Seeing top fighters face each other in genuinely intriguing contests seems to be something that is really rare in our sport right now. We've started to see prospects matched hard but it's rare that world champions face another top fighter by choice, instead waiting for a mandatory to give them a tough test. For some fighters however the pursuit of making a name for themselves has made them chase big names and tough match ups. One fighter who has called for big fights over the last year or two is WBC Bantamweight kingpin Shinsuke Yamanaka (23-0-2, 17) who's wish comes true on September 22nd when he faces former WBA “super” champion Anselmo Moreno (35-3-1, 12), a man who was blatantly ducked by Koki Kameda. For Yamanaka this promises to be one of, if not the, trickiest test of his career but also a chance to beat a fighter well know in the West, and a man who has impressed American fans and media. It may not be the huge unification bout that Yamanaka may have wanted but it's still a significant and tough defense for the monstrously hard hitting southpaw. On paper it's a great match up and in terms of styles it really has the potential to be a thoroughly intriguing bout between two men with very different in-ring abilities. Yamanaka, for those who haven't seen him, is one of the sports truest punchers. His straight left hand is ridiculously potent and combines lights out power with laser guided accuracy. Aside from the left his arsenal is under-utilised though he does have a sharp jab, when he uses it, a solid hook and spiteful uppercuts. He can hold his own up close though it's at mid-range to long-range that he is incredibly dangerous. Not only is he dangerous but he's also smart and manages to draw mistakes from opponents whilst having his left hand ready to land at any time. At 32 years old Yamanaka is one of the elder-statesmen of Japanese boxing, along with fellow champions like Takashi Uchiyama and Kohei Kono. Despite his age he hasn't taken a lot of damage and has gone through 8 defense of the WBC title without suffering too much damage. Part of his “youthfulness” has come down to the fact he has stopped 7 of his 9 world class opponents, whilst the other part is his ring craft which has seen him control the distance and timing against most of his opponents. One thing to note however was that recent foe Suriyan Sor Rungvisai did show some issues with how Yamanaka copes with pressure, for his troubles though Suriyan was dropped 3 times. Whilst Yamanaka is a boxer-puncher Moreno is the more pure boxer-mover. He's a slippery and sharp fighter who rarely stays still, rarely looks to trade and scarcely throws a shot with full venom. Instead of holding his feet and putting his weight behind a shot he'll stay on his toes, move, duck, dive and frustrate opponents with a combination of his movement, hand speed and elusiveness. As well as the trickery in the ring he's also a southpaw, making him even more awkward for opponents. At his best Moreno was sensational. He went on an excellent 27 fight winning streak between 2003 and 2012 whilst notching notable wins against the likes of Tomas Roas, Volodymyr Sydorenko-twice, Rolly Lunas, Mahyar Monshipour, Nehomar Cermeno-twice and Vic Darchinan. Sadly however those times appear to be behind him and he has lost 2 of his last 4, with a decision loss to Abner Mares at Super Bantamweight and a controversial technical decision loss to Juan Carlos Payano last year. It was the loss to Payano saw Moreno lose the WBA Bantamweight "super" title after 12 successful defenses. Coming in to this bout we're expecting to see world class skills from both guys though the bout will be decided by who can make the most of their advantages. Will Moreno manage to get in and out with out taking punishment? Or will Yamanaka manage to time the Panamanian challenger? If Yamanaka catching Moreno there is a big chance he will drop the challenger, and possibly even stop Moreno. Another huge question is whether Moreno will be effected by inactivity with the challenger having fought just 6 rounds in the last year and 18 rounds in the past 24 months. For a fighter who depends on reflexes and timing that could well be a huge problem for the challenger. Although we know this will be a tough ask for Yamanaka we are expecting to see the champion shine, stepping up to the task at hand and making a real statement with a late stoppage before seeking another major bout, either at the end of the year or in early 2016. (Image courtesy of boxmob.jp)
