A couple weeks ago, it was revealed that Shizuka Sugiyama was leaving Tri-Force, where she had been teaching for the past 5 years. At the time, it was unknown why she was leaving but it was revealed today that she is opening a gym in Tokyo with her husband, current Rizin and former UFC fighter K-Taro Nakamura. The gym is called United Gym Tokyo and is expected to open in the summer of 2021. With their combined experience and her growing Youtube channel, it seems like the gym should be a success. The couple is currently raising money through campfire to help with the process. There are some interesting prizes for those that contribute, including personal training packages, fight worn clothing, and sponsorship opportunities. Campfire seems to be growing in popularity amongst the fight community. Boku recently used the platform to raise close to $25,000 to help with his project, Brave Gym recently raised close to $110,000, and Kanna Asakura’s gym Paraestra recently raised close to $40,000.
King Reina will return to action for Deep on June 20th and she has made some big changes going into this fight. She is now vegan and has been doing more physical training. As a result, she has dropped from 84kg (185lbs) to 64.7kg (142.6lbs). It is uncertain whether or not this change in diet is in response to her missing weight before her last fight. In response to that miss, she was suspended for 6 months, however most of that was during the pandemic. She will return to action against Yoko Higashi, who is coming off of a win at Pancrase.
Recently some articles have been posted about a fighter making her debut in Deep’s growing Microweight Division. Her name is Kyoka. She is from Niigata, Japan, has a background in BJJ, and won a Shooto Amateur tournament last year. Her debut was delayed because of the pandemic but a date has now been set and she will be facing fellow debutant Reina Kobayashi on June 19th for Deep. Recently Deep and Deep Jewels have been investing in the Microweight division. In the past they had Satoko Shinashi, who is actually bigger than Kyoka, and more recently they have Saori Oshima, Mizuki Furuse, and Amp the Rocket. It will be interesting to see what happens with the division and Kyoka.
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