Mizuki Inoue isn’t the only one to have been staggered by the fights being offered up in the UFC’s strawweight division already this year, from champion Zhang Weili’s five rounds of fury against Joanna Jędrzejczyk to the war that saw Rose Namajunas triumph over another fellow former champ in Jéssica Andrade, and beyond. The difference between Inoue and us mere mortals, though, is that she has a stake in this particular game. “In terms of Weili, Rose, Joanna, I’m not going to be able to fight them immediately,” says Inoue. “I will need a couple more fights at least. So I am actually relieved I don’t have to fight them immediately. “I have time to work on my game. To beat these girls I have to be more skilful, I have to create something that is better than them. So I am looking to improve myself in the next couple of years – and then fight those girls.” The 25-year-old Japanese phenom (14-5) was only signed by the UFC last year, and took a step right up to flyweight on a few weeks’ notice to make sure the opportunity didn’t slip through her grasp. At UFC Fight Night 157 in Shenzhen last August she faced China’s Wu “Mulan” Yanan (11-3), who missed weight by three full pounds and who loomed over Inoue menacingly inside the Octagon before the first bell sounded. But one of the many things Inoue brings to the game is experience. View this post on Instagram Marrion apparel dry T-shirts いつもありがとうございます️ #マリオンアパレル #マリアパファイター #ドライTシャツ A post shared by Mizuki -魅津希- (@fightermizuki) on Jul 29, 2020 at 3:54pm PDT Despite her relatively tender years, Inoue has been fighting professionally since she was 16 and she’s won a strawweight belt with one organisation (Deep Jewels) and lost out via decision in a title fight with another (Invicta). And Inoue used all her cage craft to wear the 24-year-old from Chaoyang down, and to edge a split decision. “She was much taller than me and she missed the weight so she was much bigger but when I saw her face I thought she was a little distracted, a little bit not confident for some reason,” says Inoue. “Also I knew my striking skills were much better than hers so I was confident I was better than her.” This weekend Inoue gets the chance to officially join the talent-laden ranks of the UFC’s strawweights – where she so obviously belongs – and she’ll face the 33-year-old Brazilian Amanda Lemos (7-1-1) on the UFC Fight Night: Munhoz vs. Edgar card. Inoue says there are nerves this week in Las Vegas – but that’s a good thing. View this post on Instagram On weight I’m ready to fight tomorrow night. Let’s get it Thanks all support for me. #ufcvegas7 #strawweight #Japanese #mma #Mizuki #serralongofightteam #ultimategym #manto #marrionapparel #8.22 A post shared by Mizuki -魅津希- (@fightermizuki) on Aug 21, 2020 at 2:41pm PDT “I would like to keep a sense of danger,” she says. “Like any day I could lose, any day I could get cut [from the roster]. I need to maintain that sense of danger so that makes me a little nervous every day. It is also the second fight of a four-fight contract so I also feel like I need to prove that I can hang in there and get into the top 15 [ranking].” It’s now two years on from Inoue moving full-time to New York to further her career and she has fully embraced life in the Big Apple – and the changes to her training routine that have come through working with veteran MMA coach Ray Longo, and sparring against the UFC’s American flyweight Katlyn Chookagian (14-3) and its Brazilian strawweight Claudia Gadelha (18-4). “I came to New York to look for what’s missing in my game,” says Inoue. “That’s what I am finding. I want to use what I already learned in Japan and the new techniques I am learning in New York and I am looking to become a true all-round MMA fighter. That would make me a top strawweight and that’s my goal.” View this post on Instagram August 22nd in Las Vegas. 2 weeks till a fight. I’m ready to fight and I’m excited. Thanks all the support for me. #ufc #lasvegas #strawweight #Mizuki #Inoue #Japanese #mmafighter A post shared by Mizuki -魅津希- (@fightermizuki) on Aug 8, 2020 at 5:29pm PDT Covid-19 restrictions meant Inoue missed weeks of training but they also robbed her of her training partner in her 23-year-old brother Naoki Inoue (14-2). The flyweight stand-out was back home in Japan for a first-round submission win over compatriot Shooto Watanabe (19-5-6) on the Rizin 22 card on August 9 as he continues to brush off the disappointment of losing his UFC contract after just two fights. But big sister was watching. “I saw him train via Zoom and I saw he fought, and fought well,” says Inoue. “So now the torch is passed to me and I have to do the same.” UFC: Sato looks to revive Japan’s glory days with statement win One of the surprises from Inoue’s UFC debut was that the entire fight was fought on her feet as she went toe-to-toe with her larger foe, despite the fact she’s never had a knockout across her 19 fights. But she was confident she could just pick up the points on that occasion and she’s sure to get plenty of stand-up action again this weekend against Lemos, a fighter who’s yet to be taken the distance and who boasts five KOs among her seven career wins. “She does throw a big punch and big kicks to the legs but I think her skills a little bit rough – rough meaning not refined,” says Inoue. “But I think with my game I can dominate her and leave a good impression on the fans. I want them to know who I am and what I can do.”