 This coming Tuesday fight fans at Korakuen Hall will see see WBO Asia Pacific Light Welterweight champion Andy Hiraoka (20-0, 15) look to record his third defense, as he takes on hard hitting Filipino challenger Alvin Lagumbay (13-5-1, 11). On paper the bout looks like a total mismatch, in favour of the talented, unbeaten and hotly tipped Hiraoka, but we have seen in the past that Lagumbay has the power to be a very threat and isn't someone to look past, despite his limitations.
The unbeaten Hiraoka is widely regarded as one of Japan's brightest hopes, and potentially their next world champion at 140lbs, a division they've not had a champion at since 1992. Aged 26 he's still young but coming into his prime and has improved over the last few years, developing from an athletic fighter, who relied on athleticism, to becoming a well rounded boxer, who just so happens to be a bit of an athletic freak. Also despite "only" being 26 he is already something of a veteran, with 20 bout to his name in a career that dates back to 2013 and saw him advance to the All Japan Rookie of the Year final in 2014. His talent has caught the eye not just at home, but also in the West with Top Rank working with him, promoting two of his bouts Stateside, and has also seen him having notable success, as he has won both the Japanese Youth, Japanese and WBO Asia Pacific titles at 140lbs. In the ring Hiraoka was once a fighter who lived on his freakish size, with long limbs and a body that looked like it was made to be an athlete. He had size, speed, stamina and power. But he was somewhat lacking in boxing basics. As the years have gone on he has really worked on the boxing side of things, and now looks like a natural fighter, fighting behind a solid southpaw jab, and with good timing on his left hand. There is still work to do, but he looks like a totally different fighter to the one who was being badly beaten by Takahiko Kobayashi in late 2017. That bout seemed to make him realise he had to take this seriously, and he has since gone on to score very notable wins over the likes of Akihiro Kondo, Rickey Edwards, Jin Sasaki and Shun Akaiwa, by relying on his boxing skills, not his athletic tools. With a 13-5-1 record Lagumbay doesn't look anything special, and in fairness the 27 year old isn't anything special. But he is someone that everyone needs to be careful against, because he has something every fighter fears. Brutal power. Since turning professional in 2015 Lagumbay has never developed into a good boxer. He has however been blessed with power. He lost in his debut, to Joe Tejones, before reeling off 8 straight wins with 7 by stoppage, 6 in the first 3 rounds. He almost continued that run when he rocked Kazuki Saito, before Saito bounced back and stopped Lagumbay in 4 rounds. He would score his most notable win just 5 months after that loss, when he stopped Keita Obara in 2 rounds, to claim the WBO Asia Pacific Welterweight title, in a sensational bout that saw a rare double knockdown. Sadly since that win Lagumbay has gone 3-3-1, and despite winning his last 3, it's hard to know what he has left to offer the sport. Other than his brutish power. In the ring Lagumbay is slow, clumsy, easy to hit, and whilst his boxing has gradually developed he is still very limited. He has got size going for him, and he is a tall, long, rangy puncher, but technically he's still very limited. He does however have that aforementioned power and he's also a southpaw. No one likes facing hard hitting southpaws, with long reaches and Lagumbay is certainly a freakish puncher who throws from horrible angles and has bricks for hands. He's also a quick starter, and is very, very dangerous over the first 3 rounds. If he doesn't finish and opponent early however, he is likely to be stopped himself, or picked apart at range as wide sweeps take a toll on his own gas tank. With Lagumbay being dangerous early on we expect to see Hiraoka fighting smartly for the first few rounds, looking to get his jab in Lagumbay's face and staying t range. By round 4 or 5 however we expect to see Hiraoka look to change to tone of the bout, taking the fight to a tiring Lagumbay and taking him out in in the middle rounds. If Lagumbay lands early on he could give Hiraoka real fits, and the focus from the unbeaten man, for 2 or 3 rounds, will be to stay away and keep himself safe. After that however the bout will be as easy, or as hard, as he makes it. Prediction - TKO6 Hiraoka
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 Typically the 140lb division in Japan has never been a glamour division in the country. There's rarely been notable Japanese fighters at the weight, though there has been notable exceptions like Keita Obara and Hiroki Okada in recent years and prior to that Akio Kameda was a notable exception. Right now however Japan does have a genuine hopeful for the division in the form of unbeaten 25 year old Andy Hiraoka (19-0, 14), from the Ohashi Gym. This coming Tuesday Hiraoka will be looking to record his second defense of the Japanese national title, as part of a stacked card headline by Naoya Inoue Vs Nonito Donaire II, as he takes on Shun Akaiwa (7-3-1, 5), in what could be one of Hiraoka's final bouts on the domestic stage before ploughing into bigger and better bouts in the near future.
