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Women’s Atomweight
1. Seo Hee Ham (23-8) (1)
The third time proved to be a charm for Ham at Rizin 20, as she edged rival Ayaka Hamasaki via split decision to claim the Japanese promotion’s super atomweight crown. After losing a pair of bouts to Hamasaki under the Jewels banner from 2010 to 2011, the South Korean threatened her opponent with a triangle, landed punishing elbows and bloodied her nose with sharp left hands in their trilogy meeting. Ham has now won six consecutive bouts while competing in both Rizin and Road FC, where she also holds a title.2. Ayaka Hamasaki (19-3) (2)
After twice besting Seo Hee Ham in Jewels nearly a decade ago, Hamasaki finally came up short against her South Korean rival at Rizin 20, losing a narrow split decision to relinquish her lightweight crown. While the 37-year-old fighter certainly had her moments in the contest, she ultimately couldn’t do enough to sway the scorecards in her favor. In defeat, Hamasaki saw a five-bout Rizin winning streak come to an end. Hamasaki will return against Tomo Maesawa at Rizin 22.3. Jinh Yu Frey (9-5) (3)
Frey’s first strawweight foray ended in disappointment at UFC on ESPN 12, as she was submitted by Kay Hansen 2:26 into the third round of their encounter at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on June 27. It’s been a rough year so far for the 35-year-old Frey, who was stripped of her Invicta FC strawweight title after failing to make weight prior to a victory over Ashley Cummins in February. Frey will look to earn her first UFC triumph against “Looma Lookboonmee” on Oct. 3.4. Miyuu Yamamoto (6-4) (4)
Yamamoto returned to the win column at Rizin 20, as she earned a clear-cut unanimous decision triumph over Suwanan Boonsorn at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on New Year’s Eve. The 45-year-old Krazy Bee representative bounced back from a second-round TKO loss to Seo Hee Ham at Rizin 19 and has won five of her last six appearances within the Japanese promotion.5. Kanna Asakura (16-4) (5)
In a cross-promotional bout at Bellator 237, Asakura submitted Jayme Hinshaw with a kimura 3:33 into the third round of their clash in Saitama, Japan, on Dec. 28. The former Rizin atomweight grand prix winner concluded her 2019 campaign with a 3-1 mark that also included victories over Alesha Zappitella and Tomo Maesawa. Asakura will help kick off Rizin’s return to live events with a bout against Mizuki Furuse on Aug. 9.6. Rena Kubota (10-3) (6)
Kubota avenged a previous loss to Lindsey VanZandt under the Bellator banner on New Year’s Eve, as she won via corner stoppage at the 4:42 mark of Round 3 at Rizin 20. The 28-year-old Shoot Boxing champion has won two consecutive fights since that loss to VanZandt at Bellator 222. She owns an impressive 9-2 overall mark under the Rizin banner.7. Ashley Cummins (7-5) (7)
The atomweight crown was Cummins’ alone to win at Invicta FC 39, but “Smashley” once again came up short against Jinh Yu Frey, losing their rematch in a closely-contested unanimous decision defeat in the evening’s headliner on Feb. 7 in Kansas City, Kan. The 32-year-old St. Louis native also lost a three-round verdict to Frey in July 2017, but the sting of the latest setback is intensified due to the fact that Frey missed weight prior to the bout to leave the title vacant. Cummins will get another chance to claim 105-pound gold when she meets Alesha Zappitellla in the Invicta FC 42 headliner.8. Viviane Pereira (14-3) (8)
After a three-fight losing streak against the likes of Tatiana Suarez, Xiaonan Yan and Mizuki Inoue prompted Pereira to exit the strawweight division, the 25-year-old Brazilian tested the waters at atomweight at Invicta FC 35. “Sucuri” was successful in the cage, taking a three-round verdict over Alesha Zappitella, but the scales were a different story, as she checked in at 106.7 pounds prior to the matchup. If she is to remain a fixture in the rankings, Pereira must prove she can make weight consistently.9. Alesha Zappitella (7-2, 1 NC) (9)
Zappitella continued to creep closer to an atomweight title shot in Invicta Fighting Championships, as she relied on takedowns and top control to capture a split-decision triumph against Lindsey VanZandt in the Invicta FC 41 co-main event on July 2. “Half Pint” has won two fights in a row and four of five overall within the all-female organization. Zappitella will vie for the vacant 105-pound belt against Ashley Cummins in the Invicta FC 42 main event.10. Tomo Maesawa (13-10) (10)
After falling to Kanna Asakura and Seo Hee Ham in her first two appearances of 2019, Maesawa closed out her campaign with a three-round verdict against Emi Tomimatsu at Deep “Jewels 28” on Oct. 22. It was Maesawa’s second career triumph over Tomimatsu. The 32-year-old Japanese fighter has been up and down throughout her professional tenure, but recent victories over the likes of Mina Kurobe and Jeong Eun Park bolster her resume. Maesawa will meet Ayaka Hamasaki at Rizin 22 on Aug. 9.Other Contenders: Mina Kurobe, Jessica Correa Delboni, Alyona Rassohyna, Kelly D’Angelo, Alyse Anderson.
Sherdog’s divisional and pound-for-pound rankings are compiled by a panel of Sherdog.com staff members and contributors: Tristen Critchfield, Mike Fridley, Brian Knapp, Ben Duffy, Jay Pettry, Edward Carbajal, Marcelo Alonso, Tudor Leonte, Keith Shillan and Tyler Treese.