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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!
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It's fair to say that 2020 has been an odd year so far, with a very stop-start feel to the boxing we've had. Things, of course, haven't been helped by shows being cancelled due to Coronavirus in Asia, but this week was just an odd, odd one. There was fights, but mostly at a low level. The top Asian fighters in action failed to pick up the wins we;d hoped for and the best of the action really came on some obscure cards. With that in mind lets have a look at this weeks award winners
Fighter of the Week Shuma Nakazato (10-1-2, 7) Given our criteria of fighter of the week this week was a really weird one. The criteria is the fighter who scored the best win from the week, not the best performance, which comes under the "Performance of the Week" which can account for losses. As a result we really had to look outside the box, given there was so few wins of note by Asian fighters in what was a truly odd week. In the end it seemed hard to argue that Shuma Nakazato's win over Yuji Awata was the best, and most significant. The win came on the first sole-promoted by former world title challenger Shigeru Nakazato, and gave the promoter the result they needed for the show to be a success. Sadly this week may well end up with us reviewing how we do fighter of the week going forward, though this week was an odd one in general, and this could be an anomaly rather than anything else. Performance of the Week Tugstsogt Nyambayar (11-1, 9) It really was an odd week for Asian boxers, with no one getting a truly big win, in fact the two biggest fights involving Asian fighters both ended in a loss. It was however hard not to be pretty impressed with how Tugstsogt Nyambayar ended up acquitting himself in his loss to Gary Russell Jr. The Mongolian started slowly, but warmed to the task well and proved that he certainly deserves to remain in the world title picture, despite a loss to the talented and speedy American. Don't be surprised to see Nyambayar's loss serve as a learning experience, and the way he picked up the pace in the final 8 rounds showed what he could do. A mixed performance, sure, but also one which showed a lot to get excited about. Fight Tugstsogt Nyambayar vs Gary Russell Jr In a fight that had high level skills and was a genuine chess match Tugstsogt Nyambayar and Gary Russell Jr gave us something that was both compelling, exciting, and technical. There was no real debating the winner, with Russell Jr banking the early rounds for the win against Nyambayar's slow start, but this was still a fantastic bout, and something that is well worthy of a watch. It's not going to be a fight of the year contender, but don't let that take away from what was a genuinely solid 12 round, world level bout between two men who are both legitimate top fighters at 126lbs. Round Ryosuke Maruta vs Kazunari Kosaka (Rd1) We'll admit we tend to skip the 4 round Dangan cards, but on a week lacking in action like this the show was certainly worthy of some interest, and it provided some really great action. The best of it, for us, was the opening round of Ryosuke Maruta's bout with Kazunari Kosaka, who really went all out, swinging bombs in a thrilling action packed 3 minutes of chaos. For those wanting technically perfect boxing, counter punching and smart defense do not look at this round, but for those who wild and heavy offense this is for your. This is just great and thrilling wild, crude fun. Notable mentions: Andy Atsushi v Yuta Hasegawa (Rd 2) KO Naoya Mitsuhashi TKO2 Harunobu Yamasaki We stick with the 4 round Dangan cards for the KO of the week, as Naoya Mitsuhashi cleaned out Harunobu Yamasaki in brutal fashion in the second round of their bout. This is one you'll need to hunt down to find, and be a Boxing Raise subscriber to see, but it's worth it as a single clean right hand to the temple sent the 37 year old Yamasaki crashing to his knees, then flat out on his back. This is not what we expected from Mitsuhashi, who was fighting for just the second time, but we'll be keeping an eye on him after this fantastic KO Notable mention Narimichi Miura TKO1 Yota Matsui Prospect Abdulkhay Sharakhmatov (1-0, 1) Talented Uzbke fighter Abdulkhay Sharakhmatov kicked off his career with an expected easy win over Benjie Ebido in the Philippines. Despite stopping Ebido inside the opening round there was a lot to like about Sharakhmatov's performance, and he is certainly one to watch going forward. Make a mental note of his name as he is going to make a big splash in the years to come and should be on people's radar's now. He intelligently pressed Ebido and broke him down mentally and physically in very quick fashion. A real talent with a nice, easy introduction to the professional ranks. Upcoming fight