Japanese star Mika “Future Princess” Nagano has confirmed plans for her retirement from mixed martial arts in early 2014. Nagano is the latest in a string of recent retirees and she will compete in a final exhibition match at Deep Jewels 3 on February 16th in Tokyo. The news was announced today.
Deep Jewels producer Yasuko “Pink Spider” Mogi also retired from active competition today, and she has stepped down as the matchmaker for the all-female promotion. In two new bouts added to Deep Jewels 3, Shizuka Sugiyama faces Mizuho Sato and Sachiko Fujimori takes on Shiori Hori.
On Monday night, three-time Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Champion Rena Kubota picked up her eighth straight win at Shoot Boxing 2013: “Tomohiro Oikawa Retirement Event” in Osaka, Japan. Kubota stopped short-notice replacement opponent Yuri Kim in the late stages of the opening round.
On Saturday night, 19-year-old rising star Larissa Moreira Pacheco scored her biggest win to date at Jungle Fight 63 in Belém, Pará, Brazil. Pacheco stopped Mexican striker Irene Aldana in round three of the co-feature to win the inaugural Jungle Fight Women’s Bantamweight Championship.
Voting is now underway for the 2013 Women’s Mixed Martial Arts Awards. This year’s edition again features more than a dozen categories. These awards recognise notable achievements made by fighters, promotions and other individuals associated with the sport over the course of the past year.
Fresh off of a victory this past month, three-time Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup Champion Rena Kubota returns to the ring at Shoot Boxing 2013: “Tomohiro Oikawa Retirement Event” on December 23rd in Osaka, Japan. Kubota is set to face Korean kickboxing champion Jiwaen Lee on the card.
The inaugural WSOF Women’s Strawweight Championship will be up for grabs when top-ranked Jessica “Jag” Aguilar takes on fast-rising star Alida Gray at World Series of Fighting 8. The event takes place on January 18th at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Former Jewels title contender Kikuyo Ishikawa has officially retired from mixed martial arts competition. The 29-year-old Okinawan announced on Monday that she is married and expecting her first child, and confirmed that she will be moving on from MMA to pursue the next chapter in her life.
Flyweight prospect Tyra “The Honey Badger” Parker begins her move back down towards the strawweight division when she steps back into the cage at Gladiator Challenge: “Kaboom” on January 18th in El Cajon, California. Parker takes on former Tuff-N-Uff title contender Kristi “Violencia” Lopez.