is a retired Japanese female

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

. She announced her formal retirement from MMA on August 1, 2013. Akano used a song she penned herself called "Between the Sky" as her entrance music. She is a former

Smackgirl Smackgirl was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion focused solely on Women's mixed martial arts, female fighters. The promotion also held grappling and amateur events along with its main line of professional MMA cards. After financial difficul ...

Middleweight Champion at 128 pounds.

Mixed martial arts career

Akano made her

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

debut on November 26, 2004 against veteran Megumi Yabushita. Akano went into the fight with a broken foot, unwilling to pull out of the fight beforehand. She was defeated by Unanimous Decision. On August 17, 2005, Akano submitted

Takayo Hashi Takayo Hashi (端貴代 ''Hashi Takayo'', born October 2, 1977) is a Japanese female mixed martial artist. Biography Hashi observed her brother grappling and competing in mixed martial arts and this inspired her to compete as well. She joined t ...

at 1:19 of the first round at

– Dynamic !! Akano faced Tara LaRosa at MFC – USA vs. Russia 3 on June 3, 2006. She lost the fight by Unanimous Decision. She faced Molly Helsel at Smackgirl – Women Hold Their Ground on September 15, 2006. She won the fight by armbar submission in the second round and became the second Smackgirl Middleweight (128-Pound) Champion. On April 14, 2007, Akano faced Amanda Buckner at BodogFight – Clash of the Nations. She was defeated by Unanimous Decision. Akano battled

for the second time at

– Queen's Hottest Summer on September 6, 2007. She was defeated by Unanimous Decision and lost the Smackgirl Middleweight Championship. Akano fought Vanessa Porto at FFF 3 – War of the Roses on November 3, 2007. She lost the fight by Split Decision. Akano rematched Megumi Yabushita in the opening round of the 2008 Smackgirl World ReMix Grand Prix. She defeated Yabushita with a heel hook in the second round. Akano advanced to the finals of the ReMix tournament by submitting Hiroko Yamanaka on April 25, 2008, but Smackgirl closed its doors soon after and was later renamed Jewels. On November 16, 2008, Akano submitted Mika Harigai with an armbar in just 38 seconds at Jewels 1st Ring. Akano faced

Cris Cyborg Cristiane Justino Venâncio (born July 9, 1985), known professionally as Cris Cyborg and formerly by her married name Cristiane Santos, is a Brazilian-American professional mixed martial artist and Professional boxing, professional boxer who com ...

at Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz on April 11, 2009. Cyborg came in six pounds overweight for the fight. Akano originally rejected the fight due to Cyborg failing to make weight but later accepted the fight. She lost the fight by TKO due to strikes in the third round. Following the Strikeforce bout, Akano returned to Japan and faced Miki Morifuji at Jewels 4th Ring. She defeated Morifuji by armbar in the second round. Akano faced Hiroko Yamanaka for the second time at Jewels 7th Ring on March 19, 2010. She lost the fight by Split Decision. Akano was part of the one-night Strikeforce 135-pound women's tournament on August 13, 2010 at Strikeforce Challengers: Riggs vs. Taylor. A random drawing was held on the day of the weigh-ins to determine first-round matchups and Akano faced Carina Damm in the opening round of the tournament. Akano submitted Damm with a triangle armbar in the second round to advance to the tournament final. She faced Miesha Tate and was defeated by Unanimous Decision. Akano was scheduled to face Roxanne Modafferi at World Victory Road Presents: Soul of Fight on December 30, 2010, but the fight was cancelled after Modafferi suffered a stomach illness and was unable to compete. Akano faced Chisa Yonezawa at

Pancrase is a Japanese mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Tokyo. It was founded in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the An ...

Impressive Tour 2 on March 13, 2011 in

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

, Japan. She defeated Yonezawa by armbar submission in just 40 seconds. Akano then faced Roxanne Modafferi in a bout rescheduled for Jewels 15th Ring on July 9, 2011. She defeated Modafferi by Unanimous Decision. Akano faced Olympian

Sara McMann Sara McMann (born September 24, 1980) is an American mixed martial artist currently signed to Bellator MMA, competing in the Women's Featherweight division. She is a former Olympic wrestler and received a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympi ...