Daigo Higa (15-1, 15) vs Jason Buenaobra (7-4-3, 3) Although our upcoming bout selection is usually the bout we expect to be the most exciting of the coming week this week's is a little bit different however as the bout we are most looking forward to is a bit of a mismatch. Despite it being a mismatch it's one we're excited about because it's the long awaited return of former world champion Daigo Higa after almost 2 years out of the ring. We expect Higa to beat Filipino foe Jason Buenaobra, without too many problems, however the key here is that the Higa express is back on the line after such a long break from the ring! So that was January 2020 and the first month of a new decade was interesting without really being sensational. We certainly had plenty of noteworthy action, though compared to December was a significant downturn, and a much less interesting month. Then again that is pretty normal for a January. With that said lets have a look at what we deem the best of January! Fighter of the Month Murodjon Akhmadaliev (8-0, 6) The fighter of the month was a pretty obvious pick, with Uzbek Super Bantamweight Murodjon Akhmadaliev being the clear, and standout, winner. The talented former amateur standout ended the month was a fantastic, albeit very competitive, win over Daniel Roman. The win, which netted Akmadaliev the IBF and WBA "Super" titles, was huge and it's hard to deny that "MJ" has kicked off the year in a huge way! If he can build on this win through the year he really could be one of the names for 2020, much like Can Xu was in 2019. Fight of the Month Han Bin Suh Vs Dong Myung Shin There was some good fights this past month, but nothing that will be in the conversation for Fight of the Year. Despite that it's hard to pick fault with the compelling 10 round Korean Super Bantamweight title bout between Han Bin Suh and Dong Myung Shin. This was compelling through out, with Suh refusing to ever accept defeat, and instead he kept ploughing forward hoping to break down the much more polished Dong Myung Shin. This was brilliant and a real hidden gem part way through the month. It wasn't the most high skilled bout of the month, or the most exciting, but it blended the action, activity and skills well. KO of the Month Shohjahon Ergashev KO1 Adrian Estrella It was a weird month for KO's with very few of them really standing out, though it may take a while for us to see a better one than Shohjahon Ergashev's body shot KO against Adrian Estrella. This was naturally beautiful and left the Mexican in pure agony on the canvas, It's rare for body shots KO's to be this good, and it's another KO for an Ergashev KO reel. A truly sensational shot, that is going to be worth watching and over through the year. Prospect Tuguldur Byambatsogt (2-0) January had a lot of stellar performances from prospects from all over the place, with emerging fighters from Uzbekistan, Korea, Japan and China all impressing. It was however a Mongolian that shined the brightest, with Tuguldur Byambatsogt really showing what he could do with a clear and impressive win against Vladimir Baez. This young man from Mongolia is a potential star of the future, and no one impressed quite as much as he did. For a fighter in just his second professional bout Byambatsogt has put down a marker of intent and hopefully he and his team will continue to aim high through the rest of 2020. Upset Esneiker Correa TKO7 Ravshanbek Umurzakov We didn't have too many upsets of any note this past months, but the one that did raise have the most shock value came in Russian when 21 year old Venezuelan Esneiker Correa stopped previously unbeaten Uzbek hopeful Ravshanbek Umurzakov in 7 rounds. We'd expected the highly regarded Uzbek to pick up his 11th straight win against someone who was fighting outside of Latin America for the first. Instead Correra broke down and beat up Umurzakov to claim a massive victory in the 7th round. This wasn't just a big upset for Umurzakov but the type of win that allowed him to announce himself as one to watch. And seriously we would advise keeping an eye on this young puncher, he is someone to get excited about. Round Takuma Takahashi vs Leonardo Doronio (Round 3) There were some amazing rounds, truly amazing rounds. For us the the third round between Takuma Takahashi and Leonardo Doronio takes the honours, just. This was drama, controversy, and action all rolled into one. Takahashi twice dropped Doronio, could have had points taken both times for hitting his downed opponent, and was cut in a round that was absolutely sensation. This was almost 3 minutes of chaos in which both men were hurt. Well and truly worth a watch below! What an interesting week we've had! We've not necessarily had any Fight of the Year contenders but we've had some thrilling match ups, great fights and brilliant performances in what has been a genuinely great week for Asian boxing.
