Ayaka Hamasaki to defend JEWELS title against Emi Fujino

Ayaka Hamasaki, Emi Fujino

So the original plan was for Ayaka Hamasaki to fight Carla Esparza on the January Invicta show for a 115lb title. But JEWELS decided they need Ayaka for their year end show Dec. 15 at Differ Ariake. This joint is twice the size of Shinjuku FACE so they need her to draw fans. It was announced today that Ayaka will defend her JEWELS Lightweight Championship against Emi Fujino. Of course Ayaka was trained by Megumi Fujii at AACC. Her last win was over Lacey Schuckman on the July 28 Invicta show. And earlier this year she beat the legendary Yuka Tsuji very easily. Fujino trains at WK Gods. Her record is 11-5 and her last fight was a win over Mika Nagano on the Mar. 3 JEWELS show. My assessment of Fujino is she is a good but not great fighter. The main thing she lacks is any kind of finish. 12 of her 16 fights have been by decision. And she has never beaten an elite fighter. She's at the level where she beats fighters she is supposed to beat and loses to fighters she is supposed to lose to. She is 1-1 against V V Mei but I think those two are at the same level. Ayaka is quicker and is an elite fighter. In the past, Fujino hasn't upset anyone and it's not likely this time either. Fujino has also worked a lot for J-Girls kickboxing. The other fight announced will have JEWELS matchmaker Yasuko Mogi returning to fighting for the first time in almost three years. She will face Keiko Tomita. Mogi is a better matchmaker than fighter. Her record is 3-6 and her last fight was a loss to Akiko Naito on the Apr. 10, 2010 VALKYRIE show. Tomita trains at Burst. She lost her MMA debut to Ultra Benkei on the May 26 JEWELS. This fight is at 56kg and Mogi normally fights at 52kg. Obviously it's a filler match. They also announced a kickboxing match and there will be an amateur grappling tournament.