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This past week has been a brilliant one for us. We've had great fights on a number of days, we've celebrated Christmas, and managed, for at least a week, to enjoy a mix of boxing and normal life. We're of course not the only ones who have had a good week, and so have a number of fighters! So with that said lets take a look at the big winners of the past week as we hand out our weekly awards!
Fighter of the Week Yuichi Ideta We open this up with a somewhat peculiar pick, but a very valid one, and that is Yuichi Ideta as the fighter of the week. The 36 year old Ideta hadn't won a fight in almost 10 years. He was being given almost no chance and the popular opinion, including that of ourselves, was that he was a patsy for Ryota Yada to swat aside. A mere showcase bout for Yada, a former Japanese champion. We were wrong, very, very wrong, and instead of coming to the ring to lose Ideta out worked, out muscled, out battled and out fought the younger, more proven Yada. This was a huge, career defining win for Ideta, who looked like a man with a point to prove and proved it in the perfect way. Ideta has almost certainly gone from the cast of yard, to the regional and domestic title mix. Performance of the Week Katsunari Takayama Aged 37 and having not been in a professional boxing ring for well over 4 years few gave Katsunari Takayama much of a chance when he returned to the ring on Sunday. He had been written off by many, but within seconds of the bout starting it was the Takayama of old, the sharp, quick, mosquito like fighter who was light on his feet, with good upper body movement and accurate jabs. He looked much smaller than Reiya Konishi but that never looked like it mattered as he easily out boxed, out fought, out though and out pointed Konishi. Konishi was there to win, don't get us wrong, but he could never cope with the incessant movement and punching of Takayama. This was a hell of a performance from a man we thought was done. Honourable mention Jin Sasaki Fight of the Week Hironori Mishiro Vs Masayuki Ito The 10 round Lightweight bout between OPBF Super Featherweight champion Hironori Mishiro and Masayuki Ito was streamed live, worldwide on Boxing Day and it delivered a brilliant, technical, well matched bout that saw both men showing exactly what they could do. Through the bout it seemed like Ito was landing the heavier single shots but Mishiro's jab was a constant weapon and turned out to be the difference on the scorecards, with Mishiro sneaking the win. This was 10 rounds of high skill chess, fought at a very high speed, with momentum shifts, and each man needing to find a solution to their opponents strengths. Maybe not a Fight of the Year contender, but a genuinely fantastic bout. Honourable mention Bakhodur Usmonov vs Vildan Minasov Round of the Week Bakhodur Usmonov vs Vildan Minasov (Rd 4) Talented Tajik amateur Bakhodur Usmonov made his debut this past week, on Christmas eve, when he took on Vildan Minasov in what turned out to be a truly fantastic 6 round back and forth that saw both men showing off solid boxing skills, heart, power and determination. Minasov looked to make it a war from the off and Usmonov was under intense pressure, whilst trying to stick to his boxing. In round 4 Usmonov was in troubler again, before he gritted his teeth and tried to turn the fight around, going to war with Minasov, giving us 3 minutes of brutal, back and forth action. This was fantastic KO of the Week Jinki Maeda TKO2 Kaito Okubo In one of the final bouts of the week we saw the brilliantly talented Jinki Maeda in action, as he took on Kaito Okubo. In round 2 of their bout, with Okubo near the ropes Maeda landed a dynamite straight left hand that forced Okubo to spin and sent him down hard. His team immediately signalled to the referee to stop this and let them help Okubo. This was a sensational KO by a young man who has been very impressive in 2021 and fingers crossed we'll see him in an interesting fight next year. Honourable mention Ryo Akaho TKO2 Yuto Nakamura Jin Sasaki TKO3 Aso Ishiwaki Prospect of the Week Jin Sasaki We were expecting to see the hard hitting 19 year old Jin Sasaki being given a genuine test this week when he took on Aso Ishiwaki. Instead Sasaki just went into the ring and made a statement, dropping Ishiwaki 3 times to secure the Japanese Youth Light Welterweight title. Sasaki stormed out and came close to stopping Ishiwaki in the first round, dropping him twice and leaving him on wobbly legs at the end of the opening round. It seemed clear Sasaki wanted an early win and wanted to use his power to make a statement. In round 2 he took his foot off the gas but closed the show in style in round 3 and made it very clear that this was his week. This was a prospect announcing himself in a big, big way and putting the 140lb division in Japan on notice.
