Leading Japanese women's promoter Jewels held its 10th event Sunday at Shinkiba 1st Ring, Tokyo with the rookie tournament style "Rough Stone GP" being the focus with semifinal bouts in three different weight classes.
Undefeated Jewels Lightweight GP participants Sakura Nomura and Ayaka Hamazaki were also on display as they picked up victories in a Shootboxing bout and one day grappling tournament respectively and Jewels poster girl Saori Ishioka took a narrow decision over the Joachim Hansen-trained Celine Haga.
After a brief feeling out period, Celine Haga started to have success with punches down the middle, leading Saori Ishioka to look for the hip-toss into half guard. Haga immediately was able to reverse the position and attempted to work some punches to the body but the bout was returned to the feet just as Ishioka was attempting an armbar from guard. Ishioka quickly returned to the mat with a inside trip, but Haga was good enough to spin to land on top in half guard were the round ended.
In the second round, Ishioka was more successful with takedowns but gave up position with weak kimura and armbar attempts. Haga was unable to capitalize on the opportunities presented by the missed submissions though and Ishioka retook dominant positions at will to take the round.
Despite clearly taking one round each, Ishioka was awarded the unanimous decision. The bout was originally booked to decide a replacement for lightweight GP tournament front-runner Seo Hee Ham as the Korean was released from the promotion after scheduling a pair of kick boxing matches against male pro-wrestlers. That decision was reversed though and Ham will continue to the semifinals in December.
In the evening's main event, T-Blood prospect Miki Morifuji spoiled the MMA return of pro-wrestler Aya "Ariya" Koyama with a rear-naked choke early in round one. Koyama looked like she was showing little ring rust considering her six-year layoff as she held her own in the striking department and sprawled well on a Morifuji double leg. That sprawl led to end of her night though as Morifuji managed to sit out and take Ariya's back where she quickly secured a body triangle and the fight-finishing choke.
Jewels Lightweight GP semifinalist Sakura Nomura utilized her judo to take an easy unanimous decision over Yoshimi "Akira" Ohama in the night's sole Shootboxing rules bout. Nomura consistently landed hip tosses and outer reaps against her hapless opponent, picking up three shoot points in the first and second rounds. Nomura came close with two head-arm triangles but was thwarted when the fighters fell to the canvas, and despite a lack of definitive striking, Nomura's grappling was enough to take all three rounds on all the cards.
In a 52kg Rough Stone GP semi-final bout, Mai Ichii's triangle kept the hard-hitting Miyo Yoshida tied up for almost two full rounds to give her the unanimous decision. Yoshida barely got a chance to flex her standup as Ichii pulled guard into a triangle that kept her occupied for the majority of the first and second rounds. Although she wasn't able to finish the submission Ichii was effective enough to easily advance to the finals of the tournament in December.
In the other 52kg Rough Stone GP semi-final, Hiroko Kitamura threatened the arms of AACC's Rina Tomita enough to take the unanimous decision. Kitamura had a slight edge on the feet and Tomita's wrestling countered it effectively but once on the mat, Tomita found herself defending countless armbars from guard and unable to mount any offense giving Kitamura the decision.
The second 48kg Rough Stone GP semi-final saw Yukiko Seki and Yoko Kagoshima flail at each other for two rounds in a scrappy bout. A pair of takedowns saw Seki win all three judges favor to pick up her seventh win in 26 outings and to move on to the GP finals.
In the first 48kg Rough Stone GP semifinal, Kikuyo Ishikawa and Misaki "Patora" Ozawa had an entertaining exchange on the feet with both fighters throwing a high volume of punches and landing hard kicks to the body and legs but a takedown followed by a quick armbar from Ishikawa put an end to that action in the first round.
In the second 56kg Rough Stone GP semifinal bout, Megumi Fujii-trained Emi Murata was upset by debuting 16-year-old kickboxing convert Mizuki Inoue. Murata utilized push kicks to keep her shorter opponent at bay and then looked to pull guard when Inoue got inside but on the ground it proved to be more competitive than anticipated. Inoue fought off first-round triangle and armbar attempts and three minutes into the second round managed to snag her own armbar from side control after working her way past Murata's guard.
In the first Rough Stone 56kg GP bout, Asako Saioka displayed no respect for Harumi's skills, completely ignoring Harumi's attempts at counter striking as she walked forward throwing power punches. Two and a half minutes in Saioka landed a left hook that fell Harumi, sending her face first to the mat for her 16th consecutive loss without ever tasting victory.
The Rough Stone GP finals to be held in December at Korakuen Hall will now feature Mizuki Inoue vs. Asko Saioka at 56kg, Mai Ichii vs. Hiroko Kitamura at 52kg and Yukiko Seki vs. Kikuyo Ishikawa at 48kg.
