Controversial Clashes - Koki Eto Vs Jeyvier Cintron I

4/3/2021

One thing we often forget about controversial bouts is that sometimes the final result is the right result, and although there is controversy in the action, and sometimes the original result, common sense can prevail. We've had a couple of cases in this series where a decision was reversed, with one bout being re-scored completely and one being turned into a No Contest after a relatively prolonged review process. Today we look at one which was reviewed, and turned into a No Contest, within minutes. It was the right call, but one that certainly was controversial to begin with, before the right decision was, finally, made.

Koki Eto (24-4-1, 19) vs Jeyvier Cintron (10-0, 5) I
In May 2019 Japan's Koki Eto and Puerto Rican Jeyvier Cintron met in a WBO International Super Flyweight title bout. The bout wasn't just for the international title but also a defacto world title eliminator for the winner of the then scheduled WBO world title fight between Kazuto Ioka and Aston Palicte.

Outside of Asia few fans will have been familiar with Koki Eto. We once dubbed him the Human Highlight Reel and during a stretch of his career he was among the most fan friendly fighters on the planet. His 2013 war with Kompayak Porpramook was a FOTY contender that saw him win the WBA "Interim" Flyweight title and the following year his war with Ardin Diale was arguably even better. He was clumsy, crude, but had guts, heart, power and impressive stamina.

Despite all the traits that made him fun to watch Eto also had a lot of flaws. They had been shown notably in his losses against Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep and against Carlos Cuadras. He had also continued to show them in his wins, including a 2016 bout with Jun Blazo, where he was dropped before bouncing back to stop the Filipino. He made for great fights, but didn't always fight as smartly as he should.

On the other hand Jeyvier Cintron was a potential star in the making. He was really well schooled, a second generation fighter and a 2-time Olympian. Style wise he was a lot less exciting than Eto, but technically he was on point and was a tall, rangy southpaw boxer who used his physical traits well. He was lacking in terms of power and aggression, and was instead a very talented boxer/boxer-mover with good speed and a good boxing brain. He had only turned professional in 2017 but had looked class and seemed on his way to the top.

On paper this was a step up for Cintron, but one where he was coming in as the clear favourite. This was his chance to prove himself, and boost his standing in the sport. Despite being a 2-time Olympian he wasn't getting the hype of some other Puerto Rican's yet was one of the most talented hopefuls the country had. Instead of being promoted hard he had been relatively well hidden on smaller, obscure cards. Soemthing that was a real shame.

The early moments of the fight saw Cintron using his speed and movement to get on the outside. Eto, doing what Eto does. He made mistakes that Cintron could counter and for the two minutes it seemed an interesting match up. Cintron the more polished boxer, against Eto, the crude but energetic slugger who would eat shots whilst trying to land one of his own.

With about 30 seconds of the opening round left Cintron hit the canvas, with what, from the camera angle, appeared to be an Eto right hand. Cintron would try to get to his feet, then stumble, into the corner, and continue stumbling around like he was drunk. This forced the referee to wave off the bout as Eto and his team began to celebrate.

It seemed like the Japanese fighter was going to get a world title fight, until a replay showed that the "shot" was actually a headclash. A very accidental headclash.

In the ring Eto was announced a TKO1 winner.

Then the officials went to a replay to review the finish. Soon afterwards the result was over-turned, as officials spotted the headclash on review, and deemed the result invalid.Unlike some reviews this didn't take long. In fact this was over-turned only minutes later, with the result becoming a No Contest. It was the right decision and proved that a review process doesn't need to take weeks. It was proof that replays in boxing could work for fight ending moments, and was a situation where the officials got it right.

Whilst the referee did "get it wrong" it was one where he wasn't actually to blame. It was an accidental foul by Eto and happened at such speed that the referee was never going to see it, and from where he was stood it looked like the right hand had landed clean. He made the right call in stopping the bout and he did what was best for the fighter, and the officials ringside did what was right for fairness.

Unlike most controversies this actually had no long term knock on and was very much a self contained controversy. The two would rematch in August, with Cintron winning and subsequently fighting Ioka for the WBO world title in December 2019.

It was unlikely the winner of this bout would have fought an interim bout prior to the Ioka clash, had their contest not ended in a No Contest, and this really wasn't a bout that cost either guy much in terms of their career. Sadly though the rematch lacked in terms of drama, excitement and talking points, making this a much more notable bout than their second clash.

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Closet Classic - Koki Eto Vs Kompayak Porpramook

5/23/2019

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This coming weekend we'll see Japan's Koki Eto make his US debut, taking on Jeyvier Cintron, with that in mind we've decided that this week's Closet Classic should include the all action warrior from Okinawa. He's had a host of bouts to choose from, but we've gone with the most obvious choice, his 2013 Fight of the Year contender from Thailand. The bout put him on the map for those who follow the Asian scene and helped to really increase his profile among the lower weight fans. It also began a a run of amazing action fights for the SGS promoted fighter.

The Fight:
Koki Eto (13-2-1, 10) vs Kompayak Porpramook (50-4, 35)
To set the scene for this bout we need to actually go back a bit further in the careers of both men.

Koki Eto managed to put himself on the periphery in 2012, when he stopped the then world ranked Denchailek Kratingdaenggym at the Korakuen Hall. That win allowed him to be considered for WBA title matches, though he had to travel to get a shot at a belt. He would make the travel in 2013 travelling to Thailand to face Porpramook. With over 50 bouts to his name Porpramook was a true veteran and a former world champion at Light Flyweight, who won the title in a 10 round war with Adrian Hernandez in 2011 before losing a rematch and moving up weight.

