Two of Japan’s top female fighters are set to face off for a second time on May 31st at Deep Jewels 8 in Tokyo. Former Jewels Lightweight Queen Champion Ayaka Hamasaki meets reigning Deep Jewels Lightweight Champion Mizuki Inoue in a featured grappling match on the card.

Deep Jewels officials announced the match today. The fighters first clashed under MMA rules when Hamasaki handed a 17-year-old Inoue her first loss at Jewels: “16th Ring” in September 2011. Now 20, Inoue looks to avenge her loss to the AACC standout in next month’s grappling competition.

Hamasaki (11-1-0 MMA) went on to successfully defend her Jewels belt three times following her non-title win over Inoue (8-4-0 MMA) in 2011, but she vacated the championship in 2013 and took time off to recover from nagging injuries that were aggravated in a one-sided TKO loss to Claudia “Claudinha” Gadelha at Invicta FC 6. Since returning to action in August, Hamasaki has won back-to-back fights as an atomweight, and she next challenges Invicta FC Atomweight Champion Hérica Tibúrcio in July.

While she is coming off of a pair of decision defeats in the Invicta FC cage, Inoue has also achieved considerable success since losing to Hamasaki. The skilled striker became a two-time Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup 53.5kg champion in August 2013. One year later, she fulfilled her goal of winning a mixed martial arts title by submitting Emi Tomimatsu to become Deep Jewels Lightweight Champion. Inoue’s next MMA fight has not yet been set, but she will have an opportunity to get a measure of revenge against Hamasaki when the two face off under grappling rules next month.

Deep Jewels 8 takes place on May 31st at Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan. The event features the semi-finals and championship final of the inaugural Deep Jewels Featherweight Grand Prix tournament.

(Photo Credit: Esther Lin, AllElbows.com / InvictaFC.com)