From the opening bell, Izawa was one step ahead of Deep and Deep Jewels microweight champion Oshima, who suffered her first Rizin defeat in disappointing fashion. Also on tonight’s main card, Keito “Kate Lotus” Oyama defeated previously undefeated Bo Mi Lee in a 120 lb. bout.
Izawa (17-0-0) got off to a strong start by landing a front body kick and a lead left hook, and she dropped Oshima (15-7-0) with a second left hand. Oshima got up and Izawa landed a flurry of punches and another body kick. She ended the round by landing four more punches and a knee. Izawa held Oshima in a ninja choke and kneed her in the face in the second round. She took control of Oshima again, then stood over her and the football kicked Oshima in the face. On the feet, Izawa repeatedly kneed Oshima in the face and then guillotined her to the mat. Oshima tried to counter with a heel hook, but time expired.
In the final round, Izawa jabbed until Oshima shot for a takedown with two minutes left. Izawa stopped it easily and she landed a four-punch combo. Oshima finally got Izawa down with a few seconds left, but it was too little, too late. All three judges scored the fight in Izawa’s favor for a unanimous decision win and another successful title defense.
After the fight, Izawa started talking to the crowd in the cage until Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara came in to say that he plans to rebook a fight between Izawa and Rena Kubota for New Year’s Eve. The fight had been the target of several previous Rizin events, but it fell apart each time and Izawa spoke out earlier this year about her disdain for Kubota, who she accused of running away from her.
“[Oshima] was a good opponent,” Izawa said backstage after tonight’s title retention. “I thought she would give up, but she had courage. I wanted to show off my noticeable improvements, so I didn’t knock her out when there were opportunities in the first two rounds so I could show off my strokes.”
When asked about her planned New Year’s Eve enemy, Izawa simply replied, “I will destroy Rena.”
Seika Izawa (left) and Saori Oshima (right) follow “Landmark Vol. 12.”
Oyama (9-7-0) hurt Lee (3-1-0) with two early knees to the liver, followed by punches and a head kick before attempting a takedown. Lee stayed on his feet, but Oyama landed numerous kicks and two overhand rights before the end of the opening round. Lee got a very short takedown midway through the second round, but she couldn’t land anything significant as Oyama circled around and stayed out of her striking range. Oyama landed a left hand and kicked Lee’s leg and body.
Lee finally landed a strong combination early in the third round, and Oyama responded with an elbow and a right hook. Lee opened a gash next to Oyama’s left eye with a punch. Undeterred, Oyama attacked Lee’s midsection with more hard knees over the final 90 seconds. The judges gave a Unanimous Decision verdict for the highly popular Oyama, who has now won four straight fights.
“I didn’t put up a good fight,” Oyama said backstage, critical of her victory. “I planned to create distance and outbox her, but I felt I was too nervous. I want to be a fighter who can get consistent finishes, but I still have to cover distance to become a title challenger.”
Keito “Kate Lotus” Oyama (left) and Bo Mi Lee (right) following “Landmark Vol. 12.”
On the early preliminary card, 17-year-old Noeru “Noel” Narita (3-2-0) earned her first Rizin victory by submitting Misaki “Iruka Umisaki” Suda (2-1-0) with an armbar in the second round in 49kg action.
Narita got one takedown in the first round, but the clinch fights were won by Suda, who landed multiple knees while Narita did very little damage. The round ended with Suda on top, striking from Narita’s guard. Narita continued to pursue a takedown in the second round until she got Suda in the mount and then twisted into an armbar for the tap at 2:46 of the second stanza. The win got Narita back on track after suffering a one-sided submission loss of her own in her Rizin debut in July.
#Seika #Izawa #defeats #Saori #Oshima #Rizin #Landmark #Vol #Tilt #title