The pack may be closing in on Ayaka Hamasaki even as she closes in on 40, but they haven’t caught her just yet.
In the main event of Rizin 27 on Saturday, the Abe Ani Combat Club representative defeated Kanna Asakura by split decision, going 2-0 against the young contender and retaining her Rizin Fighting Federation super atomweight (49 kg/108 lb) title. With the win, Hamasaki, who turns 39 later this month, put just a little more distance between herself and the second greatest atomweight of all time — whoever you want to argue that is.