 This coming Tuesday we'll get a really good looking regional title bout, as OPBF Flyweight champion Giemel Magramo (26-2, 16-2, 21) takes on Japanese challenger Taku Kuwahara (10-1, 6) at the legendary Korakuen Hall. For Magramo the bout serves as he first defense of the title, which he won back in October 2021, whilst it also sees him return to the scene his of his most notable bout, a 2020 loss to Junto Nakatani. As for Kuwahara the bout will see him get a second title fight, following a loss to Japanese national champion Seigo Yuri Akui in 2021. For both the bout will not just be on for the prestigious OPBF title, but also for their future, with neither man really able to take another loss so soon after their losses to Nakatani and Akui.
Of the two men the more established is Magramo, the current Oriental champion and former world title challenger. The 28 year old is part of the third generation of fighting Magramo's, which includes his father Melvin Magramo, his grandfather Ric Magramo, his brother Arvin and uncles Renato, Ronnie and Alvin Magramo. Given he is from a long line of boxers it's fair to say the sport is in his blood, though unfortunately natural talent only takes a fighter so far, and Magramo is very much someone who would have really done better had his team focused on developing those ability with top training and good development fights. Instead of developing his natural abilities Magramo has become something of a hard hitting boxer-puncher who gets by based on his natural tools, rather than the development of them. Since making his debut in 2012 Magramo has long been tipped as one to watch. Sadly however it wasn't until his 15th fight that he faced someone of some value, in Jeny Boy Boca. His next bout of note was a close decision loss to Muhammad Waseem in 2016 before he went back to facing low level Filipino domestic fighters before scoring notable wins over Petchchorhae Kokietgym and Wenfeng Ge, wins that saw Magramo prove what he could do and begin banging on the door of a world title fight. That title fight came in 2020 and he was made to look third rate by Nakatani who really did toy with him until stopping him in 8 rounds. Notably he has bounced back from those losses with good wins against Jayr Raquinel and Jerry Tomogdan. In the ring Magramo is a hard hitting fighter, with has very good straight shots and heavy blows up close. Sadly though he is relatively easy to hit, crude, unpolished and slow. Getting into a war with him isn't a smart idea, but boxing and moving, punishing him for his lack of speed, and making the most of the fact he needs to set his feet can make him look rather limit. Keeping that up for 12 rounds however is tricky, and he does apply pressure, have a great chin and a brilliant will to win. He is flawed, but to beat him a fighter will need to be world, or fringe world, class due to his power, toughness, determination and tenacity. As for Kuwahara, the Ohashi promoted 27 year old was a notable amateur, competing in international competitions before beginning his professional journey in 2018. He was eyed as part of the next wave of Ohashi gym fighters and quickly impressed taking good wins over domestic fighters like Takamori Kiyama and Kyomu Hamagami before stepping up and beating Filipino visitors Jonathan Refugio and Ricardo Sueno. By the start of 2020 he seemed on the verge of a domestic title fight, but the pandemic slowed those plans and he had to wait until July 2021 for a crack at Japanese champion Seigo Yuri Akui. Their bout was nip and tuck through 9 riveting rounds, before Akui's power finally broke him down in the 10th round of a great fight. Since then he has picked up two low level wins including one over Parinya Khaikanha the younger brother of Suriyan and Nawaphon Kaikana. In the ring Kuwahara is a really good boxer, with a smooth look to his work, some fantastic body shots and a really good boxing brain. Sadly for him he does look top domestic level power, and although he has stopped his last 2 opponents, he doesn't have the type of power which will scare opponents away. Instead he's more of a clean puncher, who will get respect from opponents, but not turn fights around with it. Coming in to this particular bout he will very much be the boxer against the power punching Magramo. For this fight the real question is who will be able to dictate the range and tempo. If Kuwahara boxes and moves, like we've seen from him in the past, we certainly expect him to rack up the rounds, especially early on, and if he can get to the body of Magramo he can likely hold off the surge that Magramo will make. If however Magramo's pressure forces Kuwahara into a war then this isn't going to end well for the challenger. The champion needs to either set a high intensity, and force Kuwahara to stand and trade, or stand off early on and make a charge for things late in the bout. As for Kuwahara he needs to box, he needs to be smart, and whilst Magramo doesn't have the power of Akui, Kuwahara still needs to be wary of how punishing Magramo's hands are. We think that whilst Kuwahara will make a good start we actually see him breaking down in the middle rounds, and potentially see the wheels falling off late on, much like they did against Akui, with a late stoppage for Magramo. Prediction - TKO 11 Magramo
0 Comments
 On September 3rd the EDION Arena Osaka, in Osaka will play host to a WBO Asia Pacific Flyweight title fight, as the world ranked Riku Kano (19-4-1, 10) faces Yuga Inoue (13-2-1, 2) for the vacant belt. The bout will push the winner to the verges of a WBO world title fight, against fellow Japanese fighter Junto Nakatani, whilst the loser will begin the arduous climb back to where they are, a task that could be a rather tricky one in a division with the emerging talent that Flyweight currently has.
