Less than one week after Hitomi Akano announced her retirement from MMA, another former Smackgirl champ has also called it a career. Hiroko “Cat’s Eye” Yamanaka, who captured the Smackgirl open-weight title in 2007, confirmed her retirement this morning after seven years in the sport.
Yamanaka began contemplating her retirement following a January decision loss to Ediane Gomes at Invicta FC 4 that resulted in a concussion. Like her former rival Akano, Yamanaka also took time to consider her next move before ultimately deciding to step away from MMA as an active competitor.
Knockout artist Amanda “The Lioness” Nunes made a triumphant return to her home country tonight at UFC 163: “Aldo vs Korean Zombie” in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The 25-year-old kicked off her UFC career with a first-round TKO victory over fellow bantamweight Sheila “The German Tank” Gaff.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship made its return to HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil tonight for UFC 163: “Aldo vs Korean Zombie.” The event was headlined by a UFC Featherweight Championship bout between current champ José “Scarface” Aldo and “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung.
Former Strikeforce Women’s Featherweight Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino reclaimed the top spot at 145 pounds with another commanding win at Invicta Fighting Championships 6 on July 13th. Justino stopped Marloes “Rumina” Coenen to capture the inaugural Invicta FC featherweight title.
A non-tournament bout between two-time Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup finalist “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi and Du Peiling has been added to Saturday’s 2013 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Japan Midsummer Festival card in Tokyo, Japan. The three-round matchup was officially announced by the promotion today.
Former bantamweight title challenger Liz “Girl-Rilla” Carmouche earned her first UFC victory tonight at UFC on FOX 8: “Johnson vs Moraga” in Seattle, Washington. Carmouche stopped Octagon newcomer Jéssica “Bate Estaca” Andrade after dominating the second round of their main card bout.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington tonight for UFC on FOX 8: “Johnson vs Moraga.” The event was headlined by a UFC Flyweight Championship bout between champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and challenger John Moraga.
French-Canadian striker Valérie “Trouble” Létourneau makes her return to action on October 5th at Québec Mixed Martial Arts League 1 in Québec City, Québec. Létourneau will face former amateur standout Cassie Crisano in a bantamweight bout on the newly-formed promotion’s inaugural card.