ProElite 3 ProElite, Inc. is an American entertainment and media company involved in the promotion of mixed martial arts (MMA). First incarnation Founded by boxing promoter Gary Shaw and his son Jared in 2006 in partnership with Showtime Networks Inc. (a ...

on January 21, 2012. She was defeated by unanimous decision. Akano faced Alexis Davis at Invicta Fighting Championships 2 on July 28, 2012. She was defeated by submission due to a rear-naked choke in the second round. It was announced on August 2, that Akano has retired from the sport of MMA.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center , 18–10 , Alexis Davis , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Invicta FC 2: Baszler vs. McMann , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 3:41 ,

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City (commonly known as KCK) is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As ...

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

, , - , Loss , align=center , 18–9 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

: Grove vs. Minowa , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, , - , Win , align=center , 18–8 , Roxanne Modafferi , Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 15th Ring , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, , - , Win , align=center , 17–8 , Chisa Yonezawa , Submission (armbar) , Pancrase: Impressive Tour 2 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 0:40 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center , 16–8 , Miesha Tate , Decision (unanimous) , Strikeforce Challengers: Riggs vs. Taylor , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 3:00 ,

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

, Final of Women's 135 lb tournament , - , Win , align=center , 16–7 , Carina Damm , Submission (triangle armbar) , Strikeforce Challengers: Riggs vs. Taylor , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 1:48 ,

, Semi-final of Women's 135 lb tournament , - , Loss , align=center , 15–7 , Hiroko Yamanaka , Decision (split) , Jewels 7th Ring , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 15–6 , Miki Morifuji , Technical submission (straight armbar) , Jewels 4th Ring , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 4:17 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center , 14–6 ,

, TKO (punches) , Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 0:35 ,

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

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, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 13–5 , Hiroko Yamanaka , Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl: World Remix Tournament Semifinal , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 3:10 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 12–5 , Megumi Yabushita , Submission (heel hook) , Smackgirl: World ReMix Tournament Opening , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 4:16 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center , 11–5 , Vanessa Porto , Decision (split) , FFF 3: War of the Roses , , align=center , 5 , align=center , 3:00 ,

Ontario, California Ontario is a city in southwestern San Bernardino County, California, United States, east of downtown Los Angeles and west of downtown San Bernardino, the county seat. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire metropolitan area, it lies ...

, , - , Loss , align=center , 11–4 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Smackgirl: Queen's Hottest Summer , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

, Japan , Lost Smackgirl Middleweight Championship , - , Win , align=center , 11–3 , Liz Posener , Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl: The Queen Said The USA Is Strongest , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 0:52 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center , 10–3 , Amanda Buckner , Decision (unanimous) , BodogFight: Clash of the Nations , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center , 10–2 , Keiko Tamai , Submission (armbar) , MARS: BodogFight , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 4:48 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 9–2 , Molly Helsel , Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl: Women Hold Their Ground , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 1:32 ,

, Japan , Won Smackgirl Middleweight Championship , - , Win , align=center , 8–2 , Emma Bush , Decision (unanimous) , Smackgirl: Top Girl Battle , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center , 7–2 , Tara LaRosa , Decision (unanimous) , M-1 Mixfight: USA vs Russia 3 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

, , - , Win , align=center , 7–1 , Debi Purcell , Decision (unanimous) , Smackgirl: Advent of Goddess , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 6–1 , Keiko Tamai , Submission (armbar) , G-Shooto: G-Shooto 03 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:27 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 5–1 , Asako Saioka , Decision (unanimous) , Smackgirl: Shimokita Experiment League , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 4–1 ,

, Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl: Dynamic !! , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:19 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 3–1 , Kinuka Sasaki , Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl: The Next Cinderella 2005 Second Stage , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 3:58 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 2–1 , Seri Saito , Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl: The Next Cinderella 2005 First Stage , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 1:25 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 1–1 , Mika Harigai , Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl: Refresh 2005 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 2:29 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center , 0–1 , Megumi Yabushita , Decision (unanimous) , G-Shooto: G-Shooto 01 , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 ,

, Japan ,

Championships

* 2007 Smackgirl Middleweight Champion * 2006 Smackgirl Middleweight Champion * 1999 Grand Prix Città di Roma (U63) (Silver) * 1999 ASKO World Tournament Leonding (U63) (Silver)

References

External links

Akano's official blog

Hitomi Akano
a
Awakening Fighters
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Akano, Hitomi 1974 births Living people Martial artists from Osaka Japanese female mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Japanese female judoka Japanese female Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners

Mixed martial arts career

Mixed martial arts record

Championships

See also

References

External links