By:  | October 3, 2023 9:49 am

Pancrase will be putting on an atomweight Grand Prix. Four female Japanese fighters are set to compete over the course of two fight cards with the inaugural title on the line.

The semi finals will take place at Pancrase 340 which is set for December 24th in Yokohama. We don’t know what the matchups will be but the four participants have all been confirmed.

The tournament will feature some seasoned veterans. Falling firmly into this category is Mei Yamaguchi (21-15-1) who challenged twice for the ONE Championship atomweight title but has lost her last four bouts by decision.

Previous meetings

Yamaguchi won’t be the only ONE Championship veteran competing in the tournament. Zenny Huang (7-5) has enjoyed more success since leaving the promotion after five straight losses, she has won her last two.

Huang and Yamaguchi fought in Tokyo at ONE: ‘Century’ Part II in 2019. The Japanese fighter took the decision win, but it was very controversial with many feeling the Taiwanese atomweight should have got the nod.

They also fought at ONE: ‘Light of a Nation’ in 2017 and there was no controversy about that finish. Yamaguchi submitted Huang in the second round in Yangon.

Anniversary year

At the age of 32 Huang is the youngest fighter in the tournament. Joining her will be the experienced Satomi Takano (17-14) who has won eight out of her last 11 fights.

Sayako Fujita (7-2) is the least experienced of the four fighters in the tournament. She was submitted by Huang at Pancrase 330 last year, a loss which snapped her six fight winning streak.

This year the venerable Japanese promotion is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a series of events. Last weekend Suguri Nii won the welterweight title in the main event of Pancrase 337.