Kanako Murata
Kanako Murata (born August 10, 1993) is a Japanese female mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional mixed martial artist since 2016, Murata has also competed in Rizin Fighting Federation and Invicta FC where she is a former Invicta FC Strawweight Champion.
| Kanako Murata | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | August 10, 1993 Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Native name | 村田夏南子 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Japanese | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 156 cm (5 ft 1 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 115 lb (52 kg; 8 st 3 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Division | Strawweight Flyweight | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Style | Wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Judo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | Combat Sports Academy (2019–present)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rank | Purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years active | 2016–present (MMA) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mixed martial arts record | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 13 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| By knockout | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| By submission | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| By decision | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Losses | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| By submission | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Background
Murata was born and raised in Matsuyama, Japan.[1] The granddaughter of a judo dojo master, Murata started training judo at the age of three.[1] She was a national champion in judo in her high school years.[1] After judo, she transitioned to freestyle wrestling in which she won Junior World Championship in 2011.[1]
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Murata made her professional MMA debut in 2016. Over the next three years, she amassed an undefeated record of 9–1 fighting for the Pancrase and Rizin organizations.
Invicta FC
In her Invicta FC debut, Marata defeated Liana Pirosin at Invicta FC 35: Bennett vs. Rodriguez II via rear-naked choke in the first round.
Marata fought Emily Ducote for the Invicta strawweight title at Invicta FC 38: Murata vs. Ducote. She won the title via split decision.[2]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Murata was expected to face Lívia Renata Souza on November 14, 2020 at UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. dos Anjos.[3] However, Souza pulled out in early November due to an undisclosed injury and was replaced by Randa Markos.[4] She won the fight via unanimous decision.[5]
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 13 matches | 12 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 2 | 0 |
| By submission | 4 | 1 |
| By decision | 6 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 12–1 | Randa Markos | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. dos Anjos | November 14, 2020 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 11–1 | Emily Ducote | Decision (split) | Invicta FC 38: Murata vs. Ducote | November 1, 2019 | 5 | 5:00 | Kansas City, Kansas, United States | Won the vacant Invicta FC Strawweight Championship. |
| Win | 10–1 | Liana Pirosin | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Invicta FC 35: Bennett vs. Rodriguez II | June 7, 2019 | 1 | 2:10 | Kansas City, Kansas, United States | Return to Strawweight. Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 9–1 | Saray Orozco | Submission (Von Flue choke) | Rizin 15 | April 21, 2019 | 2 | 2:12 | Yokohama, Japan | |
| Win | 8–1 | Angela Magana | Submission (Von Flue choke) | Rizin 12 | August 12, 2018 | 2 | 3:53 | Nagoya, Japan | Strawweight bout. |
| Win | 7–1 | Lanchana Green | Submission (anaconda choke) | Rizin 10 | May 6, 2018 | 1 | 4:52 | Fukuoka, Japan | |
| Win | 6–1 | Yukari Nabe | Decision (unanimous) | DEEP 79 Impact | September 16, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 5–1 | Claire Fryer | Decision (unanimous) | Pancrase 288 | July 2, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | Strawweight bout. |
| Loss | 4–1 | Rin Nakai | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Rizin World Grand Prix 2016: 2nd Round | December 29, 2016 | 3 | 1:16 | Saitama, Japan | |
| Win | 4–0 | Kyra Batara | Decision (unanimous) | Rizin World Grand Prix 2016: 1st Round | September 26, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Saitama, Japan | Strawweight bout. |
| Win | 3–0 | Ilona Wijmans | TKO (punches) | Shoot Box Girls S-Cup 2016 | July 7, 2016 | 1 | 1:17 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 2–0 | Maia Kahaunaele-Stevenson | TKO (punches) | KOTC: Firefight | June 4, 2016 | 3 | 3:43 | San Jacinto, California, United States | Flyweight debut. |
| Win | 1–0 | Natalya Denisova | Decision (unanimous) | Rizin 1 | April 17, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Nagoya, Japan | Strawweight debut. |
References
- Mark Pickering (November 10, 2020). "Kanako Murata Always Destined To Be A Fighter". Ultimate Fighting Championship.
- Cruz, Guilherme (November 2, 2019). "Invicta FC 38 results: Kanako Murata tops Emily Ducote to claim strawweight belt". MMA Fighting.
- Raphael Marinho (2020-08-19). "UFC adds Livinha Souza vs Kanako Murata to event on November 14". sportv.globo.com. Retrieved 2020-08-19.(in Portuguese)
- Neil Davidson (2020-11-03). "Canadians Randa Markos, Malcolm Gordon to fight on UFC cards this month in Las Vegas". newsoptimist.ca. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
- Anderson, Jay (2020-11-14). "UFC Vegas 14 Results: Kanako Murata Victorious in Octagon Debut". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2020-11-15.