Takahashi Takes Smackgirl Title
Jason Nowe May 19, 2007
TOKYO, May 19 -- Amongst the semifinals of the Flyweight Killer
Queen Tournament, Japanese female MMA stalwart Smackgirl managed to
round out the card with not only the finals of the open-weight
Super Gals Mix tourney, but also topped off the night with an
open-weight title fight.
Originally the promotion had planned for open-weight champion Amanda Buckner (Pictures) to defend her title against Takahashi, but due to an unfortunate last minute injury sustained by the Boulder, Colo. native, Buckner was forced to give up the title she won against Megumi Yabushita (Pictures) in February 2006.
Searching for a replacement, the Smackgirl brass found
Mexican-American Alicia Mena to step up to the plate and challenge
for the vacated title.
Right off the bell, Mena came out charging with a furious barrage of punches, but the Tomoegumi fighter survived the onslaught, eventually scoring a takedown. However, Takahashi's advantage was short-lived because, as per Smackgirl rules, the fighters were automatically stood up after 30 seconds on the mat.
After scoring a standing eight count on her opponent from a well-placed high kick, the Japanese fighter managed to seal the deal when a failed hip throw from Mena left the American face down on the mat. From here Takahashi quickly took the back-mount and sunk in a rear-naked choke for the tapout victory at the 3:04 mark of the first, taking the open-weight title with the victory.
While the 30-second grappling limitation seems to be a major hindrance to many of the mat-savvy competitors of Smackgirl, this odd rule was not in effect for the bout between Smackgirl middleweight champion Hitomi Akano (Pictures) and Canadian fighter Liz Posener. Also out the window was the Smackgirl rule of no strikes to the face on the ground, thus making this one a full-on MMA battle.
Posener had the advantage in the striking department and showed a lot of heart, but throughout this bout Akano did a good job of getting the Canadian fighter to the mat with some nicely executed judo hip tosses.
The Smackgirl middleweight champion had a solid armbar attempt in the first that Posener had to think fast to get out of, but in the second she managed to implement her submission game by applying a step-over triangle from the top, securing her opponent while finishing off the set with an armbar. Unable to escape, Posener had no option but to tap and fight another day.
The finals of the Smackgirl SuperGals Mixed Open-Weight Tournament pitted Hiroko Hiroko (Pictures) against Takeda Michiko. The buzz amongst the fans for this match-up was high, not because it was the finals, but rather due to the fact that Hiroko let it be known to the Japanese media that her job before becoming a professional fighter was working as a dominatrix in Tokyo. In fact the reason she chose MMA (before turning to the sport full-time) was to improve here skill set in her previous profession.
Hiroko had a big reach advantage, but rather than her fists, it was her solid knees from the Thai clinch that inflicted the most damage, connecting with her opponent throughout the fight.
Takeda made up for the disparity on the feet by repeatedly scoring takedowns and taking dominate positions such as side-control and mount, but unfortunately, once again due to the 30-second ground rule, really wasn't able to capitalize before being ordered back to her feet.
The two fighters turned it up in the last 30 seconds, throwing caution to the wind and letting the leather fly at a furious pace until the final bell. On this night, it was Hiroko's stand-up that impressed the judges more than Takeda's takedowns and ground control, and the Tomoegumi fighter was awarded a split decision victory.
Ayumi Saito gave Eri Kaneya (Pictures) a striking lesson in their bracket of the Smackgirl Killer Queen Flyweight Tournament semifinals. The long armed Saito offered some crisp, strong punches, making her very experienced opponent looked well out of her league.
Saito absolutely peppered Kaneya with stiff jabs and vicious right hands. Kaneya simply didn't have the speed, power or prowess in her hands to mount any kind of offense against the onslaught.
Even on the ground, Saito proved quite savvy, handily escaping submission attempts and securing a solid triangle attempt of her own until she was forced to release after 30 seconds on the mat.
The end for Kaneya came when Saito sent her to the canvas for the count after a hellacious right hand. The Wajyutsu Keishukai A3 fighter beat the count, but was sent to the canvas for good, again off a right hand, at the exact moment that the bell sounded to signal the end of the first. Seeing that their fighter could do no more, Kaneya's corner wisely threw in the towel.
The other half of the Killer Queen semifinal saw Mai Mai (Pictures) square off against Naoko Ohmuro.
Mai had a big reach advantage, but really didn't have a chance to use it as she was too busy sprawling on the constant takedown attempts made by the tenacious Ohmuro. After the sprawl, Mai would either pound her opponent's body from the top or take dominant position and look for the submission. The whole fight followed this scenario. Despite having some pretty impressive shots, Ohmuro just couldn't get Mai to her back.
The fight went the distance and Mai took a unanimous victory.
The absolutely buffed up Rin Nakai made up for what she lacked in striking by displaying some jaw-dropping wrestling against Wajyutsu Keishukai Tokyo's Kazue Matake, scoring textbook takedowns and pulling off a huge slam in the second. Matake just couldn't get her game going. The fight went the distance, with Nakai taking the unanimous victory.
Atsuko Emoto was all over Hari Hari with takedowns and submission attempts, including a rarely attempted crossface, a la pro wrestler "The Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit. Eventually she found her mark, scoring the armbar submission towards the end of the first.
Sherdog.com's astute Stephen Martinez summarized the Yukiko Seki (Pictures)-Wakako Sunayama bout perfectly, stating it was the female version of Don Frye (Pictures) versus Yoshihiro Takayama (Pictures). These two absolutely slugged it out, throwing caution, and any semblance of a hand-up guard, to the wind.
