That type of money had never before been offered in female MMA, so many foreign fighters came to participate in the events, including current stars like Marloes Coenen and Erin Toughill. The first ReMix World Cup offered a huge bonus of $100,000 to the tournament winner.
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Therefore, Neo Women’s Pro Wrestling started an event named ReMix in 2000. The first L-1 tourney was ruled by Svetlana Goundarenko, a Russian Olympic judoka who tipped the scales at 150kg (330 lbs.).Īfter a few shows, LLPW discontinued its experiment, but in that era, female pro wrestling orgs couldn’t ignore MMA. Martial artists who convert from other disciplines only truly shine against stiff competition, and the Japanese female MMA scene isn’t at that level yet, aside from a handful of top-tier fighters.įemale MMA in Japan began when the promotion Ladies Legend Pro Wrestling (LLPW) started its “shoot fighting” Ultimate L-1 Challenge tournament in 1995. I don’t judge those fighters by their backgrounds, but I do think elite martial artists are a special breed. The thin female scene has also acquired much of its talent from kickboxing. In 2010, you can still find many current and ex-pro wrestlers competing in Japanese women’s promotions like Jewels and Valkyrie. Japanese women’s MMA has its roots in female pro wrestling. If you have the will and knowledge to write something similar, please write it. But, this was a piece that needed writing, so I’ve written it to the best of my abilities.
Most of the information comes from Japanese sources, so the history must be slightly Japanized. Here, I’ve attempted to construct a history, pieced together with all the information I could research. There hasn’t been much written on the history of female MMA. It’s not a very long history, and it’s constantly changing, so sometimes people don’t think it’s important, but I think examining the sport’s history is essential to understanding its present and future.