Prior to beating Denchailek there wasn't much at all on Eto's record, with the only other bout of any note being his 2011 Thai debut, a narrow loss to Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym. He was expected to travel and put up a good performance en route to a loss to Kompayak. He however had different ideas and was looking to become the first Japanese fighter to win a world title in Thailand, even if it was only the WBA "interim" Flyweight title.

Porpramook was a tough old veteran, a warrior and a war monger. He went into the ring every fight looking to make a war and was unbeaten in Thailand for over a decade, having last lost at home in September 2009 to Filipino gate keeper Allana Ranada. Despite being 31 years old and with 54 fights to his name he was still regarded as a real contender, and seemed to be looking to extend his career with the move to 112lbs, no longer boiling down to Light Flyweight.

The fight didn't start like a typical bout, there was no feeling out round after the long introduction from the Thai's, something that we typically see when bouts are held on TV. Instead of a feeling out round we quickly got down to action with Eto originally looking to use his reach frame to fight at range. Porpramook had other ideas, applying pressure, coming forward and looking to make the fight into a war. Before the opening round was over Eto was obliging Porpramook, allowing the fight to be fought up close in sports, and landing his uppercut on a regular basis. The uppercuts Eto was landed looked like they could fell a horse but Porpramook ate the, and kept coming forward. The home fighter was hurt, and dropped, before the end of the opening round, with the referee ruling a slip before Eto himself slipped seconds before the bell.

From the first round things just got better and better and better and better. The action, which was intense to start with, intensified further. Each round becoming more brutally entertaining than the last, more physically damaging and demanding than it's predecessor. At times both men looked close to collapsing, spent from the 3 minutes of non stop action that came before it.

This is one of the rare bouts that gets better the longer it goes. The out put doesn't slow from either man, who dug insanely deep, though the footwork begins to vanish, leading the two men to trade incessantly in some of the back and forth action we've seen in years.

Please note - The bell to start the fight rings at 17:50 in this video, with the start of the video being the traditionally and over long Thai introductions.

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Fighter Focus - Koki Eto

5/21/2019

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This coming Saturday we see two Japanese fighters in action in Florida. One of those is WBO Super Featherweight world champion Masayuki Ito, a man who really came of age in 2018 with a huge win over Christopher Diaz to become a world champion. The other is Koki Eto (24-4-1, 19) a less well known, but arguably more interesting fighter than Ito, despite being significantly less talented.

Ito is a world class fighter, but is a technically well schooled fighter who came through the hard way, developed skills and reached the pinaccle, Eto on the other hand is a 1-man action man, a wildly entertaining fighter who's flaws have made him a must watch fighter. Despite being hugely entertaining Eto is somewhat an unknown outside of Asia, and this weekend's bout, against 2-time Olympian Jeyvier Cintron (10-0, 5), will be his second outside of Asia. Ahead of Eto's bout in the US we've decided to make the latest fighter to get our "Fighter Focus" treatment, following Ryuichi Funai who also made his US debut earlier this month.

So to begin with lets go through some cliff notes, and some factoids about Eto and his career so far:

Eto is a 31 year old from the Shirai Gushiken Sports Gym in Okinawa, which is owned by Yoko Gushiken
He is one of 3 fighters from the Eto family, along with Shingo and Taiki. Sadly his brothers have both seemingly retired from the sport.
Interestingly him and his brother Taiki are twins.
Koki Eto debuted in 2008, on the same show that Shingo Eto debuted on. Conicdentally his twin, Taiki, was stopped inside a round on this same show!
After winning his first 3 bouts Eto would lose to Naoki Shiosawa, in what was an East Japan Rookie of the Year bout in 2009. The loss was Eto's first defeat though he would avenge it the following year, stopping Shiosawa in a rematch in early 2010.
In 2011 Eto made his international debut, stopping Omar Parrales in Mexico. His stablemate, Naoko Yamaguchi, fought Ana Maria Torres in one 3 female world title bouts on the card. Interesting Rey Vargas was also on the card, fighting in his 7th professional bout.
Also in 2011 Eto suffered his first loss on the road, coming up short to Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym in what was Eto's first title bout
Eto's first, and so far only, draw came 4 months after his loss to Panomroonglek, when he fought to a 6 round stalemate with Yota Hori
Just over a year after his loss to Panomroonglek Eto returned to Thailand and beat Suriyan Kompayak Porpramook for the WBA "interim" Flyweight title, in what was one -of the best fights of the last decade. This hellacious war was decided by a 12th round knockdown by Eto, securing him the decision win. This is the first, and only, time a Japanese born fighter has won a "world title" bout in Thailand.
Sadly Eto's reign would last less than 5 months, and come to an end when he returned to Thailand and was stopped by Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep in 1 rounds. This was another fantastic fight, and well worth a watch it's self.
Eto made it 3 thrillers in a row by bounce back from the Yodmongkol loss to fight Ardin Diale for the OPBF Flyweight title in 2014. Eto was dropped in rounds 3 and well behind on the scorecards before forcing an 8th round stoppage over the Filipino in one of the most memorable turn arounds in recent years.
In 2015 Eto challenged the then WBC Super Flyweight champion Carlos Cuadras, losing a competitive decision to the Mexican champion.
Since losing to Cuadras Eto is 7-0 (6), though has been fighting at a very low level against Thai and Filipino fighters
At 173cm, or 5 foot 8, Eto is a very tall Super Flyweight, and was remarkably rangy when he fought at Flyweight
Despite fighting solely in Japan since 2014 only 1 of Eto's last 11 opponents has been Japan, Yuki Fukumoto who he fought in August 2015

So now to look at Koki Eto in more depth, understand him as a fighter and add some meat to the interesting notes from above, and try to understand why we once refered to Eto as the "One man Highlight reel".