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The Bantamweight division is one of the hottest in Japan right now. The country boasts two of the truly elite divisional fighters in the form of WBC kingpin Shinsuke Yamanaka and WBO champion Tomoki Kameda. It also boasts a brilliant set of contender level fighters, such as Shohei Omori and Kentaro Masuda, who may well have fought by the time you're probably reading this, Ryosuke Iwasa, who is set to get an IBF title shot later in the year, and WBO #1 ranked contender Ryo Akaho. It's fair to say that the coming year will be a major one, especially given the news about Iwasa's bout with Lee Haskins and the up coming contest between Tomoki Kameda and WBA "regular" champion Jamie McDonnell. Iwasa and Kameda however are trailing well behind Yamanaka in terms of resume so far and before either of them get the chance to change that we will see Yamanaka return to action and distance himself yet further from his compatriots. That comes about on April 16th when the unbeaten Yamanaka (22-0-2, 16) takes to the ring in the search of his 8th world title defence and a victory over unbeaten Argentinian Diego Ricardo Santillan (23-0, 15). This will be Yamanaka's first bout against an unbeaten opponent since his 2011 war with Iwasa, though few are giving Santillan any type of chance in a bout widely considered a mismatch, despite the fact neither man has tasted defeat so far. The reasons Yamanaka is so heavily favoured are numerous though they tend to come down to the fact he's more proven, has the more impressive wins and the more complete skill set. In fact in terms of his resume there is no active Bantamweight who can compare with Yamanaka, who already has wins over the likes of Iwasa, Christian Esquivel, Vic Darchinyan, Tomas Rojas, Malcolm Tunacao and Suriyan Sor Rungvisai. The Japanese puncher is dubbed the "God Left" due to his rocket like left hand which has destroyed numerous opponents in his 24 fight career. In terms of over-all boxing he's not the most impressive, in fact in many ways he's a one-trick pony but his one trick is an excellent one. He looks for an opportunity to land his home run punch and often connects. Aside from the left hand he does have a solid, though massively under-utilised, jab and a spiteful array of other shots that continue go under-used. Aged 32 Yamanaka is seemingly still in his prime. He has been involved in one or two wars, with the Iwasa bout standing out, but over-all he's not taken too much damage courtesy of his left hand and his intelligent footwork, which is used to set up his straight. From his 24 career bouts he has only amassed 157 professional rounds, around 6.5 rounds a bout, and has stopped 14 of his last 16 opponents. Although there are flaws with Yamanaka, notably his refusal to use his jab to set up his left hand, he's a really hard fighter to beat. Firstly a fighter needs to be built of really tough stuff, and then they need to either out box him or work him. To date no fighter has been capable of that, though Suriyan did show the blueprint in to how to beat Yamanaka, though was dropped several times for his effort and relied on his super human toughness to just see out the 12 rounds. Going through the record of the 27 year old Santillan yields little to really tell us how good he is. On paper his best win came almost 5 years ago when he stopped compatriot Guillermo Osvaldo Soloppi, then 13-0, in 5 rounds for the for Argentinian Bantamweight title. Since then however Soloppi has gone 5-5 with only a single win against a fighter with a winning record and doesn't look like a genuinely good win. Similarly a win over the then 11-0 Oreste Bernabe Nieva looks less impressive now than it looked at the time. Most worryingly for Santillan, at least in regards to his record, was his struggle past the limited Lucas Rafael Baez in a very competitive bout that saw Santillan getting the "home nudge" to retain his perfect record. From the footage that we've managed to see of Santillan he appears to be slow footed, offensively reckless and defensively open. In terms of his power it's not impressive enough to worry a fighter like Yamanaka and he's not aggressive enough to put Yamanaka under the pressure that Suriyan did last time out. Whilst it's fair to say that Suriyan did give Yamanaka a very tough time last time out it's hard to see Santillan doing the same. The Argentinian does look tough but he's never been hit by anything like a Yamanaka straight left hand. We suspect that when he is