Fighter of the Week Murodjon Akhmadaliev (8-0, 6) Winning a world title is a great achievement, but winning 2, in just your 8th bout is a sensational achievement, and that's exactly what Uzbek sensation Murodjon Akhmadaliev did this past week. The excellent Uzbek showed he could punch, he could box and that he could go 12 in a performance that has really shaken up the Super Bantamweight division. There is no one else who has come close to doing what "MJ" did this week, and he is the only person deserving of the Fighter of the Week honours. Performance of the Week Murodjon Akhmadaliev (8-0, 6) Whilst the 12th round from Murodjon Akhmadaliev was poor everything else was fantastic, especially for a man in just his 8th fight. He controlled the ring, and out boxed Daniel Roman for stretches of the fight whilst answering a lot of question. It wasn't a punch perfect performance from the Uzbek, but for a man in just his 8th fight this was, by far, the most impressive performance of the week. Excellent stuff from "MJ". Fight Pedro Taduran vs Daniel Valladares Whilst we absolutely loved the Murodjon Akhmadaliev Vs Daniel Roman fight, which was arguably the most consistent fight, the most action packed was the IBF Minimumweight title bout between Pedro Taduran vs Daniel Valladares. This was all action, dramatic and thrilling with the two men unloading huge bombs on each other early and often. The only real shame, and the only reason this will not be in the running for fight of the year consideration is the inconclusive and disappointing ending, resulting in a 4th round technical draw. Despite the result, this a must watch war. Round Shun Akaiwa vs Kenta Endo (Round 2) There were some great rounds this past week, but for sheer drama and excitement few rival the second round of the Shun Akaiwa vs Kenta Endo bout. The round wasn't all action from the bell, but instead it grew and grew through the fight before 30 seconds of chaos at the end. This was one of those almost perfect stand alone rounds that tells a complete story, and swings one way then the other. With a touch of controversy and real excitement. This is one every fan should give a watch to. KO There was no valid KO this week Prospect Rustam Tulaganov (3-0, 1) Nobody would suggest that Rustam Tulaganov is the most exciting fighter out there, in fact in many ways he's quite boring and a touch methodical. But it's hard to deny that he's an excellent talent, a well schooled boxer and the prospect who impressed the most this past week. The Uzbek took a huge step up in class, as he took on Polish southpaw Norbert Dabrowski and easily out boxed his more experienced foe. Upcoming fight Gary Allen Russell Jr (30-1, 18) vs Tugstsogt Nyambayar (11-0, 9) This coming week is an eerily quiet one, with very, very little happening. Then again one of the bouts we do have is something we're really, really excited about. That is the WBC Featherweigth title bout between defending Gary Allen Russell Jr and Mongolian challenger Tugstsogt Nyambayar. This is a fight we are really looking forward, despite the fact both have been out of the ring for a lengthy amount of time we expect this to be an excellent bout between two top 10 Featherweights with different, but effective, styles. We expect this to be an excellent bout! 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. This past week has been an interesting one with a lot of action at the end of it, some explosive action in the US and some real exciting and notable moments in both Japan and South Korea. With that said, lets take a look at this weeks award winners! Fighter of the Week Kazuto Takesako (12-0-1, 11) Japanese Middleweight champion Kazuto Takesako scored the biggest win of his career as he defeated Shinobu Charlie Hosokawa, unifying the Japanese and OPBF titles in the first OPBF title fight of the year. This was expected to be a total war but in the end Takesako was in control through out. Early on it was the body shots and combinations of Takesako that set the tone for the bout, before the contest descended into a bit of a mess. In the a very good win for Takesako even if the performance wasn't the most spectacular and the bout not that memorable. Performance of the Week Dong Myung Shin (3-0) With only 12 rounds to his name as a professional prior to yesterday