Kickboxing prodigy Saya Ito will make her long-awaited professional debut on April 27th at Muaylok 2014: 1st in Tokyo, Japan. The 15-year-old “Muay Thai Genius” is set to face off against once-beaten South Korean prospect Hye-Young Park in a five-round bout on the event’s featured main card.

Ito is one of Japan’s most decorated female kickboxers and she has captured numerous titles during her 11-year career that dates back to the young age of four. The 93-fight veteran now makes her domestic pro debut against Park, who brings an impressive record into her first fight in Japan.

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Japanese star Shizuka Sugiyama and former Strikeforce title challenger Takayo Hashi will face off for the inaugural Deep Jewels Middleweight Championship at Deep Jewels 4 on May 18th in Tokyo. The 135-pound matchup was officially announced during a press conference today.

Sugiyama returned to the win column after fighting to a disappointing Draw with Ji-Yeon Kim in November by stopping Mizuho Sato in just 75 seconds at Deep Jewels 3. Hashi stepped back into action this month following a two-year hiatus and she also fought to a two-round Draw against Kim.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to Nélio Dias Gymnasium in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil tonight for UFC Fight Night 38: “Shogun vs Henderson 2.” The event was headlined by a light heavyweight rematch between ex-champ Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Dan “Hendo” Henderson.

Also on the card, Cezar “Mutante” Ferreira battled C.B. “The Doberman” Dollaway in the middleweight co-feature. Leonardo Santos faced off against “Stormin'” Norman Parke in lightweight action and Fabio Maldonado took on Gian Villante at 205. MMARising.com has play-by-play for the main card.

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A second women’s bantamweight bout between Amanda “Lioness” Nunes and Alexis Dufresne has been added to UFC on FOX 11: “Werdum vs Browne” on April 19th in Orlando, Florida. Globo first reported on plans for the matchup between Nunes and UFC newcomer Dufresne on Saturday.

Nunes has posted a pair of quick and impressive first-round TKO victories in both of her UFC appearances to date and she has won three of her past four fights overall. California’s Dufresne remains unbeaten in her five-fight MMA career and she has yet to see the second round as a professional.

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Deep Jewels Featherweight Champion Seo Hee Ham competes in her home country for the first time in her MMA career at Road Fighting Championship Korea 3: “Nations Fight: Korea vs Brazil” on April 6th in Seoul, South Korea. Ham is scheduled to face teen prospect Shino VanHoose on the card.

The 105-pound bout between Ham and VanHoose was officially confirmed this week following an announcement from VanHoose. Ham has won three straight fights and captured Jewels title gold in May. VanHoose recently relocated to the U.S. and she competes for the first time since late 2012.

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Former flyweight contender Kalindra Faria made a successful XFC debut tonight at XFC International 2 in Osasco, São Paulo, Brazil. Faria extended her current winning streak to nine by defeating Aline Sério in a strawweight rematch from the pair’s Pink Fight title bout just over two years ago.

Faria and Sério battled back and forth throughout tonight’s three-round rematch, but it was Faria’s takedowns and clinch control that gave her an early edge on the scorecards. Sério performed well in round three and she threatened with a late guillotine, but Faria took home a well-deserved win.

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Brazilian rising star Jéssica “Bate Estaca” Andrade picked up her second Octagon victory tonight at UFC 171: “Hendricks vs Lawler” in Dallas, Texas. The 22-year-old Andrade narrowly edged out TUF 18 semi-finalist Raquel “Rocky” Pennington in an action-packed three-round war at 135 pounds.

Andrade pressed the action with strikes and takedowns throughout the first two rounds, but Pennington came on strong late in the middle stanza and nearly finished the fight with a guillotine choke. Following a razor-thin third round, Andrade emerged victorious with a close win on the scorecards.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned to American Airlines Arena in Dallas, Texas tonight for UFC 171: “Hendricks vs Lawler.” The event was headlined by a five-round UFC Welterweight Championship bout between top contenders Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks and “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler.

In tonight’s co-main event, “The Natural Born Killer” Carlos Condit faced off against Tyron “The Chosen One” Woodley in a welterweight title eliminator. Diego “The Dream” Sanchez battled Myles “The Fury” Jury in a lightweight showdown. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for tonight’s card.

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