Two-time Shoot Boxing JKS48 tournament champion Mio Tsumura earned her fifth straight victory on Sunday night at Shoot Boxing 2014: Act.1 in Tokyo, Japan. The 18-year-old rising star posted a hard-fought Unanimous Decision win over Akari “Eneos” Nakamura in a rematch from August 2012.
Tsumura’s mentor, three-time Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Champion Rena Kubota, was set to compete on Sunday’s card, but her bout was scrapped when Katie Klimansky-Casimir encountered immigration issues. A fight between Ai Takahashi and Miyumi Takahashi was cancelled due to illness.
Tsumura (12-1-0 SB) blocked and parried straight left hands from Nakamura (7-6-1 SB/KB) early in the fight and she countered with quick kicks to the body. Nakamura continued to throw left straights from a southpaw stance, but Tsumura kept the pressure on with body kicks and one-two combos. Nakamura sidestepped punches and stayed on the outside in the final minute.
Early in round two, Tsumura scored with kicks and knees to the body. Nakamura tried to counter with punches, but Tsumura avoided them and landed more kicks to the lead leg and body. Nakamura circled to her right and Tsumura threw looping hooks. A big knee to the body hurt Nakamura and Tsumura rushed in with punches. She continued to target Nakamura’s midsection with kicks until the bell.
Nakamura looked to score points in the final round after struggling in round two, but Tsumura blocked her jabs and answered back with leg kicks. She backed Nakamura into a corner and landed punch-kick combinations that kept Nakamura on the defensive. The fighters traded punches in a lengthy exchange and Tsumura attempted a throw just before the bell, but time expired.
One judge scored the competitive bout 30-28, while the remaining two each had it 30-29. All three saw it in favour of Tsumura, who took the Unanimous Decision win and extended her winning streak to five.
Sunday’s card was originally scheduled to feature two additional women’s bouts, but both fights were scrapped in the hours prior to the event. Kubota (24-5-1 SB/KB), who is one of the promotion’s biggest stars, was left without a fight when opponent Klimansky-Casimir (0-0-0 SB) ran into immigration issues after arriving in Japan and was not cleared to compete.
Former Shoot Boxing Japan Women’s Flyweight Champion Ai Takahashi (18-5-0 SB/KB) also found herself without an opponent when her planned foe, Miyumi Takahashi (1-3-0 SB/KB), fell ill shortly before the show began. With no time left to find a replacement fighter, the Takahashi-Takahashi fight was subsequently cancelled as a result.
(Photo Credit: Shoot Boxing)