South Korean star Seo Hee Ham defends her Deep Jewels Featherweight Championship for the first time at Deep Jewels 2 on November 4th in Tokyo, Japan. Ham is set to face prospect Sadae “Manhoef” Numata on the card. Deep Jewels officials announced the 106-pound title fight earlier today.
Ham captured what was then known as the Jewels Featherweight Queen Championship in May by defeating Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama on the final Jewels card. Her title carried over to Deep Jewels when the all-female promotion was formed earlier this year. Numata has won four straight fights.
Ham (11-5-0) has long been regarded as one of the most skilled female strikers in Asia, but major MMA titles remained just outside of her reach until this year. In two bids for the Jewels Lightweight Queen Championship at 114 pounds, Ham came up short against Ayaka Hamasaki. She did not compete at all in MMA in 2012, but returned to action in April with a quick submission win for the Gladiator promotion. On May 25th, Ham dropped down in weight and earned a close Unanimous Decision win over Sugiyama to become the final Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion.
Numata (5-1-1) got a late start in MMA, but the 41-year-old has proven during the past two years that she is a legitimate contender at 106 pounds in Japan. In 2012, Numata picked up back-to-back wins over teen prospect Shino VanHoose and ex-Valkyrie and Jewels mainstay Sachiko “Sachi” Yamamoto. On the inaugural Deep Jewels card on August 31st, Numata overcame two Yellow Cards for missing weight and eked out a Split Decision victory over Celine Haga to earn a shot at Ham’s title.
In addition to the Ham-Numata title bout, Deep Jewels 2 also features the opening round of the Deep Jewels lightweight tournament, which will crown a new champion at 114 pounds. Former titleholder Ayaka Hamasaki relinquished her belt this past month due to lingering injuries that will keep her out of action for the foreseeable future. Tournament participants are Emi “Kamikaze Angel” Fujino, Mika “Future Princess” Nagano, Mizuki Inoue and Emi Tomimatsu.
Deep Jewels 2 takes place on November 4th at Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan.