Panchan Rina made a successful comeback at Knockout last weekend. The 29 year old had been sideline for a year after suffering a serious knee injury.
In 2021 she fought on Rizin’s first ever female kickboxing bout, beating Momoka Mandokoro by decision. But the following year she ruptured her ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) and had to undergo surgery.
Panchan Rina took the first step on the comeback trail last month when she participated in an exhibition bout. Last weekend she fought for real and emerged with her first victory since 2021.
View this post on Instagram
Difficult time
Panchan Rina was only out of action for six months but it was clearly a difficult time for the kickboxer. She had to apologize after being arrested for fraud.
It seems that Panchan Rina was struggling financially during her rehabilitation. But she went to extreme means to try and raise some additional funds.
Panchan, whose real name is Rina Okamoto, was accused of forging the signatures of Tenshin Nasukaw and Takeru on a poster and selling it to a fan for 99,900 yen ( approximately $730 USD).
She gave a full and frank confession and claimed to have been the victim of a fraud herself, getting scammed out of over $100,000 USD. That is a lot of money for a female kickboxer.
View this post on Instagram
Comeback trail
Earlier this year she vacated her Knockout minimumweight title. Panchan Rina had remained the champion during her injury and rehabilitation but decided to return the belt after becoming engulfed in the fraud scandal.
She has also previously held the promotion’s atomweight title but barely squeezed past Chin Long Wang last weekend, beating the Taiwanese fighter by majority decision. But Panchan Rina is back to winning ways and she will be looking to recapture a Knockout title.
Having recovered from her knee injury she is also able to compete and earn money again. So hopefully Panchan Rina’s brief and unsuccessful career as a small time criminal is over!
