Earlier today the UK price for the PPV of Anthony Joshua Vs Kubrat was announced, at £24.95. Whilst this price is only for the UK, with DAZN having global on it in their various territories, it has been a sore point with British fans. Afterall we're in a recession, with job losses and the PPV is coming less than 2 weeks before Christmas and at a higher price than usual. The typical solution is for defenders of PPV to either yell "don't watch it then" or "find a free stream", ignoring the bigger issues at hand. For once I'm not here to talk about the good or bad of PPV, something I've spoken about so many times in the past. Instead I'm here to talk to the hardcore fans who want to watch fights and want to support the sport. Today I'm not here to tell you where to get free streams for Jsohua Vs Pulev, or not to pay for it, or how watch an international feed. Instead I'm here to promote some free streams for events from through out Asia. Once again showing that you can follow the sport, and enjoy fights without opening your wallet. And seriously for those wanting boxing in coming weeks there is a lot of free content out there, that you don't need to jump through hoops for. November 21st: The free boxing run begins tomorrow from the Philippines with an interesting card from Sanman promotions under the name "The Restart", which will be their first show since boxing was allowed back in the country. The main event here will see former WBO Bantamweight champion Marlon Tapales (33-3, 16) battle against Eden Sonsona (36-11-2, 13) with a supporting bout featuring former 2-time world title challenger Aston Palicte (26-4-1, 22) battling Reymark Taday (10-12-1, 5). The card will also feature Joey Canoy (15-4-1, 8) and the very promising Dave Apolinario (13-0, 8) This will be available for free over Sanman Promotion's Facebook page. November 23rd: On November 23rd we have two options from Japan one for an event in Osaka and one for a card in Tokyo. Of the two it's the Osakan event this is, by far, the more attractive featuring two different parts. The main event for the first part will see former multi-time world champion Katsunari Takayama (31-8-0-1, 12) take on 2-time world title challenger Reiya Konishi (17-2, 7). The second part of the event will see a supporting bout between former world title challenger Sho Ishida (28-2, 15) and Japanese Youth Bantamweight champion Toshiya Ishii (3-0, 2). As well as that interesting match up we'll also have title action as Riku Kano (16-4-1, 8) clashes with Ryoki Hirai (12-6-1, 4) for the vacant WBO Asia Pacific Light Flyweight title. For fans wanting to watch this one we've got the embedded live stream below thanks to TV Osaka The show from Tokyo is a much smaller event being between hard hitting youngster Jin Sasaki (8-0, 7) and Tatsuya Miyazaki (9-13-1, 9). Another notable bout on this card will see the always fun to watch Ryugo Ushijima (4-1-2, 2) take on veteran Hyuma Fujioka (10-10-1, 1) If this is the show you want to watch a free stream will be put on by the promoter via the A-Sign.boxing.com YouTube channel. This is again free and watching it is supporting the sport, the promoter and the fighters. November 27th If a world title fight is what you require to be interested in a fight then November 27th will be a day to circle with the "Bloodline Battle" between Wanheng Menayothin (54-0, 18) and Panya Pradabsri (34-1, 22), for Wanheng's WBC Minimumweight title, being made available online for free. It's expected that this will be available on Petchyindee's Facebook page, who typically show stream their events. If not Channel 7 can typically be streamed through officials means here through their website, though a Thai VPN may be needed. November 28th Staying with Thailand just a day after Wanheng looks to go to 55-0 we'll see 16 year old sensation Phoobadin Yoohanngoh (9-0, 5) defending a regional title against Atchariya Wirojanasunobol (13-0, 5) for free on Thairath. The show, which will be promoted by TL Promotions under their "The Fighter" banner, is usually streamed by the promoter on their Facebook page however options also include an official stream via the TV company, Thairath, who have a live stream on their website. November 29th On November 29th we get something a little bit special as Seki-chan, a boxing die hard in Japan, has actually paid out of his own pocket to attain the rights for a 2-part show in Kariya. The shows aren't big, but for those wanting to talk about "supporting boxing" they are perhaps the clearest example of grassroot support of professional boxing out there. The idea a fan can buy the rights for a show and share them internationally is just amazing, and a great sign of what boxing fans can do for the sport. The most noteworthy bouts here are a clash between Shin Tomita (10-8-2) and Naoya Haruguchi (17-11, 7) and a bout between the always fun to watch Ryosuke Maruki (16-7-1, 11) and Tsunehiko Aitoku (5-9-2). For fans interested in this part 1 will be here and part 2 will be here December 5th
