Yesterday we looked at 6 bouts rumoured to be in the works for the new year, and then we realised there was a lot more that were swirling around and ended up here, with part 2!
If you missed the first part that's available to read here 6 bouts rumoured to be in the works for 2019 Reymart Gaballo (20-0,17) Vs Liborio Solis (28-5-1-1, 13) A bout between WBA "interim" Bantamweight champion Reymart Gaballo and Venezuelan veteran Liborio Solis has been rumoured for a while, and is a bout that would keep both of the highly regarded fighters busy until the end of the WBSS, when the winner could then get a shot at a top title. Gaballo has really impressed, despite not being given too many opportunities, and the 22 year old looks like a major player in the future of the Bantamweight division. Solis on the other hand is a 36 year old, grizzled veteran who would want one more major fight. This make sense for both men, and has the makings of a great fight. Daniel Roman (26-2-1, 10) Vs Murodjon Akhmadaliev (5-0, 4) WBA Super Bantamweight champion Daniel Roman is expected to have a mandatory title defense in early 2019 against insanely fast rising Uzbek fighter Murodjon Akhmadaliev. The champion, won the title in September 2017 and has made 3 defenses since then, over-coming Ryo Matsumoto, Moises Flores and Gavin McDonnell. Akhmadaliev on the other hand only turned professional last March and has risen in a sensationally quick way to become the #1 ranked WBA contender. Roman would be favoured, but this is a tough one to call and looks like it's going to be announced in the coming weeks. Rey Vargas (32-0, 22) Vs Tomoki Kameda (36-2, 20) A match up between WBC Super Bantamweight champion Rey Vargas, from Mexico, and interim champion Tomoki Kameda, of Japan, is expected to be made at some point this year, and is a bout with history behind it. Vargas has made 3 defenses of the belt already, and is planning his next one for February before potentially facing Kameda in Summer. Kameda on the other hand won the interim in late 2018, when Vargas was out of the ring injured, and could well find himself getting a chance to avenge and amateur defeat to the Mexican. With both being able to speak Spanish this would be an easy sell to the Mexican markets, and could take place in Japan, Mexico or the US. Masayoshi Nakatani (18-0, 12) Vs Edis Tatli (31-2, 10) Supposedly in the works as Lightweight world title eliminator we could see Japan's Masayoshi Nakatani battle Finland's Edis Tatli in 2019. Nakatani has long been the OPBF champion, running up 11 defenses of the title, and is clearly in need of stiffer tests rather than continuing to battle on the regional circuit. As for Tatli, a former European champion, the bout would give him a potential push to fight for a world title. It should be noted that both fighters have generally fought at home, with Nakatani rarely leaving Osaka and Tatli only leaving Finland once, and we suspect that the fighter who secures home advantage will be favoured in this potentially compelling contest. Kenshiro (15-0, 8) Vs Hiroto Kyoguchi (12-0, 9) One of the most mouth watering bouts that could be made right now would see WBC Light Flyweight champion Kenshiro unifying with WBA "super" champion Hiroto Kyoguchi. These two fought several times as amateurs, with Kenshiro holding the advantage from those days, and the two have also taken part in a recent public spar, to build hype towards this potential contest. Between then they are 10-0 (5) in world title bouts, and would make for a brilliant contest stylistically, as well as an incredibly rare all Japanese unification bout. Our fingers are tightly crossed that this one gets done! Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (47-4-1, 41) Vs Juan Francisco Estrada (38-3, 26) II WBC Super Flyweight champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai narrowly got past Juan Fracnisco Estrada last February and is now expected to make another defense against Estrada in 2019, if a unification bout for the Thai can't be secured. Their first bout was a razor thin bout, and one where Srisaket's technical boxing surprised many, though Estrada did seem to finish the stronger man and would certainly start faster in a rematch, making things interesting once again. The WBC are expected to let Srisaket negotiate a unification contest, but if his team can't get it done quickly there's a good chance they will order this bout sooner, rather than later.
