Kanako Murata is a 27-year-old grappler with a 12-1 record who has won eight straight fights, including claiming the Invicta FC strawweight title and defeating Randa Markos by unanimous decision in her promotional debut last November.
Those stats alone are reason enough to be paying attention to the Japanese prospect, who squares off with another former Invicta FC titleholder, Virna Jandiroba, on Saturday, but then you can add in that her idol is Kazushi Sakuraba, who once gave her one of his masks, which she then started wearing for her walkouts.
When Sakuraba gives you a co-sign, everyone should be paying attention; those are just the rules.
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Murata, who splits her time between working at home in Japan and training with Kirian Fitzgibbons and the CSA crew, dominated her fight with Markos, sweeping the scorecards against the divisional stalwart, showing no sign of nerves and the kind of grappling ability that could carry her into the mix in the 115-pound weight class quickly.
This weekend’s clash with Jandiroba is a quality measuring stick moment for the UFC sophomore, as the Brazilian veteran is a little more experienced and has faced a steadier diet of top competition over the last couple of years compared to Murata.
With a shakeup at the top of the strawweight ranks earlier this year and the Top 15 constantly in a fluid state, another strong showing by the Japanese standout here could vault her into the rankings and position Murata for a marquee assignment in the second half of the year.
