The newly-created Deep Jewels Featherweight Championship will be up for grabs on May 8th at Deep Jewels 37 in Tokyo, Japan. Yoko Higashi makes her promotional debut in the title fight, as she faces “King” Reina Miura in a rematch from the pair’s first bout at Deep: “101 Impact” this past June.
Deep Jewels officials announced the title fight and two additional matchups this week. Mika “Future Princess” Nagano faces Kate “Lotus” Oyama at strawweight, and Momoko Yamazaki takes on Kyoka “Chibisai” Minagawa in a 44.5kg bout. The event also features the Flyweight Grand Prix Final.
Higashi (6-2-0) debuted for Pancrase in December 2017 and won five of seven bouts for the promotion during the next three years. She made her Deep debut in the first fight with Miura, which was contested almost entirely on the feet. Miura finished strong in the opening round, but Higashi battered and bloodied her nose and mouth in rounds two and three en route to a well-earned Unanimous Decision win. Higashi has not fought since then, but she will now look to make it two-for-two against Miura and capture Deep Jewels title gold in the process.
Miura (13-4-0) has developed a considerable fan following during her five-plus years as a professional, thanks largely to her six appearances for Rizin. She won her first three fights for the promotion, but suffered decision losses in each of her next three Rizin bouts. She returned to Deep Jewels in February 2020 and has since won two bouts under the Deep Jewels banner, with the decision loss to Higashi coming in between. Miura will put her perfect 9-0 Deep Jewels record on the line in May when she faces Higashi in the championship rematch.
In a bout between two of the most popular Deep Jewels fighters, long-time Jewels and Deep Jewels star Mika “Future Princess” Nagano (16-12-1) returns to the cage to face prospect Kate “Lotus” Oyama (2-2-0), who will make her strawweight debut. Nagano has not competed since she dropped a decision to future Deep Jewels strawweight champ Miki Motono in June 2019. The veteran grappler returns to take on Oyama, who is coming off of a notable win over Deep Jewels Flyweight GP semi-finalist Aoi Kuriyama this past December.
Yamazaki (2-2-0) has been absent from Deep Jewels since October 2020 when she evened her pro record with a Unanimous Decision win over Sae Kokuho at Deep Jewels 30. The diminutive fighter will have a rare size and height advantage against the smaller Minagawa (0-2-0), who remains in search of her first professional victory. She most recently succumbed to a first-round armbar from Aya Murakami at Deep Jewels 34 in September.
Deep Jewels 37 takes place on May 8th at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. The event will feature the semi-finals and championship final of the Deep Jewels Flyweight Grand Prix, as Rin Nakai, Shizuka Sugiyama, Aoi Kuriyama and Tae “Te-a” Murayama compete to become Deep Jewels Flyweight Champion. Semi-final grand prix matchups will be announced at a later date.
(Photo Credit: Deep Jewels)