tagged by Yamanaka's power he will feel it, and he'll feel it hard. We suspect that that power will finish off Santillan within 8 rounds with Santillan becoming another of Yamanaka's victims. Whilst this bout is, likely, to be one sided we expect that the division will go through a lot of changes in the next few months. We already know that Kameda Vs McDonnell is set, we know talks are on-going for Iwasa Vs Haskins and we'll also see Japanese and OPBF title fights in the division take place this month. It's hard to know exactly where the division is heading but it's certainly going to be an interesting year for fans of the Bantamweight division. (Image courtesy of www.boxmob.jp) For several years the Bantamweight division has had two rulers. One was Panamanian slickster Anselmo Moreno, a tricky pure boxer. The other Japanese destructive and unbeaten Shinsuke Yamanaka (21-0-2, 16). The two two couldn't be much more different with Moreno using movement, sharp jabs and rapier straights as well as tricky and jerky movements whilst Yamanaka often neglects the jab to set up rocket launcher left hands that have earned him the nickname "God of Left". At the end of September one of those men was dethroned as Moreno lost a controversial, and very difficult to watch, technical decision to Juan Carlos Payano, an unbeaten fighter from the Dominican Republic. That bout may have seen Payano win the title but at the end of the day it's actual affect was leaving us with just 1 proven and dominant champion, WBC holder Yamanaka. Had Payano iced Moreno in a 1-sided show case on Fox Sports 1, as the bout was intended to be shown on, then we'd be talking about Payano as a potential threat but that bout being unaired in the US, or online, has left more mystery and intrigue than anything else. In middle of October we will see Yamanaka back in action as he looks for the 7th defense of his belt in a little under 3 years and attempts to over-come mandatory challenger Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (37-5-1, 16), a former WBC Super Flyweight champion who is known for both his reign at 115lbs and his close bout with Pongsaklek Wonjongkam way back in 2010, a bout that saw many fans of the lower weights first take note of the Thai. For Yamanaka this is his most interesting fight since his hard fought contest with Malcolm Tunacao back in April 2013. It's the first time since that bout that the champion is facing a former world title holder and a man with proven world class ability and toughness as well as a proven history of given world class southpaws, such as Wonjongkam, a tough time. Despite those facts it does need saying that Yamanaka is a freak of nature. His movement is criminally under-rated, his timing is sensational and his counters, especially the left straight, is deadly. Watching Yamanaka can, at times, be frustrating with the Japanese fighter often looking like a purely 1-handed fighter. His jab is massively under-used, his inside work is good but again under-used and if you can neutralise that thunder-bolt right you can sometimes take him out of his gameplan. Despite looking like a 1-handed fighter however we've seen Yamanaka fight enough to know he has all the tools in his locker and his work on the inside can be just as devastating as his shots at range. It's just a shame he doesn't use them all unless truly needed, as was the case against Ryosuke Iwasa in a very memorable Japanese title fight back in 2011. As for Suriyan the Thai is a very tough guy who has shown an ability to go in hard with fighters like Nobuo Nashiro, who he defended his title against, and Wongjongkam. Saying that however he was, surprisingly, dropped twice by Yota Sato, indicating that whilst Suriyan is tough there may be questions as to how tough and how well he would handle a clear shot from a fully fledged Bantamweight. Saying that however the Sato fight was Suriyan's final bout at Super Flyweight and it is possible that he was suffering with issues from making the weight limit. Whilst the challenger is just 25 years old he is also an experienced competitor. He has a number of notable wins including decisions over Tepparith Kokietgym, Takashi Kunishige, Tomas Rojas and Nashiro. He also has experience of fighting on the road though like many Thai's his record outside of Thailand isn't great, in fact he is 0-3-1 outside of his home including an early career loss in South Korea to Jin-Man Jeon. It also need noting that he lacks a real standout win as a Bantamweight with his best