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Man what a week we've had! We've had so many fights over the last 7 days that we're genuinely exhausted but in a good way, having enjoyed so many great fights, so much brilliant action and so many things that have left us excited about the future of the sport.
With that said here are our award winners for this past week, and there really were a lot of contenders for some of the categories. Fighter of the Week Naoya Inoue We don't think anyone was really up in the running for this award other than Naoya Inoue, who secured a win on his Las Vegas debut without too much trouble. The "Monster" was under pressure to perform and he did just that, easing his way through the first few rounds before putting his foot on the gas. He had stubborn resistance from Jason Moloney, who played his part with a really brave effort, but in the end the power, skills, speed and accuracy of Inoue were too much. The Monster was out on Halloween and did exactly what he needed to to leave an impression on those who maybe weren't too aware of him. Performance of the Week Ablaikhan Zhussupov There was a lot of really good performances this week, all for varying reasons. Inoue shining in Las Vegas was the biggest performance, Nanthasith Petchnamthong scoring a win over a former world champion in his second pro bout was impressive, Kosuke Tomioka shining in his Rookie of the Year bout was great. For us however the the guy with the most impressive performance was Kazakh fighter Ablaikhan Zhussupov. The Kazakh amateur standout made his debut in Kazakhstan against the very solid Meshack Mwankemwa and looked like a man who had had 10 or 15 professional bouts. It's a shame he's expected to compete at the Tokyo Olympics and not commit to the professoinal ranks for sometime as on this performance this kid is special. Fight of the Week Nonthasith Petchnamthong Vs Kompayak Porpramook Whilst we certainly had bigger fighters, and bouts with more significance it was hard to think of a more enjoyable bout, bell to bell, than the exciting, competitive, engaging 10 round back and forth between Nonthasith Petchnamthong and Kompayak Porpramook. As with every Kompayak bout he was there to win, he was pressing, pressuring and trying to break his novice opponent mentally. Nonthasith showed his ring IQ, toughness and determination as he blunted Kompayak's aggression in a truly fantastic 10 rounder. Credit to both men for this one! Note - As we write this footage for Kenta Kamimura vs Yuto Kagata hasn't been made available, though reports are that this was a very special bout between two young debutants who let it all hang. As a result of not being able to see this bout it's not been considered for either the Fight OR Round of the Week Round of the Week Wanchana Menayothin Vs Omar El Ouers (Rd3) As with the fight of the week we stay in Thailand for a bit of a hidden gem. The bout pitted Thai youngster Wanchana Menayothin against Thai based Moroccan Omar El Ouers and boy did they put on an under-rated, and under-seen, battle here. It always seemed like Wanchana was too big and strong for El Ouers, but that didn't stop the Moroccan from holding his own at times, and giving his some of the most exciting exchanges of the week. If you missed this one we particular advise rounds 3 and 4, as they let shots go at will and put on a show. KO of the Week Shu Utsuki TKO2 Takayuki Sakai Some weeks we don't get any noteworthy KO's but this week we had several fantastic ones. The best of the bunch was the one scored by Japanese Lightweight prospect Shu Utsuki in his DANGAN A Class tournament qualifying bout against Takayuki Sakai. This was a thing of beauty! With Sakai near the ropes Utsuki lined up his man and threw a perfect 1-2, with the straight going right through the guard. A genuine brilliant KO and our favourite of the week. Honourable Mentions Wanchana Menayothin TKO5 Omar El Ouers Naoya Inoue TKO5 Jason Moloney Prospect of the Week Nonthasith Petchnamthong Some weeks we don't see a single prospect that makes us sit up and take note. This week we had an abundance of them. For us however scoring a win over a former world champion in just his second bout nets Nonthasith Petchnamthong the award. His performance may not have been the the best of the week, but the manner in which he has moved his career forward in a single week can't be questioned. This guy has a lot of promise, and fingers crossed TL Promotions don't mess him up with too many tough bouts too soon. So far however their match making for him has been ambitious but very good. Honourable mentions: Ablaikhan Zhussupov Bek Nurmaganbet Andy Hiraoka Kosuke Tomioka Phetmorakot Petchyindee Academy Shu Utsuki Another week is over and we again get to celebrate the world of Asian boxing with our look at the best from the last week. It wasn't the best week, but was a low key, solid, and enjoyable week of action featuring Asian fighters.