we were expecting to see former amateur standout Dong Myung Shin being worn down and and eventually drowned by all action teenager Han Bin Suh. Instead it was Shin who handled the 10 rounder incredibly well, fighting hard to take a decision, and the KBM Super Bantamweight title. Shin proved he could fight, he could box and despite his record it does appears that he has a bit of pop as well, hurting Suh several times. At 31 Shin will likely be fast tracked this year, so do not be surprised to see him fighting for a regional title in the very near future. Fight Han Bin Suh Vs Dong Myung Shin We love Korean action and it was Korea that shone this week with a very good show that went under-the-radar. The show was stacked with title action and it the KBM Super Bantamweight title bout that delivered. Teenager Han Bin Suh showed the all action, come forward mentality that caught our eye big time last year, whilst former amateur standout Dong Myung Shin showed off his polished boxing skills in what ended up being a truly fantastic 10 round battle. This is one to hunt down when SPOTV or KBM upload it, and whilst not a FOTY contender it was a brilliant low level bout. Round Takuma Takahashi vs Leonardo Doronio (Round 3) One bout we didn't expect to be mentioning in our weekly awards was the 6 round bout between fast rising Japanese prospect Takuma Takahasi and Filipino journeyman Leonardo Doronio. It was however the hidden gem of the weekend, with 4 knockdowns, and some wild exchanges. The third round of the bout had everything. It hard a couple of knockdowns, some truly crazy 2-way action, drama, controversy and intensity. This was a round that deserves to be watched, rewatched, and watched again. The controversy, left by the referee Biney Martin not taking a a point from Takahashi for hitting Doronio when he was down leave a shadow over the round in some ways, but added to the drama of it in others. This is a round that we've included below and suggest every fan watches this week! KO
Shohjahon Ergashev KO1 Adrian Estrella Uzbek fighter Shohjahon Ergashev got the chance to show case what he could do on Friday night, as he took on Mexican fighter Adrian Estrella as part of a Shobox telecast. He really took his chance to showcase his power, taking out Estrella with a truly brutal body shot that will be replayed over and over during 2020. The sharp left hand, that sneaked in past the elbow of Estrella, left the Mexican in agony and really caught the eye. As fans of brutal body shot KO's this was spectacular. Prospect Min Jang (10-0-2, 2) We weren't mega blown away by 19 year old Korean Min Jang, though that was more due to the fact he didn't to blow us away. The talented southpaw showed glimpses of brilliance against the over-matched Junhui Zhao, but never needed to move through the gears. Jang looks like a confident, talented boxer-mover and someone we are very excited to see progress over the coming years. Fingers crossed we see what he can really do next time out, hopefully against a better opponent than Zhao. Upcoming fight Batyrzhan Jukembayev (17-0-0-1, 13) Vs Maximiliano Ricardo Veron (12-3-1, 4) After a blitz of action this past week things really drop off over the coming week, with only a very small number of fights taking place. As a result we were almost forced into a selection by default. Despite that we do still have an interesting one as unbeaten Kazakh contender Batyrzhan Jukembayev takes on upset minded Argentinian Maximiliano Ricardo Veron. With Jukembayev moving towards a world title fight this is a bit of a must win for the Kazakh and we suspect this will turn out to be a decent test for him, but a test he should pass. Expect a few tricky moments for Jukembayev, but overall a comfortable, yet exciting, win for the Kazakh hopeful. This past week has been a rather crazy one, with so much action crammed into so little time. We saw a Japanese Heavyweight fight in the UK, huge upsets featuring Filipino fighters, the Rookie of the Year final and so much more. Whilst the week wasn't full of high profile action it was one of the most packed weeks of the year, by some margin and a lot of fighters and bouts are being missed off this week. This was a tough week to be an award winner, but a great for fans as we complete the final week before Christmas!
