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December 31st 2014- Bodymaker Colosseum, Osaka, Osaka, Japan Hisashi Amagasa (28-4-2, 19) Vs Guillermo Rigondeaux (14-0, 9) A few weeks ago we heard a rumour that Cubana sensation Guillermo Rigondeaux was heading to Japan to fight OPBF Featherweight champion Hisashi Amagasa. At first it was a rumour that saw us raise our eye brows, then it quickly grew and within 24 hours it was all but confirmed. Rigondeaux, one of the sports most highly regarded fighters and a double Olympic champion was indeed off to Japan to fight Amagasa in what would be 2014's final bout of the year. On paper it was a mismatch only made interesting by a huge size disparity in the ring however it was a compelling contest and one of the most exciting bouts of Rigondeaux's career. Enjoy what turned out to be a very surprisingly good contest.
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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. OPBF Featherweight champion Hisashi Amagasa may only boast a 54.55% KO rate at the present moment but few who have shared a ring with him will argue with the fact he is a heavy handed fighter. One of the most impressive displays of that power came when Amagasa fought Koji Nagata and scored a genuinely chilling KO to finish what had been a relatively testing bout for the then 23 year old prospect. Going in to round 7 no one would have expected such a dramatic ending but Amagasa landed a perfect uppercut that completely crumpled Nagata in a very eye catching and aesthetically pleasing manner. Japan's world ranked Hisashi Amagasa is a funny fighter at times. He has power, he has skills, he has size, he has work rate and he has toughness. A lot of the time however he throws away those qualities to partake in a crude brawl that somehow he seems to win despite often looking uncoordinated and and confused. One such win saw him over-coming Zuri Kannan in a bout that will have left many people wondering what was so special about Amagasa, despite the fact he win with relative ease. We wouldn't suggest this was Amagasa at his best though in many ways we do think Amagasa is better than he looks here and when he needs to he can tighten up the defense and straighten his punches which can often look like windmill punches against guys like Kannan. (Video courtesy of aka0113) In February 2011 Hisashi Amagasa looked like a gangly and uncoordinated fighter as he got past Kota Suzushino. He looked like he was waiting to grow into his body and his 5'10" frame appeared to be in need of some serious maturing, despite the fact he was in his mid 20's. Just 10 months later we saw Amagasa getting his second title bout, a Japanese fight, against Toru Suzuki. The title was vacant going into the bout, having been given up by Satoshi Hosono ahead of his world title bout with Celestino Caballero, and we were promise a very interesting contest. Whilst the bout wasn't a FOTY contender for 2011 it did live up to expectation of being an interesting contest with both men landing solid shots through out the contest and missing wildly with other shots. In the end however the bout become a bit of a shoot out with the heavier handed of the two men managing to win. (Video thanks to okimoto mangosteen) Current OPBF Featherweight champion Hisashi Amagasa might not be much of a name in the West but the Japanese fighter is one of the few men who is ranked by all 4 world title bodies. A truly impressive feat in this day and age. Amagasa has come a very long way in recent years. Back in February 2011 few would have suspected that the elongated Japanese fighter would ever climb to a world ranking, especially if they saw his bout with Kota Suzushino, a bout that saw Amagasa looking relatively uncoordinated at times and almost like his frame was a long way from filling out. (Video courtesy of okimoto mangosteen) |
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