The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight for UFC 146: “Dos Santos vs Mir.” The all-heavyweight main card featured UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior “Cigano” dos Santos defending his title against former champ Frank Mir.

Also on tonight’s card, Cain Velasquez returned to action for the first time since November when he faced Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. Roy “Big Country” Nelson looked to rebound from a loss in February when he battled Dave Herman. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the UFC 146 card.

Read More…

Jewels Lightweight Queen Champion Ayaka Hamasaki retained her title in dominant fashion tonight at Jewels: “19th Ring” in Osaka, Japan. Hamasaki stayed unbeaten by submitting legendary foe Yuka “Vale Tudo Queen” Tsuji with a first-round Kimura in the main event of the inaugural Osaka card.

Elsewhere on the card tonight, Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama took a narrow Majority Decision win over rival Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada. The promotion plans to stage its next card in July and may showcase its first event in a cage at Differ Ariake in December.

Read More…

Japan’s all-female Jewels promotion held its first event outside of Tokyo tonight at Jewels: “19th Ring.” The card took place at Azalea Taisho Hall in Osaka and was headlined by a Jewels Lightweight Queen Championship battle between Ayaka Hamasaki and Yuka “Vale Tudo Queen” Tsuji.

In tonight’s MMA co-feature, Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama faced Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada in a non-title rematch from 2010, while Sachiko “Sachi” Yamamoto took on Sadae “Manhoef” Suzumura. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card from Osaka.

Read More…

In just 64 seconds, Kaiyana Rain spoiled opponent Jordan Nicole Gaza’s final amateur bout tonight at Tuff-N-Uff: “Festibrawl” in Las Vegas, Nevada. Rain submitted her 19-year-old adversary with a first-round guillotine choke to claim the newly vacated Tuff-N-Uff 115-pound women’s championship.

The 115-pound title was initially slated to be up for grabs in a different fight on the card, but a planned championship bout between titleholder Jillian “Justice” Lybarger and Stephanie “The Shark” Gonzalez was cancelled for the second consecutive time after Lybarger was unable to make weight.

Read More…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship showcases its first all-heavyweight main card tomorrow night at UFC 146: “Dos Santos vs Mir” in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the night’s main event, UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior “Cigano” dos Santos puts his title on the line against Frank Mir.

Also on the main card, former UFC champion Cain Velasquez looks to get himself back into title contention when he takes on Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. Roy Nelson battles Dave Herman and Lavar Johnson faces Stefan Struve. MMAGirls’ Joanne Spracklen previews tomorrow’s UFC 146 main card.

Read More…

Weigh-ins for tomorrow’s Jewels: “19th Ring” event were held at P’s LAB in Osaka, Japan on Friday. Headliners Ayaka Hamasaki and Yuka “Vale Tudo Queen” Tsuji successfully hit the marks for their Jewels Lightweight Queen Championship bout, which will be contested over three rounds.

Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama came in overweight for her non-title rematch with final Valkyrie titleholder Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada. Sugiyama will begin tomorrow’s co-main event bout with a yellow card. All other main card participants made weight without issue.

Read More…

Two of MMA’s top amateur prospects, Jessica Philippus and “Lightning” Liz McCarthy, will turn pro and face off in a 105-pound bout at Invicta Fighting Championships 2 on July 28th in Kansas City, Kansas. MMARising.com confirmed plans for the matchup with multiple sources this week.

Philippus brings a seven-fight winning streak into her pro debut and most recently captured her third amateur title with a first-round submission victory earlier this month. McCarthy has yet to taste defeat in her MMA career and holds three amateur championships in three different weight classes.

Read More…

A one-night kickboxing tournament and four additional bouts have been announced for Saturday’s Jewels: “19th Ring” event at Azalea Taisho Hall in Osaka, Japan. Tournament participants are Kaoru Chatani, Akari Nakamura, Megumi and Momoka. Semi-final matchups will be determined this week.

Also confirmed for the card was a mixed martial arts bout between veteran Mayumi “Super Benkei” Aoki and newcomer Keiko Tomita. Aoki returns to MMA competition for the first time since 2010. Rounding out the action on the night’s undercard will be a trio of amateur kickboxing matches.

Read More…