The pairings for the semi-final bouts for December's lightweight GP semifinals were also decided with Ayaka Hamazaki and Sakura Nomura clashing in one bracket and Mika Nagano and Seo Hee Ham in the other.
In the one day grappling tournament, Deep Gym prospect Yuko "Amiba" Aya found her positionally dominated in the first round after missing an armbar/omo-plata but in the second stanza secured the armbar against Redips' Asami Kodera.
In the other side of the grappling bracket, Megumi Fujii-trained Jewels lightweight GP semi-finalist Ayaka Hamazaki had little trouble with Emi Tomimatsu, dispatching her with a second-round armbar after narrowly missing with armbars and triangles in the first.
In the grappling tournament final, Yuko "Amiba" Aya was outclassed by Ayaka Hamazaki, falling victim to a slick hip-toss to armbar transition in the first round after barely escaping a figure-four from side control only moments earlier.
Jewels 10th Ring – October 10th, Shinkiba 1st Ring, Tokyo, Japan
Miki Morifuji def. Aya "Ariya" Koyama by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) – Round 1, 1.51
Saori Ishioka def. Celine Haga by Unanimous Decision
Shootboxing Rules
Sakura Nomura def. Yoshimi "Akira" Ohama by Unanimous Decision
Rough Stone 52kg 2010 GP Semi-Final Bouts
Mai Ichii def. Miyo Yoshida by Unanimous Decision
Hiroko Kitamura def. Rina Tomita by Unanimous Decision
Rough Stone 48kg 2010 GP Semi-Final Bouts
Yukiko Seki def. Yoko Kagoshima by Unanimous Decision
Kikuyo Ishikawa def. Misaki "Patora" Ozawa by Submission (Armbar) – Round 1, 2.24
Rough Stone 56kg 2010 GP Semi-Final Bouts
Mizuki Inoue def. Emi Murata by Submission (Armbar) – Round 2, 2.58
Asako Saioka def. Harumi by KO (Left Hook) – Round 1, 2.31
Jewels Grappling One Day Tournament Semi-Finals
Ayaka Hamazaki def. Emi Tomimatsu by Submission (Armbar) – Round 2
Yuko "Amiba" Aya def. Asami Kodera by Submission (Armbar) – Round 2
Jewels Grappling One Day Tournament Finals
Ayaka Hamazaki def. Yuko "Amiba" Aya by Submission (Armbar) – Round 1
Undefeated Jewels Lightweight GP participants Sakura Nomura and Ayaka Hamazaki were also on display as they picked up victories in a Shootboxing bout and one day grappling tournament respectively and Jewels poster girl Saori Ishioka took a narrow decision over the Joachim Hansen-trained Celine Haga.
After a brief feeling out period, Celine Haga started to have success with punches down the middle, leading Saori Ishioka to look for the hip-toss into half guard. Haga immediately was able to reverse the position and attempted to work some punches to the body but the bout was returned to the feet just as Ishioka was attempting an armbar from guard. Ishioka quickly returned to the mat with a inside trip, but Haga was good enough to spin to land on top in half guard were the round ended.
In the second round, Ishioka was more successful with takedowns but gave up position with weak kimura and armbar attempts. Haga was unable to capitalize on the opportunities presented by the missed submissions though and Ishioka retook dominant positions at will to take the round.
Despite clearly taking one round each, Ishioka was awarded the unanimous decision. The bout was originally booked to decide a replacement for lightweight GP tournament front-runner Seo Hee Ham as the Korean was released from the promotion after scheduling a pair of kick boxing matches against male pro-wrestlers. That decision was reversed though and Ham will continue to the semifinals in December.
In the evening's main event, T-Blood prospect Miki Morifuji spoiled the MMA return of pro-wrestler Aya "Ariya" Koyama with a rear-naked choke early in round one. Koyama looked like she was showing little ring rust considering her six-year layoff as she held her own in the striking department and sprawled well on a Morifuji double leg. That sprawl led to end of her night though as Morifuji managed to sit out and take Ariya's back where she quickly secured a body triangle and the fight-finishing choke.
Jewels Lightweight GP semifinalist Sakura Nomura utilized her judo to take an easy unanimous decision over Yoshimi "Akira" Ohama in the night's sole Shootboxing rules bout. Nomura consistently landed hip tosses and outer reaps against her hapless opponent, picking up three shoot points in the first and second rounds. Nomura came close with two head-arm triangles but was thwarted when the fighters fell to the canvas, and despite a lack of definitive striking, Nomura's grappling was enough to take all three rounds on all the cards.