Fans of the Japanese scene will know that Hiraoka has been around for years, and it's genuinely hard to believe he is still only 25. The talented southpaw kicked off his professional career way back in 2013, and the following year he reached the All Japan Rookie of the Year final, though had to pull out due to illness. At that point in time it was unclear whether he was going to actively pursue boxing as a serious career, and he was a very talented long distance runner. He ended up taking almost 2 years out of the sport, before returning in late 2016 and rising through the ranks over the years that followed. That rise saw him winning the Japanese Youth title in 2017, which he defended once, beat former world title challenger Akihiro Kondo, score two wins in Las Vegas, and then win the Japanese and WBO Asia Pacific titles in 2021 with a career best win over Jin Sasaki, which has been followed by him defending both of those titles. As we write this he appears to have the tools to compete at, if not win at, world level, though those tools do still need some work, and some honing. Stood at 5'11" and fighting out of the southpaw stance, Hiraoka is a natural athlete and is very much a fighter who could have taken up numerous other sports, but his dad has been responsible for developing Hiraoka as a fighter, something that has been really helped since he joined the Ohashi gym a few years ago and been able to train along side the likes of Naoya Inoue. In the ring he's very much an outside fighter, who uses his reach, height, speed and athletic ability to his advantage. Early in his career he was a rather crude boxer, who got by on just his athletic ability. Now a days however he's become a lot more polished, learning how to box and move, neutralising fighters, using the experience he's built up and wins over Kondo and Sasaki have proven that he does have more in his tool kit than just athletic ability. He's started to understand timing, distance and how to really set traps and counter, as well as using his jab to control fights and neutralise aggressive opponents. Whether he wins a world title or not is hard to say, but he is, genuinely, the brightest Japanese hope at 140lbs, and the only Japanese fighter at the weight with any chance of winning a world title in the next few years. As for his opponent, Shun Akaiwa is someone who has never really shown the potential to conquer even the domestic scene. The 29 year old from Fukuoka fights out of the relatively obscure Manabe Boxing Gym and has been a professional since 2014. He won his debut in just over 2 minutes, but then took more than 2 years out of the ring, before fighting to a draw and was 2-1-1 after 4 bouts. Despite that poor start he left a mark in 2020, just before the pandemic shut down boxing in Japan, with a notable upset win over Kenta Endo in a bout aired by G+. That win seemed like it ould set Akaiwa up for bigger bouts, but sadly for him he was then stopped inside a minute by Jin Sasaki, and then beaten again by the hard hitting Yasutaka Fujita in 2021, losing whatever momentum the win over Endo should have given his career. Thankfully for him he has bounced back with back to back wins over Akira Morita and Hokuto Matsumoto. In the ring Akaiwa is an a rather crude looking fighter with something of a unique style. He leans a lot from the waist, has flat feet he likes to set, and doesn't have a very busy jab, though it does find the target a lot when he throws it. His guard is high when he's under pressure but he tends to be the one coming forward, albeit in a rather awkward and gangly fashion. Sadly for him he lacks offensive crispness, and often slaps with his wide shots. He does have a style that should make for fun fights, with the right opponents, but he also looks incredibly limited a lot of the time. One thing he has going for him is decent power at the domestic level, but against top domestic fighters his power isn't enough to get their respect, as we saw when Jin Sasaki battered him in double quick fashion. Sadly this bout is less about being a competitive contest and much, much more about Hiraoka looking good before moving on to bigger and better fights. We suspect he'll take a round or two to get a look, then get to work, slowly breaking down Akaiwa, before letting heavy shots go in the middle rounds and stopping the challenger in 5 or 6 rounds, without taking much punishment along the way. This is not about testing or really challenging the champion, but instead giving him a chance to shine on a global broadcast, and we expect him to really shine. Showing his polish, poise and finishing ability along the way. Prediction - TKO6 Hiraoka  This coming Monday we'll see one of the brightest young hopes in Japanese boxing look to continue his rise through the ranks whilst an often over-looked fighter gets what could be his final shot at some silverware in a very looking contest at Korakuen Hall. That bout will see WBO Asia Pacific and Japanese Light Welterweight champion Andy Hiraoka (18-0, 13) take on the aggressive and fun to watch Cristiano Aoqui (16-8-2, 11) in what looks like a very, very interesting match up, something that we're getting a surprising amount of in Japan at 140lbs in the last few years.