Of the two men the more well known is 24 year old Kano, who debuted way back in 2013,as a 16 year old, and quickly earned attention by winning the WBA Asia Minimumweight title in 2014. At that point Kano was just 17 and wasn't old enough to even debut in Japan despite having a 5-1-1 (3) record. He made his long awaited Japanese debut the following year, winning the OPBF "interim" title in 2016 before fighting for the WBO title in an attempt to become the youngest ever Japanese world champion, a dream ended by Katsunari Takayama. Since that loss to Takayama we've seen Kano go 9-2 and show real development. He looked like an immature youngster against Shin Ono in 2018, boxing well until being cut and then bullied into submission, but has developed into a brave, tough young man, showing real determination and guts to defeat Tetsuya Mimura, Ryoki Hirai and Takuma Sakae in recent bouts. He's not longer the frail child who looks like he could be broken mentally, but instead looks like a genuine fighter, who has learned from his set backs, and physically matured as he's moved from Minimumweight, to Light Flyweight and now to Flyweight. In the ring Kano has always been a rather technical fighter, who has a lot of speed, with hand and feet. He's never been a big puncher, but he's a clean accurate puncher, who lands and gets in and out. In his Flyweight debut we so a more physical side to him, as he stopped Sanchai Yotboon in 2 rounds, but that bout really doesn't tell us what he's going to be like as a Flyweight, given Yotboon's limitations and the fact he's a natural Miniumweight himself. We expect a Flyweight Kano to focus on his speed, his accuracy and his skills and movement, and not massively change his style, especially not here as he takes on a legitimate test at the weight. Sadly at 5'4" he's not a physical match for the top guys at the weight, and will struggle with the heavier handed fighters at 112lbs, though to his credit he is a tricky southpaw and he is genuinely talented, even if he's yet to live up to the potential he clearly has. As for Inoue, no relation to Naoya, the 23 year old debuted in 2016 and got a lot of attention in 2017 when he won the All Japan Rookie of the Year at Minmumweight. Sadly for Inoue his unbeaten record came to an end less than 11 months after his Rookie of the Year triumph as he was broken down in a 6 round thriller against Kai Ishizawa, in what was a brilliant bout for the Japanese Youth Minimumweight title. Since then Inoue's body has filled out as he's matured and gone 6-1 (1) winning the Japanese Youth title along the way. He has, notably, faced solid domestic foes, including the likes of Daiki Kameyama, Katsuya Murakami, Daiki Tomita and Aoba Mori, but unfortunately for him his form belies a man who has regularly struggled at this level. Whilst his 6-1 record since the Ishizawa fight looks good, it should be noted that it includes 4 controversial decision wins and there is a feeling that he has had the benefit of the doubt in a number of bouts. In the ring Inoue is a technically well polished fighter, with a lovely jab, good balance and quick feet. He moves around the ring well, he looks poised and polished, and his jab really is the key to his work. There are other weapons in his arsenal, but there's no denying his best work is either the jab it's self, or comes off the jab. Sadly though the lack of variation in what he does is really against him, and whilst his jab is polished his other punches don't look very natural to him and they seem like they need real work. The lack of power is also something that's against him, and although he's still young, at 23, it does appear that he isn't going to develop much in terms of punching power. A double issue given how forced and pushed his shots in general are. It's due to his lack of power and lack of variation that many of his bouts end up being really close, as fighters figure him out, work out his jab and then begin to rack up points. Here that will be a massive issue against someone as well rounded as Kano. To beat Kano the main tactic has been to bully him, either with physicality or work rate. Set a tempo he doesn't like, keep it up and watch him crumble. Sadly for Inoue he doesn't look to be the type of fighter who can either set a high output for 12 rounds, which he'd need to given his lack of power, or hurt him with any single shot and get his respect that way. Instead we expect the rather back approach of Inoue, and the lack of pop in his shots, in general, to work to Kano's advantage. Kano will show his speed early on, maybe losing a battle of jabs for the first few rounds, but then begin to show more variation, changing things up, and simply out work and out fight Inoue en route to a clear decision win over 12 rounds. Prediction - UD Kano  This coming Sunday we'll see Japanese Flyweight champion Seigo Yuri Akui (16-2-1, 11) look to score his third defense of that national title as he takes on popular veteran Takuya Kogawa (32-6-1, 14) at the Suntopia in Okayama. The bout will be headlining a rather small card, and although the show isn't a big one, this bout is an incredibly important one, for both men. Both will know that they can ill afford a loss at this point in time. If Akui loses his dreams of a world title fight would be delayed, if not killed all together, whilst Kogawa isn't just fighting for the title but also, potentially, his career.
