As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #9 Daigo Higa (15-1, 15) Vs Petch Sor Chitpattana (53-1, 38) When we think about exciting action fights there are some combinations of styles that just make for amazing fights. Having two aggressive, come forward guys, who can take a shot and believe in their aggression, facing off tend to lead to amazing fights. Bouts that see two fighters try to out man each other, out fight each other, and out battle each other. Today we look at one of those bouts, between a man who has proven to be world class and a man who is knocking on the door of world class. The 24 year old Daigo Higa first burst on to the scene in 2015, when he travelled to Thailand and stopped Kongfah CP Freshmart to become the WBC Youth Flyweight Champion. In 2016 he would win the OPBF title and then add the WBC belt to his collection in 2017. It didn't matter the level he was fighting at one thing stayed the same, he was stopping guys, and raced out to 15-0 (15), before failing to make weight for a WBC world title defense. That weight failure, followed by a loss to Cristofer Rosales, was punished by the JBC giving him an indefinite suspension and not allowing him to fight below Bantamweight going forward. That ban ended in late 2019 and he'll return in February, in an easy comeback, before looking for bigger fights. Later in the year he'll be wanting to make his mark at Bantamweight, and a bout against a fringe contender has to be in his thoughts. Petch Sot Chitpattana, also known as Tasana Salapat, is a highly experienced and rugged Thai who hasn't had the greatest of competition but has shown a great engine, a fantastic work rate and a willingness to take one in the hope of landing one. His sole loss came in Japan to Takuma Inoue at the end of 2018 in a WBC "interim" title fight, and since then he has been can crushing at home with 5 stoppages. Despite his competition being limited he showed enough in the loss to Inoue to suggest that he belonged on the fringes of world class, even in a division as deep as the current Bantamweight one, and styles wise he could make for some really fun fights, if his team are willing to take risks. It seems clear his team can't bring good opponents over to Thailand, but for the right money we suspect he'd travel, and the right money could be offered by Higa and his team for a world title eliminator. Both of these men like to let their hands go and both typically seem to believe that they are the bigger, stronger and more powerful man. Of the two Higa is the more crisp, combination punching fighter, who hits hard with every shot, and lets them flow in a eye catching fashion. If he looks good in his February comeback, and maintains his Flyweight style, he'll be so much fun to watch here. Petch on the other hand is a more basic fighter but again throws a lot, without really linking his punches together with the same level of crispness. He's more of a high activity fighter, who follows opponents, rather than mows them down. We suspect these two would first have a battle of machismo, before Higa's skills and body shots take over. But whether Higa is destructive at Bantamweight as he was at Flyweight is yet to be seen. This bout would answer that, and would also set the winner up as a clear contender at 118lbs.
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As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #8 Albert Pagara (32-1, 23) Vs Ryoichi Tamura (13-5-1, 7) One of the things this series has been focused on is the under-the-radar action fights that could be made, and we deliver that again, in a bout that could be made relatively easily at Super Bantamweight, and be seen as a fight both fighters could win. One guy would be a definite favourite, but the under-dog has never entered the ring with the belief he can't win. Given the styles of the two men and their mentalities this has the potential to be an all out thriller. Filipino boxer-puncher Albert Pagara has long been touted for the top, but is yet to hit the heights expected of him. The 25 year old is looking for a break out win, and will likely spend 2020 moving through the regional scene whilst awaiting a world title fight. He's an exciting fighter, but did come up short when he last faced a rugged and determined slugger, losing in 8 rounds to Cesar Juarez. His competition since losing to Juarez has been poor, with his last 5 opponents lasting just 11 rounds, and he desperately needs another gut check before having another fringe world level bout. He needs to get in with someone who can take his power, and will fire back at him, rather than decide to accept an early loss. Former Japanese champion Ryoichi Tamura is a 32 year old tough as old boots warrior, who comes to fight every time he's in the ring. He's technically pretty crude, but so rugged, has such energy and refuses to back down. He can be out boxed, as we saw in his 2019 rematch with Yusaku Kuga, but few fighters will out last him in a toe to toe war. He is very much like a budget store version of Juarez, and like the Mexican he keeps coming, no matter what someone throws at him. At the moment he's the OPBF Silver champion, so he does hold a notable, though minor, regional title and this would be a good gateway for Pagara to secure a bigger regional level fight before, potentially, landing a world title fight. On the other hand If Tamura pulled off the upset, he would find himself on the fringes of his