Two-time Shoot Boxing JKS48 tournament winner Mio Tsumura looks for her second straight victory when she steps back into action on February 21st at Shoot Boxing 2015: Act.1 in Tokyo, Japan. Tsumura is set to battle J-Girls mini flyweight contender Miho Matsuda in a featured 48kg matchup.
Officials announced plans for the fight this past weekend. Tsumura recently got back on the winning track in September following a disappointing defeat in the finals of the 2014 Shoot Boxing Japan 48kg Girls S-Cup. Matsuda dropped a decision to J-Girls rival Anna Shiratsuki in a July rematch.
Tsumura (14-2-0 SB) has followed in the footsteps of her mentor and teammate, Rena Kubota, en route to becoming one of the most popular and successful female shoot boxers in Japan. The talented young fighter won back-to-back Shoot Boxing JKS48 high school girls’ tournaments in 2012 and 2013, and brought a five-fight winning streak into the all-Japan Girls S-Cup this past August. However, after moving on to the tournament final, Tsumura was narrowly defeated by teen prodigy Yukari Yamaguchi in a bout that required two extension rounds. She rebounded with a win over Hana Date the following month.
Matsuda (10-10-3 KB) is one of the more experienced fighters on the current J-Girls roster and she remains a top contender in the competitive mini flyweight division. After suffering a decision loss to current J-Girls champ Momi in a five-round rematch in late 2012, Matsuda bounced back with victories in three of her next four fights. A key win over Miyako “Smile” Mitsuhori propelled Matsuda into a J-Girls mini flyweight title eliminator bout this past July, but she was defeated by Shiratsuki in a rematch from two years prior. She now transitions to shoot boxing in hopes of upsetting Tsumura in two weeks.
Shoot Boxing 2015: Act.1 takes place on February 21st at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan.
(Photo Credit: Shoot Boxing)