Masataka Taniguchi
When a fighter suffers 2 losses in their first 10 bouts it's easy to write them off, ignore them and down play their ability. That however is often unfair and can be very misleading, especially when we don't take any notice of who has beaten them, and instead just look at the numbers. That may well be the case when it comes to Japanese prospect Masataka Taniguchi (10-2, 7) who, despite his record, is a man to keep an eye on over the next few years. In fact he's a prospect who could well be 12-0 (7) with only a tiny bit of good fortune and could already be on the verge of a world title fight.
The Watanabe gym prospect made his professional debut in April 2016 and did so on the back an excellent amateur career. In the unpaid ranks he had racked up an excellent 55-19 (16) record, he had come 3rd in an All Japan tournament and had been the captain of the Ryukoku University boxing team.
That sort of amateur pedigree saw Taniguchi being given his pro-test at a B class level and make his debut in a 6 rounder in April 2016. Despite being in a 6 rounder Taniguchi's debut would last just 118 seconds, with the Japanese youngster blitzing Phetsaifar Lukmaelamperigym in Osaka. Just over a month later Taniguchi would return to the ring in Thailand, where he he would stop Taweechai Or Muangchon in 90 seconds. Amazingly just a month later Taniguchi would fight his third bout a third different country, stopping Joey Bactul in the Philippines.
After fighting 3 times in the space of weeks Taniguchi was then given a small rest, returning for his 4th professional bout in August, a break of 7 weeks. In his return his beat another over-matched Thai,Thongchai Chaiyonggym, who managed to last 4 rounds with the Japanese puncher.
Having raced out to 4-0 (4) in 4 months Taniguchi would then take a huge step up in class as he battled the then unbeaten Dexter Alimento. The talented Alimento pushed Taniguchi all the way in a razor thin split decision, with Taniguchi narrowly winning and advancing his winning record whilst proving his stamina and toughness. To finish 2016 Taniguchi would amazingly rack in his 6th win of the year, as he took a 6 round unanimous decision over Vincent Bautista.
The Watanabe gym prospect made his professional debut in April 2016 and did so on the back an excellent amateur career. In the unpaid ranks he had racked up an excellent 55-19 (16) record, he had come 3rd in an All Japan tournament and had been the captain of the Ryukoku University boxing team.
That sort of amateur pedigree saw Taniguchi being given his pro-test at a B class level and make his debut in a 6 rounder in April 2016. Despite being in a 6 rounder Taniguchi's debut would last just 118 seconds, with the Japanese youngster blitzing Phetsaifar Lukmaelamperigym in Osaka. Just over a month later Taniguchi would return to the ring in Thailand, where he he would stop Taweechai Or Muangchon in 90 seconds. Amazingly just a month later Taniguchi would fight his third bout a third different country, stopping Joey Bactul in the Philippines.
After fighting 3 times in the space of weeks Taniguchi was then given a small rest, returning for his 4th professional bout in August, a break of 7 weeks. In his return his beat another over-matched Thai,Thongchai Chaiyonggym, who managed to last 4 rounds with the Japanese puncher.
Having raced out to 4-0 (4) in 4 months Taniguchi would then take a huge step up in class as he battled the then unbeaten Dexter Alimento. The talented Alimento pushed Taniguchi all the way in a razor thin split decision, with Taniguchi narrowly winning and advancing his winning record whilst proving his stamina and toughness. To finish 2016 Taniguchi would amazingly rack in his 6th win of the year, as he took a 6 round unanimous decision over Vincent Bautista.
Given his form in 2016 Taniguchi was highly ranked by the JBC heading into 2017 and began the year by battling against Reiya Konishi for the vacant Japanese Minimumweight title. Sadly for Taniguchi he would come up just short against Konishi, losing a majority decision with scores of 96-94, twice, in favour Konishi and a card of 95-95. It was a heart breaking defeat for the Watanabe man and one that could easily have gone in his favour.
Rather than sit and sulk Taniguchi bounced back only weeks later and stopped Benjie Bartolome in the Philippines and then stopped Nayoklek Sithsaithong back in Japan. Those wins would help Taniguchi get his second title fight, this time against OPBF Minimumweight champion Tsubasa Koura.
Against Koura we saw an excellent performance by Taniguchi, in fact both men were tremendous, in a bout that ebbed and flowed fantastically from the first round to the final bell. The bout swung one way then the other in a pulsating, entrancing 12 round war of skills and desire. At the end there was next to nothing to split the two fighters, but sadly Taniguchi would again get the short straw losing by majority decision. The judges scored the bout 114-114, 115-114 and 115-113 to give Koura a razor thin win.
Taniguchi would return to action the following month and stop Patiphan Prajuabsook in 3 rounds as he vented some of his frustrations on over-matched Thai.
So far in 2018 Taniguchi has fought once, scoring a 6 round technical decision over Filipino Reymark Taday back in February.
In the ring Taniguchi is a heavy handed fighter with very solid technical skills, honed from his amateur background, the stamina to fight 12 rounds at a high pace, a solid toughness to battle the likes of Koura, Konishi and Alimento and the ability to box, brawl, fight and punch. Despite his loses he is a top tier prospect and could well have gotten the win in bothg of his defeats. With the Watanabe gym behind him his future is very bright and at just 24 years old there is a serious chance of him following in the foot steps of stable mates like Ryoichi Taguchi and Hiroto Kyoguchi and become a world champion.
(Image courtesy of the Watanabe Gym)
Rather than sit and sulk Taniguchi bounced back only weeks later and stopped Benjie Bartolome in the Philippines and then stopped Nayoklek Sithsaithong back in Japan. Those wins would help Taniguchi get his second title fight, this time against OPBF Minimumweight champion Tsubasa Koura.
Against Koura we saw an excellent performance by Taniguchi, in fact both men were tremendous, in a bout that ebbed and flowed fantastically from the first round to the final bell. The bout swung one way then the other in a pulsating, entrancing 12 round war of skills and desire. At the end there was next to nothing to split the two fighters, but sadly Taniguchi would again get the short straw losing by majority decision. The judges scored the bout 114-114, 115-114 and 115-113 to give Koura a razor thin win.
Taniguchi would return to action the following month and stop Patiphan Prajuabsook in 3 rounds as he vented some of his frustrations on over-matched Thai.
So far in 2018 Taniguchi has fought once, scoring a 6 round technical decision over Filipino Reymark Taday back in February.
In the ring Taniguchi is a heavy handed fighter with very solid technical skills, honed from his amateur background, the stamina to fight 12 rounds at a high pace, a solid toughness to battle the likes of Koura, Konishi and Alimento and the ability to box, brawl, fight and punch. Despite his loses he is a top tier prospect and could well have gotten the win in bothg of his defeats. With the Watanabe gym behind him his future is very bright and at just 24 years old there is a serious chance of him following in the foot steps of stable mates like Ryoichi Taguchi and Hiroto Kyoguchi and become a world champion.
(Image courtesy of the Watanabe Gym)