Of the two men it's actually the challenger who is more well known, and with good reason. The 36 year old Kogawa has been a stalwart of the Japanese scene since the 00's, and is a multi-time world title challenger who has, genuinely, faced a who's who of the lower weights. Not only that but he has also made for some brilliant fights over the years and has been one of the most fan friendly fighters out there. Reading through the opponents he's faced we see wins against the likes of Xiong Zhao Zhong, Shigetaka Ikehara, Hiroyuki Kudaka, Masayuki Kuroda, and losses to the likes of Pongsaklek Wonjongkam, Yodmongkol CP Freshmart, Suguru Muranaka, Masayuki Kuroda and most recently Jayr Raquinel. In his prime Kogawa was a pure warrior. His bouts with Pongsaklek, Ikehara, Kuroda, Muranaka, Yodmongkol were wars. He was a man who could box, but often elected to fight, getting in to brawls far too regularly for his own good. It was his willingness to have a firefight that helped make him so popular in Japan, and why he has featured in more than 30 bouts at Korakuen Hall. Sadly though in recent years he has began to look his age. He has looked progressively worse since suffering an ear injury against Yudai Arai in 2016 and since then he's gone 4-2-1, and suffered his sole stoppage loss, which came in 2019 to Jay Raquinel. He has also struggled against opponents many, including ourselves, would have heavily favoured him in. At 36, and with the style he has, it's not a surprise that he's showing signs of aging, but sadly we do need to worry about him, as he's often been too tough for his own good. Aged 26 Seigo Yuri Akui is just coming into his prime, and is already a scary fighter. He made his debut as an 18 year old, back in 2014, fighting at Light Flyweight. The following year he won the All Japan Rookie of the Year and would run off an 11-0-1 (7) record to open up his career before moving up in weight. Sadly though his move from Light Flyweight to Flyweight didn't go perfectly and after a few bouts at the new weight he came un-done against Junto Nakatani, who stopped him in 6 rounds. That was a huge win for Nakatani at the time, who has since gone on to win the WBO Flyweight title. Akui bounced back from that loss by stopping Masamichi Yabuki, who has also gone on to win a world title, before suffering a disappointing TKO loss to Jaysever Abcede, when he damaged his hand. Since that loss however he has gone 4-0 (3), winning the Japanese title in 2019, when he stopped Shun Kosaka, and has since defended it twice, beating Seiya Fujikita and Taku Kuwahara. In the ring Akui is deadly. His hands are like rocks and worrying for many opponents he's also a quick starter who doesn't let opponents off the hook when he has them hurt. From his 11 stoppages a staggering 9 have come in the first round, including his wins over Kenji Ono, Ryuto Oho, Masamichi Yabuki, Yoshiki Minato and Shun Kosaka. Not only is he dangerous early however, but in recent bouts he has shown he can box as well, taking a 10 round decision over Seiya Fujikita and showing power late to stop Taku Kuwahara, with those two wins answering a lot of questions about his potential. Worryingly for opponents he's dangerous early, dangerous late, and bludgeons guys with power. Thankfully for some he can be out outboxed, he's not the quickest, the sharpest or the biggest at 112lbs, but he's not a guy many will want to take on in a fire fight. In his prime Kogawa's work rate, toughness, grit and determination would have made him a real nightmare for Akui. He might have walked into a few too many, but his attitude was going to be to go to war and whilst smothering Akui and not letting him get full extension on his shots. It would have been a risky game plan, but one that has worked numerous times for Kogawa. Sadly this version of Kogawa isn't going to have the same work rate, energy or toughness as he had a decade ago, and rather than smothering Akui and winning a decision in a war, we, sadly, see him being on the receiving end of a brutal beating and eventual stoppage. He will struggle to cut the distance, he will take big shots on the way in and will be out worked, out fought and out punched. Expect Akui to have to dig deep here, but we can't see anything but a stoppage for the champion. Prediction - Akui TKO6 This coming Saturday we'll see the vacancy of the OPBF Flyweight title being filled, as former champion Jayr Raquinel (12-1-1, 9) takes on former world title challenger Giemel Magramo (24-2, 20) in the Philippines. The bout looks likely to be one of the best all-Filipino bouts of 2021 and it should be regarded a genuinely significant bout, not just due to the OPBF title, but also due to the standing of the two men, and the fact the winner will be only a few win away from securing a potential world title fight in 2022 or 2023.
Of the two men the more well known is 27 year old Giemel Magramo, a hard hitting fighter who had looked like a world champion in the making until last year, when he was made to look third rate by Junto Nakatani in a bout for the WBO. That loss to Nakatani was the second of his career, and had followed a controversial 2016 loss to Muhammad Waseem, though it was a humiliating and one sided one which could leave lasting damage on him mentally. Prior to that loss Magramo had won 7 in a row, all by stoppage, showing off his heavy hands, he destructive in ring mentality and his willingness, to take the fight to an opponent. Whilst many of opponents were lower level he showed what he could do against the likes Wenfeng Ge and Richard Claveras, and he looked a natural in those bouts. Technically Magramo isn't the most polished, but he's an aggressive fighter-puncher, with heavy hands. He's got slow feet, he can be out boxed, out fought and out thought, but he's very dangerous, he's tough and he comes to fight. On paper he has the tools to be in some thrilling match ups, but he also has the flaws that make him easy to out box, and if fighters can avoid a tear up with him they can make him look