Grappling Rules: Brittany Ann Decker vs. Haruka Kojima R2 0:33
Sachiko Fujimori vs. Shiori Hori R2 0:23
Yuko Oya vs. Mamiko Mizoguchi R1 4:31
Masako Yoshida vs. Miyoko Kusaka 2R unanimous decision
Naho Sugiyama vs. Satomi Takano 2R split decision
Shizuka Sugiyama vs. Mizuho Sato R1 1:15
Lightweight Grand Prix Final: Emi Tomimatsu vs. Mizuki Inoue R3 3:57
Shiori Hori vs. Maya Dobashi 4:43 R1
Naomi Taniyama vs. Yuko Takagi 2R Unanimous Dec
Ayaka Miura vs. Ella Wu 1:26 R1
Tomo Maesawa vs. Brittany Decker 2R Unanimous Dec
Mei Yamaguchi vs. Yukiko Seki 3:17 R1
Saori Ishioka vs. Satomi Takano 4:44 R1
Takayo Hashi vs. Shizuka Sugiyama 4:20 R3
Miyoko Kusaka vs. Tamaki Usui 2:40 R2. Usui was more comfortable in standup, but got a takedown into mount late in the 1st & really worked Usui over with rapid fire volume punching. Usui was again winning the standup battle in the 2nd, as her right hand is faster & more fluid. However, Usui dropped under one for the takedown, mounted with ease & quickly armbarred Usui for the win. Above average match.
Mina Kurobe vs. Masako Yoshida 2R Unanimous Dec. Comprehensive wrestling for MMA domination by Kurobe. She had enough standup to close the distance, then got the underhook & the head under the chin & applied relentless pressure. Kurobe had a some ground & pound in the first, but it was mostly just the suffocating clinch work that won her the fight. Yoshida never really had the space to get any kind of offense going. Below average match.
Yuko Oya vs. Sachiko Fujimori 2R Unanimous Dec. Some matches are good mainly because of how much both competitors want to win. Oya had the wrestling to run away with this, but Fujimori didn't allow her to play the frontrunner. She matched her cardio, & worked to create openings to gain control, generally seizing them. Oya was relentless with her grappling, getting the takedown, and then another whenever Fujimori managed to get back to her feet. Fujimori was behind early & often, and when Oya was battering Fujimori with mount punches, you thought she could easily just call it a night. However, she gave her back, & when Oya tried to finish with an armbar, Fujimori slipped out & finally took control. Just when you were ready to write Fujimori off, she took Oya's back on a reversal & tried for a rear naked choke. The second round was a lot better than the first because they began going back & forth, with an increasingly desperate Fujimori trying to catch Oya in a submission whether she was on the top or the bottom because Oya's control was going to be too much for her to win a decision. I really liked the intensity & urgency both women fought with. Neither were willing to relax & settle into a position, they kept trying to improve & finish, and sometimes that got them countered, but it opened up a lot of opportunities that wouldn't have been there otherwise. Though Oya won the fight, Fujimori earned a ton of respect because she was such a game opponent who made it as tough for Oya as one could when being at such a deficit because Oya's wrestling, and the constant smothering pressure she applied with it, just made it so tough for Fujimori to ever gain, much less sustain any kind of advantage. Good match.
Ayaka Hamasaki vs. Naho Sugiyama 4:01 R1. A total beatdown. Sugiyama was trying to slip left to stay away from Hamasaki's left hand, but Hamasaki quickly adjusted and began catching her moving into the right hook. That was a really bad early sign for Sugiyama because standup is the spot where she had a chance. Once Hamasaki shifted to her grappling game, the rout was on. Hamasaki was working from side mount, and once she trapped Sugiyama's left arm between her legs it was one free punch to the face after another, bloodying Sugiyama. Sugiyama did eventually get her left arm free so she could defend, but Hamasaki soon had an even better position, using her left hand to hold Sugiyama's left arm behind her back in a Kimura while she freely punched away with her left hand until the ref took pity on Sugiyama.
JEWELS Lightweight Title Match: Emi Tomimatsu vs. Mizuki Inoue 1:33 R3. A rematch of the JEWELS Lightweight Grand Prix Final where Inoue stopped Tomimatsu late in the 3rd, but Tomimatsu was still awarded the victory & thus the title because Inoue didn't make weight (both fought knowing Inoue was already DQ'd). Good standup fight, with consistent action & a generally solid level of skill & intensity. Tomimatsu is quick & fluid, but rather predictable sliding to the left & jabbing. Inoue's movement is less obvious, but she finds different & more direct angles to land more powerful punches. Inoue isn't as active, but she's accurate, and her shots connect solidly. Tomimatsu did more moving, but Inoue established a series of kicks - front & inside leg - to make her think twice about closing the distance, which Tomimatsu had to do because she had the reach disadvantage. Inoue grew more confident in coming forward as the fight progressed because Tomimatsu lacked the power to keep her back. Tomimatsu has a nice looking jab, but it can be walked right through & her right hand follow isn't that accurate & is mostly an arm punch. Tomimatsu was the 1st to try to take it to the ground, beginning to get desperate, but Inoue defended and soon got the takedown of her own. Once Inoue got it to the ground, she quickly finished with an armbar counter to a side sweep. Good match.