own world title bout. Given how Pagara has got question marks over his head about mental toughness and will to win this will a great chance to see those questions answered against a man who simply doesn't know how to go backwards. Tamura would likely find himself before early on, likely a long way behind after 5 or 6 rounds, but his pressure and work rate in the middle rounds would be a major issue for Pagara who would struggle later on. The drive of Tamura is an issue for anyone and we would love to see him bring that pressure against someone with the skills and movement of Pagara. As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #7 Aso Ishiwaki (8-2-1, 6) vs Cristiano Aoqui (14-8-2, 10) One of the keys behind this series is to open up about matches we want to see, across various levels of the sport. Not just to talk about world class fighters in super fights. Whilst super fights are great, they do tend to get the same things written about them time and time again, and we'd prefer not to just discuss the same things as everyone else. To us the lower end, domestic and regional title bouts are the more interesting ones to think about, the options are more varied, the and the reasons for the bouts to be made can be more interesting. Everyone wants a super fighter, but not everyone deserves them, what they deserve though is a good fight. Today we look at one example of what is really, a good potential fight. On the Japanese domestic scene in 2019 Aso Ishiwaki was a break out success story, emerging from Nobuhiro Ishida's boxing gym in Neyegawa. He had reached the Rookie of the Year final in 2018, losing a razor close bout in the final, but really stunned us this year going 3-0-1 (3) and looking like a ridiculously strong, powerful, talented and hungry fighter along the way. There are areas, technically, for him to work on, but from a fan perspective his flaws make him a must watch action fighter and one of the most fun to watch Japanese Light Welterweights. His development in 2019 also sees him making great strides to a potential Japanese title fight in the new year. Although not a star Japanese Brazilian fighter Cristiano Aoqui is a popular fighter, with a decent fan base and a very fun style, at least when matched right. The 30 year old, from the Kadoebi Gym, is a former Japanese title challenger, he's highly ranked with the JBC, and he's been in with a genuine who's who of the Japanese scene at 140. He's an explosive puncher, who is great fun to watch when he's in full flow, with spiteful combinations. But he's also slow footed, and when it comes to cutting off the ring he's not particularly strong at it. If a fighter comes to fight he makes for great bouts, and that is what a bout with Ishiwaki would comprise of. Two men wanting to fight. Earlier this year Ishiwaki was on a Kadoebi show, fighting to a draw with Yoji Saito, and they seemed impressed by the youngster. Having him back in Tokyo on another of their shows is not something they'd have any problems with, and having him in with Aoqui would make for a very fan friendly match up. The winner would find themselves right in the domestic title picture, potentially with a shot later in the year, and their profile would be increased by being in a true barn burner. For Aoqui and Kadoebi this would put give them a chance to avenge Saito's draw, which we felt was Saito was lucky to get, and for Ishiwaki it would give him a chance to significantly boost his Japanese ranking. For us, it would provide some incredible action. Please good folk at Kadoebi, if you're reading this, lets have it sorted out for the new year! As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #6 Sho Kimura (18-3-2, 11) Vs Tetsuya Hisada (34-10-2, 20) When we look at bouts that make sense and could potentially be thrillers we tend to talk about men at the top of their game, but here we look at two men who's should gel to give us an all action thriller, despite both suffering losses last time out. In fact if this bout was made not only would it be between two men who lost last time out, but it would also take place a division higher than either man fought at last time out. Of the two it's Sho Kimura who is the better known. The former WBO Flyweight champion became a fan favourite in 2017, when he stopped Zou Shiming and Toshiyuki Igarashi. Although he lost in his third defense, to Kosei Tanaka, his profile grew with the loss and he really did remain a notable contender. Sadly a move down in weight in 2019 proved to be a mistake and he was easily beaten by Carlos Canizales in May. Kimura's usual stamina, work rate and power were nowhere to be seen against Canizales and he very flat in the later stages. A move back up to Flyweight would give him a chance to redeem himself for that poor performance, and a win against a notable fighter at Flyweight would potentially put him back into the title mix, in what is a rather interesting division. Tetsuya Hisada was an unknown outside of Japan, and more specifically a relative unknown outside of Osaka, until this year when he fought Light Flyweight champion Hiroto Kyoguchi, and pushed Kyoguchi all the way. He came off second best, but at the age of 34 and in his first world title bout he impressed. He showed ambition, belief and decent skills for someone who had been so overlooked through much of his career. Following the loss to Kyoguchi he did consider retirement, before stating he would stay around another