Kanako Murata (村田夏南子, born August 10, 1993) is a Japanese female

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

who competes in the Strawweight division of the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. A professional mixed martial artist since 2016, Murata has also competed in

Rizin Fighting Federation Rizin Fighting Federation (Rizin FF or Rizin) is a Japanese mixed martial arts organization created in 2015 by the former Pride Fighting Championships and Dream Stage Entertainment president Nobuyuki Sakakibara. Rizin was founded to be the spir ...

and

Invicta FC Invicta Fighting Championships, also known as Invicta FC, is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion dedicated to Women's mixed martial arts that was founded in 2012 by Janet Martin and Shannon Knapp. The promotion is currentl ...

where she is a former Invicta FC Strawweight Champion.

Background

Murata was born and raised in

Matsuyama file:Matsuyama city office Ehime prefecture Japan.jpg, 270px, Matsuyama City Hall file:Ehimekencho-20040417.JPG, 270px, Ehime Prefectural Capital Building is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Ehime Prefecture on the island of Shikoku in Japan ...

, Japan. The granddaughter of a judo dojo master, Murata started training judo at the age of three. She was a national champion in judo in her high school years. After judo, she transitioned to

freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling originated from Great Britain and the United States. Along with Greco-Roman, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games. American high school and men's college wrestling ...

in which she won Junior World Championship in 2011.

Mixed martial arts career

Rizin Fighting Federation

Murata was scheduled to make her professional debut against Natalya Denisova at Rizin 1 on April 17, 2016. She won the fight by unanimous decision. Murata made her flyweight debut against Maia Kahaunaele-Stevenson at KOTC: Firefight on June 4, 2016. She won the fight by a third-round technical knockout. Murata remained at flyweight for her next fight with Ilona Wijmans at Shoot Box Girls S-Cup 2016 on July 7, 2016. She won the fight by a first-round technical knockout. Murata was scheduled to face Kyra Batara in a strawweight bout at Rizin World Grand Prix 2016: 1st Round on September 26, 2016. She won the fight by unanimous decision. Murata was scheduled to face

Rin Nakai is a Japanese professional female mixed martial artist. Starting her MMA career in 2006, she has participated in the organizations Pancrase, Smackgirl, Valkyrie and the UFC. Nakai has been rated amongst Top 10 of Women's Flyweight and Bantam ...

in a flyweight bout at Rizin World Grand Prix 2016: 2nd Round on December 29, 2016. Murata suffered her first professional loss, tapping to a rear-naked choke in the third round. Murata was scheduled to face Claire Fryer in a strawweight bout at Pancrase 288 on July 2, 2017. She won the fight by unanimous decision. Murata was scheduled to face Yukari Nabe in a flyweight bout at DEEP 79 Impact on September 16, 2017. She won the fight by unanimous decision. Murata remained at flyweight for her next fight, against Lanchana Green at Rizin 10 on May 6, 2018. She won the fight by a first-round anaconda choke submission. Murata was scheduled to face Angela Magana at Rizin 12 on August 12, 2018. She won the fight by a first-round submission. Murata made her last appearance with Rizin against Saray Orozco at Rizin 15 on April 21, 2019. Murata was originally scheduled to face Shinju Nozawa-Auclair, before Nozawa-Auclair withdrew due to a ligament injury. She won the fight by her second career, and second consecutive, Von Flue choke submission.

Invicta

It was announced on August 30, 2018, that Murata had signed with

, and would compete in their strawweight division. Murata was scheduled to make her promotional debut with Invicta, almost a year after signing with them, against Liana Pirosin at Invicta FC 35: Bennett vs. Rodriguez II on June 7, 2019. She won the fight by a first-round rear-naked choke submission. This fight earned her a "Performance of the Night" award. Murata was scheduled to fight

Emily Ducote Emily Ducote (born January 1, 1994) is an American mixed martial artist, currently competing in the strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). She previously competed in Invicta FC, where she was the Invicta FC Strawweigh ...

for the vacant Invicta FC Strawweight Championship at Invicta FC 38: Murata vs. Ducote on November 1, 2019. She won the fight by split decision.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Murata announced on July 5, 2020, that she had signed with the UFC. Murata was expected to face

Lívia Renata Souza Lívia Renata dos Santos Souza (born March 11, 1991), also known as Livinha Souza, is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division. She has previously competed in the UFC and Invicta Fighting Championships, where s ...

on November 14, 2020 at UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. dos Anjos. However, Souza pulled out in early November due to an undisclosed injury and was replaced by

Randa Markos Randa Cemil Markos-Thomas (born August 10, 1985) is an Iraqi-born Canadian professional mixed martial artist who competes in the strawweight division. She most notably fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Personal life Markos was ...

. She won the fight via unanimous decision. Murata faced

Virna Jandiroba Virna Carole Andrade Jandiroba (born May 30, 1988) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist (MMA), who currently competes in the strawweight division of the UFC. She is a former Invicta Fighting Championships (Invicta) Strawweight champion. As of A ...

on June 19, 2021 at

UFC on ESPN 25 ''UFC on ESPN: The Korean Zombie vs. Ige'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 25'' and ''UFC Vegas 29'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on June 19, 2021 at the UFC Apex facility in Enter ...

. She lost the fight via doctor stoppage after round 2 due to a elbow dislocation caused by an armbar applied by Jandiroba.

Championships and accomplishments

Invicta Fighting Championships Invicta Fighting Championships, also known as Invicta FC, is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion dedicated to Women's mixed martial arts that was founded in 2012 by Janet Martin and Shannon Knapp. The promotion is currentl ...

** Invicta FC Strawweight Championship (One time, former) **Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Liana Pirosin

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 12–2 ,

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

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Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

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Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

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Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most pop ...

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Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...

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Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

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San Jacinto, California San Jacinto ( ; ; Spanish for " St. Hyacinth") is a city in Riverside County, California. It is located at the north end of the San Jacinto Valley, with Hemet to its south and Beaumont, California, to its north. The mountains associated with the ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Murata, Kanako 1993 births Living people Japanese female mixed martial artists Strawweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Mixed martial artists utilizing freestyle wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Japanese practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Female Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners Japanese female sport wrestlers Japanese female judoka Universiade medalists in wrestling People from Matsuyama, Ehime Universiade bronze medalists for Japan Medalists at the 2013 Summer Universiade Asian Wrestling Championships medalists Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters 21st-century Japanese women