Fighter of the Week Akinori Watanabe (39-7-1, 33) It wasn't a tough week for Akinori Watanabe, who retained his OPBF Light Middleweight title with a 2nd round KO win over Sitthidet Banti, but it was one where he scored, on paper, this biggest win, retaining a major regional title. The heavy handed fighter from the Kadoebi gym was expected to win with ease and he did just that, taking out the Thai challenger with a brutal body shot that left Banti in absolute agony. Fingers crossed that we see Watanabe in with a bigger test and a better challenge in his next defense. Performance of the Week Renz Rosia (16-9-1, 9) At the start of the week few would have expected us to be talking about a win for Renz Rosia but the Filipino domestic level fighter managed to record a career best win on Saturday when he out pointed 2-time world title challenger Aston Palicte. Rosia managed to out box, out skill, out and out fight the bigger, hard hitting Palicte, who looked second best through out. Rosia won't get a lot of acclaim for this win, but it suddenly gives his career a massive shot in the arm. Sadly however it does leave Palicte's career in a real hole, and it's the sort of loss which will be hard for him to bounce back from, given how comprehensive it was. Fight Kodai Honda vs Yasutaka Fujita The Rookie of the Year on Sunday was consistently entertaining, but one bout really stood out. That was the 140lb clash between Kodai Honda and Yasutaka Fujita, a bout that will be deserving or a re-watch, and another rewatch. It was just something sensational, with 4 knockdowns, both men going down twice, and an incredible intensity to the first round. Fujita started like a house on fire and Honda tried to respond, being dropped twice in the opening round, before finding a way to turn things around. This really is a must watch 4 round war. Round Kodai Honda vs Yasutaka Fujita (Rd1) The fight of the week, had the round of the week with the opening round of the Honda Vs Fujita bout being absolutely incredible, with Fujita setting an incredible pace and Honda trying to respond, fighting fire with fire. This is the sort of round that has every fan on their feet with their jaws on the floor, and the fact Honda would go on to fight back in the way he did in the following rounds just adds to how amazing this round is. A really sensational 3 minutes of action. KO Daniel Dubois KO2 Kyotaro Fujimoto There really wasn't any option was there? Englishman Daniel Dubois turned the lights off for Japanese Heavyweight Kyotaro Fujimoto in what was one of the best KO's this year. A huge, single right hand to the jaw took the Japanese fighter out in brutal fashion. This is one which will be replayed time and time again. It's just a shame the Asian fighter was on the wrong end of it, but this was a brilliant KO. Prospect Odiljon Aslonov (1-0, 1) Forner Uzbek amateur standout Odiljon Aslonov made his debut on Saturday in Russia and instantly looked like one to watch, as he battered Russian journeyman Varazdat Chernikov into submission. This was a debut where Aslonov's intention wasn't just to win, but to show what his strengths were, and from the first moments he was showing destructive and brutal body work, breaking down the Russian, who was completely outclassed. This heavy handed fighter looks like a beast and is one to make a real note of going forward. Upcoming fight Moruti Mthalane (38-2, 25) vs Akira Yaegashi (28-6, 16) Monday's IBF Flyweight title fight, pitting defending champion Moruti Mthalane against Japanese star Akira Yaegashi, is a hard one to call. We expect Mthalane to win, no matter what, but how he gets the win really does befuddle us. We can see both a very early win for the South African, with Yaegashi officially being shot, or a late dragged out win for Mthalane, who finally breaks down a gallant Yaegashi in a FOTY contender. It's that potential for this bout to be something special that has seen up pick this bout, though we wouldn't be surprised to see if being a blow out for the South African,similar to Yaegashi's 2017 loss to Milan Melindo. As we head towards Christmas it appears boxing has decided to give us some earlier gifts, and this past week was full of them, with several brilliant match, great fights and even the delay release of an amazing fight from a week earlier. This was a genuine fantastic week, even if it wasn't a week with high profile Asian action. One of those rare weeks where the less known fighters got their chance to shine, and delivered.