Of the two men Hiraoka is more well known, especially with international audiences thanks to his wins in the US over Rogelio Casarez and Rickey Edwards. In US bouts, which took place on Top Rank shows, he looked like a really promising and athletic fighter, who was a work in progress but had enough tools to get the attention of fans, especially those who don't realise Japan has got talented fighters above Super Featherweight. Hiraoka looked big, tall, rangy, fast, athletic and powerful, showing he had the tools to go places in the sport, despite some technical flaws and limitations that clearly needed work, and a relative lack of experience. Prior to his US exploits the most notable thing on his record was a 10 round win over veteran Akihiro Kondo, where Hiraoka's speed and youth were keys against the older, slower, battle worn Kondo. Since his two bouts in the US however he has moved his career forward, and last year he scored the biggest win of his career, stopping the heavy handed Jin Sasaki in a dominant performance to claim the WBO Asia Pacific and Japanese titles, and stake his case as the best Japanese fighter at 140lbs, something that was strengthened when Koichi Aso scored a shock upset win over Rikki Naito just a few weeks after Hiraoka's win over Sasaki. As mentioned earlier Hiraoka is a big, athletic, fighter who lacks polish. He has however been developing well over the last few years. He is very much an athlete who boxes, and that's not an insult to someone who was a very good distance runner in his youth, and that means he has a lot of tools going for him, including power, speed, reflexes, co-ordination and balance. All of which shine in his boxing performances. As for his boxing skills, he is an outside fighter, who knows he has physical tools others in Japan could only dream of. He is long, rangy, has a great jab, with power and speed, and really brutal straight shots. He can also keep up a good work rate over the long distances and showed, last time out, that his power carries late, stopping Jin Sasaki late in their bout. We do worry about him when he's under pressure, and he does seem to lack natural composure when under pressure, but with experience that should change and we dare say that's partly what this bout is about, against a fighter like Aoqui, and something he'd also have to prove against the likes of Koichi Aso or Daishi Nagata, who both also love to pressure and bully opponents. Whilst Hiraoka has been seen outside of Japan, Aoqui hasn't been, though he does have something of a Brazilian following due to being a Japanese-Brazilian. His in ring style is something that few fans outside of Japan, and Brazil, will be aware of, but it is typically a fun one, with aggression at the forefront of his mind. He has been a professional since 2006 and has had to develop that style, finding what works for him over time. Unlike Hiraoka success wasn't easy to come by and he was stopped in 2 of his first 5 bouts, and was 4-2-1 after 7 bouts. Since then however he has bulked up from a young Lightweight into a solid an experienced 140lb fighter, who has developed a reputation as something of a tough guy, despite his 2 early stoppage losses. During his career he has fought something of a who's who of the Japanese scene, taking on the likes of Valentine Hosokawa, Hiroki Okada, Koki Inoue, Daishi Nagata and Akihiro Kondo. Whilst he has typically lost his most meaningful fights, he doesn't tend to be an easy opponent, giving the likes of Nagata, Okada and Hosokawa really tough battles. In the ring Aoqui is aggressive, exciting, he comes forward and tries to draw mistakes, before exploding with a combination of heavy artillery. If he can't do that he seems happy to force a war and fight fire with fire against opponents. Notably however he can also box, even if that's not something he's too well known for, and when he needs to sit back and use his brain he can. And here we suspect his boxing brain and experience will be called on to over-come Hiraoka. Trying to come forward against Hiraoka seeking mistakes, we suspect, would be an error, and allow Hiraoka a chance to use his legs and his jab. Instead Aoqui will need to apply intelligent pressure, box his way in, and get to the body when on the inside. That however is easier said than done. Sadly for Aoqui we suspect his toughness, and 