Fighter of the Week Hiroaki Teshigawara With his 4th defense of the OPBF Super Bantamweight title under his belt there wasn't really much competition here, this was Hiroaki Teshigawara's award almost by default. The talented Japanese fighter kept up his march towards a world title fight as he easily stopped Shingo Kawamura. Talk is that Teshigawara is now in the running for a world title fight and whilst this wasn't the win to get him that type of bout, few can deny the run he's been on over the last few years. Fingers crossed he gets a big fight before he begins to decline, as he has genuinely earned a shot and taken risks along the way. Performance of the Week Janibek Alimkhanuly Although we had some very impressive performances, including that of Teshigawa, Kanehiro Nakagawa and Rei Nakajima, we don't think anyone left the impression that Kazakh contender Janibek Alimkhanuly did. The Kazakh dropped Gonzalo Gaston Coria in the opening round, stopped him in round 2 and looked like a legitimate world class fighter through out. This was the break out performance that Alimkhanuly really needed, though did come in front of an audience who had to struggle to see the bout due to issues with the way ESPN broadcast the fight. If you missed this one it's well worth tracking down and watching! Fight of the Week Peter Apolinar vs Jetro Pabustan We didn't really get any standout wars this week, sadly, though we did get some decent bouts including a fairly fun brawl from the Philippines, where boxing returned after about 7 months. The card was a low key one in Mandaue City and it's stand out bout, in terms of competitive action, was the 10 rounder between Peter Apolinar and Jetro Pabustan. If you missed this one it's worth a watch, though don't expect a FOTY contender here, it's just a good old entertaining 10 rounder. Round of the Week Jin Miura vs Daiki Wakamatsu (Rd2) The week didn't have any amazing rounds, and there was no rounds where knockdowns were traded or anything spectacular. Saying that however we ddid genuinely enjoy the second round of the bout between Jin Miura and Daiki Wakamatsu on Boxing Raise. Both guys were rocked during the round, with Wakamatsu being dropped and then stopped. In a week where action wasn't too plentiful this is well worthy of your time, a real fun round tucked away on an obscure Boxing Raise under-card. Prospect of the Week Rei Nakajima (4-0) Due to the lack of action there wasn't too much competition here, though even if there was Rei Nakajima would likely have remained in the mix regardless. The Japanese youngster looked incredibly talented and composed with his excellent win over Shinobu Charlie Hosokawa. Nakajima looked fantastic through out the bout, moved brilliantly and looked like he was a fighter who could really go places. He was giving up size, power and experience here, but easily out boxed Hosokawa and he instantly proved himself as a legitimate domestic title contender. KO of the Week Janibek Alimkhanuly There wasn't a lot of action this past week, if we're being honest, but we did get an absolute beauty of a KO as Kazakh sensation Janibek Alimkhanuly blasted out Gonzalo Gaston Coria in sensational fashion. The Kazakh landed several shots that hurt Coria before he finished him off with a monstrous single left hand that turned Coria's lights out. This was an absolutely brutal finish and up there with some of the best of 2020. After one of the quietest weeks in a long time we followed up with a genuinely solid, if rather over-looked, week featuring a lot of solid action, and bouts featuring 3 former champions! It may not have matched some of the weeks at the end of 2020, but this was an excellent week and one we really enjoyed thanks to free streams, from CBC and the GAB, a brilliant Boxing Raise show and a tape delay Fuji TV show.
