Fresh off of her Invicta FC 15 victory this past weekend, Deep Jewels Strawweight Champion Mizuki Inoue is set to compete again on March 6th at Deep Jewels 11 in Tokyo, Japan. Inoue faces off against highly-touted striker Nori Date in one of six new matchups announced for the card today.
Also confirmed for the March event is an atomweight bout between Inoue’s Hakushinkai teammate, J-Girls and Shoot Boxing champ Yukari Yamaguchi, and Hana Date, who won her Deep Jewels debut in November. In other 48kg action, title contender Mina Kurobe takes on newcomer Renju Date.
Inoue (10-4-0) captured Deep Jewels gold in August 2014 by submitting Emi Tomimatsu in a rematch from the pair’s controversial first fight six months earlier. She suffered two setbacks against undefeated standouts Karolina Kowalkiewicz and Alexa Grasso under the Invicta FC banner, but successfully retained her Deep Jewels title in an August trilogy fight against Emi “Kamikaze Angel” Fujino. This past weekend, Inoue submitted Lacey “The Ladie” Schuckman at Invicta FC 15, and she now seeks another win in her return to Deep Jewels.
Nori (0-1-0) gives up a wealth of experience to her opponent in March, but she put forth an excellent showing in defeat in her pro MMA debut at Deep Jewels 10. Facing off against former title challenger Fujino, Nori showcased solid takedown defence and some excellent striking skills, but Fujino controlled enough of the fight in the clinch and on the mat to earn a competitive decision win. In spite of the setback, Nori remains a strong young prospect for Deep Jewels, and she now looks to upset the world-renowned champion in non-title action.
Yamaguchi (1-0-0), much like teammate Inoue, has already captured multiple Shoot Boxing titles in her career and she added the prestigious J-Girls Mini Flyweight Championship to her collection in November. In MMA competition, the fast-rising star made her pro debut for Vale Tudo Japan in June and earned a quick and impressive first-round submission victory. Yamaguchi is arguably Japan’s brightest prospect since teammate Inoue turned pro in 2010, and she will take a step towards Deep Jewels atomweight title contention with a victory in March.
Hana (1-0-0) debuted alongside teammate Nori in November and many expected that she would be quickly overrun by her Deep Jewels 10 opponent, Pan Hui. Instead, Hana completely dominated the two-round bout and prevailed via a clear-cut Unanimous Decision. The victory established Hana as a legitimate prospect in the Deep Jewels atomweight division, but she will face an even tougher test in her second fight for the promotion. The 19-year-old now looks to score another significant upset by spoiling Yamaguchi’s Deep Jewels return.
Looking to rebound from the first two defeats of her career, Kurobe (5-2-0) welcomes actress-turned-fighter Renju (0-0-0) to the Deep Jewels ring. Kurobe opened her career with five straight victories before dropping decisions to current Deep Jewels champ “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi and former Jewels titleholder Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama. Renju, like her Team Date allies, brings a background in kickboxing into her Deep Jewels debut.
Rounding out the action so far at Deep Jewels 11, the aforementioned Pan “Kai” Hui (1-1-0) battles Real Date (0-0-0) in a professional atomweight bout, and Natsumi Sugie faces off against Kana Inamura in a 46kg amateur matchup. Tomo Maesawa meets Natsumi Mukai in a strawweight grappling match.
Deep Jewels 11 takes place on March 6th at Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan. The event features an atomweight contender’s bout between Emi Tomimatsu and Saori “Shooting Star” Ishioka.
(Photo Credit: Deep Jewels)