 Although August was exciting there a lack of big name action. That changes however in September when we get a host of world level bouts with other rising contenders in action across a number of weights. September 5th- Masanobu Nakazawa Vs Masayoshi Kotake (Japanese) The month kicks off with title action in Japan as the once beaten Masanobu Nakazawa (17-1-1, 7) battles Masayoshi Kotake (9-9-2, 5) in a bout for the Japanese interim Light Welterweight title. This bout has come about due to an injury to Hiroki Okada and we're expecting a good one here. On paper it's easy to side with Nakazawa though he's taking a huge step up in class to face the much more proven Kotake in what really looks likely to be a very competitive match up. September 6th- Tomoki Kameda Vs Jamie McDonnell II (WBA) One of the best bouts this year saw Japan's Tomoki Kameda (31-1, 19) suffer his first loss in a brilliantly competitive 12 round bout with Englishman Jamie McDonnell (26-2-1, 12). Now the men will do it again with McDonnell hoping to prove his win wasn't a fluke and Kameda looking to avenge his sole defeat. Up for grabs isn't just personal gratification but also the WBA Bantamweight title and the claim of being the #2 fighter in the division.  September 12th- Jonathan Taconing Vs Jomar Fajardo (OPBF) Some bouts are guaranteed to give excitement and action. Any bout that features Jonathan Taconing (21-2-1, 18) is likely to be worth a watch. Taconing will be defending his OPBF Light Flyweight title against compatriot, and fellow slugger, Jomar Fajardo (14-8-2, 7) in a bout that could be the sleeper bout of the month. Stylistically this one promises to be really exciting, though we do suspect that Taconing will be too big, too strong and too powerful for the gutsy Fajardo. September 16th- Shohei Omori Vs Hirofumi Mukai (Japan) Fast rising Japanese Bantamweight Shohei Omori (14-0, 9) impressed us all when he won the Japanese Bantamweight title earlier this year. He makes his first defense of that title as he takes on former 2-time world title challenger Hirofumi Mukai (11-3-2, 1) in what looks like a solid, though unspectacular, defense for the man dubbed “Demon of Left”. Whilst the bout isn't a great one it does see Omori up against his most accomplished southpaw opponent Kota Tokunaga Vs Yuhei Suzuki (Japan) On the same card as Omori's Bantamweight title fight his stablemate Kota Tokunaga (15-2, 10) will make the first defense of the Japanese Lightweight title. In the opposite corner is heavy handed challenger Yuhei Suzuki (16-4, 12). This one promises to be explosive with both guys able to through heavy leather, though neither has shown a real ability to cope with being tagged hard meaning that this could be over at any moment.  September 17th- Shin Ono Vs Kenichi Horikawa (Japan) Former world title challenger Shin Ono (18-6-2, 2) looks to claim his first domestic title as he faced veteran pro Kenichi Horikawa (29-13-1, 6). For Horikawa this will be a 4th Japanese title fight and although he's come up short in first 3 shots he'll be determined to make the most of this one. With both fighters being in their 30's this could be a case of now or never, especially with the fast rising Ken Shiro waiting in the wings for the winner. September 18th- Xiong Zhao Zhong Vs Crison Omayao (OPBF) China's only man to claim a world title, Xiong Zhao Zhong (25-6-1, 14) will look for one of his most notable wins as he takes on Filipino fighter Crison Omayao (17-9-3, 5) in a bout for the OPBF Minimumweight title. On paper this looks like a mismatch but Omayao has got a spotty record due to facing some of the most talented little men on the planet, including Naoya Inoue and Kosei Tanaka. This really should be the Chinese highlight of the month. September 22nd- Shinsuke Yamanaka Vs Anselmo Moreno (WBC) The Asian wide highlight of the month, and one of the world wide bouts of the month, will see WBC Bantamweight kingpin Shinsuke Yamanaka (23-0-2, 17) defending his belt against former WBA “super” champion Anselmo Moreno (35-3-1, 12). For some this bout is to decide the facto #1 Bantamweight on the planet, for others how it's just a bout to savior and features one of the most talented pure boxers in the sport battle against one of the sports most natural punchers. This really is something very special. September 27th- Less than a week after the Yamanaka/Moreno bout we get another of the month's highlights as we get a real huge bumper show in Osaka. Kazuto Ioka Vs Roberto Domingo Sosa (WBA) The main event will see Kazuto Ioka (17-1, 10) defending his WBA Flyweight title against Roberto Domingo Sosa (26-2-1, 14). This will be Ioka's first defense of the title, that he won against Juan Carlos Reveco earlier this year, and if he comes through this, as is expected, he will be facing Reveco in a bout penciled in for December 31st. A lot riding on this one for the 26 year Japanese youngster. Katsunari Takayama Vs Ryuji Hara (IBF) Another world title bout on the same card will see IBF Minimumweight champion Katsunari Takayama (29-7-0-1, 11) defending his title Ryuji Hara (19-1, 11) in what looks to be a genuinely mouth watering