Chihiro Suzuki-Kleber Koike Erbst Title Rematch to Headline Rizin’s NYE Show

Featherweight champion Chihiro Suzuki will defend his title in a rematch against ex-title holder Kleber Koike Erbst in the main event of Rizin Fighting Federation’s New Year’s Eve card.

The Japanese promotion announced the bout during a press conference on Tuesday. The event, entitled Rizin 49 "Decade",” takes place on Dec. 31 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and is available via pay-per-view. No other fights were announced for the card.

Erbst was the reigning 145-pound champion for the first matchup with Suzuki in June 2023. However, the Brazilian lost the title on the scale when he missed weight one day prior to their meeting at Rizin 43. As a result, the belt remained vacant following Erbst’s first-round submission victory, which was declared a no contest due to Rizin rules.

Suzuki has won three straight contests since that defeat, beginning with a first-round knockout of Bellator champ Patricio Freire in a lightweight affair. He then captured the featherweight crown with a first-round KO of Vugar Karamov before defending the strap with an opening-round stoppage of Masanori Kanehara at Rizin 46 this past April.

Erbst has also fought three times since facing Suzuki. After dropping a unanimous verdict to Kanehara at Rizin 44, the 35-year-old rebounded to post back-to-back submission triumphs against Yutaka Saito and Juan Archuleta.