Two Additional Matchups Announced For Jewels: 17th RingTwo additional fights are now official for Jewels: “17th Ring” on December 17th in Tokyo, Japan. Emi “Kamikaze Angel” Fujino will make her Jewels debut against Celine Haga, while Emi Tomimatsu faces AACC prospect Rina Tomita. Both bouts were announced by the promotion today.

Fujino has been inactive in MMA since a bout with Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii on December 30th. She has since competed in shoot boxing and will enter as a significant favourite against Haga, who is winless since May 2010. Tomimatsu and Tomita earned victories at “16th Ring” in September.

Fujino (9-5-0) opened her career with eight straight wins including a 2007 victory over future Valkyrie champion “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi. She suffered decision defeats in each of her next four bouts, however, including in a top contender’s rematch with Yamaguchi. Last November, Fujino ended her losing skid with a 24-second stoppage of Anna Saito, but she was unable to score an upset against Fujii when the pair faced off at SRC: “Soul of Fight.” The eight-year veteran makes her first appearance in Jewels.

Haga (1-9-0) was defeated in each of her first four fights, but she managed to score a huge upset over Jewels postergirl Mika “Future Princess” Nagano at “Eighth Ring” last year. The shocking defeat left Nagano in tears, but she submitted Haga in the pair’s rematch two months later. Haga has since been matched up against top competition and has yet to attain her second victory. The Joachim Hansen training partner has fought twice for Jewels this year, but she came out on the wrong end of Unanimous Decisions on both occasions.

 

Tomimatsu (3-4-0) sports a modest MMA record, but she is one of the more talented grapplers on the Jewels roster. After setbacks in her first two bouts, Tomimatsu bounced back with a pair of wins before taking on Mei Yamaguchi in a prospects battle at a September 2007 Smackgirl event. Tomimatsu came up just short in the fight and lost to standout kickboxer “Windy” Tomomi Sunaba in early 2008. After a lengthy break from MMA, she returned in September and put on a solid performance in defeating Haga.

Tomita (4-5-0) has also encountered highs and lows during her three-year career. She made her debut at the inaugural Jewels event in 2008 and secured quick submission victories in her first two bouts, but fell into a tough losing streak that included a pair of defeats to rival Mika Nagano. Tomita underwent successful surgery for cervical cancer earlier this year and returned to the ring at “16th Ring.” She has won two straight fights and a win for either Tomimatsu or Tomita will move the victor a step closer to Jewels Lightweight Queen title contention.

 

Jewels: “17th Ring” takes place on December 17th at Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan. The event will crown the first Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion. Unbeaten prospect Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama faces Kikuyo Ishikawa in one semi-final bout. Misaki Takimoto takes on Yukiko Seki in the other. The winners of the semi-finals will then face off in the tournament final to crown the first champion.

The card also features a rematch for the Jewels Lightweight Queen Championship. Current titleholder Ayaka Hamasaki defends against rival Seo Hee Ham. For the first time in Jewels history, the title bout will be contested over three, five-minute rounds, rather than two. Special Rules will apply to the title fight, allowing strikes to the face on the ground.

 

Jewels: “17th Ring” Fight Card (to date; subject to change):

– Ayaka Hamasaki vs Seo Hee Ham [Jewels Lightweight Queen Championship – 3×5 Special Rules]

– Sugiyama/Ishikawa winner vs Takimoto/Seki winner [Jewels Featherweight Queen GP Final – 2×5]
– Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama vs Kikuyo Ishikawa [Featherweight Queen GP Semi-Final – 2×5]
– Misaki Takimoto vs Yukiko Seki [Featherweight Queen GP Semi-Final – 2×5]
– Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada vs Sachiko “Sachi” Yamamoto [Featherweight Queen GP Reserve Bout – 2×5]

– “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi vs Mika “Future Princess” Nagano [Jewels 52kg Official Rules – 2×5]
– Emi “Kamikaze Angel” Fujino vs Celine Haga [Jewels 52kg Official Rules – 2×5]
– Emi Tomimatsu vs Rina Tomita [Jewels 52kg Official Rules – 2×5]