On September 12th, Rise’s Girls Power 5 will go down at the famed Korakuen Hall. In doing so, this will be the first women’s only kickboxing event at the venue in 26 years. As part of this historic event, champions Hinata Terayama and Manazo Kobayashi will meet in a catchweight super-fight. Leading up to this fight, on September 2nd, the 20 year old member of Team Teppen, Hinata, held an open workout. During which, she answered questions from the media, pertaining to her upcoming fight, this being her first fight with 4 oz gloves, and Panchan Rina mentioning her as a future opponent in Rizin.
Champion vs Champion
Two years ago, Hinata fought and defeated Reina Sato in the finals of Rise’s mini-flyweight tournament. In doing so, she won the mini-flyweight championship. Several months earlier, Sato had been scheduled to face Manazo in the semi-finals, but Manazo missed weight and as a result, was disqualified. Since then, Manazo has moved up in weight, and became the flyweight champion. Now the two are set to face each other in a promotional super-fight, where the two champions will meet in a catchweight bout at 49.5kg/109lbs. When asked about this history, Hinata commented, “We almost fought two years ago, and before that, there was about two other times we may have fought. I think it’s fate that led us to fight now. I feel that there is something special about this match since we are both Rise champions.”
When asked about Manazo as an opponent, she had the following to say, “At the press conference, I said that I was going to work hard to get stronger, but strength doesn’t come easily. So even though I think I’m at a disadvantage in terms of power, I think I can win the match if I make up for it in other areas. I’m not that concerned… I think I have a better sense of distance and how to set the pace of a fight. I’m not trying to diminish her power, but I’m hoping to fight my way and not let her get too close to me…”
In an interesting tidbit, Hinata revealed that not only does she admire Manazo’s kicking technique, she’s actually been using her as a model for her own kicks in training. So it will be interesting to see what happens when the two face each other, knowing that Hinata has been watching tape and copying Manazo for awhile.
Smaller Gloves
Rise is always looking for ways to make the fights more exciting. In the past they have offered knockout bonuses, bonuses for quick finishes, and prize money for tournament winners. Recently, they announced that any fights beneath 50kg/110lbs will use smaller, 4 oz gloves. When asked about this, Hinata had the following to say, “I’ve started using 4 oz gloves since the press conference announcing this card and I’ve been using them for a little over a month. They’re small, the ones I’m using are small like a child’s gloves, so they’re narrow inside and just generally small. I was horrified at first, when I though about us hitting each other with them (lol). Also, I can’t spar with 4oz gloves, so it seems like I’ll only get to experience hitting someone with them in a match…I’ve felt a difference between the 4oz and 6oz gloves in practice…since they’re smaller, I can’t use my guard like I use to with the 6oz’ers, so it will affect me a little, bit I don’t think it will drastically change anything.”
The Future
As the saying goes, champions have a target on their back and that is the case with Hinata. Recently, during a public workout, Panchan Rina mentioned that she would like to fight her in the future, in Rizin. However, Hinata isn’t interested. At least not at the moment. The general sentiment of her response was that with her upcoming fight and it being on a historic event, she is fully concentrating on that and not thinking about future matches. On a funny note, when asked if she would like to fight Panchan Rina on a Rizin New Year’s Eve show, she commented that since she’s a big fan of another New Year’s Eve show, Journey’s Live Countdown, it would be a difficult decision for her.
Rise Girls Power 5
Rise Girls Power 5 will take place on September 12th at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. The event will stream on Abema TV and Fite TV.
Full Card
- 49kg Champion Hinata Terayama vs 52kg Champion Manazo Kobayashi (49.5kg, 109lbs)
- Koyuki Miyazaki vs Saya Ito (46.5kg, 102.5lbs)
- Koto Hiraoka vs Nana Okuwaki (46kg, 101.5lbs)
- King Reina vs Yuka Murakami (Special Exhibition Match)
- Yaya Weerasakreck vs Akari (52kg, 115lbs)
- Haruka Asai vs Yuka Murakami (57.5kg, 127lbs)
- Misaki Shimada vs Ayaka Nishihara (43kg, 95lbs)
- Tomomi Yamamoto vs Wakana Tsuji (52kg, 115lbs)
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