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![]() After a truly hectic start to the month things slow down a little bit, but we still have a pretty busy middle section to the month, no only with title fights but also really looking support bouts, with several supporting bouts looking like better contests than the bouts for belts. If you missed part 1 that's available here - What's to come in December...Part 1 December 9th- Ryota Yada (17-4, 14) Vs Shusaku Fujinaka (16-9-2, 10) - Osaka Japan Hard hitting Japanese Welterweight champion Ryota Yada looks to see off a break through year as he defends his title, for the second time, and takes on veteran Shusaku Fujinaka. Yada won the belt by stopping Toshio Arikawa and has come in to his own this year, after struggling past Moon Hyon Yun last year. For Fujinaka, who is rarely in a dull fight, this could be the last big chance he gets, following set backs to the likes of Keita Obara and Randall Bailey. We're expecting a very fan friendly bout here. Takayuki Okumoto (21-8-3, 10) Vs Masayoshi Hashizume (16-0-1, 10) - Osaka Japan A second Japanese title fight will see Takayuki Okumoto make his first defense of the Japanese Super Flyweight title, taking on unbeaten Ioka gym prospect Masayoshi Hashizume. For the challenger this is a massive step up in class, but he's already won the Rookie of the Year and has share gym time with the likes of Sho Ishida, Masayoshi Nakatani and Kazuto Ioka. For Okumoto this is a great chance to build on his title win, which came against Hiroyuki Kudaka back in August. Ryosuke Nasu (9-3-3, 2) Vs Yuto Nakamura (8-5, 7) - Osaka Japan The Japanese Youth title scene is heating up with more and more Youth title fights. A pretty interesting looking Japanese Youth Super Flyweight title fight will see the skilled Ryosuke Nasu battle against the limited but heavy handed Yuto Nakamura, in what should be a much more entertaining and competitive bout than the records suggest. It's clear, to use, that Nasu is the favourite, but this bout is certainly no gimme, for either man. A very good match up between two men each looking to claim a title and push their careers forward. Masayoshi Nakatani (17-0, 11) Vs Hurricane Futa (25-7-1, 15) - Osaka Japan As well as the Japanese and Japanese Youth title fights we also get an OPBF title fight, as long term OPBF Lightweight champion Masayoshi Nakatani defends his belt against hard hitting challenger Hurricane Futa, who is a real potential banana skin. In recent fights Nakatani has looked like he's gone a bit stale and off the boil, waiting for the Ioka gym to secure him a big fight, and if he again under-performs there's a chance Futa could score a career defining upset win. Futa, although better than his record suggests, should be regarded as the under-dog, but as a live one, and there is a chance he catches a less than fully focused Nakatani here. Shohei Omori (19-2, 14) Vs Takahiro Yamamoto (21-5, 17) - Osaka Japan Former world title challenger Shohei Omori looks to continue his climb towards a second world title fight as he takes on former OPBF Bantamweight champion Takahiro Yamamoto, in what looks like a very explosive match up. Both men are flawed but those flaws should make for an interesting contest. Omori is the more rounded fighter, and the more natural boxer, but can leave himself a bit open whilst Yamamoto the more heavy handed fighter, and the more deliberate puncher. We think Omori should come out on top, but wouldn't be surprised to see him need to get through some rough patches. Sho Ishida (26-1, 15) Vs Warlito Parrenas (26-8-1, 23) - Osaka Japan Former world title challengers face off in what is a must win bout for both men. Sho Ishida, who lost to Kal Yafai, is still in the mix for a second world title fight and has impressed since his sole defeat, as he looks to have become a better fighter mentally, building on his physical assets and good boxing skills. Parrenas, who lost in a world title fight to Naoya Inoue, is almost certainly in the final stages of his career, and was last seen losing to Ryuichi Funai. Parrenas has the edge in power here, being a brutish puncher, but almost all the other advantages are to the younger, taller, longer Ishida. Big question is whether Parrenas can land a bomb on the Japanese fighter. December 13th- Shuichiro Yoshino (8-0, 6) Vs Kazumasa Kobayashi (10-7-1, 6) - Tokyo, Japan Unbeaten Japanese Lightweight champion Shuichiro Yoshino seeks his third defense as he goes up against limited 35 year old challenger Kazumasa Kobayashi, in the main event of a Korakuen Hall show. On paper this is little more than a show case for the talented champion, who we expect to be moving up a level next year and be competing for regional titles if not working his way up the world rankings. Kobayashi very much feels like a veteran getting a title shot before retiring, and he has nothing to lose here, but few will be giving him any sort of a chance. Ryo Sagawa (5-1, 3) Vs Shingo Kawamura (16-4-1, 8) - Tokyo Japan We have a bit of a hidden gem here as former amateur standout Ryo Sagawa takes on recent OPBF Featherweight title challenger Shingo Kawamura in what looks likely to be an under-the-radar treat for fans. Sagawa really put himself on the map earlier this year, winning a shoot out against former world title challenger Ryo Matsumoto, and it seems clear he's looking to mix in title fights in the near future. Kawamura on the other hand lost last time out, but gave OPBF champion Satoshi Shimizu real problems, before Shimizu's power broke him down. Both men will be looking to go into 2019 with a big win and we expect that will show in their performances here. December 20th- Nobuyuki Shindo (20-4-1, 8) Vs Akinori Watanabe (37-7, 31) - Tokyo, Japan It's rare for the JBC to create an "interim" title but when they do they do tend to force a unification as quickly as they can. One of the few interim titles they've created recently is the interim Light Middleweight title, which was won by Akinori Watanabe in August, and he'll be unifying with regular champion Nobuyuki Shindo in what could be a really interesting fight. The power and experience edges are with Watanabe but Shindo is the younger man and the significantly bigger man, having around 4" in height. It's worth noting that the winner of this bout will have to make a mandatory defense in the first half of 2019. Hayato Kimura (27-10, 18) Vs Seizo Kono (19-10-1, 12) - Tokyo, Japan On the subject of Japanese interim titles we'll actually see a Japanese Interim Bantamweight title fight as Hayato Kimura and Seizo Kono clash. Originally the plan wasn't for this to be a title bout but due to illness Yuta Saito is currently on the shelf. Neither Kimura or Kono have had great runs of form coming into this, and for both men it's a bit of a must win bout, with neither really having any where to go if they lose. Kimura is certainly the quicker man, but has fought much of his career at Super Flyweight, losing in several domestic Super Flyweight title bouts. Kono on the other hand is a fully fledged Bantamweight, but is 18 months removed from his last win |
Oriental Opinions
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February 2019
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