On October 28, 2010, Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii suffered the first defeat of her storied mixed martial arts career. That Fujii was able to compete at all in 2010 was a remarkable feat in itself, however, as the Japanese submission ace suffered multiple serious injuries that had her on the verge of retirement.
Fighting through herniated discs in her back and a torn pectoralis major that made even walking and moving difficult, Fujii persevered and came painfully close to capturing Bellator’s first women’s title. In part one of an exclusive interview, Fujii speaks with MMARising.com about her 2010 campaign.
DREAM Lightweight Champion Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki is expected to make his return to the Strikeforce cage on April 9th against once-beaten prospect Lyle “Fancy Pants” Beerbohm. The matchup was first reported by MMA-Japan.com and has since been confirmed by multiple sources.
South Korean kickboxing star Seo Hee Ham won her third fight in a ten-day span on Sunday in Tokyo, Japan. Making a successful defence of her CMA KPW Women’s Lightweight Championship, Ham defeated Anna Saito via Unanimous Decision under mixed martial arts rules at Gladiator 15: “GI 2.”
Strikeforce came to the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio tonight with a double bill of title fights at Strikeforce: “Feijao vs Henderson.” The event was headlined by a Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship bout between champion Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante and Dan “Hendo” Henderson.
Multi-time boxing champion Holly “Hottie” Holm picked up her first mixed martial arts victory tonight with a convincing stoppage of tough challenger Christina “Machine Gun” Domke in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The featured bout was part of a solid card at Fresquez Productions: “Double Threat.”
An injury suffered in training has forced submission specialist Lisa Ward out of her main event bout against Ayaka Hamasaki at Jewels: “Twelfth Ring” on March 11th in Tokyo, Japan. Fellow 2010 Bellator tournament semi-finalist Jessica “Jag” Aguilar will now replace the injured Ward on the card.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship made its way to the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky this evening for UFC Live On Versus 3: “Sanchez vs Kampmann.” The event was headlined by a welterweight matchup between Diego “The Dream” Sanchez and Martin “The Hitman” Kampmann.
Two additional matchups have been announced for the upcoming Jewels: “Twelfth Ring” card on March 11th in Tokyo, Japan. Club Barbarian prospect Sakura Nomura will look to rebound from the first defeat of her career when she welcomes Korean boxer Ji Yun Kim to Jewels in Kim’s MMA debut.