very limited. Whilst less well known Jayr Raquinel is arguable the more promising and more proven fighter, despite having never fought at world level. "The Dreamer" is a 24 year old southpaw who debuted in 2014 and looked like a dangerous fighter straight from the off, with 3 opening round wins. In 2017 Raquinel had his winning run ended, fighting to a draw with Glenne Calacar, but he bounced back from that with 4 wins, including KO victories over Keisuke Nakayama and Shun Kosaka in Japan to win, and defend the OPBF Flyweight title. Sadly for him he was made to look rather flawed in 2018, when he lost to Wulan Tuolehazi, but boxing backed in 2019 with wins over Takuya Kogawa, a brutal KO, and Jack Amisa. In the ring Raquinel is a real danger man, but also someone who is easy to over-look, especially given he's not fought in close to 2 years. Despite that he's an explosive puncher, with truly spiteful power, as seen in his KO's against the likes of Nakayama, Kosaka and Kogawa. He's not just powerful however but he's also quick, and explosive, making him a really dangerous fighter at Flyweight. Sadly he can be caught between minds, and we've seen look timid, against Tuolehazi, and we've seen him look wild. Interestingly he's very similar, in many ways, to Johnriel Casimero, and despite the loss to Tuolehazi we wouldn't write him off as a future world champion. Coming in we're expecting this to be a barn burner. Both men can fight, both like to throw bombs, and both like to unload. For us however Raquinel is the more dynamic, the more explosive and the more unpredictable. Magramo is probably the better boxer from a technical standpoint, but we're not sure if that will make a difference. Likewise it's hard to not feel like the loss ot Nakatani has negatively affected Magramo, and if that's a case he may be more timid and gin shy than we've seen from him. If he can't get respect from Raquinel he'll be in serious trouble. We're expecting to see Raquinel take a few rounds to get going, but when he does we suspect he'll be pinging right hooks and straight left hands off of Magramo with ease and by rounds 7 or 8 will have destroyed the desire of MAgramo. Prediction - TKO8 Raquinel  This coming Wednesday fight fans in Kyoto will be watching out for a WBC world title fight, as Kenshiro Teraji defends against Masamichi Yabuki. That bout isn't the only title bout on the show however, as Aoba Mori (7-2-1, 1) takes on Yuga Inoue (11-2-1, 2) for the Japanese Youth Flyweight title. On paper this isn't a big bout, not by any stretch, but it's an interesting bout between two young men each looking to make a statement and begin to move their career's forward in a big way.
Of the two men it's Inoue who's the more well known having on the All Japan Rookie of the Year back in 20017, as well as having had a brilliant bout for the Japanese Minimumweight title in 2018, with Kai Ishizawa, and facing strong domestic competition since then. Aged 22 he is a promising fighter, even with a couple of losses to his name, but doesn't yet appear to be even close to the finish product, technically or physically. Inoue is a very skilled boxer-mover. He's light on his feet, likes to fight behind his jab and unleash short but sharp combinations before getting out of harm. As he's grown he has developed more to his game, but still seems to lack in terms of his power game, and whilst he does look a lot stronger than he was when he faced Ishizawa he stills looks like he's a long way from reaching his physical prime and we might not see the best of him for a while still. Sadly his lack of power is an issue, and when he takes on better fighters they will try to walk him down, with a lack of respect for what's coming back. That is something he will need to work on before even dreaming of taking on the best in the country. Whilst Inoue has been on the radar for a while the same can't be said of Aoba Mori who really isn't too well known, even by those who follow Japanese domestic boxing. The 21 year old He debuted in 2017, losing on debut up at Bantamweight, but has slowly slipped down the weights and has been fighting around Flyweight, or Super Flyweight in most of his recent bouts. Sadly his competition doesn't really stand out, and there's not really any recognisable opponents on there. On paper this is, his biggest fight so far, by a huge margin though he should come in to the ring as the bigger man, the stronger man, and trickier man, given he's a southpaw. Whilst there isn't too much footage of Aoba out there there is enough to get a look into what he brings to the ring. He's a someone who fights very upright, uses a nice southpaw jab, though looks very inexperienced at times, and does look like someone who is a youngster at the formative years of his career. He's not sharp, his footwork is rough and he often throws his left hand whilst well out of range. Despite there there are some nice things he does and he does look aggressive, he looks like he comes to press and is improving fight by fight. Sadly, like Inoue, he lacks power and seems to slap rather than punch through the target. Whilst we know Aoba will be the taller, bigger man, we do feel this is too much of a step up in class for him. He will have moments, but we feel that Inoue's more rounded boxing, more eye catching flurries and higher level of experience will prove to be the difference in a very competitive but drama free 8 rounder. Don't expect to see either man being all that hurt, or dropped, but that shouldn't take away from this being hotly contested, and both men having a chance to show what they can do at times. Prediction - UD8 Inoue  On July 21st we get the chance to see a fantastic main event at Korakuen Hall as Japanese Flyweight champion Seigo Yuri Akui (15-2-1, 10) takes on the unbeaten Taku Kuwahara (8-0, 4). The bout may not have feature some huge name, but it's a match up between two men who have often been over-looked, and are quietly moving towards bigger and better things than the Japanese national title.