33 year old legs, will be a problem for him here. Hiraoka might not be a global star in the making but he has plenty about him and we can't help but feel he's probably a level, if not two, above Aoqui who will need the fight of a lifetime to be competitive. We suspect Aoqui will try to come forward, and find out the speed difference and size difference are a major issue for him. He will have moments, due to Hiraoka's lack of experience, but in the end athletic ability, speed, size and timing will become too much for Aoqui who we suspect will be stopped late on, in something of a slow, methodical beat down by Hiraoka. Prediction - Hiraoka TKO10  On October 19th we're set to see a new double champion being crowned in Japan at 140lbs as the unbeaten pairing of Andy Hiraoka (17-0, 12) and Jin Sasaki (11-0, 10) clash for both the Japanese national and WBO Asia Pacific titles. Notably however this is a match that genuinely doesn't need titles to be a must watch match up as we get two unbeaten youngsters risking their records in a bout that promises genuine fireworks, excitement, thrills and danger. In fact this among the very best bouts that we could make in Asia at 140lbs, and seems destined to be something very, very special for fans at the legendary Korakuen Hall this coming Tuesday.
Of the two men it's the 24 year old Hiraoka who is more well known internationally. The Ohashi promoted fighter has been showcased in the US on Top Rank shows a couple of times, and has shown some potential in his wins over Rogelio Casarez and Rickey Edwards. Prior to his US excursions though he was coming along nicely as a prospect in Japan winning his first 14 bouts before making his US debut. In those early bouts he had reached the All Japan Rookie of the Year final, though was unable to compete due to health reasons, won the Japanese Youth title, and scored a very notable 10 round win over Akihiro Kondo. He had proven himself as a domestic prospect, but still had a lot to work on, and we've seen he still has areas to improve in his US bouts as well. Whilst Hiraoka is the more well known of the two fighters, he's not someone who has looked the most polished. He's a tall, rangy, young kid, who started his athletic career as a runner before developing into a very promising boxer. He has a lot of enviable tools in his kit, such as his height, reach, wide shoulders, speed, stamina power and atheltic ability, but is very much a fighter who is still developing as a boxer, and his lack of amateur experience does show in his performances. He's also a man who hasn't always looked comfortable in the ring, and we've seen him hurt before, with Hiraoka battling through adversity to take home wins more than once. He has answered plenty of questions, but still has a lot of question marks hanging over his chin, his heart and what he does when he's taking big shots or under intense pressure. Aged just 20 Jin Sasaki is very much the type of fighter who is looking to break out, and has really created a lot of buzz in the last 18 months or so thanks to some impressive, destructive, exciting, flawed and heavy handed displays. He's, at times, very raw, very flawed, and almost looks unskilled at times, but he's also a truly brutal puncher, with a must watch style, and a willingness to bet on himself every time he's in the ring. Unlike many Japanese fighters there is an aura of cockiness and arrogance surrounding Sasaki. That confidence gives him an air of being a man "you want to see lose", but his power, and excitement factor leave him being someone you want to follow, see more of, and be entertained by. In many ways he's a breath of fresh air for Japanese boxing, and was very much one of the few winners from the Pandemic era of boxing in Japan, with A-Sign boxing showcasing him on their YouTube events. Watching Sasaki is like watching a wrecking ball. He's very, very heavy handed and wins over the likes of Shun Akaiwa, Tatsuya Miyazaki and Aso Ishiwaki in 2020 really helped put him on the map. Earlier this year however he really struggled in a 2-round fire fight with Kaiki Yuba. That bout saw Sasaki coming close to being stopped, more than once, before being bailed out by his power, when he seemed close to done. That performance against Yuba showed that Sasaki has balls of steel, and that stereotypical Japanese will to win. That