Rika Ishige submits Rome Trinidad in second round

Rika “Tinydoll” Ishige closed out the year in style.

Four months after her first and only career defeat, the 28-year-old Thai celebrity stepped back into the win column on Saturday, 9 December. 

She earned a second-round submission win against Rome Trinidad in atomweight acton at ONE: WARRIORS OF THE WORLD, which broadcast live from the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

After the pair spent the opening minute figuring each other out, the action picked up. Ishige landed a left high kick, while Trinidad continued to look for a home for her overhand punches.

Soon, they were throwing down, and the action never seemed to slow as the 20-year-old Trinidad charged in with a late flurry that backed the hometown hero into the cage. 

By the time the round concluded, it was clear the crowd was hyped, and ready to watch the rest of this war unfold.

The partisan crowd got just what they came for in the second stanza. Ishige blitzed “The Rebel” with just over three minutes left in the round, and scored a decisive takedown. 

With the crowd cheering Ishige on, she sank in a rear-naked choke. The resilient Trinidad miraculously escaped after giving up her back and the full mount position to get the bout to the feet.

That success would not last for long. Owning the grappling advantage, Ishige unsurprisingly took the match back to the canvas again. A botched escape attempt by the Elorde prospect gave “Tinydoll” the room to lock in another rear-naked choke, this time forcing the tap.

With the victory, Ishige moves her professional record to 3-1, and sets the record for most finishes inside the ONE Championship women’s atomweight division.