Back in Thailand again here as WP Boxing put on their next show, and this will be available over WP Boxing's Facebook and YouTube channels. This show will be a double header with Apichet Petchmanee (7-0, 2) re-matching Musheg Adoian (7-2, 7), after their controversial first bout, and will also see once beaten prospect Phongsaphon Panyakum (10-1, 5) take on former world champion Kompayak Porpramook (60-10, 41). For Facebook the stream will be here and for those wanting to watch on YouTube the stream will be on here. December 13th We get more free boxing the day after the Joshua Vs Pulev bout Shinsei Gym put on a show. This will feature Yumi Narita (4-4-3, 1) and Mont Blanc Miki (4-3-1, 1) battling over the Japanese female Minimumweight title live on YouTube and an excellent 8 round match up between Yuki Yonaha (7-3-1, 5) and Motoki Osanai (4-2, 1). This will be shown live on the Boxing Real YouTube channel and should be a really high quality stream, given other Boxing Real streams.
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The Rookie of the Year is one of the very best proving grounds to Japanese novices wanting to make their mark on the sport, and the winners regularly, though don't always, go on to achieve big things in the sport. Here we're going to look at the winners of the 2014 All Japan Rookie of the Year tournament, and look at where their careers are now, what they've done since winning. For many of the fighters here their careers have continued on to this day, but with some mixed success. Note - The "then" records are the records following the Rookie of the Year finals. Middleweight-Hisao Narita (then 8-1, 4) Poor Hisao Narita was one of the winners from the 2014 Rookie of the Year who really didn't have a good time after the competition. Narito would win his first bout in 2015, narrowly defeating Yusuke Konno, but then 4 in a row, including losses Hironobu Matsunaga and Takeshi Inoue. A small winning run was then followed by back to back defeats, to Sanosuke Sasaki and Shinobu Charlie Hosokawa. Narita hasn't fought since losing to Hosokawa in June 2018 and it seems likely that Narita is now down with the sport, though he is only 28. At the time of writing Narita has a professional record of 12-7 (6) Welterweight-Yuki Beppu (then 8-0, 8) Aged 23 when he won the Welterweight tournament Yuki Beppu was hailed as one of the ones to watch. His career since then hasn't totally lived up to expectations but he has proven to be a better fighter than just purely being a puncher. He would fight some very limited opposition to run his record to 14-0 (14) before fighting to a draw with Charles Bellamy, in what was a huge step up and a very credible performance. A loss to Yuki Nagano in 2018 saw Beppu lose his unbeaten record, which was then 18-0-1 (18) but he has bounced back with 2 wins, including his first decision win over Jasen Egera. His next bout is expected to come in December for the WBO Asia Pacific Welterweight title against Ryota Yada. Beppu's current record is 20-1-1 (19) Light Welterweight-Tetsuya Morisada (then 4-3, 4) The forgotten man of the 2014 Rookie of the year is Tetsuya Morisada, who didn't get his moment in the sun. Morisada won the title by default Naoharu Kida abstained from the final. Kida wouldn't fight against until late 2016, coming back for what appears to have been a one off. Sadly for Morisada the limited but hard hitting would lose 3 of his following 5 fights. Although a puncher he is very much a glass cannon, and only 1 of his bouts ever went the distance, and it now seems like his career is over on the back of 3 straight stoppage losses and more than 12 months away from the ring. His record if 6-6 (6) and despite only being 24 we doubt we'll see Morisada fight again. Lightweight-Shogo Yamaguchi (then 6-0-1, 3) Another fighter who won the All Japan Rookie of the Year without fighting in the final was Lightweight Shogo Yamaguchi, who had a walk over and Andy Hiraoka who fell ill before the final. Yamaguchi was a promising and unbeaten 21 year old who picked up 3 wins in 2015 before seeing his career stumble with a loss to Akihiro Kondo and then one to Genki Maeda. Sadly since then Yamaguchi has really struggled to get going and has only picked up 2 wins in 7 bouts. Despite that poor run of results it's worth noting he and Andy Hiraoka did finally face off, fighting in May 2017 with Hiraoki stopping Yamaguchi in 6 rounds. With a record of 11-5-3 (6) the 25, soon to be 26, year old Yamaguchi is in a really tough point in his career, though he was active as recently as July, when he lost to Masanori Rikiishi. Super Featherweight-Yuichiro Kasuya (then 6-0, 1) Teenager Yuichiro Kasuya looked like a real one to watch when he won the Super Featherweight Rookie of the Year within a year of his professional debut. The youngster looked highly skilled, a natural in the ring and like a fighter with a lot of potential. His lack of power wasn't expected to be a major issue and as he matured it was assumed he'd fill into his body and add some physicality to his game. Sadly his career hasn't really gond the way that was expected following 3 successive set backs. The first of those saw him fight to a draw with Masaki Saito, before back to back losses to Spicy Matsushita and Izuki Tomioka. In 2018 he moved over to the Kadoebi Gym and has shown signs of reaching his early promise. At 22, soon to be 23, the jury is out on what Kasuya will do with his career but he's now 13-2-1 (4) and has run off 4 straight wins, so we certainly wouldn't rule Kasuya out of becoming a player on the national scene at Lightweight in the years to come. Featherweight-Reiya Abe (then 8-1, 4) One of the most notable names from the 2014 Rookie of the Year was the then 21 year old Reiya Abe, who took the Featherweight crown and has become a fixture in the Japanese title picture over the last year or two. The talented southpaw sharp shooter surprisingly lost in his first bout after winning the Rookie of the Year, losing a decision to Shingo Kusano, but avenged that loss in 2016. Abe ran up an excellent 11 fight winning run following the loss to Kusano, but narrowly failed to take home the Japanese title in 2 title fights earlier this year. Despite recent set backs against Taiki Minamoto, who held Abe to a draw, and Ryo Sagawa, who he lost a narrow decision to, there is absolutely no reason at all to write off the 26 year old Abe, who is now 19-3-1 (9) as a professional. We'd be hugely surprised if he doesn't pick up a title in the coming years, when he adapts his style just a little. He's a genuine talent. Super Bantamweight-Shohei Kawashima (then 9-0-2, 2) The then 23 year old Shohei Kawashima seemed like one to watch following the Rookie of the Year, given his age, unbeaten record and and his style. He proved he wasn't just a flash in the pan and in 2016 gave Cristian Mijares a very close bout in Mexico. Sadly a loss to Gaku Aikawa in 2017 left questions over Kawashima but he has since answered them with some solid performances, including one in March in the Philippines against Juan Miguel Elorde. Sadly he hasn't had much luck, and at times his match making has been too soft, but he is a real talent and hopefully he will get some bigger bouts in the near future. With a record of 17-3-2 (4) Kawashima is still very much active and fights for the 23rd time as a professional on October 19th, sadly though it's against a less than inspiring opponent in the form of Masajiro Honda. Given his ability, and the way he seems to step up against stiffer competition, we'd love to see Kawashima given more bouts on the road against fringe contender types. Bantamweight-Ryohei Takahashi (then 5-1-1) Of all the fighters on this list the reality is that Ryohei Takahashi has had the highest profile single bout of any fighter, with Takahashi having fought for the IBF Super Bantamweight title earlier this year, when he put up a brave effort against TJ Doheny. Takahashi's is a tough, rugged fun fighter to watch but his limitations were shown against Doheny. Through his career he has come up short in his 2 most notable bouts, the loss to Doheny and a loss to Andrew Moloney, but he's a solid domestic and regional level fighter. With wins against the likes of Matcha Nakagawa, Kazuki Tanaka and Mike Tawatchai he belongs in the regional title picture and we suspect he will get a title fight of some kind in 2020. With a record of 17-4-1 (7) Takahashi is far from done, and the 29 year old picked up his last win in June, stopping Jin Wook Lim, in what is his only bout since the loss to Doheny. Super Flyweight-Masayoshi Hashizume (7-0, 4) The then 21 year old took the Rookie of the Year crown with a technical decision over Shogo Yonenaga and is still unbeaten almost 5 years later. At the time of his Rookie win he was seen as being one of the future faces of the Ioka gym, along with the likes of Sho Ishida and Masayoshi Nakatani, but sadly the gym has never managed to guide any of those 3 to the achievements expected of them. In the years that followed his Rookie win Hashizume was matched incredibly softly until taking on Kota Fujimoto, and struggling to a draw in 2017. A second draw in 