will to win makes him almost as dangerous as his lights out power and ultra-aggressive in ring style. He comes to fight, he comes to pressure, and he comes to land big shots. From the off. He can be out boxed, he can be made to miss, and he gives opponents chances to punish him, but if he lands we know he can turn bouts on their head in an instant. We certainly feel Hiraoka, for all his flaws, his the much better boxer. He's the more polished, the technical, and whilst not an in ring genius, he has a much better boxing brain. However as we saw when Sasaki fought Yuba, another much better boxer, he only needs to land one good shot to turn a fight around. That what we expect to see again here. We suspect Hiraoka will look to control the fight behind his long reach, catching Sasaki numerous times in the first few rounds, but won't be able to keep Sasaki at bay and sooner or later the younger man will get in a good, clean, hurtful shot. We then suspect that Hiraoka will not be given a chance to recover, with Sasaki unloading on him and forcing a stoppage. Prediction - Sasaki TKO4  July 12th is set to be a huge day for Japanese boxing with two notable shows, one in Osaka with a pair of major world title fights, and one in Tokyo with a female world title fight. The main supporting bout of the Tokyo show will see Japanese veteran Akihiro Kondo (31-8-1, 18) take on young countryman Andy Hiraoka (13-0, 9), in what is a real crossroads fight for the two men. For Kondo it's a must win, following a stoppage loss earlier in this year to Downua Ruawaiking whilst it's the big step up that Hiraoka has been calling for after some struggles to secure a solid opponent.
Of the two men it's Kondo who is the much more well known fighter. He a true grizzled veteran who debuted back in 2006 and, at the age of 34, is though to be moving towards the last chapter of his career. He made his first mark on boxing at Lightweight, winning the 2007 Rookie of the Year at 135lbs and then adding the Japanese Lightweight title to accomplishments in 2009. He would remain in the Japanese title mix at 135lbs until 2012 before he moved up in weight and began to campaign at Light Welterweight, winning the WBO Asia Pacific title at 140lbs and then fighting for the IBF world title in 2017, losing a hotly contested bout with Sergey Lipinets. Sadly for Kondo his career his a big low point when he lost to Downua in an IBF eliminator back in February. In the ring Kondo has long been regarded as a technically sound boxer, who uses a tight defenses, is durable and a solid all rounder. He lacks in speed and isn't a huge banger, but he's a clean puncher, with under-rated combinations, can counter well and can also apply solid pressure. He's at his best with a style that combines his front foot pressure with his counter punching, but really lacked the 1-punch power to get respect of most at 140lbs, instead needing to break down opponents with consistency. Sadly against Downua we saw that Kondo's speed is becoming slower as he ages and although he still has good timing he doesn't have the speed to get out of the way, and there are now also question marks about whether his iron chin is going to have a crack through it. At the age of 22 Hiraoka is one of the rising Japanese hopes at 140lbs and is a fighter who has already impressed, winning the East Japan Rookie of the Year final, though missing out on the All Japan final due to illness, and winning the Japanese Youth title. He has impressed the likes of Hideyuki Ohashi, trained at the Mayweather Jr and beaten solid young domestic foes like Shogo Yamaguchi, Takahiko Kobayashi and Fumisuki Kimura. Despite those wins there has been a real frustration in getting better opposition, and facing Japanese ranked foes, or regionally ranked opposition. He's proven himself to be too good for the domestic Youth level, but been unable to compete with the senior level opposition. Hiraoka is pretty much an athletic diamond in the rough. He's quick, strong and physically imposing, but technically he has limitations in terms of his boxing, he's not the sharpest fighter, or the most accurate, or the most skilled. So far he's gotten away with a lot of his technical flaws due to his physicals traits, and he really is a natural athlete who boxes. If he can ever add the needed technique to what he already has he will