, also known by her nickname or Sugi Rock, is a Japanese female

mixed martial arts 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, inc ...

(MMA) fighter. She has competed professionally since 2009. In 2011, she became the first

Jewels A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, a ...

featherweight champion. Besides Jewels, Sugiyama has also competed in MMA promotions

Valkyrie In Norse mythology, a valkyrie ("chooser of the slain") is one of a host of female figures who guide souls of the dead to the god Odin's hall Valhalla. There, the deceased warriors become (Old Norse "single (or once) fighters"Orchard (1997: ...

and

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 ...

. As of , Sugiyama is ranked as the number four female atomweight (96-106 lb) fighter in the world according to the Unified Women's Mixed Martial Arts Rankings.

Background

Sugiyama was born on in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. A member of , Sugiyama became interested in MMA after watching

Caol Uno (born May 8, 1975) is a Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. He is the Co-Champion of the UFC 41 Lightweight Tournament and a former Shooto Lightweight Champion. As one of the early Ultimate Fighting Championship's ...

on TV at the ''

K-1 World Max 2005 Japan Tournament This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Korakuen Hall, Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events ...

'' on , so she started training MMA as a hobby.

Mixed martial arts career

After participating in four amateur bouts for the

Smackgirl Smackgirl was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion focused solely on female fighters. The promotion also held grappling and amateur events along with its main line of professional MMA cards. After financial difficulties throughout 2008 the pr ...

promotion, Sugiyama made her professional debut on in a bout where she defeated Madoka Ebihara by unanimous decision at ''Valkyrie 3''. Sugiyama's second fight was on at ''Valkyrie 6'', in which she defeated Megumi Morioka by TKO. In her last fight with Valkyrie, in an upset, Sugiyama defeated the then-flyweight champion

Yasuko Tamada is a Japanese female mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. She previously fought as a flyweight in the Valkyrie promotion and was the only Valkyrie Flyweight Champion. She later fought for Jewels and last competed for Deep. Tamada was once ranked ...

via unanimous decision in a non-title bout at ''Valkyrie 8''. Debuting in Jewels on , Sugiyama submitted Misaki Takimoto with a

rear naked choke The rear naked choke (RNC) is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word "naked" in this context suggests that, unlike other strangulation techniques found in jujutsu/judo, this hold does not require the use of a keiko ...

in the first round at the combined event ''

Jewels 13th Ring & 14th Ring ''Jewels 13th Ring'' and ''Jewels 14th Ring'' are two mixed martial arts (MMA) events combined in a single date and location held by promotion Jewels. The events took place on at Shin-Kiba 1st Ring in Koto, Tokyo, Japan. Background Due to the 2 ...

'', where Sugiyama represented Valkyrie as part of a ''Jewels vs Valkyrie'' theme. In her fifth professional fight, Sugiyama faced and defeated Ayumi Saito by unanimous decision at '' Jewels 16th Ring'' on in a close bout that was part of the first round of the Jewels Featherweight Queen Grand Prix. On , at ''

Jewels 17th Ring ''Jewels 17th Ring'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by promotion Jewels on at Shinjuku Face in Kabukicho, Tokyo, Japan. The event featured the semi-finals and final of the Jewels Featherweight Queen tournament, which determined th ...

'', Sugiyama was crowned as the first Jewels Featherweight Queen after winning the Jewels Featherweight Queen GP by defeating Kikuyo Ishikawa via split decision and Misaki Takimoto via technical submission (armbar). Sugiyama faced Yasuko Tamada in a non-title rematch at ''Jewels 19th Ring'' on . Despite being penalized for not making weight, Sugiyama was able to defeat Tamada once again by majority decision, keeping her unbeaten record intact. Making her debut overseas, Sugiyama faced American fighter

Jessica Penne Jessica Marie Penne (born January 30, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist. Penne currently competes in the Women's Strawweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). She was the first Invicta FC Atomweight Cha ...

at ''Invicta FC 3: Penne vs. Sugiyama'' on in a title bout to crown the first Invicta FC Atomweight Champion. Penne defeated Sugiyama by submission (triangle choke) in the second round. On , Sugiyama faced Celine Haga in a non-title bout at ''Jewels 23rd Ring''. She was defeated by unanimous decision. Sugiyama defended her Jewels title against

Seo Hee Ham Seo Hee Ham ( ko, 함서희 ; born ), written Ham Seo-Hee in Korean order, is a South Korean professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. She is currently signed to ONE Championship, where she is ranked #2 in the ONE Championship Women's Ato ...

at ''Jewels 24th Ring'' on . She was defeated by unanimous decision. On , Sugiyama faced Masako Yoshida at ''Deep Jewels 2''. She won the fight by unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

** Featherweight Queen Grand Prix winner (2011) ** Atomweight Championship (Two times; current)

Mixed martial arts record

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Ayaka Hamasaki is a Japanese female mixed martial artist, judoka and submission grappler. She is the former Rizin Super Atomweight Champion. She has fought in MMA promotions ''Shooto'', Jewels and Rizin in Japan, and Invicta FC in the United States. Hamasaki ...

, TKO (Punches) , Deep Jewels 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:01 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 10-3 , Satomi Takano , Decision (split) , Deep Jewels 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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

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, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 8-3 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 24th Ring , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 8-2 , Celine Haga , Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 23rd Ring , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 8-1 ,

, Submission (triangle choke) , Invicta FC 3: Penne vs. Sugiyama , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:20 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8-0 ,

, Decision (majority) , Jewels 19th Ring , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 7-0 , Misaki Takimoto , Technical Submission (armbar) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:09 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 6-0 , Kikuyo Ishikawa , Decision (split) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5-0 , Ayumi Saito , Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 16th Ring , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4-0 , Misaki Takimoto , Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:06 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3-0 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Valkyrie 8 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2-0 , Megumi Morioka , TKO (punches) , Valkyrie 6 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:20 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1-0 , Madoka Ebihara , Decision (unanimous) , Valkyrie 3 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 , Tokyo, Japan ,

References

External links

Official blog

Naho Sugiyama Awakening Profile
*
Profile
at Wajutsu Keishukai Akza website {{DEFAULTSORT:Sugiyama, Naho 1978 births Japanese female mixed martial artists Living people Sportspeople from Kyoto Prefecture Atomweight mixed martial artists Featherweight mixed martial artists