Fighter of the Week Ryoji Fukunaga (12-4, 12) A week after our rule on "Fighter" of the week bit us on the backside, with the most significant win coming in a relative nothing bout, normality resumed this week with Ryoji Fukunaga being the well deserving winner this following a gutsy, brave and excellent win over Froilan Saludar. The unheralded Japanese puncher went into the bout as the major under-dog in what was a very big step up in class, but fought through some massive swelling to out gut Saludar. The performance wasn't an outstanding out, but the win was huge, and netter Fkunaga the WBO Asia Pacific Super Flyweight title. We don't imagine he'll hold it long, but this week was his week! Performance of the Week Mark Sales (23-43-5, 8) It's rare that we'll ever see the performance of the week come from a journeyman with more than 40 losses, but this week Mark Sales is well and truly worth attention and accolades. Sales had been out of the ring for almost a year, he'd only fought once in 2019 and once in 2018, and was more than 4 years removed from his last win. He wasn't expected to defeat Prabjhot Singh, but that's exactly what he did, relying on his more than 70 bouts of experience to out work, out fight, out punch and out smart his taller, younger opponent. Well done the "Slam Man"! Fight Kento Hatanaka vs Roland Jay Biendima We really had some fantastic bouts this week, including a thriller between a pair of Richard's, Claveras and Rosales, in the Philippines. For us though the pick of the bunch was a 10 round action thriller between Kento Hatanaka and Roland Jay Biendima. This was absolutely thrilling, after a quiet first round Biendima came alive and gave us a brilliant, action packed 10 round bout that swung one way, then the other. Biendima was often on the wrong of the action, but hurt Hatanaka a number of time, bloodying his nose in round 3, damaging his ribs later in the bout and rocking him a number of times. This is the weeks must watch bout, and is really worth going back and rewatching. A brilliant fight. Round Kento Hatanaka vs Roland Jay Biendima (RD 10) There were amazing rounds through the week, though for us the final 3 minutes of the war for the WBC Youth Flyweight title between Kento Hatanaka and Roland Jay Biendima was the best. The round was one of a number of thrilling rounds between the two warriors, tried to make sure they didn't hear the final bell. At the end of the round it was clear the two men had fought to a standstill. Honourable mention: Yuki Nakajima vs Shisui Kawabata (Rd 4) Elmar Zamora vs Justin Espejo (Rd 6) KO Hiroki Hanabusa KO1 Sorawit Bamrungrai We love body shot KO's, they don't come around too often, but we love seeing them when they do. With that in mind it was hard to note repeatedly rewatch Hiroki Hanabusa's left hook to the body against over-matched Thai Sorawit Bamrungrai. The talented Hanabusa, who will be fighting for a Japanese Youth title later in the year, did what he was supposed to do against an opponent who shouldn't have been in the ring with him, and left him in a heap on the canvas. This was perfect placement, took a fraction of a second for Sorawit to feel it, and left the Thai down and out. Pure brilliance Prospect Elmar Zamora (3-0, 2) The GAB show on Saturday was frustrating one to watch live with the official GAB stream being rather a nightmare at times. It was however worth watching for the performance of Elmar Zamora, who took a decision over Justin Espejo. Zamora showed he could box, bang, brawl, had a really exciting style and looks like the sort of fighter the Filipino scene should be looking to nurture. The youngster debuted in 2018 and fought twice that year before taking a year out and returning to face Espejo. Not sure if the break was the best thing for his career, but his performance this weekend was brilliant, keep an eye out for this talented and exciting youngster! Upcoming fight Emanuel Navarrete (30-1, 26) vs Jeo Santisima (19-2, 16) The biggest show of the weekend is at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and we an Asian interest with Emanuel Navarrete taking on Filipino Jeo Santisima, in what is a genuinely quiet week for Asian fighters. Before we go any further, we see this as a massive mismatch, however we also see this as a fun mismatch, with two men expected to try and out slug each other. Santisima is a massive under-dog, but fights in a style that should be fun, until he is eventually worn down by Navarrete. Expect this to be a lot of fun and brutal! This past week was an incredibly quiet one for Asian fight fans, with a genuine lack of notable fights. It's been probably the quietest week since we started doing these awards, and sadly it means there are several categories where we don't have someone we can actually name as a winner. Thankfully we do see things change in February, and things should get a lot better soon!
Fighter of the Week Batyrzhan Jukembayev (18-0-0-2, 14) Due to how weak the week was over-all this was an easy award with Batyrzhan Jukembayev scoring the biggest win of the week. The Canadian based Kazakh prospect may have ended up taking on a late replacement opponent, but he did what he needed to do and took out Ricardo Lara in just 2 rounds to continue his climb towards a potential world title fight. It's clear that Jukembayev needs a real test, and hopefully that will come in the summer before he faces a fellow fringe contender. Performance of the Week Batyrzhan Jukembayev (18-0-0-2, 14) It's fair to say that Jukembayev has essentially won this by default. That's how bad the week has been. The Kazakh looked sharp and appeared unfazed by a late replacement change, but really had a very limited opponent in the ring with him and it showed. Fight Kongfah CP Freshmart Vs Edison Berwela In Thailand on Friday we had the best of a weak bunch of fights, as Kongfah CP Freshmart defended his WBC Asia Diamond Super Bantamweight title against the under-rated Edison Berwela. Round Gaku Takahashi vs Keeshawn Williams (Round 4) Ther wasn't really any standout rounds from the last week, though we did sort of enjoy the weird spectacle of watching the unique Gaku Takahashi take on Keeshawn Williams. From watching the bout it's clear neither is anything special, despite Williams dubbing himself "The Next Big Thing", but their bout was fairly entertaining. It was obvious through out that Takahashi was out of his depth in terms of skills, but kept coming forward and letting his hands go when he was tagged. An odd bout, but round 4 was certainly fun with both men having moments. KO No Valid KO This Week Prospect NO Valid Prospect This Week Upcoming fight Kazuki Nakajima (8-0, 7) vs Seiya Tsutsumi (5-0, 4) We do see action really picking up this coming week, as we break into February in style. There are a lot of bouts cramped into the week and we know most fans will have a US bout in mind as the one that has their attention, notably Daniel Roman's world title defend against Murodjon Akhmadaliev. For us however the Godn's Left Bantamweight final between Kazuki Nakajima and Seiya Tsutsumi. This is likely to be a short bout, but a very, very explosive one, between two guys who are big punchers, and have styles that should gel. This is going to be very exciting. What do you mean annual awards? ...it's only mid-December!