be an excellent prospect, and in fairness he has spent time at the Mayweather gym to try and round out his technical skills, though he is still a flawed fighter. Coming in to this we have a lot of questions about both men. Is Kondo's chin cracked? Can Hiraoka really cope with a smart veteran like Kondo? Can Kondo still go to the well if he needs to? Can Hiraoka cope with the pressure that Kondo will bring? And many, many more. One thing we know is that this bout will answer a lot of questions for both men, and it will be something well worthy of attention. A win for Hiraoka will likely push him to a Japanese title fight, whilst a win for Kondo keeps his career alive, and potentially lets him have one more run to a world title fight. Prediction - TKO10 Kondo  Seeing unbeaten fighters clash, with similar records, is something we don't see often enough, and it's a shame as it's quite exciting to see similarly matched fighters going up against each other in bouts that look like 50-50 contests. Both where both men having something to lose and both are taking a risk are always great.
On April 8th we get one such bout as Japan's Andy Hiraoka (13-0, 9), the Japanese Youth Light Welterweight champion, takes on Thai foe Atchariya Wirojanasunobol (12-0, 5). On paper this is a mouth watering bout, a real test for both men, and the winner could end up using their victory to move towards a regional title fight, and move onwards and upwards. The 22 year old Hiraoka first made a mark back in 2014, as an 18 year old. The tall and rangy southpaw went on to make his way to the 2014 Rookie of the Year final at Lightweight, before needing to pull out due to illness. He would then take almost 2 years away from the ring before returning in late 2016 to score a couple of wins over Thai foes. That was followed by a sensational 2017 for the youngster, who would win the Japanese Light Welterweight title in November that year. Since then has had two more wins, scoring a single defense of the title in one of those bouts. Hiraoka is a tall and rangy fighter, standing at 5'11". He's a southpaw with good speed, really solid power, and good boxing fundamentals. He's still a maturing young man, rather than a fully grown man, and there is a sense that he could certainly mature into a strong Welterweight in the future, adding muscle and meat to his bones as he develops physically. At the moment he does struggle when he's under pressure, and isn't a great inside fighter, but at range he is very good and if he can use jab and straight shots he does look very hard to beat. Atchariya is a 29 year old Thai who debuted in late 2014 and has slowly gone about making a name for himself. A number of his early opponents were novices, though he did score some decent early wins over Heri Andriyanto and Stevie Ongen Ferdinandus. Despite the slow start to his career it was really in 2018 that he came into his own, scoring really solid wins over Kaewfah Tor Buamas and Taisho Ozawa, his two best wins by far and both came on WP Boxing shows in Bang Phun. Atchariya is a pretty solid fighter himself. He's not a big puncher, but he does have nice variety to his shots, moves around the ring well and fights very confidently, with a lot of belief in ring IQ and how he controls distance. Despite his skills he doesn't have a great work rate, he's not hugely power or quick. He's certainly very confident in the ring, but he's not the most spectacular in any way. More a solid all rounder than a fighter who does anything amazingly well. We suspect that the Ohashi team, who manage Hiraoka, will have selected the Thai for a reason and it's likely his work rather and lack of power. Despite that this isn't a given win for their guy and Atchariya has the ability to sneak the rounds, make Hiraoka miss and counter him. We favour Hiraoka to win, in what will perhaps be an ugly fight at times, but this is a very clear step up in class and by far his toughest bout to date. |
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Having canned the old "Full Schedule" of Asianboxing we have instead decided to concentrate more on the major bouts. This section, the "Preview" section will look at major bouts involving OPBF and national titles. Hopefully leading to a more informative style for, you the reader. Archives
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