Fighter of the Week Hiroaki Teshigawa (21-2-2, 14) The past week had a lot of title fights on the regional and domestic levels. The one man who made it clear that he was well above the level that he was fighting at was Hiroaki Teshigawaa, who destroyed Shohei Kawashima in 5 rounds to retain his OPBF Super Bantamweight title. The talented "Crush Boy" did what neither Cristian Mijares or Juan Miguel Elorde could do, and that was stop Kawashima. After the bout it was clear Teshigawara wanted a world title fight and given he has proven to be above regional level it does make sense for he, and mentor Koichi Wajima, to push for a world title fight in the new year. Performance of the Week Bektemir Melikuziev (4-0, 3) After going just 6 rounds in his first 3 bouts we had a lot of questions we were wanting to see answered from Uzbek fighter Bektemir Melikuziev. This week he answered them as he took a 10 round shut out win over tough American Vaughn Alexander. The power of Melikuziev wasn't on show as much as usual, but instead we saw him taking a 10 round decision and prove he could go deep in fights, he could box and move, he could fight behind his jab, a cut wasn't a big issue and he wasn't just a 1-trick pony. This was as impressive as we could have hoped from him against someone like Alexander and it's clear that Melikuziev and his team will look to face more interesting tests next year. Fight Hironori Mishiro Vs Yoshimitsu Kimura The week had some great action though perhaps the best of it was the 12 round back and forth bout between OPBF Super Featherweight champion Hironori Mishiro and Yoshimitsu Kimura. The bout wasn't a fight of the year contender, but it was a fantastic, high level, hotly competitive 12 round back and forth. This was the sort of bout that whilst never the incredible heights of some bouts, was consistently very exciting and never looked like it was getting too sloppy or too slow. It was consistently engaging, and truly competitive. The sort of bout that won't attract new fans to the sport, but will please every one who is already a fan. Round Toshiya Ishii Vs Haruki Ishikawa (Round 2) We've really enjoyed the Japanese Youth title fights, which had typically been really well matched and exciting contests between two young men who come to fight. That was shown again this past week in a 4 round shoot out between Toshiya Ishii and Haruki Ishikawa, who traded blows for the Japanese Youth Bantamweight title. The bout was exciting from the off, had 3 knockdowns in 4 rounds and a sensational second round that saw both men being rocked hard. This was 3 minutes of amazing violence, intense action real danger from both men. This was a great round that everyone should check out before the year is over. KO (UPDATED) Kazunori Nakayama TKO5 Lerdchai Chaiyawed We originally posted this with no set winner, as when the article was first posted we hadn't managed to see some footage of under-card bouts from across the shows. Only moments afterwards we spotted a twitter post from @takayukimonaco which showed one of the KO's of the year. The bout between Kazunori Nakayama and Thai Lerdchai Chaiyawed ended in truly brutal fashion as a single right hand from Nakayama knocked the Thai clean out. The referee could have counted to 50, instead of instantly waving it off, and there was still no way Lerdchai was getting up. We also want to give a mention to Toshiya Ishii's TKO finish against Haruki Ishikawa. The shot, a counter right hand, completely scrambled Ishikawa's senses an sent him stumbling forward before falling over one of the middle ropes. Given a 10 count we suspect Ishikawa would have "beaten the count" but wouldn't have been deemed fit to continue. A brilliant finish, even if it wasn't lights out. Prospect Yudai Shigeoka (2-0, 1) Whilst Bektemir Melikuziev was incredibly impressive the reality is that he isn't really a prospect, he's already a contender in our eyes and his recent title win has already seen him claim a regional title and potentially a world ranking. Instead our prospect for the week was Yudai Shigeoka, who out boxed, out sped and out thought OPBF Minimumweight champion Lito Dante over 6 rounds. The bout may end up with Shigeoka taking a world ranking, given that Dante was world ranked himself, but with this only being a 6 rounder there's a chance he'll miss out. What is clear is that this young man is a sensational boxer and he is someone worth getting behind, as he is going to be raced to a title very, very soon. Upcoming fight Apichet Petchmanee (5-0, 2) vs Ari Agustian (8-0, 8) This coming week is an interesting one with a number of shows, though very few 50-50 match ups. One of the few even looking contests, other than the Rookie of the Year show, is an excellent looking encounter between unbeaten Thai Apichet Petchmanee and Indonesian puncher Ari Agustian. We've not been impressed by Apichet this year, and tipping him highly in 2018, whilst Agustian has failed to build on his 2018 win over Baolin Kang. This could be very entertaining and tell us a lot about what both men are capable of. One of the rare bouts in Thailand that has us genuinely excited. This past week was a busy week, without being a huge week, it was an interesting week, without being a banner week. It was the type of week where the little fights were allowed to shine, and one of the big talking points was what we didn't get, rather than what we did get.