year and move up in weight. Moving up to Flyweight may end up being a very smart move for the Osakan, but he will need a suitable dance partner. In step Kimura? The styles of the two men are both aggressive, with Kimura being the stronger man but the more crude and Hisada being the more technically correct. Neither man is a defensive genius, but they both take a shot well, and they do know how to look after themselves. They also both like fighting at mid to close range, where we tend to get the most exciting exchanges. We would expect this to be a real thriller between two men who need a win, two men who will be willing to put it all on the line, and two men who know that they are only a fight or two away from securing another world title bout. Neither man is going to be able to get away with an easy bout on route to a big one, so to have them face off would be perfect. This, in Tokyo, as a title eliminator type of bout, at Flyweight, would be something to get very, very excited about! (Images courtesy of boxmob.jp) As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #5 Akinori Watanabe (39-7-1, 33) Vs Hironobu Matsunaga (16-1, 10) Unlike some fights we will feature in this series, which are more "pipe dreams than potential reality" today's is one that is actually quite an organic fight to make, would see both men fighting to unify titles and would be a wonderfully dramatic fight between men who are aggressive, exciting and always come to fight. It may be a long way removed from world level, but sometimes we need to let the action do the talking, more than the titles on the line, and this is one such bout. At 34 years old Akinori Watanabe is enjoying a career Renaissance of sorts, following 3 losses in 5 bouts between November 2015 and the start of 2018. That revival has seen him claim, and defend, the OPBF Light Middleweight title and we suspect he still has eyes on the Japanese title, a title that he came close to winning in 2018 when he fought to a brutal draw with Nobuyuki Shindo. The man now holding that national title is Hironobu Matsunaga, who we'll get on to in a minute, and it would be a great match up to see the two go at it in the summer at Korakuen Hall. Although no world beater Watanabe has always been a lot of fun to watch, with explosive power, vicious combinations, an aggressive mentality and a sense of fragility, in regards to his chin. Win or lose he has always been fantastic to watch and we would love to see him in a unification bout in the new year. At 32 years old Matsunaga is on the wrong side of 30 himself, but appears to have aged like a fine wine since his 2014 loss to Yuki Beppu in the All Japan Rookie of the Year final. Since that loss he has won 10 in a row, scored notable wins over Hisao Narita, Je Ni Ma, Koshinmaru Saito and Nobuyuki Shindo, whilst also winning, and defending, the Japanese Light Middleweight title. In the ring he looks like a terror, marching forward with a highly aggressive style, and although he's technically rather flawed he's tough, strong and doesn't let fighters off the hook when he has them hurt. Instead he presses, presses and presses more, making him a fantastic fighter to watch, and he has emerged a real dangerman on the domestic scene in the last couple of years. What we would have here is a fight of wills, with both men looking to out will, out fight and out power the other. Watanabe is the hard hitter and the more technically rounded fighter, but Matsunaga is like a steam train when he gets going, and if he sees out the first round or two we expect to see him beginning to march down Watanabe. Watanabe will have to respond, holding his feet and engaging in a fire fight. This is a relatively organic fight to make, with it being a national and regional title unification, it's between arguably the #2 and #3 in Japan, with Takeshi Inoue being #1 in the division, and style wise this has "WAR" written all over it! As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #4 Reymart Gaballo (23-0, 20) Vs Manyo Plange (18-0-1, 15) When slightly crude, heavy handed, fighters face off we don't really know what to expect. Do the fighters go for it, in the belief they have power to win and chin to take what ever comes back, or do we see one of the fighters reverting to boxing their opponent, and look to pick them off with counters? At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter what happens when they fight, as we're sat on the edges of our seat in anticipation of fireworks going off. Here we have fighters who can box, but both seem to prefer throwing bombs! Reymart Gaballo is arguably the most exciting fighter the Philippines has right now, though Carl Jammes Martin may argue other wise. He's a huge puncher who has a wild, but not reckless, style. He's got nasty power in both hands, exciting speed and almost an elastic look to everything he does. He clearly can be out boxed, but it's only ever going to take one shot and he can turn things around, and given he throws everything hard and fast he will land sooner or later. Manyo Plange is the more technically sound boxer-puncher, and he was really unfortunate in 2018 to have had to settle for a draw with Michael Dasmarinas, in a bout we had Plange a clear winner in. He's a heavy handed guy who appears to take a shot well, then again doesn't everyone from Ghana? Prio to turning to the professional ranks he was a good amateur, and made it to the 2008 Olympics in Beijin as well