Over the last week or so we've seen the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) announce their shortlists for their annual awards. At the time there was more than 2 weeks of 2019 left and it again left us asking why? Why can they not wait until the end of the year? Why can they not wait until all the fights have been and gone? Why can they not allow everyone a fair chance? As we all know by now Japan hosts action on New Year's Eve, and whilst none of those bouts look likely to deliver us a Fight of the Year contender, but it's not just Japan that has fights between now and the end of 2019. In fact there are other countries playing host to some fights that do look like they could be legitimate contenders. For example on December 20th, a day before this article goes live, we had Julio Cesar Martinez Aguilar face off with Cristofer Rosales, in a bout with real potential to be something very special. Likewise on December 28th Jean Pascal clashes with Badou Jack, in a bout that promises fireworks. Of course some awards are essentially over. There is nothing between now and the end of the year which could possibly effect the Fighter of the Decade, the Fighter of the Year, the The Good Guy or even Trainer of the Year awards. But where we do have things that could fit into the short list, we really need to hold on, be patient. There is no need to rush things, and it can be ridiculously stupid. A great example of how stupid short listing things is before the end of the year was seen in 2014, when Naoya Inoue missed out on the short list, despite the year being one where he claimed world titles at Light Flyweight and Super Flyweight. He wasn't on the ballot that year, because his final win of the year, a KO2 win over Omar Andres Narvaez, came way after the short list had been compiled. The year however still had time left in it! Jonathan Morris's famous quote "Patience is a virtue, Possess it if you can; Seldom found in woman, Never found in man." Can certainly be brought into boxing, and changed somewhat. We don't like seeing things "marinate", but there is also no need to rush something that recognises what boxing has given us over the previous year. Of course it's not just the BWAA who are to blame here, and we suspect many other lists will be released between now and January with various websites, journalists and the ilk announcing their Fighter, Fight, Knockout, Round, Prospect, etc... of the Year. Come on folks, just a touch of patience, it will go a long way...and give you extra time to watch what's happening in the sport. If you're about to do a list, put your damn pen down, wait until the year is over, you know what is around the corner! By all means do a short list, but your full on list can wait a few extra day! For those who have already decided on their lists, we suggest giving Keon Woo Kim's brutal KO1 against Moon Han Ji and Mammoth Nakayama's sensational 5th round KO of Lerdchai Chaiyawed a watch for any KO list, and Yuki Beppu's sensational win over Ryota Yada deserves a watch for any Fight of the Year list. We probably won't change your mind, but you should give them a watch regardless! Who goes up against Rookie of the Year? In a change of note we have a second point of contention this week...who on earth goes up against Rookie of the Year? This year there are two shows in Osaka on the same day as the All Japan Rookie of the Year, in a decision that seems foolish! We understand that time is limited, and trying to squeeze everything into the year can be tricky, but to us the Rookie of the Year is one of the biggest annual events in boxing. To go up against it is sacrilege! We're not complaining about the quality of the cards, which will be promoted by Muto and Nakazato, but it does seem like the shows are shooting themselves in the foot sharing a day with such a tremendous part of the Japanese boxing calendar! Now with that out the way, I shall see you all with the next one of these in the new year, so have a great Christmas folks, and a happy new year! And watch as many fights as you can between now and 2020! I will be! |
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