He was born in Okinawa along side twin brother Taiki Eto, and the two of the, along with older brother Shingo Eto, were quickly compared to the Kameda brothers, who were also a fighting threesome. Little really is reported about the Eto clan's amateur careers, though Koki clearly didn't have a strong one debuting in a 4 round bout against a fellow novice in August 2008. The following year he would enter the Rookie of the Year but was sadly eliminated by a majority decision loss to Naoki Shiosawa. Whilst that was a notable set back for Eto he would get revenge the following year, stopping Shiosawa in the 5th round a rematch just 8 months later.

The win over Shiosawa was part of a great run of form for Eto, who strung 8 wins together including a win on his international debut, in Mexico in early 2011, and a win over Shota Hashimoto, who had also been stopped by Koki's twin brother. That winning lead to him travelling to Thailand, for his first of 3 bouts in the country, and challenger WBC International Silver Flyweight champion Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym. The bout looked like a straight forward win for the local, on paper, but in actuality Eto went over determined to take the victory and ran the Thai incredibly close on the cards of all 3 Thai judges.

Sadly after the set back against Panomroonglek Eto struggled on his return to the ring, fighting to a 6 round draw with Yota Hori. Eto's career would then be put on ice for a while, before he returned 11 months later and beat the then world ranked Denchailek Kratingdaenggym in 2 rounds. At the time Denchailek was ranked #10 by the WBA and this loss derailed his career completed, with the Thai never returning to the boxing ring afterwards.

Around 9 months after Eto stopped Denchailek he got to make the WBA ranking he had taken from the Thai, fighting against Kompayak Porpramook for the WBA Flyweight title in Bangkok. This turned out to be the bout that put Eto on the proverbial map, as he travelled as the under-dog and came out on top of a 12 round fight that was truly amazing. Eto looked to set a fast pace from the opening round, showing no fear of the harsh Thai conditions and he took the fight to Porpramook from the off. The Thai was fighting back hard, but a 12th round knockdown by Eto proved vital with the Japanese fighter winning a razor thin decision

Sadly for Eto his reign would last less than 4 months, with the fighter losing the title to Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep in his first defense. Eto was stopped in round 6 and despite putting up a good effort he was eventually stopped in the 12th round, whilst down on all 3 cards. Despite losing to the Thai he had again put in a thrilling effort, showing guts and determination whilst being slowly beaten up by the Thai.

Given his tough bouts against Porpramook and Yodmongkol, in the space of just a few months, Eto was given a bit of a break before returning to face Filipino foe Ardin Diale for the OPBF Flyweight title. This was another insane bout, with Eto being dropped in rounds 3 and 7 before battling back and stopping Diale in the 8th round. By the stoppage he was 5 points down in all 3 cards, with 5 rounds left. This was widely proclaimed as one of the best bouts in Asia in 2014 and again saw Eto show his heart and willingness to have a war.

Despite having 3 incredible bouts in a row Eto would actually revert to boxing for his next two, defending the OPBF title against Cris Paulino and Yuki Fukumoto. These were both competitive bouts, but neither was particularly exciting, with Eto pulling out stoppages in the second half of both bouts.

After making his second defense of the OPBF Flyweight title Eto moved up to Super Flyweight and challenged the then WBC world champion Carlos Cuadras. Entering as a huge under-dog Eto was completely out boxed in the first half, though had success in the second half of the fight, closing up the scores slightly and making things respectable. Although he lost 117-111, twice, and 116-112 Eto showed he could compete on the fringes of world class, and probably should have been kept at that level.

Sadly instead of building on the loss to Cuadras Eto has been consistently facing limited opposition and not really looking good in the process. He struggled to beat Filipino domestic level fighter Michael Escobia, was dropped by Jun Blazo before scoring a stoppage, and has really just faced a string of over-matched opposition. That string of bad opposition has allowed Eto to go 7-0 (6) but he's looked very poor in some of those bouts, and at times it has appeared he has regressed from the man who managed to take rounds off Cuadras. He's always looked exciting, but so technically flawed that he could end up being taken out by anyone he faces.

Although a truly exciting fighter at his best, and arguably the closest we have to a current day Naoto Takahashi, the 31 year old Eto has had a damaging career and with his technical flaws and incredible toughness that damage will add up. It's hard to know how much longer Eto has left in his body, but it's clear that win or lose his bout with Cintron will be wonderfully enjoyable for as long as it lasts.

At his best Eto was, for a time, one of the must watch Asian fighters, but the last few years of fighting relative nobodies has seen Eto losing his appeal and becoming less and less interesting. His fight with Cintron will give his career another boost, but we're expecting him to come up short and to end his career in the near future.

(Image courtesy of SGS Gym)

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Japanese World Ranked Fighters - July 2018

8/2/2018

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By - George Delis (@Delisketo)

Heavyweight:
-Kyotaro Fujimoto (19-1): WBO #7 / WBC #20
A heavyweight Japanese fighter is something very rare, let along being ranked in the top 10. The former K-1 champion debuted in 2011 and has had a successful run in the regional scene, currently holding the OPBF & WBO Asia Pacific Heavyweight belts while riding on a 14 fight winning streak. Even though we may never see him challenging for a world title, it’s fun knowing he is there.

Super Welterweight/Jr Middleweight:
-Takeshi Inoue (13-0): WBO #5 / WBA #13 / WBC #19
The undefeated 4-year veteran is climbing the Super Welterweight rankings very fast, managing to place himself as the #5 in the WBO. A former Japanese title holder and now the unified OPBF & WBO Asia Pacific champion, may very well be one or two fights away from his first world title opportunity.

Super Lightweight/Jr Welterweight:
-Hiroki Okada (18-0): WBO #3 / WBA #4 / WBC #9
One of brightest prospects in Japan right now, Okada has never lost a single bout in his entire career. A bona fide knock out artist (13 KOs), he held the Japanese crown for 32 months and defended it 6 times, before winning the WBO Asia Pacific championship from Jason Pagara (41-3) this past December. Since the WBO world champion Maurice Hooker will not participate in the WBSS, this title will probably be his main focus as of now. Okada’s next confirmed appearance is on September 14th in the US (opponent TBA).

Lightweight:
-Masayoshi Nakatani (17-0): WBC #7, WBO #13
Much like Okada and Takuma, Nakatani is also another undefeated fighter, who just recently made a record 10th title defense of the OPBF Lightweight championship. Despite the fact that he is ranked “only” #7 by the WBC, it’s worth pointing out that his last bout took place on July 29, so that win wasn’t taken into consideration at the latest ranking updates.

-Nihito Arakawa (31-6): WBO #3
Former Japanese, OPBF and reigning WBO Asia Pacific Lightweight champion, Arakawa has been in many big fights through out his 14-year career. At 36, he is still looking for his second world title opportunity.

Super Featherweight/Jr Lightweight:
-Masaru Sueyoshi (18-1): WBO #7
The 27 year old is steadily making his mark in Japan, suffering only one loss in his 4th pro bout, Sueyoshi has been victorious in his last 15 outings and even won the Japanese title on October of 2017. Another successful year and we might see him challenge for a world title by the end of 2019/beginning of 2020.

Featherweight:
-Satoshi Shimizu (6-0): WBC #6
The Bronze Medalist at the 2012 Olympics, made his pro debut on September of 2016 and he has KOed/TKOed every single one of his opponents since then, claiming the OPBF Featherweight crown in just his 4th fight. He will defend that belt against Shingo Kawamura (16-3) later this month. If he can pass that test too, a fight with Gary Russell Jr. for the WBC title could be up for debate.

-Shun Kubo (13-1): WBA #7
The former WBA Super Bantamweight world champion returned this April, after his TKO loss to Daniel Roman in 2017, and won his comeback fight against former OPBF Featherweight champion & world title challenger Hiroshige Osawa (33-5) making a huge impact on his Featherweight debut.

Super Bantamweight/r Featherweight:
-Tomoki Kameda (35-2): WBA #2 / WBC #4 / WBO #9
El Mexicanito, has been on a 4-fight winning streak since moving up a weight class and has already broke the top 5 in both the WBA & the WBC. A fight with Emanuel Navarrete (WBA #1) could potentially set up a world title fight in 2019 with the winner of Daniel Roman/ Gavin McDonnell, which takes place this October.

-Hidenori Otake (31-2): WBO #6 / WBC #8
The reigning OPBF champion is scheduled to take on Isaac Dogboe (19-0) for the WBO World Super Bantamweight title on August 25.

Bantamweight:
-Takuma Inoue (11-0): WBO #8 / WBC #9
The undefeated former OPBF Super Flyweight champion is set to face reigning OPBF Bantamweight champion Mark John Yap (29-12), in a WBC World title eliminator fight on September 11.

-Hiroaki Teshigawara (17-2): WBO #6
Teshigawara recently stopped former world title contender Teiru Kinoshita (26-3) to defend his WBO Asia Pacific crown, bringing him one step closer to a WBO world championship match.

-Ryo Akaho (32-2): WBO #13
This is more of an honorable mention as Akaho made his return to the ring this past July, since his forced retirement last year, and knocked out Robert Udtohan, thus making it in the WBO world rankings once more.

Super Flyweight/Jr Bantamweight:
-Kazuto Ioka (22-1): WBA #2
In what must be considered the most bizarre ranking of this list, the former 3 division world champion, who’s return to the ring was announced just a couple of weeks ago, is already ranked #2 by the WBA ! Ioka is scheduled to fight WBC Silver champion and 2-time world title contender McWilliams Arroyo (17-3) on September 8, in the States.

-Koki Eto (22-4): WBC #5 / WBO #7 / WBA #9
The former interim WBA World Flyweight champion is currently ranked in the top 10 of the WBA, the WBC and the WBO. He fights Delfin de Asis (9-5) on August 16.

-Ryuichi Funai (30-7): WBO #5 / WBC #10 / WBA #13
Funai knocked out Philippino standout and world title challenger Warlito Parrenas (26-8), in impressive fashion, this past June, and won the vacant WBO Asia Pacific title. A strong first title defense and Funai could be challenging for the world championship by 2019.

Flyweight:
-Kosei Tanaka (11-0): WBO #1 / WBC #2
Arguably one of the best fighters that have come out of Japan, Tanaka has won 2 world titles in 2 different divisions within 5 years. Now he looks to add a 3rd one to his collection as he goes one on one with Sho Kimura (17-1) for the WBO World Flyweight championship on September 24.

-Masayuki Kuroda (30-7): WBA #1 / WBC #4 / WBO #5
The current Japanese Flyweight champion has been on a 6-fight winning streak and has defended his belt 5 times since 2017 and now is ranked amongst the top 5 in the world and most importantly #1 by the WBA. A world title match against Artem Dalakian (17-0) sounds very plausible at this point and since both men have already fought this summer and have come out with no injuries, a fight between the two could take place around December.

-Junto Nakatani (16-0): WBC #5 / WBO #13
Undefeated Japanese flyweight prospect Junto Nakatani scored another TKO win on July 7 and now is ranked at the WBC’s top 5.

-Takuya Kogawa (29-5): WBC #8
After a draw with Yusuke Sakashita, Kogawa has retained his spot at the WBC rankings.

-Masahiro Sakamoto (12-1): WBO #4
The former WBO Asia Pacific champion will probably be in line for a WBO World title match against the winner of Kimura/Tanaka in 2019. He is scheduled to face South Korea’s Flyweight champion Ki Chang Go (6-2) on August 11.

Light Flyweight:
-Ryuji Hara (23-2): WBO #1
Much like Ioka’s, this is the second strangest ranking, especially considering that Hara hasn’t fought since October of 2017. Actually Hara has been the #1 ranked flyweight by the WBO since January, despite having only competed once in this division against the debuting Seneey Worachina. Hara was set to face Angel Acosta for the world title on April 7 but an injury prevented him from stepping into the ring.

-Tetsuya Hisada (32-9): WBA #1 / WBC #3 / WBC #6
The reigning Japanese Flyweight champion, since 2016, recorded a 4th successful defense against Koki Ono (12-5) on July 16, thus improving his streak to 11 consecutive victories. Now as the #1 ranked Light Flyweight by the WBA, he is rumored to face Hekkie Budler for the gold sooner or later.

-Hiroto Kyoguchi (10-0): WBA #2
The undefeated IBF World Minimumweight champion has recently decided to move up a weight class and has already reached the top of the WBA ranking. If Hisada doesn’t face Budler right away, then an eliminator between Kyoguchi and Hisada looks more likely to take place.

-Ryoichi Taguchi (27-3): WBC #4 / WBA #4
Despite losing his 2 world title to Budler, Taguchi is still ranked amongst the top Light Flyweights in the world and without a doubt he will gain another crack at the gold in no time.

-Reiya Konishi (16-1): WBO #6 / WBA #7
The former world title challenger and now new WBO Asia Pacific champion, is coming closer to once again fight for the world championship.

Minimumweight:
-Tsubasa Koura (13-0): WBC #3 / WBA #9 / WBO #11
At only 23 years of age, Koura has already amassed 13 career wins, including 9 KOs, as well as the OPBF Minimumweight championship. His 3rd title defense will take place on August 24 against an unnamed opponent as of yet. It’s safe to say that we will see him in a WBC world title match in early 2019.

-Ryuya Yamanaka (16-3): WBO #6
Yamanaka recently lost the WBO world title to Vic Saludar. Just like Taguchi, he is only a few fights away from competing again for the big one.

-Tatsuya Fukuhara (21-6): WBC #9
Fukuhara has been victorious in both of his 2018 fights but he will need a few more before he can challenge Chayaphon Moonsri again for the WBC world title.

-Shin Ono (22-9): WBO #9
Ono will make his first Japanese title defense against Riku Kano (13-3) on August 24. His last world title fight was in 2016.

(Image - of Fujimoto, courtesy of Kadoebi Gym)

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The 10 most exciting Asian fighters

8/18/2015

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Boxing might be the sweet science but, if we're all being honest, it's also a fight. Due to it being a fight we of course love the true fighters, the ones who come to the ring with the intention of stopping their opponents and are willing to do all they can to finish a fight early. In this feature we're going to take a look at 10 of the most fun to watch Asian fighters. Some fighters you will be familiar with whilst others you may not be too aware of, one thing is for certain however, these men mean business every time they step in the ring.

1-Naoya Inoue (7-0, 6)
It's been a while since we saw the “Monster” in the ring but Japanese youngster Naoya Inoue may well be the most fun to watch fighter on the planet and manages to be fun to watch whilst also being defensively sound and offensively destructive.

The youngster from Kanagawa is as destructive as they come, with both vicious power in both hands, and manages to break opponents up with shots to either the body or the head. Unlike many on this list however he's not an out and out pressure fighter, instead he's a boxing machine who can do it all, box, slug or brawl. In Japan he's a star and unlike many Japanese boxers he's also a man known around the boxing world courtesy of his amazing 2014 which saw him claim world titles at both Light Flyweight and Super Flyweight, beating recognised world champions for both of those titles.

Next expected in the ring in Late December

(Video courtesy of boxing channel)

3-Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (36-4-1, 33)
Pressure, power and aggression tend to excite fans and few fighters bring that combination together quite as well as 28 year old Thai Srisaket Sor Rungvisai.

In many ways Srisaket is like a mini-Golovkin and always marches forward looking to get up close and break his foes down. Technically he's not as good as Golovkin and not as powerful in relation to his division but he does tend to throw a lot of shots and is really exciting. Sadly like many Thai's however he seems to fight a lot poor opposition leading some fans to question his ability. Wins against Yota Sato and Jose Salgado should however convince fans that he's the real deal and a must watch fighter.

The Thai destroyer is looking to get a rematch with the last man to defeat him, Mexican Carlos Cuadras. That bout isn't expected immediately though we'd be shocked to not see by the end of Q1 2016.

(Video courtesy of tiesmyshoes)

5-Jonathan Taconing (21-2-1, 18)
The stereotype regarding the “little men” is that they can't punch though no one seems to have told 28 year old Filipino slugger Jonathan Taconing, who boasts a 75% stoppage rate and has an average bout length of just over 4 rounds.

Taconing does everything a fight fan could wish to see, he brings pressure, he brings power, he brings an intense will to win and it often looks like he has a genuine bitterness towards the sport. Whilst that bitterness is understandable, given the way he was robbed of a WBC Light Flyweight title in 2012, it's also really exciting and when Taconing steps into the ring we always suspect we're going to see fireworks.

