|
Many fighters have lost on their debut and gone on to win a world title, few however have had a turn a around like Tae Shik Kim who lost his debut in September 1977, as a 20 year old, and claimed a world title in February 1980 as a 22 year old. Kim became a world champion courtesy of a sensational win over Panama's Luis Ibarra, a man who entered the ring in 1980 as the WBA Flyweight champion. Kim started like a house of fire and it was one of those very rare times where where see a fighter clicking on all cylinders. It was amazing from the aggressive Korean who, for a night, looked genuinely unbeatable. A fantastic win and very memorable performance by the home fighter. (Video courtesy of Ymca1986)
0 Comments
South Korean fighter Sung Jun Kim may not be one of the immortal names of Korean boxing but hardcore fans may well know him for his fighter against diminutive Thai Netrnoi Sor Vorasingh from way back in 1978. The two men traded blows in a battle for the WBC Light Flyweight title and although the contest was short it was a rather entertaining scrap with both men happy to throw heavy leather at the other, especially in a fantastic round 3 Whilst the bout was, for one man, a defining victory it was sadly a meeting of tragic figures. The Thai died about 4 years after this bout, aged 23, from an automobile accident whilst the Korean fell suffered personal issues and killed himself in 1989 aged just 35. (Video courtesy of dada baba) When we talk about the greatest Thai boxers of all time there is no way anyone can avoid the amazing Khaosai Galaxy. The Super Flyweight king defended his WBA title 19 times and was clearly the king of the division. One of those defenses, the 15th, came against Korean challenger Yong Kang Kim who gave a brave effort though was thoroughly drubbed by bigger, better, stronger and more powerful fighter. Kim was dominated almost from the opening bell and although he showed great bravery he really was no match for the Thai legend who retained his title in dominant fashion. (Video courtesy to konnahuk who we want to thank massively for this rare footage) When a fighter scores a break out win you generally expect the win to be the talking point, especially when it boosts the fighter from contender to world champion. Sadly however it's not always the fighters at the center of attention but sometimes the disgusting act of fans who seem to disregard some fighters if they don't share the same nationality as the fans themselves. On such example came when Filipino fighter John Riel Casimero went over to Argentina and defeated the awfully dirty Luis Alberto Lazarte, arguably the dirtiest fighter of the last 30 years. The fans, who were there to support Lazarte, made their feelings known despite the fact Casimero scored a legitimate stoppage, and instead of congratulating the deserving winner the crowd decided to riot. This bout is one of the darkest moments in recent years for boxing in general though was the fight that took Casimero from contender to champion and a bone-fide world class fighter. It may have been a nightmare for the Filipino after the fight but in some ways it was a dream win for the youngster who showed his ability and class and proved he was a credit to the sport, even if many fans aren't. This past weekend we saw a new Korean Light Middleweight champion crowned as Joon Yong Lee battled against Ki Joon Gang. On paper the bout didn't promise a lot though it certainly wasn't the worst fight of the year. Sadly it what it was was too inexperienced in a ring that was far too big for men of their talents and two men who shouldn't have been competing for titles. Thankfully credit goes to both men for doing what they could considering the circumstances regarding this bout. (Video courtesy of K-boxing) We know boxrec.com is rarely accurate when it comes to the Asian boxing scene, but if it's right this time then they may have accidentally revealed a prodigy in the form of 20 year old Myung Soo Sun who, according to boxrec, claimed the Korean Light Welterweight title on debut with a notable win over Jae Ho Kim. The fight certainly didn't let us feel we were looking at the replacement of Ja Ik Goo, who we really hope will return to boxing soon, but Sun's win was impressive for such an inexperienced fighter, even if the decision was a little but fortunate. We do see talent in the Korean youngster though we also see a lot of inexperience and hopefully with time he will develop into his potential. Unfortunately however he will need a lot of work to iron out his flaws for a debutant to go 10 rounds however is impressive and this kid does deserve some serious attention. Video courtesy of K-boxing) Korean boxing is alive! We may never see the exciting Ja Ik Goo in action and Min Wook Kim may not make a speedy return go the ring but this past weekend did see title fights return go South Korean as fans got a trio of domestic title fights. On of those fights saw In Kyoo Lee battle against Moon Sun Jung for the Korean Featherweight title. As we often see with slow paced bouts in Korea the referee was happy to tell the men to get on with it. Sadly however the bout never became a great one and was slow paced through out showing that the level of boxing in Korea isn't nearly what it was a few decades ago. Despite that we do like the fact that this is a START! If you want a Korean battle this isn't the fight for you, but still it's nice to see Korean boxing again! (Video courtesy of k-boxing) From watching Hisashi Amagasa through out his career we've been accustomed to a wild and busy fighter who fights with the intention of stopping opponents through sheer tenacity and work rate. His biggest fight to date however saw him showing off his boxing ability as he took on former foe and former world champion Ryol Li Lee. In their first meeting Lee had over-come Amagasa and retained the Japanese title. This time the stakes were raised with the OPBF belt the reward for the winner. We won't ruin what happens but we will say that this bout was a very interesting one albeit not the most exciting that either man had been involved in. It was as if both men knew what was on the line and they knew that they couldn't afford any major slip ups between them. This isn't a FOTY style fight but it's a majorly significant bout in the career of both men and in the middle and later rounds the pace does heat up to give us a fun contest even if it's not a classic. When a fighter goes go Thailand they rarely come away with a win, whether or not they deserve one. We've seen numerous fighters lose bouts they deserved to win when they have gone to Thailand, even more so when they are fighting an unbeaten man. For Xian Wei Qian however the challenge was one he was up to and he not only went over to Thailand with the intention of winning but managed to do so as he over-came Thewa Onesongchaigym and claimed the WBC Asian Boxing Council Featherweight title. The bout may not be remembered as one of the biggest upsets of the year but the reality is what Qian did here is as rare as a hens teeth. It was the first time, in history, that a Chinese fighter had gone to Thailand and claimed a regional title and it's likely to be the last for a very long time. (Video courtesy of ทีเคโอ มวยโลก) Whilst we know very few Chinese fighters have got much international recognition we think we're on the verge of revolution in boxing where Chinese fighters will slowly become more and more influential. One of the fighters we believe will be part of this movement is the promising Qiu Xiao Jun who may not look like a superstar or even look like he has the potential to be a star but he is certainly one of the next generation of Chinese fighters. At the time of writing Jun has suffered 2 losses, both of which were in Japan against Japanese based Filipino Jonathan Baat. For Jun however he has gotten the last laugh by beating Baat in what was a third meeting between the two fighters earlier this year. This win saw Jun defending his WBC Asian Boxing Council Continental Super Bantamweight title and scoring his second win of the year following his victory over Jason Cooper and proving that he's on the way to becoming a notable fighter, even if he will never be a divisional #1. |
VideosHere we include some of the best, most interesting, most exciting or most eye catching videos from around the Asian boxing world. Archives
March 2024
|