as the 2006 Commonwealth games. So those skills are there. This would be a high risk assignment for both, with both men risking their unbeaten records in what would almost certainly be a fire fight. From a business point of view it doesn't make much sense for either man to take the fight. But from a fan's point of view this would appeal so much to us. We know that both would have respect for the other, but things could go off in an instant, and a mistake by the fighter who decides to put his foot on the gas first could see them being punished. We would favour Gaballo, who we see as the bigger puncher and the faster fighter, but Plange is no joke and would be a great test for the youngster. The winner of this would certainly find themselves on the verge of a world title fight, and we suspect that, no matter who wins, the bout would be getting some attention afterwards for the action it delivers. As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #3 Satoshi Shimizu (8-1, 8) Vs Reiya Abe (19-3, 9) Many of the fights in this serious will feature men with momentum behind them and will be fighters who look like they are heading in the right direct. Here however we have a mouth watering match all southpaw match up between men who suffered major set backs in 2019, and both need a big win in the new year. Neither man will be in a rush to look back over the year, but both will know one big win gets them right back on track for something big towards the end of the year. Better yet this bout pits skills and technique against a crude power puncher. The 33 year old Satoshi Shimizu was an amateur standout, going as far as to take a bronze medal at the 2012 Olympics in London. He turned professional in 2016 with big expectations on his shoulders and raced his way to the OPBF Featherweight title in his 4th professional bout, less than 13 months after his debut. Despite his success, which included 4 defenses, there was always an uneasy feeling watching him. Whilst he could punch, and boy did he show that early on, he was defensively very open, often swinging wild, looping shots and leaving himself in place for a counter. This past July he tested the water at Super Featherweight and was beaten into submission by Joe Noynay, in a bout for the WBO Asia Pacific title. That bout saw Noynay make the most of Shimizu's poor defense, and although Shimizu is said to have recovered physically, it's hard to know what mental scars are left for the southpaw slugger. Coming into 2019 Reiya Abe was on a hot streak, and he looked like a man on his way to something special. He had won 11 in a row since a 2015 loss to Shingo Kusano, which he later avenged, and had notched notable wins over Tsuyoshi Tameda, Joe Noynay and Satoshi Hosono. He entered the year the mandatory challenger for the Japanese Featherweight title, though could only manage a draw with Taiki Minamoto in July and then suffered a narrow defeat to Ryo Sagawa in a second title shot. Despite those set-backs he's never looked outclassed, and at 26 there is certainly time for him to rebuild, make slight alterations to his style and go on to have genuine success at the top level. His main issue is that he can be too inactive, and that is an easy thing top fix, especially given how good of a pure boxer he is. With both fighters being legitimately fantastic fighters this sells it's self in terms of names, and the stylistic differences between them makes it a mouth watering one to think about. Shimizu can hurt anyone at Featherweight, if he catches them clean, and Abe on his day is a slippery cat to catch. If Abe can use his skills to out box Shimizu he would be able to take a clear win, but there is always that that chance he gets caught, and Shimizu jumps on him. With both men needing a big win, and with this bout being as interesting on paper as it is, we would love to see this one taking place early in 2020! (Image courtesy of boxmob.jp) As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #2 Keita Kurihara (15-5, 13) Vs Yusuke Suzuki (11-3, 7) The Bantamweight division has had a lot of attention in recent years, thanks in part to the depth in quality of both fighters and fights. We've obviously seen Naoya Inoue's fantastic bout with Nonito Donaire earlier this year, and going back a little further Shinsuke Yamanaka's bouts with Anselmo Moreno. In regards to the lower weights the Bantamweight division has been the one with the consistent star power, and some of the most exciting bouts. With that in mind we want to see another Bantamweight war, and a fight between Keita Kurihara and Yusuke Suzuki. These two have styles that should gel to give us nothing other than unadulterated violence. At 26 years old Kurihara is coming into his physical prime, and is proving to be a brutal, aggressive monster. He's heavy handed, very exciting, strong and although still somewhat crude he's the type of fighter you do not stand and fight toe-to-toe with. Coming into the new year he's on a real role, with 6 straight wins since a 2017 loss to Hiroaki Teshigawa. That winning run has seen him defeat an interesting array of fighters like Ryan Lumacad, Yuki Strong Kobayashi, Warlito Parrenas and Sukkasem Kietyongyuth. Kurihara can be outboxed, we saw that against Kobayashi, but his power is often too much and Kobayashi was dropped 4 times during their 12 rounder. His aggression is intense and he is edging towards a world title fight in the next year or two,. At 30 years