Hiroko Yamanaka

Hiroko Yamanaka (山中 裕子, Yamanaka Hiroko), more commonly known simply as Hiroko (styled in capitals) and nicknamed Incomplete Queen (未完の女王, mikan no joō) or Cat's Eye, is a retired Japanese female mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. She fought for Invicta FC, Strikeforce and Jewels, and was the final Smackgirl Open Weight Champion. Yamanaka announced her retirement on August 6, 2013 (2013-08-06).[1][2][3]

Hiroko Yamanaka
Born (1978-10-24) October 24, 1978
Kisarazu, Chiba, Japan
Other namesHiroko
Cat's Eye
Incomplete Queen
NationalityJapanese
Height5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight143 lb (65 kg)
Reach71 in (180 cm)
StyleMuay Thai, Submission Grappling
Fighting out ofKisarazu, Chiba, Japan
TeamB CREW
Master Japan
TrainerKuniyoshi Hironaka
Years active2006-2013
Mixed martial arts record
Total16
Wins12
By knockout2
By submission2
By decision8
Losses3
By submission1
By decision2
No contests1
Other information
WebsiteOfficial blog
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: August 6, 2013 (2013-08-06)

Early life

Yamanaka was born on (1978-10-24)October 24, 1978 in Kisarazu, Chiba, Japan.[4][5] Through a personal friend's suggestion, Yamanaka initially took on mixed martial arts for health and fitness purposes only. After time, she found the sport of MMA agreed with her physicality and became more involved, fighting her first official match in May 2006.

Mixed martial arts career

Her first MMA fight was a draw against Mariko Fujimoto in a match with Smackgirl amateur rules on May 14, 2006 (2006-05-14) at S-Keep: Eggs Fight 4.[6]

Her next fight was in the Super Gals Mix Cup Open Weight Tournament 1st Round against Rie Murakami, whom Yamanaka defeated by unanimous decision on November 29, 2006 (2006-11-29) at Smackgirl: Legend of Extreme Women.[7] This was her professional debut.[4]

Yamanaka would go on to win the Super Gals Mix Cup Open Weight Tournament by defeating Yuiga by unanimous decision on March 11, 2007 (2007-03-11)[8] and Michiko Takeda by split decision on May 19, 2007 (2007-05-19).[9]

On September 6, 2007 (2007-09-06) at Smackgirl: Queens' Hottest Summer, Yamanaka defeated champion Yoko Takahashi by unanimous decision and won the Smackgirl Open Weight Championship, becoming the fourth and final title holder.[10] Yamanaka was defeated for the first time in a non-title bout as part of the Open Weight World ReMix tournament by Hitomi Akano, who submitted Yamanaka with an armbar on April 25, 2008 (2008-04-25) at Smackgirl: World ReMix 2008 Second Round.[11][12][13][14] This was Yamanaka's last fight in Smackgirl since the promotion folded in the following months.

Yamanaka made her debut in the Jewels promotion on November 16, 2008 (2008-11-16), defeating Mayumi Aoki by unanimous decision at Jewels 1st Ring.[15][16][17]

At Jewels 2nd Ring on February 4, 2009 (2009-02-04), Yamanaka once again faced Michiko Takeda and defeated her for the second time; this time by TKO at 3:25 of the second round.[18] On May 16, 2009 (2009-05-16), Yamanaka defeated Josh Barnett's student Shannon Hooper by unanimous decision during the event Jewels 3rd Ring.[19][20]

Yamanaka would avenge her only loss at Jewels 7th Ring when she defeated Hitomi Akano by split decision on March 19, 2010 (2010-03-19).[21][22] Unlike their first open-weight match, this match was contracted at 143 lb (65 kg) and, for the first time in her career, Yamanaka had to cut weight;[23] cutting more than 20 lbs.[22] On May 23, 2010 (2010-05-23), Yamanaka defeated Atsuko Emoto by unanimous decision at Jewels 8th Ring.[24][25] Emoto announced her retirement after the fight.

Debuting with the Shoot boxing promotion, Yamanaka won by forearm choke submission against Australian Muay Thai kickboxing champion Sandy Furner on August 29, 2010 (2010-08-29) in an MMA bout at Shoot Boxing: Girls S-Cup 2010.[26][27] Yamanaka was originally set to face Olympic freestyle wrestling Bronze medal winner Randi Miller,[28] but Miller was forced to withdraw due to injury.[29]

On December 3, 2010 (2010-12-03), Yamanaka was announced as facing Miller at Jewels 11th Ring on December 17.[30] However, the fight was later cancelled.[31] Yamanaka faced Molly Helsel instead[32] and defeated Helsel by TKO in the second round.[33][34]

Yamanaka faced Bolormaa "Esui" Erdenebileg at Jewels 15th Ring on July 9, 2011 (2011-07-09).[35][36] She defeated Esui by armbar submission in the second round.[37][38]

On September 23, 2011, Strikeforce announced that Yamanaka would debut for the promotion against featherweight champion Cris Cyborg. The fight took place at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal on December 17, 2011 (2011-12-17).[39] Yamanaka lost the bout via TKO 16 seconds into the first round.[40] On January 6, 2012, the bout's result was changed to a no decision due to Cyborg having tested positive for anabolic steroids.[41]

Yamanaka faced Germaine de Randamie at Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman on August 18, 2012 (2012-08-18) in San Diego, California.[42] She was defeated by unanimous decision.[43][44]

