2015 48kg Shoot Boxing Japan Girls S-Cup Champion Mio Tsumura aims to extend her six-fight winning streak when she returns to the ring on October 3rd at Shoot Boxing 2015: “The Last Bomb” in Osaka, Japan. Tsumura clashes with J-Girls mainstay Mari in a featured 48kg matchup on the card.
Tsumura captured this year’s 48kg Girls S-Cup Japan title on August 21st when she outlasted three opponents in one night including J-Girls champion Momi Furuta in the tournament final. Mari has struggled thus far in 2015 and she was eliminated by Furuta in the Girls S-Cup Japan quarterfinal round.
Tsumura (19-2-0 SB) has followed in the footsteps of mentor and four-time Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Champion Rena Kubota by becoming one of the top female stars on the Shoot Boxing roster. After winning back-to-back JKS48 high school girls’ tournament titles, Tsumura advanced to the finals of the 2014 48kg Shoot Boxing Japan Girls S-Cup before dropping a close decision to Yukari Yamaguchi. She rebounded with three straight victories leading into this year’s Girls S-Cup, where she defeated Emi Matsushita, “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi and Furuta in one night to claim the title.
Mari (3-7-2 SB/KB) looks to get her career back on track following a disappointing 2015 campaign that began with a February decision loss to Comachi in the opening round of a J-Girls pinweight tournament. She moved up in weight to the mini flyweight division to take part in a J-Girls tournament in June, but was once again eliminated in the opening round by Yuuki Kira. Undeterred, Mari took a big step up in competition for her shoot boxing debut this past month, but she was defeated by Furuta and now enters next weekend’s fight with Tsumura as a significant underdog.
Shoot Boxing 2015: “The Last Bomb” takes place on October 3rd at Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium in Namba, Osaka, Japan. The bout between Tsumura and Mari will be contested over three 3:00 rounds.
Hirofumi Sugi contributed to this report.
(Photo Credit: Shoot Boxing)