Bantamweight win being a stoppage over the previously unbeaten Filipino Daryl Basadre in 2013. As well as a lack of notable Bantamweight wins he has also shown a relative lack of power, despite scoring 9 stoppages in the last 2 years or so. Those stoppages have come at such a low level that they have made Suriyan look like a bigger puncher than he is and in reality even those 9 stoppages have taken 17 bouts to accumulate. Although Suriyan is a talented boxer with a tight defense and good over-all skills it's hard to see what he really brings to threaten Yamanaka with. He doesn't have the power to make Yamanaka think twice about taking a risk and he also lacks the size to get inside and make the Japanese fighter really work for his win. The tight defense will force Yamanaka to do something to create an opening though we suspect that Japanese fight could box off the back foot very comfortably to take a wide decision if he can be bothered to get his jab into action. If Yamanaka does let his jab go then this could easily be a white wash with out the champion really breaking sweat. Whilst the champion could take an easy decision we actually suspect is that Yamanaka will hunt a stoppage, it's in his mentality and he appears to want to break Yoko Gushiken's 7 fight national record for most successive title defense by stoppage. If this is what Yamanaka goes for we suspect to see him soften up the challenger in the early and middle rounds before going for the kill in the latter half of the fight, it's there that we will find out how tough Suriyan really is. On paper we like this bout, in reality however Yamanaka is just too far too good for almost everyone else in the division. Suriyan would give almost everyone in the division a tough bout but not the "God of Left". (Image courtesy of boxmob.jp) When we talk about fighters we love to watch we tend to talk about fighters who have insane power and that ability to score an instant KO if, or rather when, they catch an opponent with a clean, full blooded power shot. This is one of the reasons that we love Gennady Golovkin, Sergey Kovalev and Takashi Uchiyama. Another man who can render opponents unconscious on a whim is Japanese southpaw Shinsuke Yamanaka (20-0-2, 15). The reigning WBC Bantamweight champion might "only" have a 68% KO record but he is a fearsome puncher and he knows it. The stats, suggesting he stops less than 7 in every 10 opponents, don't take into account the fact he has gone the distance just once in his last 15 contests. This is a man whose power, or rather the ability to use it, wasn't natural but was something he learned to deliver and has managed to really deliver. This coming Wednesday sees Yamanaka returning to the ring in an attempt to score his 5th straight stoppage and his 6th successive world title defence as he takes on the popular and fun to watch Stephane Jamoye (25-4, 15) of Belgium. Interestingly Jamoye has faced other reigning and former world champions. The two current world champions he has faced are WBO Bantamweight champion Tomoki Kameda and WBC Super Bantamweight champion Leo Santa Cruz, both men that Yamanaka has suggest he'd like to fight. In his bouts against Kameda and Santa Cruz we saw Jamoye come up short. Against Kameda is a narrow and controversial defeat to then Mexican based Japanese fighter, against Santa Cruz however Jamoye was stopped in 6 following a vicious body shot. For Yamanaka a win isn't what he wants, what he wants is a better win than either Santa Cruz or Kamda managed against the Belgian. Those two losses for Jamoye both came more than 3 years ago but will serve as a marker for Yamanaka who is hell bent on prove that he is one of the top pound-for-pound fighters out there right now. Yamanaka is one of the jewels in Japanese boxing. He combines not only thunderous power, from his left hand, but an understanding of the ring, an ability to go to war, lethal finishing instincts, under-rated speed and a genuine calmness to work. If he wants to box he can do it, if he wants to brawl he'll do that, if he wants to patiently wait for his opportunity he can do that. He's amazingly versatile in the ring though knows that he need only connect once with his straight left hand to have an opponent completely void of their senses. The one complaint with Yamanaka is that he can be a bit one handed. His right hand is rarely used as well as it should be and instead of using his hooks and jabs to set up his work he tends to depend on his footwork and cleaver ability to control