Yamanaka made her Invicta Fighting Championships debut against Ediane Gomes at Invicta FC 4: Esparza vs. Hyatt on January 5, 2013 (2013-01-05).[45][46] She was defeated by unanimous decision.[47][48]

On August 6, 2013, Yamanaka announced her retirement on her official blog, thanking her fans for their support and saying she would like to continue to support her team, Master Japan, in the future.[49]

Submission grappling

Yamanaka made her debut in submission wrestling in the 2006 Smackgirl Grappling Queen Tournament, being defeated by American fighter Roxanne Modafferi by decision.[50][51] She fought two more times on August 31, 2008 (2008-08-31) at Gi grappling 2008, first winning against Akiko Naito and then losing against Sayaka Shioda.[52]

Shoot boxing career

Yamanaka debuted in Shoot boxing on August 23, 2009 (2009-08-23) at the 2009 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup. She faced Mayumi "Super Benkei" Aoki, whom Yamanaka had previously defeated in MMA, and won the fight by TKO in round one.[53][54][55]

On August 19, 2011 (2011-08-19), Yamanaka faced Megumi Yabushita in a shoot boxing match at the 2011 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup. She won the fight by TKO (doctor stoppage) after Yabushita suffered a knee injury in round three.[56][57]

Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
16 matches 12 wins 3 losses
By knockout 2 0
By submission 2 1
By decision 8 2
No contests 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 12-3 (1) Ediane Gomes Decision (unanimous) Invicta FC 4: Esparza vs. Hyatt January 5, 2013 3 5:00 Kansas City, Kansas, United States
Loss 12-2 (1) Germaine de Randamie Decision (unanimous) Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman August 18, 2012 3 5:00 San Diego, California, United States
NC 12-1 (1) Cris Cyborg No Contest (overturned by CSAC) Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal December 17, 2011 1 0:16 San Diego, California, United States For the Strikeforce Women's Featherweight Championship. Original loss via TKO; result overturned after Cyborg tested positive for Stanozolol.
Win 12-1 Esui Submission (armbar) Jewels 15th Ring July 9, 2011 2 2:20 Tokyo, Japan
Win 11-1 Molly Helsel TKO (punches) Jewels 11th Ring December 17, 2010 2 3:12 Tokyo, Japan
Win 10-1 Sandy Furner Submission (forearm choke) Shoot Boxing: Girls S-Cup 2010 August 29, 2010 1 1:45 Tokyo, Japan
Win 9-1 Atsuko Emoto Decision (unanimous) Jewels 8th Ring May 23, 2010 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan
Win 8-1 Hitomi Akano Decision (split) Jewels 7th Ring March 19, 2010 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan
Win 7-1 Shannon Hooper Decision (unanimous) Jewels 3rd Ring May 16, 2009 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan
Win 6-1 Michiko Takeda TKO (punches) Jewels 2nd Ring February 4, 2009 2 3:25 Tokyo, Japan
Win 5-1 Mayumi Aoki Decision (unanimous) Jewels 1st Ring November 16, 2008 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan
Loss 4-1 Hitomi Akano Submission (armbar) Smackgirl: World ReMix 2008 Second Round April 25, 2008 2 3:10 Tokyo, Japan World ReMix Tournament 2008 Open Weight semi-final
Win 4-0 Yoko Takahashi Decision (unanimous) Smackgirl: Queens' Hottest Summer September 6, 2007 3 5:00 Tokyo, Japan Won Smackgirl Open Weight Championship
Win 3-0 Michiko Takeda Decision (split) Smackgirl: The Queen Said The USA Is Strongest May 19, 2007 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan Super Gals Mix Cup Open Weight Tournament final
Win 2-0 Yuiga Decision (unanimous) Smackgirl: Will The Queen Paint The Shinjuku Skies Red? March 11, 2007 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan Super Gals Mix Cup Open Weight Tournament semi-final
Win 1-0 Rie Murakami Decision (unanimous) Smackgirl: Legend of Extreme Women November 29, 2006 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan Super Gals Mix Cup Open Weight Tournament quarterfinal

Submission grappling
3 Fights, 1 Win, 2 Losses, 0 Draws
Result Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 1-2-0 Sayaka Shioda Submission (Armbar) Gi grappling 2008 August 31, 2008 (2008-08-31) 1 1:24 Tokyo, Japan Queen Tournament expert open-weight semifinals
Win 1-1-0 Akiko Naito Submission (Armbar) Gi grappling 2008 July 5, 2008 (2008-07-05) 1 0:46 Tokyo, Japan Queen Tournament expert open-weight second round
Loss 0-1-0 Roxanne Modafferi Decision (1-0) Smackgirl Grappling Queen Tournament 2006 July 23, 2006 (2006-07-23) 1 7:00 Tokyo, Japan Open Weight Grappling Tournament first round

Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest

Shoot boxing record
2 Fights, 2 Wins, 0 Losses, 0 Draws
Result Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 2-0-0 Megumi Yabushita TKO (Doctor Stoppage) 2011 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup August 19, 2011 (2011-08-19) 3 0:03 Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan
Win 1-0-0 Mayumi Aoki TKO (Punches) Shoot Boxing Girls Tournament 2009 August 23, 2009 (2009-08-23) 1 0:57 Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan

Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest

Championships and accomplishments
  • Smackgirl Open Weight Champion
  • Super Gals Mix Cup Open Weight Tournament winner

See also

References
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