Fresh off of her title win in September, WPMF women’s pinweight champ Saya Ito returns to action on December 19th at Martial Arts Tournament 1 in Tokyo, Japan. Ito is set to battle fellow 16-year-old Rojana, a Thai champion who has yet to taste defeat, in one of four women’s bouts on the card.

Also confirmed for the MAT 1 card is a featured matchup between current WPMF and J-Girls Bantamweight Champion Madoka Jinnai and Kwanchai Sor.Tawanrung. J-Girls Flyweight Champion Rena Matsuda faces Lorena “Lady Pitbull” Klijn, and “Crusher” Keiko Matsukawa takes on Mizuno Shiho.

Ito (78-12-3 amateur, 10-2-1 pro) is one of the most accomplished teen kickboxers in Japan today. At just 16 years of age, Ito has captured numerous belts throughout her career, including both the WPMF Japan and World women’s pinweight titles. She captured the latter championship on September 27th by defeating Little Tiger. Her opponent next month, Rojana (16-0-0), brings an undefeated record into the fight. The Phuket Girls Pinweight Champion has dominated her division in Thailand and now takes a big step up in competition to face Ito in Tokyo.

Jinnai (19-5-1) is also coming off of a WPMF title victory in September. Competing on the same card as Ito, Jinnai retained her WPMF Japan Women’s Bantamweight Championship by defeating rival Yoko Odamaki for a third time. She also holds the prestigious J-Girls bantamweight title. Sor.Tawanrung is a skilled Muay Thai striker who excels in the clinch. She is the reigning WMC Women’s Bantamweight Champion and looks to pick up the biggest victory of her career when she travels to Japan next month.

Matsuda (13-1-4) seeks to add another championship title to her collection when she takes on Klijn in a WBKF Women’s Flyweight Championship match. Matsuda presently holds the J-Girls flyweight title and she is one of the promotion’s most talented competitors. She recently fought to a Majority Draw against Kumi Namba this past month. Klijn first made headlines in Japan in 2013 when she took Shoot Boxing superstar Rena Kubota to a four-round decision in a closely-contested bout during the Girls S-Cup event. Her highly aggressive style made a lasting impact with the Japanese fans.

Rounding out the action, Matsukawa and Shiho will face off in a three-round bantamweight bout. Matsukawa is currently the #2-ranked contender in the J-Girls bantamweight division, while Shiho holds the #5 spot. Both look to put themselves in J-Girls title contention with impressive victories next month.

Martial Arts Tournament 1 takes place on December 19th at Differ Ariake in Tokyo, Japan.

(Photo Credit: Hirofumi Sugi)