Following Sunday’s “Tenth Ring” event in Tokyo, Japan, a random drawing was held to determine the semi-final matchups in the inaugural Jewels Lightweight (115-Pound) Queen Tournament. The semi-finals and final will both take place at Jewels: “Eleventh Ring” on December 17th.
Returning to Jewels after a contract disagreement, South Korean standout Seo Hee Ham will face Jewels postergirl Mika “Future Princess” Nagano in one semi-final, while Ayaka Hamasaki takes on Sakura Nomura in the other. The December event will also conclude the 2010 Rough Stone Grand Prix.
The 2010 Jewels Rough Stone Grand Prix kicked off today at Jewels: “Tenth Ring” in Tokyo, Japan, with six fighters advancing on to the tournament final on December 17th. The event was headlined by a 58kg non-tournament bout that saw Miki Morifuji submit Aya “Ariya” Koyama in the first round.
Strikeforce returned to the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California tonight with a stacked card at Strikeforce: “Diaz vs Noons 2.” The event was headlined by a long-awaited rematch between champion Nick Diaz and challenger “King” KJ Noons for the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship.
After suffering a controversial Split Decision loss to Sean Sherk at UFC 119, Evan Dunham will have an even tougher test in his next fight. As reported this evening on MMA Live on ESPN2, Dunham and former title challenger Kenny “KenFlo” Florian have verbally agreed to square off in early 2011.
A mixed martial arts event scheduled for this Saturday in Macau has been cancelled amidst allegations that the promoter has embezzled nearly $13 million in Hong Kong currency. Damien Roche, the promoter and former Director of the Kontact MMA Training Center in Hong Kong, is in hiding.
At just 16 years of age, Mizuki Inoue will be the youngest participant in Sunday’s Rough Stone Grand Prix at Jewels: “Tenth Ring.” The kickboxer from Aichi, Japan enters the 56kg bracket of the tournament in her mixed martial arts debut against Abe Ani Combat Club prospect Emi Murata.
A light heavyweight bout between former champions Rich “Ace” Franklin and Forrest Griffin is in the works for a February 5th event tentatively titled UFC 127. MMAFighting.com first reported on the planned fight earlier today and bout agreements could be signed and made official soon.
Following a week of rumours, DEEP has officially confirmed that Japanese star Ikuhisa “Minowaman” Minowa will compete at DEEP: 50th Impact on October 24th. As usual, Minowa will face a much larger opponent when he takes on 300-pound South Korean super heavyweight Chang Hee Kim.