With the IBF Super Flyweight title bout between Jerwin Ancajas (31-1-2, 21) and Jonathan Javier Rodriguez (21-1, 15) falling through late on we did miss out on world title action but we did still get a lot of good stuff! Fighter of the Week Hironobu Matsunaga (16-1, 10) One of the strangest categories this week was the Fight of the Week. There was no huge bout, and the bigger bouts saw Asian fighters losing, an often losing in rather disappointing fashion. As a result we had to dig a little deeper than we'd have hoped for out Fighter of the Week, though we did get a deserving winner, with Japanese Light Middleweight champion Hironobu Matsunaga successfully defending his title in a thrilling win over Koki Koshikawa. Matsunaga had to dig deep, work hard and ended up showing what he could do, in what was the biggest win by an Asian fighter this past week. Performance of the Week Akio Furutani (8-4, 3) It's nice to get the chance to highlight someone who wouldn't have gotten a mention in a bigger week, and with Akio Furutani this is likely the only time he will ever be mentioned in one of our award articles. The unheralded fighter put in the best performance of his career to upset former OPBF Flyweight champion Keisuke Nakayama. From the opening round to the last minute Furutani came forward, coming to fight and Nakayama really had no answer for the aggression of Furutani over the 8 round schedule. A great and very unexpected performance from 21 year old, who has now won 4 in a row following a loss in the 2018 Rookie of the Year competition. Fight Hironobu Matsunaga Vs Koki Koshikawa The weekend's Dynamic Glove card was, overall, a disappointment, but one bout really stood out. That was the 4 round war for the Japanese Light Middleweight title. In one corner was the 32 year old champion, a diminutive figure, in the other corner was former amateur stand out Koki Koshikawa. From the off this set off at an amazing pace, and swung one way, then the other, in what was a really thrilling fight. It was a bit one sided by the time of the stoppage, but up to that point it had been great, with both showing their heart and will to win, and both getting through some sticky moment. A real gem on a card that lacked to quality action. Round Hironobu Matsunaga Vs Koki Koshikawa (2) We go back to our Fight of the week for our Round of the week, and what a great, great round this was. The first round for the Japanese Light Middleweight title bout between Hironobu Matsunaga and Koki Koshikawa was great but the second was even better. By now Matsunaga had began to find his groove, pressing the fight and forcing Koshikawa to respond in a round that was back and forth, exciting, and had power shots from both. This wasn't always pretty, but tense and the final 30 seconds or so really raised the roof as both looked to leave an impression on the judges. This won't go down as a Round of the Year contender, but was a brilliant and exciting round, from a fantastic fight. KO Tatsuya Tsuge TKO3 Kyota Shinya Although we had a lot of fights, and we mean a lot, we didn't get many KO's during the week, at least no clean ones. Thankfully this lead to us finding the wonderful, and very hidden uppercut uppercut finish from Tatsuya Tsuge, who stopped Kyota Shinya on a Dangan 4 round show. Whilst Shinya wasn't out cold or anything this was still a beauty to see. Tsuge landed a brilliant left uppercut that turned Shinya's lights off, before a follow up right hand clipped him on his way down. For Boxing Raise subscribers this one is worth looking for. Prospect Yudai Shigeoka (1-0, 1) The debuting Yudai Shigeoka may not have looked flawless in his 2nd round win over Thai visitor Manop Audomphanawari but he did impress with a real beating of the Thai. It seemed, for the most part, that Shigeoka only fought in the first couple of gears, and even that was impressive, especially with his body shots. We'll admit we were more impressed when his brother, Ginjiro Shigeoka, made his debut but this was still an excellent showing from a genuine elite level prospect. Upcoming fight Naoya Inoue (18-0, 16) vs Nonito Donaire (40-5, 26) It was never going to be anything else, was it? The WBSS Bantamweight final between Naoya Inoue and Nonito Donaire is one of the most anticipated bouts of 2019 and it takes place this coming Thursday from the Saitama Super Arrena. The bout will potentially enhance Inoue's status as a modern great even further, or cap off a legendary career for Donaire. We're expecting fire works, an incredible atmosphere and something big here. Easily the one fight to keep an eye on this coming up this week! On a personal level October feels like a month that has been a lot, lot longer than it has been. It's hard to believe that it was only at the start of the month that we had a brilliant Light Flyweight world title bout and whilst the month has been inconsistent at times we have had a bit of everything, with two genuine Fight of the Year contenders, some brutal knockouts and more than a splattering of great prospects.
