After several canceled events, Deep Jewels held their first event during the COVID-19 outbreak. With daily cases reaching new highs in Tokyo, I was curious to see what the event would be like. First off, social distancing was a priority at the event from the get go. The event was held at 50% capacity, allowing the staff to space out the seats. I could fully extend my arms and legs in any direction and not touch another spectator. Before the event, all spectators were required to register their personal information online or write it on the back of their ticket. This would allow them to keep track of everyone in case someone became sick. Once one showed that they registered their info, their temperature was taken. Finally, all the staff and customers were wearing masks and the ring was sanitized between each fight.
After the preliminary fights, in typical JMMA fashion, the fighters were introduced before the fights. Afterwards, Miki Motono addressed the audience. Deep Jewels normally has one of their stars give the speech, meaning that they obviously see Miki Motono as having a bright future in the promotion. Initially described to me as a young Ayaka Hamasaki, it is clear that they think quite highly of her.
It has been a couple of years since I have been to a Deep Jewels event and a lot has changed. Deep Jewels is filled with young talent now. Much like how Ronda Rousey and the UFC caused rapid growth in the U.S., it appears that Rizin is having a similar effect in Japan. Three fighters on the card were only 17 and none of them mentioned the UFC in their post-fight speeches. However, Rizin was mentioned several times, notably by Mizuki Furuse, Tomo Maesawa and Miki Motono, all of whom expressed an interest in fighting for the promotion. There were also a lot of women in the audience and fan sections for specific fighters. A number of people were at the event to support Sakura, Shizuka Sugiyama, and Ayaka Hamasaki.
A number of famous gyms were represented at the event, but none looked better than AACC. The gym that used to boast Megumi Fujii and Hitomi Akano went 4-0, with one of their fighters winning a championship. It is hard to dispute that AACC’s roster includes some of the best women in Japan, including Ayaka Hamasaki, Miki Motono, Rena and Megumi Sugimoto. Now it appears that they also have a number of young prospects rising up. One should keep an eye on the fighters emerging from this gym.
Before the event, Mizuki Furuse was angling for a fight with Ayaka Hamasaki at the next Rizin event. With Rizin unable to bring in foreign talent due to COVID-19, if Ayaka appears on the event, it will have to be against a Japanese opponent. After the grappling match, Tomo Maesawa also made an appeal to face Ayaka at Rizin. What was obvious from this match, is that Ayaka is on a different level when it comes to grappling. While the grappling match was playful in nature, Ayaka made it look too easy, submitting them both. After the match, Megumi Fujii even tweeted that Ayaka was too strong.
With Rizin not able to bring in non-Japanese fighters, including Miyuu Yamamoto who is a Canadian citizen, it will be interesting to see if she appears on the next Rizin event.
Sugiyama has reinvented herself. Throughout her career she has had several periods of inactivity in the ring, but it looks like she is trying harder than ever. Sporting a six-pack and promoting herself as a Youtuber, it looks like she has high aspirations. A couple of years ago, it seemed like she was angling to get into the UFC, even working to promote UFC Japan for them, but now it looks like she wants another shot at Rizin. I imagined she was looking for a big win and that seemed to be the case in the opening round as it looked like she was trying to knock her opponent out. She ended up fighting two rounds that frustrated her until she came out in the third and looked very good, quickly finishing the fight with an armbar. With three wins since her loss at Rizin, and her husband also fighting for the promotion, it seems likely that she will fight for them again.
With a dominant win over Akaringo, it looks like Miko Motono is the future of Deep Jewels. After the match, she stated that she wanted to fight for Rizin as well, which would also be interesting. With Kanako Murata going to the UFC, Rizin doesn’t have any notable 52kg fighters in the promotion, but that could quickly change. If Rizin doesn’t make an offer, expect to see Miki continuing to headline Deep Jewels shows.
Deep Jewels next event will be in November, which indicates to me that Deep Jewels is hoping to host their next event after the COVID-19 outbreak. With such a large gap between shows, it is likely that a lot of the popular fighters from this event will also appear on that event.
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