Given that neither man is a big name it's worth learning a little bit about both men before we look at how we think the bout will go. The champion is a 25 year old from Okayama, a place not known as a boxing hotspot. Despite not having a big team behind him Akui has managed to make quite a lot of noise in his 18 bout career. He turned profession in 2014 and the following year he won the All Japan Rookie of the Year at Light Flyweight, aged 20. At that point in time he was 6-0-1 (2) and someone who looked promising, but not too much fuss was made about him, even with his Rookie of the Year triumph. He then went on a destructive run, stopping his following 5 opponents in a combined 7 rounds before losing to Junto Nakatani in August 2017. That bout said more about Nakatani than Akui, with Nakatani being too big and too good, but soon afterwards Akui bounced back with a blow out win over Masamichi Yabuki, the man who will challenge world champion Kenshiro Teraji later in the year. That win was followed by an unfortunate TKO loss to Jaysever Abcede in late 2018, when Akui suffered an injury and fought on with it until being stopped with just over 40 seconds left. Since suffering his second loss Akui has been on a tear again, blasting out Yoshiki Minato and Shun Kosaka, both within a round with the win over Kosaka netting Akui the Japanese Flyweight title. He has also made a single defense of that belt, beating Seiya Fujikita last October, via 10 round decision. With a 10 stoppages in 18 bouts it's easy to assume that Akui isn't a dangerous fighter. In reality however he's a vicious puncher, and a fast starter. From 15 professional wins he has managed to score 9 opening round stoppages, 10 stoppages in the first 3 rounds and has one got one decision win since the start of 2016. He is a brute of a puncher, a fast starter and a very, very dangerous man in the ring. Sadly though when fighters do see out the early stages of bouts with Akui he can be out boxed, out fought and can give him real problems. In saying that however he did impress with his engine and boxing skills against the tough Fujikita and that win did show there was more to him than his early power. The 26 year old Taku Kuwahara was a very good amateur, with international experience, and despite originally being from Osaka he is now based in Kanagawa, fighting out of the Ohashi Gym, where he gets top quality training and sparring. There was some excitement about his debut in 2018, and he quickly built some buzz, but sadly it wasn't until 2019 that he managed to notch a couple of wins of real note, beating Jonathan Refugio and Ricardo Sueno. Those wins saw him build some real momentum, but that momentum, like with many fighters, was stopped in 2020 and he didn't fight at all during the the year. Thankfully however he returned to the ring this past March with a solid win, in a very exciting fight, with Yoshiki Minato. Notably Kuwahara went 8 rounds with Minato, a man blown out in a round by Akui. Early in his career Kuwahara looked like a man with plenty of pop, stopping 4 of his first 5 opponents, but he's gone the distance in his last 3 and there are question marks about his punching power. However he is a high skilled boxer, with some lovely tricks up his sleeve, he's quick, he's sharp, and we've seen him go 8 rounds on 4 occasions, answering plenty of questions about his stamina. He also fights at a good tempo and keeps a high work rate whilst looking very relaxed in the ring. Coming in to the bout it really is a compelling match up. Will Akui manage to launch himself to the next level with a big win in Tokyo? Will Kuwahara manage to make the most of his chance and take his first title? Will the power of Akui be too much for Kuwahara to handle? Will Kuwahara have the skills and experience to cope with the power and aggression of his foe? The first thing we need to think about is whether Kuwahara can see out the early storm. We suspect that someone with the experience, amateur and professional, of Kuwahara should be able to fight smartly, being cautious early on, and then moving through the gears as the bout goes on. The second thing is whether or not Akui can change things when he's being out boxed, something we expect to see Kuwahara do. That's where we're less confident and we suspect that Akui will end up starting fast, being neutralised, and then really struggle to catch up with the quicker, sharper, smoother Kuwahara. As the rounds go on we see Kuwahara getting more and more comfortable, and whilst he might end up eating a shot or two later in the bout, and we've seen him take some shots he's not needed to in the past, we don't see Akui managing to have any sustained success later in the bout. Instead we see Kuwahara having a scare or two, from single shots, but seeing them out and taking a clear unanimous decision over Akui, and becoming the new champion. Prediction - UD10 Kuwahara  This coming Thursday we'll see world ranked Japanese Flyweight Ryota Yamauchi (7-1, 6) look to make his first defense of the WBO Asia Pacific Flyweight title as he takes on domestic challenger Yuta Nakayama (8-3-1, 5), in what is a step up in class for Nakayama. On paper this looks a bit of a mismatch, but on the other hand it is good to see Yamauchi staying busy, after a rather frustrating 2019 and 2020 and it does give his second shot at a professional title.
