-second knockout of Ulka Sasaki at Rizin 19 that left the former UFC fighter with a broken jaw, it was clear that the 26-year-old was the undeniable number-one contender for Horiguchi’s title.
Everything seemed set for an end-of-year showdown in Saitama, but disaster struck in November when news emerged that Horiguchi had sustained a knee injury that would require surgery and an estimated layoff of around 10 months. But, in an honorable move from the American Top Team man, Horiguchi decided to relinquish his Rizin and Bellator bantamweight titles to free up the belts and allow Rizin to book an alternative title fight for New Year’s Eve.
Now the vacant bantamweight strap will be up for grabs in the night’s main event, with Asakura taking on the explosive [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag] (, whose second-round knockouts of Seiichiro Ito and Takeya Mizugaki at Rizin FF 15 and 18 respectively made him a compelling replacement opponent for Dec. 31. And with Asakura taking the spoils when the pair battled to a split decision back in May 2018, there’s fighting pride, as well as a championship belt, at stake.
Hamasaki and Seo set for super-atomweight showdown
A second title fight will also feature at the top end of the main card, with reigning Rizin women’s super atomweight champion [autotag]Ayaka Hamasaki[/autotag] returning to action to face the challenge of South Korea’s [autotag]Seo Hee Ham[/autotag] in a title fight between fighters with a combined 51 fights to their name.
Hamasaki (19-2, 5-0 Rizin FF) captured the vacant title at Rizin FF 14 last December via second-round armbar finish of Kanna Asakura, then defended her title with a unanimous decision against Jihn Yu Frey in June. Most recently, she armbarred Suwanan Boonsorn in a non-title showcase at Rizin FF 18. Now she takes on former UFC strawweight Seo (22-8, 2-0 Rizin FF) Hee Ham, who hasn’t lost since departing the UFC at the end of 2016.
Rizin FF women’s atomweight champion: Ayaka Hamasaki (L) with Seo Hee Ham
Seo has won five in a row, with her last two victories coming via stoppage inside the Rizin ring. Tomo Maesawa was dispatched inside a round, then Seo finished Japanese amateur wrestling icon Miyuu Yamamoto via second-round TKO at Rizin FF 19 in October. Now the 32-year-old from Busan will bid to capture her second title since leaving the UFC as she aims to add the Rizin title to the Road FC atomweight title she won in December 2017.
Dolloway aims for redemption – and a championship belt
A USADA anti-doping suspension may have left [autotag]C.B. Dolloway[/autotag] unable to compete Stateside, but the MMA free-agent has been handed not just a lifeline, but the opportunity of a lifetime, as he takes on reigning champion [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag] for the Rizin light heavyweight title.
Dolloway (17-9, 0-0 Rizin FF) was handed a two-year ban by USADA after a pair out-of-competition tests came back positive, while an IV infusion was also adjudged to be over the allowable limit.
It resulted in Dolloway’s eventual release from the UFC, with the American seemingly banned from competition until mid-December 2020. But with Rizin not recognizing USADA’s suspensions, Dolloway is free to fight for the Japanese promotion, and will challenge the dominant champ Prochazka (25-3-1, 10-1 Rizin FF), who is riding a 10-fight, four-year win streak. The big Czech has finished nine of those 10 victories, with eight of those coming inside the opening round.
Lightweight grand prix reaches its climax
In addition to the three title fights on the card, Rizin FF 20 will also feature the two semifinals, then the final, of the promotion’s lightweight grand prix tournament.
The semis will see America’s [autotag]Johnny Case[/autotag] face off with dangerous Azerbaijani contender [autotag]Tofiq Musaev[/autotag], while the other half of the draw features Bellator star [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag], who will take on fellow countryman [autotag]Luiz Gustavo[/autotag].
The four men will contest their semifinal matchups early on the preliminary card, with the two winners facing off in the tournament final in the final bout before the intermission.
And finally…
Look out for Bellator bantamweight contender [autotag]Patrick Mix[/autotag], who will be representing his promotion with pride as he takes on former DEEP bantamweight champion [autotag]Yuki Motoya[/autotag].
Former King of the Cage bantamweight champ Mix has been one of the big success stories of Bellator’s lower weight classes after joining the promotion midway through the year and producing a pair of highlight-reel first-round submissions.
After his Suloev stretch finish of Isiah Chapman at Bellator 232, Mix told MMA Junkie he was only just scratching the surface of his capabilities, and now he gets the chance to showcase his grappling prowess inside the Rizin ring.
And perhaps the biggest reception of the night could come early on the card, as [autotag]Miyuu Yamamoto[/autotag] returns to action against [autotag]Suwanan Boonsorn[/autotag] (4-2, 0-1 Rizin FF). Yamamoto (5-4, 5-4 Rizin FF) is still competing in MMA and grappling tournaments at the age of 45, and the former amateur wrestling phenom and sister of the late, great Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto remains a firm favorite with the Japanese fight fans wherever she competes.
