A four-woman tournament to crown a Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 125-pound women’s champion will begin on April 15, 2012 in Amman, Jordan. Cage Warriors officials confirmed the news with MMARising.com today and three of the four participants have already been determined.

Top UK star Rosi “The Surgeon” Sexton, who captured a 132-pound title in the promotion early in her career, will look for her second CWFC belt in the tournament. Sexton joins Irish standout Aisling “Ais The Bash” Daly and fast-rising prospect Sheila “The German Tank” Gaff as confirmed entrants.

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All main card fighters successfully made weight earlier today for Saturday’s Jewels: “17th Ring” card in Tokyo, Japan. The event features a Jewels Lightweight Queen Championship rematch between Ayaka Hamasaki and Seo Hee Ham, which will be contested over three, five-minute rounds.

A second champion will also be determined when the Jewels Featherweight Queen Grand Prix concludes on the card. Unbeaten prospect Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama faces rising star Kikuyo Ishikawa in one semi-final, while Misaki Takimoto clashes with fellow veteran Yukiko Seki in the other.

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Bushido FC women’s champion Yana “Foxy” Kunitskaya returns to action on February 11, 2012. The talented striker battles taekwondo and kickboxing champ Ekaterina Saraykina at Verdict Fighting Championship 1 in Moscow, Russia. Kunitskaya discussed the bout with MMARising.com today.

Kunitskaya has maintained an active schedule in both MMA and kickboxing dating back to her pro MMA debut in 2009. The 22-year-old has knocked out three straight opponents since her lone defeat last year. Saraykina makes her pro debut in the fight, but has considerable experience as an amateur.

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Spokane, Washington native Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Peña kept her unbeaten record intact tonight in front of a partisan hometown crowd. Peña submitted Canadian Rachael Swatez with a second-round guillotine choke at Conquest of the Cage in the nearby suburb of Airway Heights.

The road back to the cage was not an easy one for Peña, who endured a pair of serious knee injuries that kept her out of action for two full years. The 22-year-old has now won all three of her pro fights by stoppage and became the first woman to finish Swatez in seven career bouts with tonight’s win.

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Pro wrestling convert Kyoko Kimura returns to the Pancrase ring to face veteran Mizuho Sato at Pancrase Progress Tour 1 on January 28, 2012 in Tokyo, Japan. Kimura won her MMA debut last month and will move up in weight to face Sato. The women’s bout was officially announced today.

Kimura, famous for taking part in violent pro wrestling “deathmatches” in Japan, challenged MMA pioneer Megumi Yabushita in November and upset the veteran via doctor stoppage after round one. Sato campaigned in the Valkyrie open-weight title tournament last year, but fell short in the finals.

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Strikeforce heavyweight contender Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum is likely to make his return to the Octagon at UFC 143 on February 4th in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace is expected to face Roy “Big Country” Nelson on the card. MMAWeekly.com first reported the bout earlier today.

Werdum won three of his four Strikeforce fights after departing the UFC in late 2008. His most notable victory during that time came in the form of a shocking submission of Fedor Emelianenko in June 2010. Nelson has won three of five UFC fights and stopped Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipović in October.

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A late addition to this Saturday’s Jewels: “17th Ring” event has brought the all-female card to a total of 15 bouts. M-1 kickboxing champion Miiri Sasaki returns to Jewels to face Fuka Saito in a kickboxing matchup announced today. Jewels: “17th Ring” takes place at Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan.

Sasaki most recently took part in the semi-finals of the inaugural Jewels Under-15 Amateur Kickboxing Tournament, which began in September at “16th Ring.” Sasaki suffered a competitive decision loss to finalist Chihiro Imoto and now welcomes Saito to the Jewels ring in a two-round bout.

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Rivals Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort and Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva will serve as opposing coaches on the debut season of The Ultimate Fighter Brazil next year. UFC officials confirmed Belfort and Silva’s participation today. The competition is expected to begin on March 25, 2012.

Belfort and Silva first squared off over 13 years ago at UFC 17.5: “Ultimate Brazil,” where Belfort scored a 44-second TKO victory. The fighters will now coach opposing teams on TUF Brazil before facing off for the second time. In the interim, Belfort takes on Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 142.

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