In the second, Sunayama took her opponent down at will and took dominant positions with ease, yet in the final tally, it was Seki who took the highly questionable decision.
Originally the promotion had planned for open-weight champion Amanda Buckner (Pictures) to defend her title against Takahashi, but due to an unfortunate last minute injury sustained by the Boulder, Colo. native, Buckner was forced to give up the title she won against Megumi Yabushita (Pictures) in February 2006.
Advertisement
Right off the bell, Mena came out charging with a furious barrage of punches, but the Tomoegumi fighter survived the onslaught, eventually scoring a takedown. However, Takahashi's advantage was short-lived because, as per Smackgirl rules, the fighters were automatically stood up after 30 seconds on the mat.
This rule that victimizes grapplers again reared its head in the
next clash after the restart, as Takahashi had to give up a solid
armbar attempt from her back just as it seemed like a submission
was moments away.
After scoring a standing eight count on her opponent from a well-placed high kick, the Japanese fighter managed to seal the deal when a failed hip throw from Mena left the American face down on the mat. From here Takahashi quickly took the back-mount and sunk in a rear-naked choke for the tapout victory at the 3:04 mark of the first, taking the open-weight title with the victory.
While the 30-second grappling limitation seems to be a major hindrance to many of the mat-savvy competitors of Smackgirl, this odd rule was not in effect for the bout between Smackgirl middleweight champion Hitomi Akano (Pictures) and Canadian fighter Liz Posener. Also out the window was the Smackgirl rule of no strikes to the face on the ground, thus making this one a full-on MMA battle.
Posener had the advantage in the striking department and showed a lot of heart, but throughout this bout Akano did a good job of getting the Canadian fighter to the mat with some nicely executed judo hip tosses.
The Smackgirl middleweight champion had a solid armbar attempt in the first that Posener had to think fast to get out of, but in the second she managed to implement her submission game by applying a step-over triangle from the top, securing her opponent while finishing off the set with an armbar. Unable to escape, Posener had no option but to tap and fight another day.
The finals of the Smackgirl SuperGals Mixed Open-Weight Tournament pitted Hiroko Hiroko (Pictures) against Takeda Michiko. The buzz amongst the fans for this match-up was high, not because it was the finals, but rather due to the fact that Hiroko let it be known to the Japanese media that her job before becoming a professional fighter was working as a dominatrix in Tokyo. In fact the reason she chose MMA (before turning to the sport full-time) was to improve here skill set in her previous profession.
Hiroko had a big reach advantage, but rather than her fists, it was her solid knees from the Thai clinch that inflicted the most damage, connecting with her opponent throughout the fight.
Takeda made up for the disparity on the feet by repeatedly scoring takedowns and taking dominate positions such as side-control and mount, but unfortunately, once again due to the 30-second ground rule, really wasn't able to capitalize before being ordered back to her feet.
The two fighters turned it up in the last 30 seconds, throwing caution to the wind and letting the leather fly at a furious pace until the final bell. On this night, it was Hiroko's stand-up that impressed the judges more than Takeda's takedowns and ground control, and the Tomoegumi fighter was awarded a split decision victory.
Ayumi Saito gave Eri Kaneya (Pictures) a striking lesson in their bracket of the Smackgirl Killer Queen Flyweight Tournament semifinals. The long armed Saito offered some crisp, strong punches, making her very experienced opponent looked well out of her league.
Saito absolutely peppered Kaneya with stiff jabs and vicious right hands. Kaneya simply didn't have the speed, power or prowess in her hands to mount any kind of offense against the onslaught.
Even on the ground, Saito proved quite savvy, handily escaping submission attempts and securing a solid triangle attempt of her own until she was forced to release after 30 seconds on the mat.
The end for Kaneya came when Saito sent her to the canvas for the count after a hellacious right hand. The Wajyutsu Keishukai A3 fighter beat the count, but was sent to the canvas for good, again off a right hand, at the exact moment that the bell sounded to signal the end of the first. Seeing that their fighter could do no more, Kaneya's corner wisely threw in the towel.
The other half of the Killer Queen semifinal saw Mai Mai (Pictures) square off against Naoko Ohmuro.
Mai had a big reach advantage, but really didn't have a chance to use it as she was too busy sprawling on the constant takedown attempts made by the tenacious Ohmuro. After the sprawl, Mai would either pound her opponent's body from the top or take dominant position and look for the submission. The whole fight followed this scenario. Despite having some pretty impressive shots, Ohmuro just couldn't get Mai to her back.
The fight went the distance and Mai took a unanimous victory.
The absolutely buffed up Rin Nakai made up for what she lacked in striking by displaying some jaw-dropping wrestling against Wajyutsu Keishukai Tokyo's Kazue Matake, scoring textbook takedowns and pulling off a huge slam in the second. Matake just couldn't get her game going. The fight went the distance, with Nakai taking the unanimous victory.
Atsuko Emoto was all over Hari Hari with takedowns and submission attempts, including a rarely attempted crossface, a la pro wrestler "The Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit. Eventually she found her mark, scoring the armbar submission towards the end of the first.
Sherdog.com's astute Stephen Martinez summarized the Yukiko Seki (Pictures)-Wakako Sunayama bout perfectly, stating it was the female version of Don Frye (Pictures) versus Yoshihiro Takayama (Pictures). These two absolutely slugged it out, throwing caution, and any semblance of a hand-up guard, to the wind.
In the second, Sunayama took her opponent down at will and took dominant positions with ease, yet in the final tally, it was Seki who took the highly questionable decision.
Related Articles
