This Saturday, Rizin will go to Kyushu for the first time with Landmark 8 at the Saga Arena. Originally, the former champion Ayaka Hamasaki was scheduled to face Claire Lopez, who challenged Izawa for the title last July, but Ayaka re-injured her arm and was forced to withdraw. With just 10 days to prepare, Ayaka’s teammate and fellow Rizin veteran Saori Oshima stepped up and accepted the bout.
A former two-division champion in Deep/Deep Jewels, Oshima has had a big impact on the Japanese scene since making her debut in 2020 and is actually undefeated in Rizin, having defeated Kanna Asakura, Miyuu Yamamoto and Salt. Her fight with Kanna, it is worth mentioning, has over 10 million views on Youtube and is the 6th most watched video on the promotion’s channel, with only Tenshin, Mikuru, and Horiguchi fights having more. Outside of Rizin, she’s defeated the likes of Si Woo Park, Moeri Suda, and Hikaru Aono.
A last minute opportunity
When Ayaka re-injured her arm in training, Oshima was there at AACC and knew about it, so when she went home that night, she told us that all she could think about was how Ayaka might have to pull out. She thought of a lot of things, but ultimately came to realize that if she didn’t do something, she’d regret it, so she contacted Abe-sensei in the morning and let him know that if Ayaka can’t fight, she wanted to take her place. Soon thereafter, she received a call from Rizin and they offered her the fight, which she immediately accepted. In taking this fight on short notice, Oshima is completely aware of the risk she takes, knowing that if she loses, this will be her 2nd loss in a row, her first losing streak, and if she wins, it’s a big opportunity to get back on track.
10 days to prepare
While Oshima accepted the fight with exactly two weeks to go, she wasn’t actually able to start training until 10 days before, since she accepted the fight during a holiday weekend in Japan and she was already in the middle of doing something with her family. Throwing another wrench into her prep, her husband, Yuma Oshima, a highly accomplished Judoka, will also be competing on Saturday, at the Senior All Japan Championship in Osaka. This meant that Oshima had to leave her twins with her in-laws, so she could focus on her own preparation.
In the past, Oshima has talked about her struggles with balancing her roles as a mother, wife, and fighter, and in talking about dropping her kids off, she gave some insight into this, essentially saying that she has a switch that allows her to go from mom/wife to athlete and vice versa. While she was taking her kids to her in-laws she was in mom-mode, but once she dropped them off, she was in athlete mode, and while she called and talked to her kids, she was completely focused on her upcoming fight, telling us that she was training 2-3 times a day, that her stamina is good and that since the fight is at 49kg, she doesn’t have to cut any weight.
Facing Lopez
On Saturday, when Oshima enters the cage, she will do so with Claire Lopez, a fellow Rizin veteran who actually faced and defeated Oshima’s teammate Rena in her promotional debut. However, with Rena currently training in Thailand for her upcoming fight, Oshima mentioned that she didn’t really receive any advice directly from her, but she did get some advice from their coach. That being said, Claire represents a new challenge for her. Oshima’s never faced a Western fighter before, having only faced Japanese and Korean opponents to date. When asked about this, Oshima mentioned that while there is a stereotype that Western fighters are physically stronger than their Japanese counterparts, she’s faced powerful opponents before, like Miyuu Yamamoto, and she can match their power with her speed and technique.
When asked about her opponent, Oshima commented that Lopez, like herself, is a fast starter who comes forward looking to finish. She also added that she’s an aggressive striker than can also fight on the ground, so she’s pretty well-rounded. However, Oshima added that she’s confident in her own grappling skills and sees herself being able to get the submission. If so, it would be the 8th under her belt.
Oshima can be seen this Saturday at Rizin Landmark 8, when she faces Claire Lopez. Details on how to watch the event are listed below.
Full Card
- Luis Gustavo vs Yoshinori Horie (71kg)
- Kazumasa Majima vs Masakzu Imanari (66kg)
- Yusuke Yachi vs Rikuto Shirakawa (71kg)
- Saori Oshima vs Claire Lopez (49kg)
- Takahiro Ashida vs Hiroaki Suzuki (66kg)
- Daichi Abe vs Kota Ossman (77kg)
- Kenta Takizawa vs Shohei Nose (61kg)
- Yuki Ito vs Masatoshi Ueda (57kg)
- Takumi Terada vs Takekiyo Tominaga* (58kg)
- Ryoga vs Ruhei Sakai (60kg)
- Daiki Yahiro vs Yuto Araki (61kg)
- Reito Braveoy vs Kyohei Furumura* (62.5kg)
- Hannya Hashimoto vs Rikito* (62.5kg)
- Keito Ishigo vs Satoshi Katashima* (53kg)
* Kickboxing bouts
How to Watch
PPV Broadcasters
- Abema: 5,000/5,500 Yen (Advance/Day of)
- U-Next: 5,000/5,500 Yen (Advance/Day of)
- Rizin 100 Club: 5,000/5,500 Yen (Advance/Day of)
- Rizin Live: 5,000/5,500 Yen (Advance/Day of)
- Sky Perfect!: 5,000 Yen
In the U.S., the international PPV is $19.99 and has 14 days of replay.
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