Sugiyama vs Yoshida, Taniyama vs Usui Set For Deep Jewels 2Two more fights have now been added to the upcoming Deep Jewels 2 card on November 4th in Tokyo, Japan. Former Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama looks to put an end to a three-fight losing skid when she takes on veteran journeywoman Masako Yoshida.

Deep Jewels officials announced the fight on Friday. Sugiyama relinquished her Jewels title to Seo Hee Ham in May. Yoshida most recently picked up a big victory over Satomi Takano at Deep Jewels 1. Also confirmed for the Deep Jewels 2 card is a fight between Naomi Taniyama and Tamaki Usui.

Sugiyama (8-3-0) began her MMA career for the Valkyrie promotion in 2009 and won three straight fights including a non-title win over then-champ Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada. Following Valkyrie’s collapse, Sugiyama transitioned to Jewels and earned two more wins. On December 17, 2011, she defeated Kikuyo Ishikawa and Misaki Takimoto to become the first Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion at 106 pounds. Sugiyama then defeated Tamada for a second time in a rematch five months later. She has since suffered three straight losses to ex-Invicta FC champ Jessica Penne, Celine Haga and Ham.

Yoshida (17-18-5) is one of the most experienced female fighters in MMA today. The ten-year veteran has battled a who’s who of the lighter weight classes throughout her career. Like Sugiyama, Yoshida also holds a pair of wins over Yasuko Tamada, and has also scored key victories over Ayumi “Edge” Saito, Emi Tomimatsu and Asami Kodera. After suffering a 2010 loss to current Invicta FC champion Michelle “The Karate Hottie” Waterson, Yoshida took a lengthy hiatus from fighting. She returned this year and is coming off of an impressive Unanimous Decision win over Takano in August.

Newcomers Taniyama (0-1-0) and Usui (0-0-0) each made two appearances apiece for Jewels before its closure earlier this year. Taniyama kicked off her MMA career with a quick technical submission victory over Nana “Chanchin” Ichikawa in a July 2012 amateur bout. She made her pro debut in December and succumbed to a second-round rear-naked choke from Mina Kurobe. Usui scored back-to-back armbar submission wins over Ichikawa in the amateur ranks and now competes as a pro for the first time.

Deep Jewels 2 takes place on November 4th at Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan. The event features a Deep Jewels Featherweight Championship bout between Seo Hee Ham and Sadae “Manhoef” Numata, as well as the opening round of the Deep Jewels lightweight title tournament.

 

 

(Photo Credit: Esther Lin, AllElbows.com / InvictaFC.com)