Yukiko Seki vs. Naomi Taniyama 1:17 R2. Taniyama is listed at 5'1" to Seki's 4'10", but Seki was lucky to be up to Taniyama's collarbone. Taniyama had no idea how to capitalize on her huge reach advantage, and instead it was Seki taking little hops forward the entire night & punching away while Taniyama could only backpedal & side step. Taniyama had a chance when she moved laterally, but once Seki backed her near the ropes she'd swarm her. Seki just wore Taniyama out, and eventually Taniyama got woozy from taking one punch after another while she was trapped in the corner. Average match.
Pan Hui vs. Brittany Ann Decker 2R unanimous decision. Hui was the far more technically sound fighter here even though she was making her debut. She may not have excelled in any one area, but she was very much all around competent. Decker, on the other hand, showed some awful punching technique, basically doing gorilla arm hooks by turning at the waist. This really didn't bode well because striking was supposed to be her game. Decker used a ton of feints, but it seemed to just be a waste of energy to be constantly moving her hands with fake punches when her opponent was clearly out of even superman punch range. I won't say this was the only reason, as Hui was keeping a good pace & putting the pressure on her, but it may have contributed to Decker fading as the fight went on. Hui had a good flurry of punches late, and seemed like she could have finished Decker had the fight went another minute or so. Below average match.
Mina Kurobe vs. Satomi Takano 4:02 R1. I love the pressure Takano consistently puts on her opponent. She comes in too squarely, but she usually gets away with it because she's quick and so, so aggressive. Takano was doing well with her punching, but struggling to get the takedown. The fight was nonetheless going really well for her until Kurobe reversed her Koshi guruma & took her back and eventually choked Takano out. Above average match.
Tomo Maesawa vs. Yuko Oya 2R unanimous decision. A really good match with two different styles playing off each other in a consistently entertaining way. Maesawa was the more skilled fighter, but Oya had a lot of answers & no quit in her. In standup, Oya kept angling so she couldn't be hit then would close the distance on her terms, though Maesawa was usually ready for her. Maesawa had big edges in judo & submissions, and she was able to keep the fight contested mostly on the ground during the final 3/4, where she consistently threatening with submissions. Oya just kept punching her way out of danger though, and would work Maesawa over from the top in between Maesawa's submission attempts, if not during. Oya took over in the 2nd with a flurry of punches from mount, but got too high in rear mount, allowing Maesawa to escape out the back. Maesawa had her trapped defenseless in the corner, but went for an armbar on the apron . With an attendant there to make sure she didn't fall to the floor, Maesawa finally extended it in the final seconds. Oya was trying to punch her way out as usual, but it appeared that she may have tapped just before the bell. Oya certainly did the more damage of the two throughout the fight, but Maesawa usually had her in some kind danger, so it was a good decision. Definitely one of the best JEWELS matches. Very good match.
Shizuka Sugiyama vs. Yurika Nakakura 2R unanimous decision. Nakakura just tucked her chin & came forward, backing Sugiyama into the ropes &/or corner and holding her there all round. Sugiyama showed some lateral movement in the 2nd, which allowed her to land some nice combos. Nakakura was all about control, and did very little damage, so without the silly round by round scoring system, Sugiyama quickly pulled ahead here despire all Nakakura's clinch work. Still had to be a close decision because Nakakura spent a decent amount of time holding on in the 2nd. Nakakura could win a lot of fights with this style if she could just incorporate some more striking into the clinch so it wasn't all positional dominance. The wear down is good, but in a 10 minute fight against a younger fighter, it didn't produce any discernible results. Below average match.
Emi Fujino vs. Ayaka Miura 2R unanimous decision. A comprehensive beatdown by Fujino. Fujino was all about backing the opponent into the corner as well, but once she gets Miura there, she unloads with one powerful punch after another in addition to making the opponent feel her strength in keeping her pinned. Fujino is so strong and has such good balance & control that she almost never needs more than 1 arm to keep her opponent pinned, leaving her other arm free to batter the opponent. Miura had good takedown attempts, but Fujino had even better defense, and Miura wasn't able to do much when she actually got Fujino down, whereas Fujino always found the position where she could punch while she was controlling. Miura was really tired down the stretch, but to her credit she kept trying. Average match.
Seo Hee Ham vs. Saori Ishioka 2:43 R2. Ishioka had a good 1st round, keeping it almost entirely to the grappling department and threatening with an arm bar. Ham was able to stay on her feet in the 2nd, and she was often landing left hands at will. Despite Ishioka's ground dominance in the 1st, Ham was willing to leave her feet when she shrugged Ishioka down defending her clinch knee attempt. Ham couldn't get the back, but mounted & transitioned into an inverted triangle then triangle then triangle armbar until she finally got the tap. Above average match.