Of the two men the star here is the champion. The Kadoebi promoted 26 year old is among the most exciting young fighters in Japan, with an aggressive mentality, heavy hands and flawed defense. Those things together make him a must watch fighter and unlike many youngsters in the sport he hasn't tried to pad out his record. In fact in his first 8 bouts he has faced 6 fighters with winning records, and has fought on foreign soil, and has picked up several very, very good wins. They include victories over Lester Abutan, Yota Hori, Alphoe Dagayloan and Satoru Todaka. Sadly he does have a loss on his record, but it was a controversial one in China to Chinese fighter Wulan Tuolehazi, in a bout that saw both men hit the canvas. In the ring Yamauchi is aggressive, he has some brilliant body shots in his arsenal, but sadly he's some defensively naive, and Wulan landed big straight head shots on him time and time again. Also he has been cut in bouts, notable against Alphoe Dagayloan, and it's fair to say that there is a lot of work he can do defensively. Despite that he's big, he's strong, he's powerful and he comes to fight. He might take a shot, but he'll look to land some himself in return, and applies consistent, calculated pressure coming forward, which means his fights will, typically, be fun to watch. Nakayama on the other hand has been a professional since 2016 and hasn't really managed to shine. He began his career going 1-1-1 before reeling off 5 straigth wins, building some moment against some some poor opposition. Since then however he has gone 2-2, before stopped twice, and hasn't looked like he belongs at title level. His most notable bouts so far are losses to Ryuto Oho, who beat him in a JBC Youth title fight, and Yuto Takahashi, who stopped him in a round before going on to win the Japanese Light Flyweight title. Although Oho and Takahashi are, or in Takahashi's case was, decent neither man is a big puncher, and neither man is a naturally strong and powerful fighter yet both stopped him. In regards to his best win, it's probably his TKO win over MJ Bo, a man that Yamauchi has also beaten. Although not a bad fighter, by any stretch, Nakayama is also not a great fighter. He lacks fight changing power, his defensive is open and when he throws shots they are often very wide, leaving him even more open. He has a nice jab, his best punch, but it's hard enough to get respect from opponents and he seems to struggle with pressure, as we saw against Oho. There's a good boxer there, or at least the potential for him to be a good boxer, but in reality, he's very, very much a work in progress and it's a shame in many ways that he's so early in his development. With some polish he has got the potential to make a mark on the domestic scene, but as he is he's the sort of fighter who is made to order for Yamauchi. We expect to see the champion pressing from the opening bell, getting inside and breaking down Nakayama with body shots. They will take the legs away from the challenger, who will struggle to get his own shows off. After 2 or 3 rounds Nakayama will be feeling the pressure and will either be broken down to the point of the referee stopping it after a knockdown or his corner pulling him out accepting the bout is a lost cause. Prediction - TKO3 Yamauchi.  By Troy Parslow
Try as I might to enjoy other factions, in my distractions as a boxing fan there are few ecosystems more challenging and rewarding to keep pace with than those of the Asian flyweight. Between the three ‘flyweight’ classes of 108, 112 and 115 lbs, the Philippines, as I’m sure you’ve come to expect, offers much of the depth. And, accordingly, they deliver styles and characters manifold. Understanding where they all fit in amongst the domestic abundance is esoteric in the time and deviations it requires of you, and it can be easy to lose fighters in the shuffle. Above all though, this depth binds new prospects to a standard and spawns rivals to prove their worth. True to form, on the 13th February, at Paniqui Mega Mart, the contrasting identities of Bienvenido(Ben) Ligas, 12-1-1 (9) and Alphoe Dagayloan, 14-3-6 (5), meet to contest the vacant Philippine Flyweight Championship. Under the Elorde and Fairtex banners, training in their satellite gyms, ‘Sniper’ Ben ‘Fairtex’ Ligas, 22, of Caloocan City, looks to have the talent and resources to transcend this domestic pile up and move his career through the levels. Following his suffering of a technical draw to Joseph Ambo and his losing an all-action bantamweight rematch in 2018, aged 19, Ligas has been streaking to the tune of six wins and five knockouts; shaking up JC Francisco(misrepresented by his 8-15 losing record) and cruising to a decision, as well as toppling Jesel Guardario in one, Cristoval Furog in three and Joan Imperial also in three. Big and strong at the weight in his 5’7” frame and with an exciting, if relatively untested, skillset, at his core Ligas is an aggressive counter puncher. Feinting and agitating with his lead hand and jab, shuffling with deceptive footwork and movement at the upper body; he looks to create opportunities to explode into his offence with fierce counters to body and counter in combination. Comfortable setting traps and punching as he moves in any direction, composed up close and unflustered fighting off of the ropes, it’s always encouraging when you can trust a young prospect has the versatility to draw on. In the ten rounds against southpaw veteran JC Francisco, we got to see a lot of what Ligas does best. Shifting his weight over his front foot as he shuffled forwards or back, baiting with his jab, feinting with his right shoulder or countering with his right hand; Ligas likes to establish the threat of his rear hand and load his left hip to lead unexpectedly with his left hand or follow up on the right. Channelling Canelo, almost, in the fifth, he shifted his weight onto his front foot, twitched his lead hand, flared a right hand feint and dropped Francisco with a lead left uppercut. As he shifts his weight over the front foot, he’s able to manipulate the distance by leaning over his base and giving the impression of being in range. When he does this as he shuffles back, he’s able to draw leads and counter off of half-steps, making his opponent fall short. Also impressive was his keen use of hand traps to pull down the right side of his Francisco’s guard and land the left hook. Fighting out of the lesser-known, talented Quibors gym, if we’ve come to expect anything of ten year