old Suzuki is the much older man, but like Kurihara he's a fighter who loves a fighter. Suzuki was a solid amateur before turning professional way back in 2012. Sadly his career has been rather stop-start, and he lost the entire of 2018 due to injuries. Thankfully however he had a good 2019, and last time out he won a war with Yuta Saito to become the Japanese Bantamweight champion. In the ring he's tough, rough, exciting and aggressive. He's less of a puncher than Kurihara, but has a higher level of activity, and we have seen him battle through real adversity in the past. In fact his bout with Saito saw his face end up swollen and bloodied, but he refused to back down and just bit down and fought back. Like Kurihara he can be out boxed, out moved and out thought, but few will beat him in a straight up fight. In many ways he and Kurihara are made for each other, and neither man would look to take a backwards step. If the bout was made early in 2020 it would be a chance to see the Japanese and OPBF titles being unified, though Suzuki would likely make a mandatory defense first as part of the 2020 Champion Carnival. With that in mind maybe we'll see both men fight once before facing each other in a bout that really would leave fans speechless. This could be a legitimate fight of the year contender, and would see both men take a scary amount of punishment. (Images courtesy of boxmob.jp) As we head towards the new year we've had a big look at the current scene and come up with "20 fights we'd like to see in 2020", yeah another series ahead of the new decade! As is always the case with what we do, these articles will have an Asian flavour, and every bout we mention in the series will have at least 1 fighter from Asia involved. So for those of you expecting us to talk about Deontay Wilder Vs Anthony Joshua, that won't be listed. What we'll be looking at is well matched contests with either some form of back story, a great stylistic clash or bouts with some form of significant meaning. If they tick all the boxes then that is even better! Each fight will be given it's own article and each of these will come with an introduction to the fighters, and why the bout is being featured in the list. Fight #1 Hiroaki Teshigawara (21-2-2, 14) vs Yusaku Kuga (19-3-1, 13) The Super Bantamweight division is a truly under-rated one, but one that has the potential to deliver a lot of thrillers over the coming years, at every level. Arguably the match up that has the potential to be the most violent is a clash between heavy handed boxer punchers Hiroaki Teshigawara, the current OPBF champion, and Yusaku Kuga, the current Japanese champion who looks to claim the WBO Asia Pacific at the very end of 2019. If Kuga wins on December 31st then why not have this for all the marbles at some point in 2020? Hiroaki Teshigawara is a 29 year old boxer-puncher who has been guided by former world champion Koichi Wajima, who is angling Teshigawara for a world title fight at some point in the new year. Although relatively unknown outside of Asia he won both of the two main regional titles, the WBO Asia Bantamweight title and the OPBF Super Bantamweight title. To go along his title triumphs are some very strong wins, including a win over current OPBF Bantamweight champion Keita Kurihara and stoppage wins over world title challengers Jetro Pabustan, Teiru Kinoshita and Shohei Omori. He currently has 3 OPBF title defenses under his belt. Despite his good form he only has a world ranking with the IBF, who's world title situation is a bit of a mess right now. In the ring Teshigawara is an exciting fighter, who burst on to the scene as a slightly crude fighter, but has adapted his style, become more patient, and is now a very skilled boxer-puncher. He's frustrating to face, creates and controls distance well an is very much a nightmare for opponents to even get close to. Yusaku Kuga is also a 29 year old Japanese fighter, and is the current Japanese Super Bantamweight champion. He's expected to add the WBO Asia Pacific title to his collection on December 31st, when he faces Jhunriel Ramonal, and if he does a bout with Teshigawara would essentially be for recognition as the best fighter on the regional scene. Kuga is a 2-time Japanese champion and is very dangerous, with brutal power in both hands. He's not a very technically smooth fighter, but he's someone who will go to war any time, with anyone. That mentality has seen him fight in some thrillers, including 2 sensational bouts with Ryoichi Tamura. Despite being a talented fighter Kuga is a limited boxer, and when matched wrong he can be made to look very limited. This was shown in 2018, when he was easily out boxed, and eventually stopped, by Shingo Wake. Against someone who likes a fighter however he tends to come out on top. A fight with Teshigawara would almost certainly end up being a war. Interestingly he is only ranked by the WBC, though a win in December would likely secure him a top 15 WBO ranking as well. With all the marbles on the line, a potential world title fight for the winner and with styles that should make for a brilliant clash this is a fight we would love to see and we would expect explosive, exciting and brutal action throughout. The winner will deserve a crack at a world title and we, as fans, would get something special. Guys get this made for 2020! (Image courtesy of A.McGovern and Boxmob.jp) |
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