match up. For Takayama this will be the second defence of his title whilst Hara fights in his first world title fight, having previously been the Japanese and OPBF champion. Sho Ishida Vs Hayato Kimura (Japan) On the same card the Ioka bout will be three other title bouts. One of those will see Japanese Super Flyweight champion Sho Ishida (19-0, 10) defending his belt against Hayato Kimura (23-7, 15). This doesn't look great on paper but it's a good test for Ishida who will be hoping to move on to world level in his upcoming bouts. Alstough a big favour there are some questions marks about the champions stamina which will hopefully be tested again here. Kei Takenaka Vs Krikanok Islandmuaythai (OPBF-Female) A lower title fight on this card will see Kei Takenaka (9-0, 3) defending her OPBF female Light Flyweight title against Thai visitor Krikanok Islandmuaythai (4-4-1, 2). This is a weaker bout than the other two major fights on this card but it's expected to be one of Takenaka's final bouts before stepping up to world level.  September 29th-
Eun Hye Lee Vs Ploynapa Sakrungrueng (WBC-Female) The final world title bout comes towards the end of the month as South Korean fighter Eun Hye Lee (7-0, 2) battle Thai visitor Ploynapa Sakrungrueng (12-5-1, 1) in a bout for the WBO female Light Flyweight title. This bout has been rescheduled twice following various issues and is finally looking like it's all sorted, finally. September 30th- Yukinori Oguni Vs Taiki Minamoto The final notable action of the month takes place at the end of the month where Japanese fans get a couple of national title fights. The most interesting of those will see Japanese Super Bantamweight champion Yukinori Oguni (14-1-1, 4) defending his belt against the heavy handed Taiki Minamoto (10-4, 9). This will be Oguni's second defense and if he comes through he'll be expected to face a rematch against Yasutaka Ishimoto. Suyon Takayama Vs Ryoji Tanaka The other title fight at the end of the month will see Suyon Takayama (22-1, 7) defending the Japanese Welterweight title against Ryoji Tanaka (8-4-1, 2). This is a weak looking match up, if we're being honest, but the significance of the bout is worth noting and if Takayama keeps defending his title we may, one day, see him take part in a more interesting match up than his recent ones. (All Images courtesy of boxmob.jp
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One of the best things about so many Filipino fighters is their willingness to travel for fights. Often it leaves them being over matched in places like Mexico and Thailand though plenty have made their names on the road. Obviously Manny Pacquiao has become a star in the US, though first won a world title in Thailand, whilst Johnriel Casimero has become a modern day road warrior with notable fights in Argentina, Mexico, South Africa, Panama, Nicaragua and Thailand. Likewise Denver Cuello has more stamps on his passport than most with bouts in Thailand, Mexico, USA, Dubai and Japan. This past Friday we saw two more Filipino's go away from home to take part in bouts that they were supposed to lose. As is often the case with fighters from the Philippines, they failed to read the script and rather than crumbling to the home fighter both men put up a real fight. The first of those in action was the unknown Jestoni Autida (9-3, 4). Autida was a 24 year old fighter would only have been known by the incredibly hardcore who may have seen him push world ranked Bantamweight Petch Sor Chitpattana close in March. On Friday the he stepped back up to his natural Super Bantamweight and faced Ratchasak KKP (29-4-1, 14), a man who was known for twice dropping Rex Tso in May 2014.
It was at the beginning of round 9 that Tomlinson started to box and it was fair enough to give the home fighter the final two rounds as he closed the gap on the scorecard of a neutral fan.
At the final bell it seemed as if both fighters knew who had won, Aguelo had done more than enough to deserve the victory. He had landed the better shots, he had racked up the rounds, he had done the damage, sadly though he had been jobbed on the cards of the judges with two of the judges some how giving the fight to Tomlinson with scores of 97-93 and 97-94, both inexplicable scores. Whilst Aguelo has again been a loser on the road he will know that he deserved the win, fans,including Australians, have stated he should have won. Sometimes getting the win on your record is the most important thing, however a loss that leaves fans wanting to see more of you can be much better than a win that leaves fans bored. For Aguelo this “loss” may well have been just as good as a win, and better yet it was on free TV in Australia acting as a huge advert for the 27 year old. Whilst many fighters are happy to stay at home, pick up their wins and losses, sometimes it can be so much more rewarding for fighters to travel. That was was seen for both Autida and Aguelo who both enhanced their reputations and whilst most casual fans world wide may not give them much attention it's fair to say both did make new fans. |
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