professional Alphoe Dagayloan, 29, and his upstart career revival, it’s his rising to the role of opponent. Debuting in 2010, it would take eight years and 16 fights for Dagayloan, Bacoor, Cavite, to find form, tallying a messy 8-2-5. He’s since gone 6-1-1; dropping Kazakh Madiyar Zhanuzak five times to an eighth round stoppage win; decisioning domestic prospects Danrick Sumabong and Esneth Domingo; losing narrowly on points to Kadoebi Gym-trained Ryota Yamauchi and taking Carlo Penalosa to a draw. Watching Dagayloan, we see a fighter struggling to keep their shape on just about everything he throws and yet, as much as he isn’t a correct puncher, when it comes to landing off-beat out of his southpaw stance, he’s perfectly awkward for it. He doesn’t really pressure with his feet or cut off the ring, so much as he reacts and moves towards his opponent’s centre, punching into the clinch and hooking to both sides of the body(or anything in the way), before switching upstairs when he notices either side of the guard slipping. Forgoing his balance, falling in and then squaring up, he simply allows for no transfer of weight and looks less like he’s punching to hurt the longer his combinations continue. So long as it doesn’t stop him coming forward, though, or throwing off of both hands, he’s content to lead and keep a high output—to push his pace. As disagreeable as his brand of brawling can come off, you can only imagine the frustration his opponents have finding separation and a pocket of air to breathe. Uncomfortably effective and constant, not since a loss in his third fight has Dagayloan allowed anyone the space to separate themselves from him unanimously—or otherwise enough to beat him. That’s not to say better fighters wouldn’t have done so, but whenever he’s needed to find a new gear, that next level of craft or skulduggery, he’s always had enough to impose his pace and physicality. To beat him clearly(and cleanly) would be a statement, but fall short of that and you’re surely wrestling every second of the fight to return to the comfort of the fundamentals. Sharpening both edges of his blade with every close run decision, there are few opponents less fashionable and more significant for a Pinoy prospect than Alphoe. Can he spoil? As with any of his fights, of course, is the risk of the fight looking ugly in the moments Dagayloan leads with his head. And it wouldn’t be the first time—or the fourth—a clash of heads ended a Dagayloan or Ligas fight prematurely. That said, we know the value of Dagayloan being himself and when he’s consistent in hiding his left hand entries behind a short jab and raiding whenever his opponent is trying to take stock, standing in range or backing up straight, at this level it has proven a nightmare to manage. When he punches into the clinch or finds himself on the inside, it’s important he’s as rough and crafty as we know he can be. He needs to lean on Ligas’ right shoulder like he did Penalosa’s, holding his head with his right hand and throwing left uppercuts across his body. As well as using his own head to stand Ligas up and prevent him from tying up or using his strength to create separation with a forearm. Dagayloan plays fast and loose with southpaw-orthodox lead dynamics, stepping either side of an orthodox lead foot to land his jab and, again, it works for him entering range and landing off-beat. If he steps inside Ligas’ lead foot recklessly he might find himself walking into that rear hand, but he will always give up opportunities to counter and if he’s to push a pace on Ligas, he might need to take these risks to get to his body early. Being that this is Ligas’ first fight scheduled for 12 rounds, and that he has only ever gone as far as 10 rounds once, there’s no telling how he’ll handle the pace if Dagayloan can regularly get to his chest and work the body. Winning for Dagayloan—being recognised with the Filipino title—would mark a quite admirable comeback from a turbulent rise at the journeyman level. Statement making? A significant step for Ligas, if he can handle the Dagayloan problem suitably, it could rubberstamp his credentials as one of the foremost prospects in the country. And he’s equipped to beat Dagayloan well. Particularly using his feet to manipulate distance and counter off of half-steps. Dagayloan moves in straight lines and doesn’t like to punch with his opponent: hiding behind a rigid high guard and waiting his turn to punch. As I’ve mentioned, Dagayloan’s imbalance makes him readily available to counter if you can time him, but if Ligas can’t bait him into leading and counter as he falls in, he can have success occupying him in a high guard, stepping around his southpaw lead foot to change the attack and turn him, guiding Dagayloan past him with his (check) left hook. Dagayloan is consistent on the inside if he has the freedom to stand square on and work the body, and he throws tight uppercuts well off of both hands, but considering how often finds himself in the clinch, it shouldn’t be so easy to control him and walk him back to the ropes. It’s not something we’ve seen all that much from Ligas and, late on in their fight, Francisco made him look slightly uncomfortable working under him and preventing him from tying up, but if he employs basic grappling technique here he’ll be able to dictate terms on the inside and walk Dagayloan back when he wants to break up his offense. Despite his willingness to fight off the ropes in recent fights, it makes more sense for Ligas to keep the fight at a range his cleaner footwork can make the difference and help create opportunities to counter or exacerbate Dagayloan’s shortcomings. At the very least, here Dagayloan should serve as a fascinating test of Ligas’ ability to control distance with his feet and manage a fight. On a date heaving with exciting fights, when a young prospect tries to balance aggression and control against a marauding vet, the Philippines looks like a great place to start.  The next of the Champion Carnival bouts sees our attention turn to the Flyweight division, where heavy handed champion Seigo Yuri Akui (14-2-1, 10) defends against mandatory challenger Seiya Fujikita (13-4, 6). The bout, set to take place on October 18th in Okayama will be Akui's first defense of the title and will be Fujikita's first title bout. For Akui it serves as a chance to build on last October's title win, when he beat Shun Kosaka inside a round, whilst Fujikita will be getting his first title fight, and gets it almost by default.