2018 saw him come up just short in a Japanese Super Flyweight title fight against Takayuki Okumoto. Sadly Hashizume has only fought once since his draw last year with Okumoto, picking up a win over Filipino journeyman Jayar Estremos. Now with a record of 17-0-2 (10) we do wonder where the talented southpaw is going with his career. He has the skills, but there is doubt about his team and his desire, though at 25 there is still plenty of time to buckle down and kick on. Flyweight-Kenya Yamashita (7-0, 4) When the then 18 year old Kenya Yamashita beat Shun Kosaka, who was 9-0 himself, in the Rookie of the Year final the expectations were that Yamashita would go on to be a star. At the time he was a stablemate of Shingo Wake, had a really exciting style and ticked all the boxed as one to watch. Sadly however within just a few fights of his Rookie triumph the shine had been taken off his rise, with 3 losses in 5 fights, including a thrilling 3rd round KO loss to Katsunori Nagamine. Despite those losses he has remained a tenacious, fan friendly fighter and has been a "stop or be stopped" fighter, only going the distance in 1 of his post Rookie of the Year bouts. With a record of 14-5 (11) Yamashita's early promise is clearly not being realised, but on the other hand he is giving his so much action and excitement it's hard to complain about the 23 year old, who is very much a fan favourite. He last fought in July, in the quarter finals of God's Left Bantamweight tournament, stopping Gaku Aikawa, and will face Seiya Tsutsumi in the semi final on November 9th. Win or lost Yamashita is always worth watching. Light Flyweight-Kenji Ono (then 7-1, 3) Ono won the Rookie of the Year by beating Seita Ogido in the final and the then 26 year old seemed to have plenty of promise. He would reel off 4 straight wins following his Rookie triumph, including winning an incredibly bout with Jun Takigawa in 2016, but is win-less in his last 4, which have included an opening round blow out to Seigo Yuri Akui. Although there is time for him to do something with his career, we're not really sure what he can do before his career slips away. Now aged 31 with a record of 11-3-2 (6) Ono is already on the older side for a Light Flyweight, and a loss in February to Hayato Yamaguchi, following back to back draws, doesn't bode well. Ono has fought just once a year in 2019, 2018 and 2017 and we wouldn't be surprised to see his career coming to an end sooner rather than later. Minimumweight-Reiya Konishi (then 7-0, 4) Whilst Ryohei Takahashi has had the biggest single fight we think it's very fair to say that Reiya Konishi has made more of his career than anyone else on this winners list. The then 21 year beat Yuki Kubo in the final then climbed through the domestic rankings before taking the Japanese Minimumweight title in 2017, with a win over Masataka Taniguchi. After defending the Japanese title twice he moved up in weight and challenged the WBA "regular" Light Flyweight champion Carlos Canizales in a really good bout in 2018. Despite losing to Canizales, by unanimous decision, Konishi would remain in the mix and got his second world title fight earlier this year, losing a clearer decision to Felix Alvarado. At 26 years old Konishi is already a 2-time world title challenger and his 17-2 (7) record is very unlikely to be the end of his story. He's not fought in May but we wouldn't be surprised to see him back in the ring before the end of 2020 and potentially working his way to a third world title fight. With his style he's worthy of attention and with Shinsei gym needing a consistent draw Konishi could well be part of much bigger plans for his team. The Lucky loser - Hironobu Matsunaga (then 6-1, 3) Matsunaga lost in his final to Yuki Beppu as Welterweight but since then has had one of the more notable careers. In fact Mastunaga's career has been more successful than almost all the winners. He was 27 when he lost to Beppu but since then he has reeled off 9 wins, including one over Hisao Narita, and gone on to claim both the WBO Asia Pacific and Japanese titles at 154lbs. His recent wins have included stoppages over Koshinmaru Saito and Nobuyuki Shindo, and he has really made the most of his career. Now aged 32 Matsunaga is the Japanese Light Middleweight champion and sports a 15-1 (9) record. Despite losing in the Rookie of the Year final he has shown not to write off fighters, and has done fantastically well with career. He's expected to defend his national title next year at the Champion Carnival, and, barring Konishi, is possibly the most successful of all the 2014 Rookie of the Year finalists. 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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