A third women’s bout has been added to Strikeforce: “Rousey vs Kaufman” on August 18th in San Diego, California. Jewels star Hiroko Yamanaka will make her second appearance for Strikeforce when she faces Muay Thai standout Germaine “The Iron Lady” de Randamie in bantamweight action.

Yamanaka debuted for Strikeforce in a women’s featherweight title fight in December and was stopped by then-champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos, but the result was overturned when Santos failed a post-fight drug test. De Randamie is 1-1 in Strikeforce, but she has not fought since June 2011.

Yamanaka (12-1-0, 1 ND) dominated all challengers during an eight-fight winning streak in Japan leading up to her U.S. debut in December, but her brief title fight with Santos ended in a crushing 16-second TKO defeat. The 5’11” Yamanaka could not make use of her reach advantage and was overwhelmed by punches from the champion. Santos tested positive for a stanozolol metabolite following the fight and the bout was ruled a No Decision. Yamanaka has not fought since, but now looks to make a fresh start as a bantamweight. The former welterweight competitor may have a tough weight cut to get down to 135 pounds, but she has successfully made 143 on more than one occasion in Japan.

De Randamie (2-2-0) is still early in her MMA career, but the 49-0 Muay Thai star is one of the most decorated female strikers in the world. De Randamie jumped right into the proverbial fire in her 2008 MMA debut against the much more experienced Vanessa Porto and succumbed to a first-round armbar. She bounced back with a decision victory to earn a shot with Strikeforce in early 2011. De Randamie made the most of the opportunity by knocking out Stephanie Webber in round one, but she is now coming off of a disappointing Unanimous Decision loss to former Muay Thai rival Julia “The Jewel” Budd 13 months ago. De Randamie should hold a significant striking advantage over Yamanaka next month.

Strikeforce: “Rousey vs Kaufman” takes place on August 18th at Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, California. The event is headlined by a Strikeforce Women’s Bantamweight Championship bout between champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey and challenger Sarah Kaufman, and also features a bout between contenders Miesha “Takedown” Tate and Julie “Fireball” Kedzie.

(Main Photo Credit: Jewels)