Asuka Kuramochi vs Yuu Tejima
(1-1 vs 1-5, 1 KO)
(Front Street Japan trialist vs Front Street Japan)
Results: BBU; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: Asuka Kuramochi remains on trial with Front Street Japan and if she wants to become a full-time member of the squad she simply has to take care of veteran Yuu Tejima. Asuka suffered a brutal punchout loss to Vanessa White back in August while Yuu is no slouch despite her woeful record. She forced a split decision on Michelle Keegan and battled some of the established opponents in Heidi Range and Jorgie Porter over the years so she has nothing to be scared off. She vows to terminate Asuka's trial session by knocking her lights out so we have a feisty little rivalry in the making here on the undercard.

Asuka Kuramochi wears a pink bikini set & black gloves. Long black hair straight. Yuu Tejima wears a teal bikini set & silver gloves. Long dark brown hair straight. The fight is scheduled for six rounds in the flyweight division.

Round 1:
Asuka is under pressure to perform and Yuu hopes to jump the gun with some quick-fire jabbing as both girls exchange blows in the center of the ring. Neither of them gains immediate advantage and the fight quickly descends into mind over matter struggle with a lenghty clinch effectively becoming a highlight. Yuu manages to stick her mitts into Asuka's tummy down the stretch as the younger girl tries to extend the clinching before she gets sucked into the body assault and yields real estate in the process. Tejima barges her onto the ropes and duly cleans out more tummy to steal the round outright!

Round 2:
Yuu keeps striking from the front (left) leg but her precision goes away as Asuka displays some nifty footwork to escape danger. She fails to lure the older compatriot into a furious attack but lands single punches over the top that visibly frustrate Tejima down the stretch. Asuka tries to ignore the crowd noise and stays committed to the mid-range zone until she finally makes Yuu blink; the older girl launches a jabbing drive in order to steal another round late but gets whacked with a nasty hook on the jaw and wobbles to the side with Asuka landing easy body shots as Tejima struggles to find her balance. She drops onto the ropes and eats a late hook on the nose that earns Kuramochi the biggest cheer of the night.

Rounds 3 & 4:
More back & forth action as both girls settle into the jabbing attacks with Yuu leaking more punches in the opening minute as Asuka clearly shows some promise as she bumps the older compatriot around the place. Yuu struggles to break through with a counter-punching drive and eats more body shots along the way that sink her into visible discomfort. Kuramochi has noticed her rival's weak spot and pounds into Tejima's guts in relentless fashion that leaves the older woman stuck along the ropes for majority of the third and almost trapped in designated tomato can fashion in the fourth. The only problem? Asuka's lack of genuine power as she dominates the bout by numbers and shelves her foe behind a tight earmuff only to struggle to put her down for the count. Tejima escapes more trouble by clinching Kuramochi into a stalemate but the Tokyo Dome crowd doesn't like it and even Asuka knows she's working way too hard for this contract!

Round 5:
Asuka backs off and tries to lure Yuu into a suicidal attack by all accounts but that's a naive strategy as the veteran laughs in her face while stacking up quick punches into the stomach. Asuka learns too late of her mistake and gets pounded in the guts before she turns her foe around and outmuscles her during an angry scrap along the ropes. Yuu nails her across the lips and escapes from the looming trap but there's more hit & miss action coming as both women descend into a chaotic exchange that brings no clear winner until Asuka finally rams a right hook into Yuu's belly and spins her back onto the turnbuckle. But she refuses to dish out the extra punishment even with Tejima hurting and that's just a horrible letdown that makes Ayako Hamada look very upset over in the stands.

Round 6:
Final round and Yuu gets bumped onto her heels with Asuka piling leather into her midsection only for another clinch to delay the action. Asuka manages to break free before the referee does it for her and lands a crippling hook on the jaw that sends the older brunette spinning onto the ropes. Kuramochi is too fast to let Yuu off the hook this time but she still catches her on the top of her shoulder after a fine hook on the nose. Yuu slumps onto jelly legs regardless but Asuka just can't knock her down and gets vocal in an otherwise futile effort to blow the older brunette away. Ugh! Yuu locks her in a lenghty clinch and even the ref refuses to do anything about it as the clock winds down... don't call it a Front Street Japan trial session but it is over soon enough for the judges to provide the scorecards... comes back 58-56 for your winner Asuka Kuramochi!!!

AFTER: Another mediocre decision goes in Asuka's favor but she seems embarrassed by the result as she nods back at her opponent. Meanwhile Yuu enjoys the crowd's ovation like she won this fight and well, she actually prevented Asuka from getting signed as Ayako Hamada confirms it a couple of minutes later: "Look, kid! You did great... well, not so great as Yuu is still smiling but you need to work on that shot! We can't have a creampuff running to be the next true star! Hell, Maria Ozawa might be back here instead! Don't let me down, okay?"

Asuka leaves the ring without a word but BBU TV's Kate Abdo reckons she must be furious over her second failed attempt to earn that big money contract. Lucky for her Ms Hamada seems to be a very patient manager so all hope is not lost... yet!

Final result: Asuka Kuramochi def. Yuu Tejima UD6.