Fighter of the Month Hiroto Kyoguchi (14-0, 9) For us the fighter of the month was WBA and Ring Magazine Light Flyweight champion Hiroto Kyoguchi, who kicked off the month with a win in a fantastic all Japanese bout against determined challenger Tetsuya Hisada. The bout was, for us, the best bout of the month, with great back and forth, and although Kyoguchi was a pretty clear winner by the end of it, the bout had given us a fantastic narrative of the unbeaten champion up against the determined but over-looked challenger, who simply would not give up. The fight was exciting, highly skilled and one that every fan owes themselves a chance to see. Fight of the Month Hiroto Kyoguchi vs Tetsuya Hisada Having just spoke about how good Kyoguchi's bout with Hisada was it's needless to say that it took the award for the Fight of the month, narrowly beating out another world title fight that took place just a few days later. As with the IBF Middleweight title bout, between Gennady Golovkin vs Sergiy Derevyanchenko, this was just fantastic with neither man giving up, both being hurt, and both giving everything they had. In the end Kyoguchi did what he needed to win, but Hisada played his part in a genuine 2019 Fight of the Year contender. KO of the Month Jhunriel Ramonal TKO3 Shingo Wake Filipino fighter Jhunriel Ramonal picks up 2 awards this month! the first of those is the KO of the Month award, which he earns for his big KO against the highly regarded Shingo Wake. The bout had started with Wake in control, and looking like he was going to get his second win over the Filipino. That was until Wake was dropped in round 3. The Japanese world title contender could never get his bearings and was brutally knocked out not much later as Ramonal put in his contender for KO of the Year. This was brutal and is a KO worth subscribing to Boxing Raise for. Prospect Yudai Shigeoka (1-0, 1) There was a lot of prospects in action in October, and we really do mean a lot. As a result this was the toughest category for the month, however the prospect who left most excited after their performance was Yudai Shigeoka, who really looks like he's going to be a very, very special fighter. The talented southpaw never seemed to get out of second gear in his debut, yet showed wonderful hand speed, accuracy, patience, timing and shot selection. There is a lot left for him to prove in the years to come but for a debut this left yearning for more, and we suspect we will see a lot, lot more from the promising 22 year old. Upset Jhunriel Ramonal TKO3 Shingo Wake We're back with Jhunriel Ramonal for our upset of the month, and his KO win over Shingo Wake really was a huge upset, one of the biggest of 2019 in fact. The Filipino was expected to suffer his second loss to Wake, who looked almost certain to get a world title fight in 2020, but was left out cold on the canvas from a shot from hell. We're glad that Wake has revealed his career will go on, but this upset will be a hard one to bounce back from, whilst it immediately sets Ramonal up for another Japanese pay day, if he wants it. Round Gennady Golovkin vs Sergiy Derevyanchenko (Rd 8) Whilst we picked the Kyoguchi Vs Hisada bout as our fight of the month it's hard to argue too strongly with anyone who preferred the fantastic Gennady Golovkin vs Sergiy Derevyanchenko bout. For our money the 8th round in the Golovkin vs Derevyanchenko bout was the best single round of the month, a back and forth action round that saw both men digging deep and and landing some huge power shots. Both men proved their fighting spirit and their toughness here in a reall sensational 3 minutes of action. |
Oriental Opinions
This is just an opinion, maaaan! It's easy to share our opinions, and that's what you'll find here, some random opinion pieces Archives
August 2020
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