2012 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Quarterfinals AnnouncedWith the addition of WKN Australian kickboxing champion Kim Townsend, the lineup for this Saturday’s Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup tournament is now complete. Townsend will face two-time Girls S-Cup winner Rena Kubota in one of four quarterfinal matchups announced by the promotion today.

Kubota is once again seen as a heavy favourite to win this year’s Girls S-Cup, which requires the champion to defeat three opponents in one night in order to capture the title. Among those standing in Kubota’s way is Erika Kamimura, who won an Asia-only version of the Girls S-Cup this past year.

Kubota (17-5-1 KB/SB) became an instant star on August 23, 2009 when she won the inaugural Girls S-Cup tournament at age 18. She repeated that feat one year later by defeating Ai Takahashi in the 2010 Girls S-Cup final. Kubota did not compete in last year’s Girls S-Cup tournament, which was won by “The Strongest Female High School Student” Erika Kamimura, but she enters her third Girls S-Cup with momentum on her side after defeating Kamimura under kickboxing rules in November to become Rise Queen Champion. Townsend (0-0-0 SB) is a gifted striker and the current holder of the World Kickboxing Network (WKN) Women’s Mini Flyweight Championship, but she makes her first foray into shoot boxing competition as a significant underdog against the ultra-popular Kubota.

The second tournament quarterfinal pits 2011 Girls S-Cup finalist Seo Hee Ham (2-1-0 SB) against Ukrainian kickboxing and MMA champion Lena “Hunter” Ovchynnikova (0-0-0 SB). Ham earned decision wins over Emi Fujino and Mina to advance to the finals of last year’s scaled-down Girls S-Cup before falling to Kamimura in the championship fight. She faced Kamimura in a rematch under kickboxing rules in June and dropped a Unanimous Decision after three rounds. Ovchynnikova has won numerous titles in MMA and kickboxing and she is coming off of a clear-cut decision win in a kickboxing match this past weekend. She now looks to upset Ham en route to a spot in the Girls S-Cup semi-finals.

Three-time Girls S-Cup participant “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi (5-3-0 SB) returns for this year’s tournament and battles 17-year-old World Muaythai Council (WMC) Women’s Flyweight Champion Namtarn “Supernova Girl” Por Munagpetch (0-0-0 SB) of Thailand in the third quarterfinal matchup. Yamaguchi had her greatest success in the inaugural Girls S-Cup in 2009 when she advanced all the way to the final round before dropping a Unanimous Decision to Kubota. She made it to the semi-finals of the 2010 tournament, but suffered an upset loss to Mina in last year’s quarterfinal round. Por Munagpetch is a talented prospect who looks to become the youngest winner of the Girls S-Cup to date, but she will need to be wary of Yamaguchi’s clinchwork and throws.

2011 Girls S-Cup winner Kamimura (25-2-0 KB/SB) takes on WPKL Women’s Flyweight Champion Lorena “Lady Pitbull” Klijn (0-0-0 SB) from The Netherlands in the fourth quarterfinal fight. Kamimura is a highly decorated kickboxer who has held titles for J-Girls, the World Professional Muaythai Federation (WPMF), the World Muaythai Council and the World Boxing Council (WBC). At age 18, Kamimura became Girls S-Cup champion this past year with a pair of stoppage wins and a Unanimous Decision victory over Ham in the final. She now has an opportunity to become a two-time Girls S-Cup champion and could potentially avenge her November loss to Kubota in the process. Klijn is skilled in the clinch and may be able to combat Kamimura’s strikes in close, but she will nevertheless have a tough fight on her hands against the highly-touted reigning champion.

The 2012 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup takes place on August 25th at Yamano Hall in the Yoyogi district of Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan.

 

2012 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Final:

– Winner of Semi-Final #1 vs Winner of Semi-Final #2

 

2012 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Semi-Finals:

– Winner of Kamimura-Klijn vs Winner of Yamaguchi-Por Munagpetch
– Winner of Kubota-Townsend vs Winner of Ham-Ovchynnikova

 

2012 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Quarterfinals:

– “The Strongest Female High School Student” Erika Kamimura vs Lorena “Lady Pitbull” Klijn
– Seo Hee Ham vs Lena “Hunter” Ovchynnikova
– Rena Kubota vs Kim Townsend
– “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi vs Namtarn “Supernova Girl” Por Munagpetch

 

2012 Shoot Boxing JKS48 High School Girls’ Tournament Final:

– Winner of Tsumura-Tachi vs Winner of Otsuka-Nakamura

 

2012 Shoot Boxing JKS48 High School Girls’ Tournament Semi-Finals:

– Mio Tsumura vs Yusa Tachi
– Nako Otsuka vs Akari “Eneos” Nakamura

 

2012 Shoot Boxing 53.5 Girls S-Cup Final:

– Mizuki Inoue vs Ai Takahashi

 

Non-Tournament Bout (53.5kg):

– Seira Aragaki vs Rio Kamikaze

 

 

(Photo Credit: GBRing.com)

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