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Women’s Atomweight
1. Seo Hee Ham (23-8)
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)
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.3. Jinh Yu Frey (9-4)
Frey has an uncanny knack for winning close decisions under the Invicta Fighting Championships banner. She again emerged on the right side of the judges’ scorecards in the Invicta FC 39 main event, as she rallied down the stretch to edge Ashley Cummins by a trio of 48-47 counts. While Frey improved to 2-0 against Cummins, she was forced to vacate her atomweight belt due to missing weight prior to the event. If she elects to stay at 105 pounds, Frey could be in line for another shot at the belt she just vacated. However, she also admitted to considering a move up a division in the aftermath of her latest triumph.4. Miyuu Yamamoto (6-4)
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)
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.6. Rena Kubota (10-3)
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)
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.8. Viviane Pereira (14-3)
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 (6-2)
After a 2019 campaign that saw her suffer her first two professional defeats at the hands of Viviane Pereira and Kanna Asakura, Zappitella returned to the win column at Invicta Fighting Championships 39. “Half Pint” relied on her wrestling base when necessary against Kelly D’Angelo but also outstruck her opponent to capture a unanimous decision triumph in Kansas City, Kan., on Feb. 7. The Michigan native has been victorious in three of her four Invicta FC appearances.10. Tomo Maesawa (13-10)
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 also bolster her resume.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, Anthony Walker, Tudor Leonte, Keith Shillan, Mike Sloan, Patrick Auger and Tyler Treese.