His heavy hands and aggressiveness was last seen in the ring when he beat Ramon Hirales Garcia, he's now expected back in action to defend his OPBF Light Flyweight title before a potential world title fight either at the end of this year or very early next year. And in all honesty that shot it well over due considering the ability of some recent challengers in the division.

(Video courtesy of SirJOB)

7-Koki Eto (17-3-1, 13)
When we talk about blood and guts warriors few will match Koki Eto who was involved in a series of FOTY style bouts in 2013/2014.

Eto is, of course, best known for his 12 round war with Kompayak Porpramook though battles with Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep, Ardin Diale and Denchailek Kratingdaenggym were also thrilling bouts. Technically Eto is limited but he has an insane will to win, a real grittiness and a mentality that seems to be based around thinking his offense is his best defense. We wouldn't be shocked to see his career feature several more thrillers before it's over and win or lose he's going to be a lot of fun to follow.

At the moment there is, sadly, no news on his next bout, though there is speculation that he may be in the running for a notable bout with an IBF ranked contender, or a defense of his OPBF Flyweight title. A rematch with Diale however seems to be a bout that many fans, who saw the first, are wanting.

(Video courtesy of sweetboxing2)

9-Denver Cuello (36-5-6, 24)
When a fighter is dubbed “The Excitement” you know for a fact he will be fun to watch and that's the case with Filipino fighter Denver Cuello.

Cuello, like many others on this list, proves that the little men can punch and be thoroughly fun to watch. At one point he, like Pacquiao, would have been much higher on this list though recent years we have seen Cuello troubled by injuries which have resulted in him looking less spectacular than he once did. If those injuries are healed fully then he may well prove to be the exciting fight who blew through the likes of Ganigan Lopez and Omar Soto. If he's still fighting injured however he may well be in some dull contests in the future.

At the moment there is no set date on his next bout, but he will likely be eyeing up the winner of the recently announced WBC Minimumweight title bout between Wanheng Menayothin and Young Kil Bae, which will take place on November 27th.

(Video courtesy of PEPERODRIGUEZNEWS)

2-Gennady Golovkin (33-0, 30)
Kazakh destroyer Gennady Golovkin may well be the most feared man in the Middleweight division right now but fans and the media love him and his style which is based on intelligent pressure and incredibly heavy hands.

At times the 33 year “GGG” can be seen to be defensively naive but his chin has never looked like letting him down and in fact his “poor” defense has opened up opportunities for his power, as seen in his amazing stoppage against Daniel Geale. His ability to excite fans has turned him into a star around the world and should lead to a series of huge fights over the next 12-24 months, including a probable show down against either Saul Alvarez of Miguel Cotto. Wins against either of those two would have Golovkin as the de facto kingpin at Middleweight and see a growing call for him to move to Super Middleweight for a potential showdown with Andre Ward.

Next expected in the ring against David Lemieux in October.

(Video courtesy of HBOBoxing)

4-Takashi Miura (29-2-2, 22)
Japan has a number of excellent fights at Super Featherweight, included in those is the incredibly fun to watch Takashi Miura.

Miura is a marauding southpaw puncher with a serious chin, spiteful powerful and a style that often makes it look like he enjoys beating people up. Whilst plenty of fans have seen Miura he's still generally an under-rated fighter which is a shame as his competition in recent years has been solid and he's shown a willingness to travel, as seen in his 2013 FOTY contender with Sergio Thompson.

Although over-shadowed by compatriot, and fellow champion, Takashi Uchiyama we actually think Miura is the more exciting of the two and his style is certainly more active than Uchiyama's calm and calculating boxer-puncher style.

The rumour is that Miura is now set to get on the road again and face Francisco Vargas in the US in a bout that has “FOTY” written all over it.

(Video courtesy of Star Boxing)

6-Katsunari Takayama (29-7-0-2, 11)
Probably the most exciting fighter, pound for pound, on the planet today is Katsunari Takayama a Minimumweight warrior who has been involved in so many thrilling contests that it would be hard to know where to begin if we were doing a highlight reel for him.

Last year Takayama was involved in possibly the FOTY when he took on Francisco Rodriguez Jr in an IBF/WBO world title unification and since then he has been involved in two more tough bouts, including a 9 round war with Fahlan Sakkreerin Jr. Sadly at 32 years old Takayama does look like he's an “old man”, especially given his division and given his style we don't expect him to last too much longer, sadly. At his prime however he was an all out warrior, tough as old boots, aggressive and his one major downfall was that he light on power, something that will likely have sped his "aging" progress as a fighter.

Although no announcement regarding his future has been made he's rumoured to be in action on September 27th against Ryuji Hara.

(Video courtesy of profighttube5010)

8-Manny Pacquiao (57-6-2, 38)
Filipino sensation Manny Pacquiao has been one of the sports most exciting fighters for more than a decade. Whilst it's fair to say he has slipped, significantly, from the fighter he once was he does still manage to excite fans and is that's both inside the ring and outside of it.

The Pacquiao of a few years ago would have topped this list but the “Pac Man” does seem to have lost some of the fire that once made him a bonafide pay-per-view star. Things are also not helped by the recent memory of his dull contest with Floyd Mayweather Jr and his less than memorable showing against Brandon Rios. With talk of a Pacquiao Vs Amir Khan bout it does seem likely that Pacquiao will be in at least one more high octane contest before his career is over though the shine has certainly dulled on him in the eyes of many fans.