the distance whilst his left hand is cocked ready to be uncoiled. If you enjoy the mastery behind Guillermo Ringondeaux or Floyd Mayweather Jr then Yamanaka should be your type of guy when he's deciding to box. When he's looking to fight however he's a whole different animal, just ask Ryosuke Iwasa who went toe-to-toe with Yamanaka in a thriller before finally being stopped in a Japanese title fight. We're expecting to see Yamanaka the fighter when he gets in the ring with Jamoye. Not only do we expect to see Yamanaka turn fighter in an attempt to beat Kameda and Santa Cruz but also because of Jamoye's style. The Belgian is an in your face pressure fighter with a love of a good old fashioned tear up. Jamoye can be out boxed, he was recently by Karim Guerfi, but he loves a tear up and if an opponent doesn't decide to pot shot him they are usually in for a hard fight. This was seen in Jamoye's bouts with Lee Haskins and Jamie McDonnell, both of which were thrilling contests from start to end. We expect Yamanaka to be willing to have a tear up here and we expecting him to look for the right hook that he's been spending time practising in the US and of course his destructive straight left hand. With Santa Cruz taking 6 rounds we think Yamanaka will be looking for a finish in round 4. He may not get it but we can't see this one going much further. Our prediction is Yamanaka TKO5 with Jamoye just making it out of the 4th to be met by an almost psychotic Yamanaka in the 5th who will march out with nasty intentions and make sure he punishes the Belgian. After the fight we almost certain that Yamanaka will mention either the US or Leo Santa Cruz. We know that's the fight he wants though we do expect him to have to wait with Santa Cruz likely to face Carl Frampton first some time this year. That would, in theory, open the door for Yamanaka to fight on a US show to raise his profile there before fighting Santa Cruz in early 2015. -This bout is one of 2 world title on the same show, the other will feature Hozumi Hasegawa fighting Kiko Martinez in an IBF Super Bantamweight title fight. (Image courtesy of Boxmob) It's often said that being the champion of the world in your particular field is as good as it gets. It proves you're the best in world and the de facto #1. The king of kings, the ruler of the game. In boxing however being a world champion doesn't always mean that. Most divisions have 4 or 5 men calling themselves "World champion" and it's fair to say that this is more than just a little bit confusing. Unfortunately in the Bantamweight division we don't just have multiple world champions, but we actually have 3 "world champions" from Japan alone with Koki Kameda holding the WBA title, Tomoki Kameda holding the WBO title and Shinsuke Yamanaka holding the WBC title. Of those three men it's only Yamanaka who is really taken seriously due to the quality and quantity of his meaningful wins. The unbeaten Yamanaka (19-0-2, 14) will return to this ring on November 10th to defend his WBC belt for the fifth time as he takes on his sixth successive "world level" opponent. In the opposite corner to Yamanaka will be the teak tough Mexican Alberto Guevara (18-1, 6), one of just two men to go the distance with Mexican destroyer Leo Santa Cruz in the last four years. In fact it was Santa Cruz that Guevara's only previous title challenger came in a losing but yet impressive performance. Having proven to be tough and up for a fight Guevara is an interesting opponent for someone like Yamanaka. Sure Guevara is a great mover and a tricky opponent to land clean on, but he's also an opponent known on the international stage. He's fought in both Mexico and the US and impressed audiences in both. Beating Guevara may not be headline making but it's still something worth noting. What Guevara does well is move. He's very quick on his feet. He knows he doesn't have great power but will make a fighter miss, land a counter and move, or land first and get away as he lands and frustrates. It's not a style that will be fun for his opponents but he will test anyone in the division. Whilst Guevara is a tricky fighter Yamanaka on the other hand is a bit less tricky but much better and more proven over-all. He's a southpaw with real venom in his left hand, solid defensive skills, a growing fan base and the ability to either box or brawl. At his best he's an elusive boxer-puncher though at his most dominant he's a destructive puncher with bad intentions. We think that, due to the style Guevara