In a 52kg Rough Stone GP semi-final bout, Mai Ichii's triangle kept the hard-hitting Miyo Yoshida tied up for almost two full rounds to give her the unanimous decision. Yoshida barely got a chance to flex her standup as Ichii pulled guard into a triangle that kept her occupied for the majority of the first and second rounds. Although she wasn't able to finish the submission Ichii was effective enough to easily advance to the finals of the tournament in December.
In the other 52kg Rough Stone GP semi-final, Hiroko Kitamura threatened the arms of AACC's Rina Tomita enough to take the unanimous decision. Kitamura had a slight edge on the feet and Tomita's wrestling countered it effectively but once on the mat, Tomita found herself defending countless armbars from guard and unable to mount any offense giving Kitamura the decision.
The second 48kg Rough Stone GP semi-final saw Yukiko Seki and Yoko Kagoshima flail at each other for two rounds in a scrappy bout. A pair of takedowns saw Seki win all three judges favor to pick up her seventh win in 26 outings and to move on to the GP finals.
In the first 48kg Rough Stone GP semifinal, Kikuyo Ishikawa and Misaki "Patora" Ozawa had an entertaining exchange on the feet with both fighters throwing a high volume of punches and landing hard kicks to the body and legs but a takedown followed by a quick armbar from Ishikawa put an end to that action in the first round.
In the second 56kg Rough Stone GP semifinal bout, Megumi Fujii-trained Emi Murata was upset by debuting 16-year-old kickboxing convert Mizuki Inoue. Murata utilized push kicks to keep her shorter opponent at bay and then looked to pull guard when Inoue got inside but on the ground it proved to be more competitive than anticipated. Inoue fought off first-round triangle and armbar attempts and three minutes into the second round managed to snag her own armbar from side control after working her way past Murata's guard.
In the first Rough Stone 56kg GP bout, Asako Saioka displayed no respect for Harumi's skills, completely ignoring Harumi's attempts at counter striking as she walked forward throwing power punches. Two and a half minutes in Saioka landed a left hook that fell Harumi, sending her face first to the mat for her 16th consecutive loss without ever tasting victory.
The Rough Stone GP finals to be held in December at Korakuen Hall will now feature Mizuki Inoue vs. Asko Saioka at 56kg, Mai Ichii vs. Hiroko Kitamura at 52kg and Yukiko Seki vs. Kikuyo Ishikawa at 48kg.
The pairings for the semi-final bouts for December's lightweight GP semifinals were also decided with Ayaka Hamazaki and Sakura Nomura clashing in one bracket and Mika Nagano and Seo Hee Ham in the other.
In the one day grappling tournament, Deep Gym prospect Yuko "Amiba" Aya found her positionally dominated in the first round after missing an armbar/omo-plata but in the second stanza secured the armbar against Redips' Asami Kodera.
In the other side of the grappling bracket, Megumi Fujii-trained Jewels lightweight GP semi-finalist Ayaka Hamazaki had little trouble with Emi Tomimatsu, dispatching her with a second-round armbar after narrowly missing with armbars and triangles in the first.
In the grappling tournament final, Yuko "Amiba" Aya was outclassed by Ayaka Hamazaki, falling victim to a slick hip-toss to armbar transition in the first round after barely escaping a figure-four from side control only moments earlier.
Jewels 10th Ring – October 10th, Shinkiba 1st Ring, Tokyo, Japan
Miki Morifuji def. Aya "Ariya" Koyama by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) – Round 1, 1.51
Saori Ishioka def. Celine Haga by Unanimous Decision
Shootboxing Rules
Sakura Nomura def. Yoshimi "Akira" Ohama by Unanimous Decision
Rough Stone 52kg 2010 GP Semi-Final Bouts
Mai Ichii def. Miyo Yoshida by Unanimous Decision
Hiroko Kitamura def. Rina Tomita by Unanimous Decision
Rough Stone 48kg 2010 GP Semi-Final Bouts
Yukiko Seki def. Yoko Kagoshima by Unanimous Decision
Kikuyo Ishikawa def. Misaki "Patora" Ozawa by Submission (Armbar) – Round 1, 2.24
Rough Stone 56kg 2010 GP Semi-Final Bouts
Mizuki Inoue def. Emi Murata by Submission (Armbar) – Round 2, 2.58
Asako Saioka def. Harumi by KO (Left Hook) – Round 1, 2.31
Jewels Grappling One Day Tournament Semi-Finals
Ayaka Hamazaki def. Emi Tomimatsu by Submission (Armbar) – Round 2
Yuko "Amiba" Aya def. Asami Kodera by Submission (Armbar) – Round 2
Jewels Grappling One Day Tournament Finals
Ayaka Hamazaki def. Yuko "Amiba" Aya by Submission (Armbar) – Round 1