His ring return is likely to come next Spring though nothing is set in stone as of yet.

(Video courtesy of Tolya Colon)

10-Daigo Higa (7-0, 7)
The youngest man on this list is Daigo Higa, who has just turned 20 and yet already looks like a man who is going to be must watch every time he steps in the ring.

Higa is a stablemate of Koki Eto and fights in a similar, though more refined, manner. He's aggressive, aggressive and aggressive. Every time Higa is in the ring he comes forward, looks for the knock out and, so far, has scored one every time. For many his break out win came earlier this year, against Kongfah CP Freshmart, though fans in Tokyo were impressed by his wins over Virden Rivera and Cris Alfante, which were both impressively quick stoppages of solid fighters.

We've been informed that Higa's team are hoping he'll make a ring return before the year is out, though there is no set date or opponent being linked to him as of yet.

(Video courtesy tko.in.th)

Honourable mentions
-Wanheng Menayothing-Intelligent pressure fighter, even though he lacks lights out power he is great fun to watch
-Akira Yaegashi-A real warrior who is coming to the end of his career though will always go out on his shield and give fans good value.
-Takuya Kogawa-A warrior through and through. Though he lacks power he does enjoy a tear up and is scarcely in a dull fight
-Suguru Muranaka-Another warrior who enjoys a tear up and is more than happy to let his hands go despite not being a note puncher.
-Knockout CP Freshmart-With a name like “Knockout” you already know he's looking for the stoppage every time.
-Rex Tso-Like many featured above this man from Hong Kong is flawed but that's what makes him so much fun with every fight being a war

-Kyoo Hwan Hwang-Korean teenage has got ability though often lets his "Korean instinct" kick in and turns every fight so far into a slugfest

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Divisional overview- Flyweight Fury

3/2/2015

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The Adopted

Roman Gonzalez (42-0, 36)
Born in Nicaragua though promoted out of Japan it's fair to say the Japanese boxing public have adopted Roman "El Chocolatito" Gonzalez as one of their own, and for good reason. He is everything that appeals to the Japanese boxing fans.

Gonzalez likes to the fight the best. In his 42 bouts he has fought some duds but he has also notched up wins against the likes of Yutaka Niida, Katsunari Takayama, Juan Francisco Estrada and Akira Yaegashi.

Not only does Gonzalez like tests but he also ha a fun style which sees him applying intense pressure, forcing a fight and breaking people down with a combination of power, speed and skill. In many ways he looks unbeatable and he has a solid claim to be one of the elite pound-for-pound fighters on the planet.

Gonzalez recently scored win #42, fighting in Nicaragua for the first time in 14 months, it's now hoped that he will get a major fight in the US with HBO said to be interested in showing him. A great achievement for one of the sports good guys and one of the most exciting young men in boxing.

Up coming challenger

Kazuto Ioka (16-1, 10)
Japan's Kazuto Ioka is one of the sports biggest names, specially in his homeland. He is also a man targeting in history as he continues his pursuit of a Flyweight world title and a chance to claim a third divisional title in what would be a record setting 18 bouts.

Ioka made his name at Minimumweight where he was genuinely brilliant and notched up notable wins over Oleydong Sithsamerchai and Akira Yaegashi, with the win over Yaegashi allowing him to unify the WBC and WBA titles. Since then he has claimed a Light Flyweight title though failed to set the world alight there.

At his best Ioka is an exciting and aggressive fighter with devastating body shots, great skill and speed. At his worst however he's a frustrating counter puncher who looks lost and in fact at Flyweight he simply looks too small and light weight to make the same impact.

It was announced earlier today that Ioka would be fighting WBA champion Juan Carlos Reveco on April 22nd and that is a bout that is mouth watering, to say the least. A loss for Ioka however will serious sting and set his career back in a really big way.

The criminally over-looked

Suguru Muranaka (21-2-1, 7)
The Flyweight division has a lot of "big names" in it and this can crowd out some of the other talented fighters. One of whom is Japanese champion Suguru Muranaka who is everything a fight fan should enjoy with high work rate and a warriors heart.

Muranaka is world ranked by all 4 bodies, he is highly regarded by those in the know though only those in Japan really know about him. Part of that is that he has never once fought out side of Tokyo, despite having been a professional for more than a decade.

In regards to his most notable victories he has a really well fought decision over Takuya Kogawa and a recent stoppage over Masayuki Kuroda. Those have both come in recent bouts with Muranaka finding his way in the sport.

He'll be next seen in the ring on April 8th when he battles Tetsuma Hayashi in a mandatory Japanese title defense. A win there could well help push him towards an OPBF or world title fight by the end of the year. Sadly for Muranaka he would almost certainly need to travel for a top level fight.

The under-rated Champion

Amnat Ruenroeng (14-0, 5)
At the moment Asia only has a single world champion at Flyweight, though it does have a lot of top contender. That champion is Thailand's Amnat Ruenroeng who is one of boxing's more happy stories as he's turned his life around due to the sport.

Amnat was a troublesome youth who found boxing whilst in prison and later became a star of the amateur system. He is now a star in the professional ranks where he has raced to a title.

As a profession Amnat came to the fore last year as he claimed the IBF title with a decision win over Rocky Fuentes and then upset Kazuto Ioka in his first defence of the title. In the ring Amnat is a frustrating fighter to watch due to his ability to spoil, though when on song he does look sensational as a slippery boxer.

Amnat's title is at risk this coming weekend when he attempts to record his third defence. Sadly for Amnat he is viewed as a major under-dog as he fights in Macau against Chinese star Zou Shiming, he is however a capable fighter and has shown his ability to upset fighters whilst fighting on the road.