has, Yamanaka will have problems, especially on. Despite those problems we do see the champion slowly but surely grinding down the Mexican who will be brave to the end, though ultimately with his gas tank running empty be taken out by a wicked left hand from the very dangerous champion. Having beaten Christian Esquivel, Vic Darchinyan, Tomas Rojas, Malcolm Tunacao and Jose Nieves in his last six contests it's fair to say that Yamanaka is scoring really notable wins. Those wins have seen him being regarded as the best Bantamweight by many on the planet. It's likely that a victory over Guevara won't improve the view many have of him, but will merely cement his standing with fans. What's really interesting though is that Yamanaka has been vocal in calling out both of his Japanese "co-champions". An expected victory here for Yamanaka will again see him calling for fights with both Tomoki and Koki. Whilst we expect Koki to have a mandatory fight with Anselmo Moreno next year Tomoki really has no "excuse" for not taking on Yamanaka. It's fair to admit we know what fight is on our list of "fights we want for 2014".
Courtesy of Boxrec.com
WBC Bantamaweight Shinsuke Yamanaka (18-0-2, 13) is regarded by some as the best Bantamweight on the planet. Although some would argue Anselmo Moreno has a better body of work one thing is certain Yamanaka is an elite fighter in the 118lb division. On August 12th Yamanaka again tries to prove that he is a class above the rest of the division as he takes on Puerto Rican challenger Jose Nieves (22-2-3, 11). Although Nieves is a bit of unknown amongst boxing fans he is ranked #2 by the WBO and#7 by the WBC. These rankings are helped somewhat by his recent run of 5 fights unbeaten as he's defeated Cuauhtemoc Vargas, twice, Alejandro Delgado, Glenn Porras and Danny Flores. These victories have seen him also claiming WBO Latino and Inter-Continental titles. Aged 32 Nieves has been a professional since 2001 and started his career with an excellent run of 18 fights unbeaten (16-0-2) before suffering a loss to Victor Fonseca in 2008. Prior to the loss to Fonseca Nieves had looked like a very promising fighter and had actually beaten Tomas Rojas just 2 fights earlier. Unfortunately for Nieves the fact that Fonseca had dropped him 3 had left many questioning his durability and just 3 fights later he was stopped by Chris Avalos in 4 rounds. This loss seemed like to end any dreams of Nieves ever becoming a world title challenger, just 6 fights later however he's managed to earn his chance to become a world champion. Whilst Nieves's Win-Loss record looks solid it's a bit of a worry that his best victories are over Tomas Rojas and Cuauhtemoc Vargas. It's an ever bigger worry when you consider Rojas twice dropped Nieves whilst Vargas twice ran him incredibly close (with plenty of neutral observers feeling that Vargas should have won both bouts). The biggest worry if you're a Nieves supporter however isn't his record but is his durability. Having been dropped by Rojas, Fonseca, Avalos and Danny Flores he really doesn't seem like the sort of fighter who should be up against a hard hitting fighter. Well schooled and able to fight on the inside or the outside Yamanaka is tricky customer to face. He's able to assume control a fight behind his jab if he wishes or hold his own in a brawl if needed, as he did with Ryosuke Iwasa. When he's confident however Yamanaka is a devastating puncher, especially with his venomous left, that left Tomas Rojas out cold less than a year ago. Although Yamanaka's record isn't that of a monster puncher with just a 65% stoppage rate he has impressively stopped 11 of his last 12 opponents with only Vic Darchinyan seeing out the distance. Those 11 stoppages have included victories over Iwasa and Rojas as mentioned above but also victories over Malcolm Tunacao and Christian Esquivel two genuinely world class fighters. If called up on Yamanaka can box or fight though from the footage of Nieves it looks likely that Yamanaka will be able to set the pace he wants. Nieves doesn't really do anything spectacularly and if Yamanaka wants this over quickly it's quite likely it will be. The likely outcome is that Yamanaka takes a few rounds to work out Nieves, see if he does have an extra gear hat he's hidden away, then opens up with his his devastating left hand and probably forces a stoppage of Nieves in the middle rounds, quite possibly after dropping the Puerto Rican 2 or 3 times. |
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