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This past week has been an under-the-radar week, with a lot of action, even if there wasn't a lot of headlines. We've had some really interesting and eye catching moments, and it is certainly a week that will go down as being an over-looked one at the end of the year.
Fighter of the Week Samuel Salva (17-0, 10) There was a couple of world title eliminators this week and whilst neither really delivered in terms of being a FOTY candidate, it was good to see Samuel Salva put on a career best performance to over-come Rene Mark Cuarto. Salva hadn't looked great in some previous bouts, but the 22 year old showed a lot to like here, and had certainly improved from the fighter that had previous had footage available. Whether he goes all the way or not is yet to be seen, though he is now firmly in the mix for a world title fight. Performance of the Week Sadriddin Akhmedov (8-0, 7) Kazakh fighter Sadriddin Akhmedov has been carving out a real reputation due to his performances in Canada but this week he returned to his motherland and put on a show for the fans in Kazakhstan, beating up tough Indonesian John Ruba. The bout, for a regional title, saw Akhmedov take the fight to Ruba round after round, though was surprisingly taken the 10 round distance. The "Soldier of Q" will have been disappointed in losing his 100% KO rate, but did get a chance to answer any questions about his stamina and work rate. A fantastic showing. Fight Ricky Sismundo Vs Maxim Dadashev Although there was a lot of minor fights from Asia one of the most interesting fights from the week to feature an Asian came from the US as Ricky Sismundo took on hard hitting Russian Maxim Dadashev, and really forced the fight to be a good one. The fight won't be recalled as a Fight of the Year contender but had a great momentum swing and come back. In round 2 Sismundo dropped the unbeaten Russian and seemed confident of attacking Dadashev, before being taken out by a huge 2-punch combination in round 4. A very entertaining contest, even if it's nothing that will be remembered highly at the end of the year. Notable mention - Jon Jon Estrada Vs Vladislav Krasnoshein Round Akzhol Sulaimanbek Uulu vs Mike Tawatchai Round 3 We had some great rounds this past week, and one of the best was the third round of the bout between Akzhol Sulaimanbek Uulu and Mike Tawatchai. The bout overall was 1-sided, with Uulu beating up the Thai veteran, but the 3rd round really saw the Thai gritting his teeth and taking the fight back to Uulu, almost fighting out of desperation. It wasn't an effective tactic for Tawatchai, but did make for some really exciting action before he was broken down. KO Roy Nagulman KO2 Angelito Merin We had a few great KO's this week, including one suffered by Ricky Sismundo, though none was as good as the one score by Filipino teenager Roy Nagulman, who left Angelito Merin out cold, and requiring a stretcher to get out of the ring. The shot that left Merin down was a huge right hand that could not possibly have landed any cleaner. At 17 years old Nagulman looks to be a real prospect and this performance was as much of an eye opener as he team could ever have hoped for. Prospect Yuki Yamauchi (3-0, 2) Japan's Yuki Yamauchi may not be on the radar of many fight fans yet, despite our recent "Introducing..." article about him, but it's only a matter of time before fans will begin talking about him. He stepped up this week and took the unbeaten record of Claudevan Sese in 3 rounds. Yamauchi could be the best Japanese fighter you're not aware of, and is well worth following. Unlike most Japanese prospects the 23 year old has international amateur experience and fighting at Super Bantamweight he's someone capable of making a big mark on the international stage. Upcoming fight Hironori Mishiro (6-0-1, 2) vs Takuya Watanabe (35-8-1, 20) We sometimes get amazing match ups that make us lick our lips in anticipation, despite average fans not caring too much. We think we have one such bout this week, as OPBF Super Featherweight champion Hironori Mishiro takes on Takuya Watanabe. This has the potential to be a very, very special bout between two talented fighters. These might not be a world title bout, or even a world title eliminator, but it's a bout we're incredibly excited about and we suspect we'll be getting something very special here.
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After a few disappointing weeks of action, or rather a lack of action, things got going again this past week and it has been an excellent week with a great FOTY contender and several impressive performances from prospects.
Fighter of the Week Kosei Tanaka (13-0, 7) There was a clear star this week, and you'll be seeing his name mentioned a lot in this article. That is WBO Flyweight champion Kosei Tanaka, who was the clear Fighter of the Week, defending his WBO title in a fantastic 12 round contest with Ryoichi Taguchi. Although Tanaka wasn't impressed by his own performance, we were and it really was an excellent win and another thrilling bout from the "KO Dream Boy" who has now been in back to back FOTY contenders. Performance of the Week Koshin Takeshima (3-0, 3) One of the many fighters who will end up being over-looked from this past week is Koshin Takeshima, who looked sensational, exciting and destructive as he stopped Jian Wang. Takeshima dropped his Chinese opponent in the opening seconds, then bulled him around until the resolve of Wang went and the referee was forced to step in and stop the bout. The level of the bout might not have been high but we are only a few months removed from Wang going 10 rounds in a regional youth title bout. Very impressive from Takeshima. Fight Kosei Tanaka (12-0, 7) vs Ryoichi Taguchi (27-3-2, 12) The fight of the week was, clearly, the aforementioned WBO Flyweight title bout between Kosei Tanaka and Ryoichi Taguchi. It was, in the end, one sided but was still truly exciting, action packed and all action. Tanaka had too much of everything for the 32 year old Taguchi, but the heart and desire of Taguchi kept him in the bout and kept firing shots back at Tanaka. Yes it was one sided, but 12 rounds of pulsating action at a very high level! Round Kosei Tanaka Vs Ryoichi Taguchi - Round 3 There was several great rounds in the Tanaka Vs Taguchi bout, several of which could have been considered the Round of the Week. For us round 3 gets it though, as it was the only round where Tanaka seemed shaken, with his legs buckling at one point. It was one of the few moments that Taguchi looked like he had a chance, and it was long after the round that Tanaka began to really dominate the fight. It was a great back and forth, as the first few rounds were, and really, really fun to watch. KO Takuya Mizuno KO2 Piched Chianawa There is something to really love about body shots, and that was what we got when Takuya Mizuno took out Piched Chianawa. The bout was a farcical mismatch, but it was still closed in style by Mizuno who left the Thai journeyman in agony from a perfect liver shot. Prospect Kento Hatanaka (8-0, 8) It wasn't only Kosei Tanaka shining from the Hatanaka gym this week but also youngster Kento Hatanaka, who impressed with a thrilling action packed and eye opening win over Songsaeng Phoyaem. The bout, which was streamed live on CBC's international fee, was exciting with Hatanaka eventually breaking down the Thai to claim the win and successfully defend his WBC Youth title. His aggressive and exciting performance certainly put him on the map for more fans and it's hard to imagine that it'll be much longer before he's in much bigger bouts. Upcoming fight Ricky Sismundo (35-12-3, 17) Vs Maxim Dadashev (12-0, 10) This coming week has a lot going on, though perhaps the fight which gives us the most to be excited about is a bit of a hidden potential gem. The fight in question will see highly experienced Filipino journeyman Ricky Sismundo take on Maxim Dadashev in what could be a truly compelling contest. Sismundo is much better than his record suggests whilst Dadashev if taking a step up in class and risking his unbeaten record. This could be something very telling about both men. |
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May 2019
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