The true Warrior

Koki Eto (16-3-1, 12)
Asia has a lot of fighters at Flyweight though few give us the excitement and action that Koki Eto provides, win or lose. The 27 year old probably won't have a long career though it will be one of the most fun to follow and will feature more wars and intense battles than many longer careers.

Eto is one of 3 fighters brothers, along with Taiki and Shingo, and appears to be the most exciting by some margin. Sadly he also looks the most defensively flawed and technically lacking. Despite those issues he is simply so much fun and makes every fight a must watch contest. His recent wars with Kompayak Porpramook for the WBA interim title, Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep and most recently Ardin Diale were all FOTY contenders.

In the ring Eto gives away all of his physical advantages to have a brawl. This has seen him depend on his toughness, heart and resiliency, and more often than not they have been enough to see him through to the win.

At the moment Eto is the OPBF champion though he has mentioned vacating the title in pursuit of a world title.

The winner

Noknoi Sitthiprasert (52-4, 30)
Thai fighters often have insane records though maybe the most insane is that of Noknoi Sitthiprasert who has turned around a 1-4 start to his career with more than 50 straight wins. In fact he has the longest active winning streak in the sport.

As with many Thai's Noknoi has been facing limited competition. Many of his 51 straight wins have come over inept visitors and novices however he does hold some notable wins including victories over Kenichi Horikawa, Rey Loreto and Donny Mabao. They are the most notable wins though.

In the ring Noknoi is nothing special. His team seem to know it and that is why he's not being matched too hard. He is however world ranked by all 4 bodies who have likely taken note of his streak.

Noknoi, like many fighters featured here, will be in the ring soon. From what we understand it could be this coming Thursday as he takes on yet another inept opponent. Another win there moves him closer to a major bout though it would likely be little more than an eventual cash out for the Thai.

The Pinoy Puncher

John Riel Casimero (21-2, 13)
One of the many Asian contenders is Filipino puncher John Riel Casimero who may well be the most exciting puncher in the division. He's not one of the real stars of the division, in fact he's often fought on the road, but he has a lot to be excited about.

For many Casimero came to their attention just over 3 years ago when he defeated Luis Alberto Lazarte and was engulfed in a riot in Argentina. That win saw him claiming the IBF title at 108lbs. He has since moved to 112lbs and looks to have filled out excellently.

Casimero is a proven road warrior who combines speed and power and has already scored wins over the likes of Lazarte, Cesar Canchila and most impressively Pedro Guevara. He is also on a 7 fight winning streak and at 25 he is just getting better and better.

From what we understand Casimero is the mandatory challenger for the winner of the upcoming bout between Zou Shiming and Amnat Ruenroeng and we dare say he has a brilliant chance against either man, either at home or away. In fact his willingness to travel may well be his biggest strength going forward.

The Chinese Megastar

Zou Shiming (6-0, 1)
Chinese boxing isn't big though is growing, and growing quickly. A lot of that growth is based around 2-time Olympic champion Zou Shiming who has attracted a lot of attention to Macau and the Flyweight division. Sadly however he has been derided by many fans for his "silver spoon" treatment.

As an amateur Shiming was sensational. He was blessed with hand speed to burn, solid skills and a great engine. As a professional his hand speed has remained but he has had to reinvent himself and has had to turn his amateur style into that of a professional, and quickly. In fairness he has impressed at times, though at other he has been frustrating,

Shiming is insanely fast though he's still not fully developed as a "professional". He can sit on his punches but appears happier to slap and move. It's frustrating to watch when he goes back into "slappy mode" but there is a really good boxer in there somewhere.

Shiming will be in action on March 7th as he battles Amnat Ruenroeng for the IBF title. A win will see Shiming grow into an even more significant fighter, a loss however could be a major set back for Top Rank.

The Thai Contender

Nawaphon Por Chokchai (26-0, 19)
Another Thai on a good run is Nawaphon Por Chokchai, the younger brother of Suriyan Sor Rungvisai and a stable mate of Srisaket Sor Rungvisai. He's not as recognised as those two but he is highly tipped to have major success.

At the time of writing Nawaphon's team is trying to arrange a bout with Edgar Sosa to become the mandatory challenger for Roman Gonzalez. Neither of those fights would be easy for Nawaphon but his backers are likely to pull out all the stops to get the bouts in Thailand, a huge advantage,

In the ring Nawaphon does look awfully basic however he often looks several divisions bigger than his opponents. How he makes 112lbs is a real mystery though as long he can make the weight he'll be a problem for many in the division.

We suspect Nawaphon's days as a Flyweight are numbered. He may end up getting a shot at Gonzalez in the near future though after that it wouldn't be a big surprise to see him leap all the way to up Super Bantamweight. From there on things may get tough.

Images courtesy of:
Image of Amnat courtesy of http://www.kiatkreerin.com
Image of Ioka courtesy of http://ameblo.jp/ioka/
Image of Eto courtesy of http://www.zimbio.com
Image of Shiming courtesy of http://www.toprank.com
Image of Muranaka courtesy of http://flash-akabane.com
All other images courtesy of boxrec.com

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Controversial Clashes - Koki Eto Vs Jeyvier Cintron I

Closet Classic - Koki Eto Vs Kompayak Porpramook

Fighter Focus - Koki Eto

Japanese World Ranked Fighters - July 2018

The 10 most exciting Asian fighters

Divisional overview- Flyweight Fury

The Adopted

Up coming challenger

The criminally over-looked

The under-rated Champion

The true Warrior

The winner

The Pinoy Puncher

The Chinese Megastar

The Thai Contender

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