For those who haven't seen Akui he is a very fast starter. From his 14 career wins 9 having come in the first round, and all 10 of his stoppages have come in the first 3 rounds. What's more notable than being a fast start is the type of competition he has been blasting away, with wins already over the likes of Kenji Ono, Ryuto Oho, Masamichi Yabuki, Yoshiki Minato and Shun Kosaka, all of those have come in the opening round. He does however seem to struggle when he can't blast though opponents, and he found himself unable to blow out Junto Nakatani and Jaysever Abcede, both of whom went on to stop Akui. For those who haven't seen Akui he's someone who is incredibly fun to see go to work. He's aggressive, powerful and lets his hands fly early. Defensively he is open, he can be tagged, and against fighters who can take his power he does appear to struggle, though at domestic level not many can take his power. Notably his 4 decision wins came in his first 7 bouts, with the final one being his win over Hiroki Hosoya in the 2015 All Japan Rookie of the Year, and since then he hasn't heard the final bell. Interesting Fujikita has gotten this bout, as the mandatory challenger, for essentially making weight last year. The original plan had been for him and Ryota Yamauchi to face off in an eliminator, but Yamauchi was forced out of the bout due to an injury, leaving the door open to Fujikita, as long as he could make weight on the day of the planned weigh in. Which he did. That allowed him to become mandatory for his first title bout, and make up for the disappointment of losing in a title eliminator in 2018, when he lost a narrow decision to Naoki Mochizuki. On paper the 32 year old Fujikita doesn't look much of a challenger. He has 4 losses in 17 bouts, and has got a single win of note of real note, a 2016 TKO over Yusuke Sakashita. His record is however one full of misfortune, with 3 split decisions and one technical majority decision. All of those close decisions have come to good domestic fighters, including Mochizuki, Yuta Matsuo and Hayato Yamaguchi. Although he's without many wins of real significance Fujikita looks like one of those types of fighters who could score the upset over a decent guy. He looks solid, takes a shot well, applies smart pressure, and can fight on the back foot when he needs to. He's certainly more comfortable going forwards than backwards, and looks physically strong. When he is on the backfoot he moves very well and avoid shots really well, but seems to struggle to fire off counters. Coming in to this we see Fujikita as the better boxer, the way he moves and the way he looks after himself in the ring makes it look like he could genuinely give Akui issues. If Akui fights the way he usually does, trying to steam roll Fujikita, things will be interesting. We suspect we'll either see Fujikita taken out early, in what would be a very impressive result for Akui, or we'll see Fujikita seeing out the storm, and then slowly picking Akui apart as the bout goes on. Fujikita looks like a tough guy, takes a shot really well when he needs to. We expect Akui's aggression and power to be too much, and for Fujikita to be taken out early, maybe not the opening round but still early. Fujikita might be tough, but Akui is the most dangerous fighter he's faced so far. If Fujikita sees out the storm we could be in for a bit of a classic, but that's a huge "if". Prediction - TKO3 Akui  The WBO Asia Pacific Flyweight title has become one of the more important titles regional titles in recent years with a host of it's title holders moving on from the regional belt to a world title fight. Since 2010 we have seen holders include Tepparith Kokietgym, Froilan Saludar, Sho Kimura, Masahiro Sakamoto and Wulan Tuolehazi all go on to fight for a world title, with Tepparith and Kimura both going on to claim global honours.
With that in mind the August 19th WBO Asia Pacific Flyweight title bout between Ryota Yamauchi (6-1, 5) and Satoru Todaka (10-3-4, 4) is a pretty significant one, and will likely see the winner taking a huge step towards a future world title shot of their own. With that said the bout is one worthy of genuine attention and makes for a great main event on the upcoming "Slugfest" show. Coming in to the bout the big favourite will be once beaten 25 year old Yamauchi, a Kadoebi promoted fighter who has long been tipped as a star of the future. He made his debut in 2017 and quickly scored notable wins over Lester Abutan and Yota Hori, wins that instantly got us excited about the trajectory he was on. Sadly his career hit a bump in 2019 when he travelled to China and lost a decision to Wulan Tuolehazi, in what was a truly brilliant fight. The loss was a debatable one, but it did, clearly, slow Yamauchi's rise. Thankfully since that loss Yamauchi has bounced back, scoring wins against Alphoe Dagayloan and MJ Bo. In the ring Yamauchi is a boxer-puncher, though he can employee a pressure style and a brawling style pretty effectively when he needs to up the tempo. Sadly for him he is still some defensively naive and was consistently tagged by Tuolehazi in their bout last year. He was dropped, and hurt several times, in that bout, and it's clear he does need to work on his defense. He is however a real talent and given he's only had 7 bouts he has shown a lot of potential and a lot of ability that suggests he could go on to win a world title sooner rather than later. With that in mind he's certainly wanting a regional title, to help open the door to a world title fight down the line. In the opposite corner to Yamauchi will be 30 year old foe Satoru Todaka, who turned professional way back in 2012. He actually began his career with a loss, to Yukiya Hanabusa, before reeling off a 9 fight unbeaten run, taking his record to a rather peculiar looking 5-1-4 (1). Since then his he's gone 5-2 (3) though has notably been stopped in both of those losses, and has failed to get a top level domestic win. In his biggest bout to date Todaka lost in a bout for Japanese Light Flyweight title against Kenichi Horikawa, just last year. In that bout he was out boxed, out fought and and forced to retire at the end of the 8th round. Sadly, given how long his career has been, there isn't much footage on Todaka available, however he's shown little in terms of power, which we suspect a fighter will need to get Yamauchi's respect, and he's also going to be under-sized against the surprisingly imposing Yamauchi. For Todaka it's the bout against Horikawa that we suspect tells us what we need to about this one. He wasn't really competitive at all with Horikawa, who was too good, too skilled and too experienced. Whilst Yamauchi lacks the experience of Horikawa he's is a very talented young man and a naturally bigger fighter than Horikawa. We suspect that Todaka will struggle with the size, speed, aggression and power of Yamauchi who will break him down in the middle rounds, to claim his first professional title. Prediction - TKO5 Yamauchi |
Previews
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
October 2022
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed
