On January 16th we saw the first Japanese title fight of the year, with that bout seeing a regular and interim title being unified. On January 20th we see, barring a draw, a new champion being crowed as the vacant Welterweight title is on the line for a bout between the top two ranked Japanese fighters, the #1 ranked Yasuhiro Okawa (14-11-3, 5) [大川 泰弘] and the #2 ranked Nobuyuki Shindo (16-3-1, 6) [新藤 寛之]. Of the two men the one is better known is Shindo, despite his lower ranking with the JBC. The Miyata gym fighter is a former Japanese title challenger, losing a close decision to former champion Suyon Takayama, who vacated the title recently after 6 defenses. In that bout Shindo dropped Takayama before being out worked in the second half for Takayama to retain the title. Although not a bit name Shindo is a huge Welterweight, stood at 6'1”. He will tower over most other fighters in the division, as will be seen when he fights the 5'8” Okawa, and of course he knows how to use that height, and reach advantages, to great effect. He has also shown a grit and determination as well as solid work rate and the ability to go 10 rounds. Whilst clearly the favourite it does need to be noted that Shindo has has come up short in his most notable bouts. That has included two very competitive losses to Takayama and a loss and draw against Moon Hyun Yun. Whilst he has failed in his 4 bouts with Takayama and Yun he has scored notable wins over the likes of Tetsuya Suzuki, Toru Chiba and Yuichi Ideta, all solid wins on the Japanese domestic scene. Aged 31 Okawa is a 13 year pro but has never fought at title level before, in fact this will be the first time that he's been scheduled in a bout longer than 8 rounds. His career has seen him going 8 rounds on 6 occasions, as well going into round 8 in two other bouts. On the whole he has been fighting on the fringes of the Japanese scene during his 28 fight career though has managed to face Hayato Hokazono, Takehiro Shimokawara, Hidekazu Matsunobu, Koshinmaru Saito and Toshio Arikawa, with a win over Arikawa being very notable now given that Arikawa will now be tha mandatory for the winner of this one. Whilst we've never been that impressed by Okawa he is riding a 5 fight winning streak, including the win over Arikawa. That run is, by far, the best of Okawa's career and sees him coming into this one full of confidence. For us however the worry is really about him fighting over the 10 round distance and about his step back up in class. Although Okawa is clearly in good form we can't see him claiming the win here, instead we see Shindo's extra experience over 10 rounds, and at a higher level, just being enough to take him the win, via a decision.
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Arguably the weakest division in Japan, at least domestically, is the Welterweight division which has been rather terrible for several years. The only man who has really moved beyond the domestic scene has been Yoshihiro Kamegai With Kamegai moving beyond domestic level we've disappointingly been left with the title in the hands of Suyon Takayama (22-1, 7), who has held the title since December 2012 and racked up 5 defense. On paper that sounds like a credible reign however 4 of those 5 defenses, and in fact his title win, have been incredibly close and the domestic challengers haven't been great. To end September Takayama will be defending his title against first time challenger Ryoji Tanaka (8-4-1, 2), another really disappointing challenger who has lost back-to-back fights coming in to this one. That sort of form really sums up how poor the division is, and how poor the challengers to Takayama's title have been recently. Although Takayama's reign has been poor he is a solid fighter. He's tough, gutsy, hard working and a real grinder. His style might not always be the most eye pleasing or exciting but he's a proven winner, as he showed last time out when he climbed off the canvas to defeat Nobuyuki Shindo, for the second time. He wins, and he wins, but rarely impressively and rarely will he look like an emerging contender for the world stage. In fact we'd be shocked if he ever progresses above domestic level given his lack of power and general struggles domestically. We'll admit we've not seen the 28 year old Tanaka before though we know that he really isn't a credible challenger here. He has, as mentioned, lost his last 2 bouts, both by decision, and his most notable wins are over Dai Taoka and Tomoyuki Omura, both of whom are less than impressive. The most notable thing about him is that his 2013 win over Taoka was for the All Japan Rookie of the Year, since then however he has gone 2-2, and is lucky not to have gone 1-3. Although Takayama does make life look difficult for himself when he fights we really can't see anything but a clear and decisive win here against a fighter who has never gone beyond 8 rounds and shouldn't offer any real challenge to the champion. The big question will be whether or not Tanaka can survive the distance (Image courtesy of Kadoebi.com) If we're being honest the Welterweight division is in Japan is relatively pathetic. One man is head and shoulders above everyone else in the country and that man, Yoshihiro Kamegai, is unlikely to ever think about going back to fighting domestic foes. That leaves the division with out a big name and without a really exciting fighter, unless Keita Obara decides to make a permanent move to the division. Sadly the lack of talent leaves the country with a weak champion in the form of Suyon Takayama (21-1, 7). On paper Takayama looks good but in reality he's a poor champion and his reign, which dates back to December 2012, has seen him record 4 decision wins with 3 of them being razor thin. This week Takayama returns to the ring as he looks to record his 5th defense and record his second win over Nobuyuki Shindo (16-2, 6), the mandatory challenger for the title. These two men first met back in 2008 East Japan Rookie of the Year final. In that bout Takayama took a razor thin decision over Shindo and later went on to win the Welterweight Rookie of the Year just a few weeks later. Going into their first meeting both men were unbeaten fighters looking to make a name for themselves. Since the first meeting between the two men both have lost just once. Takayama's loss came in 2011 when he lost a split decision to Yuichi Ideta. Since then he has racked up 9 straight wins, including 5 in title bouts. Sadly for Takayama he has only notched 2 stoppages in those 9 wins. As for Shindo his loss came in December 2012 when he was narrowly beaten by Moon Hyun Yun. Since that loss Shindo has recorded 4 wins, with 3 stoppages. Although not a great fighter Takayama has proven to be difficult to beat. He is defensively sound, works hard and often manages to “just do enough” to win rounds. His key strength has been work rate which is solid though a lack of power, especially at Welterweight is a problem and will prevent him from ever reaching a level beyond Japanese domestic level. We've got to admit we've not managed to see much of Shindo though from what we do know he is a tall, lanky southpaw who is starting to grow into into strength. Early in his career he really struggled with his power and stopped only 2 of his first 11 opponents. Since then he has racked up 4 stoppages in 6 bouts and developed his skills. What we're expecting to see is an interesting fight though not the most exciting. We suspect Shindo will try to make the most of his size and his south stance though flaws in his skillset will allow Takayama to get inside and make things competitive. The question is how often can Takayama get inside given that he will be giving around 6” in height and notable reach. If Takayama can get inside and make the most of his opportunities then there is a really good chance he can grind out another razor thin decision. If Shindo can make the most of his his size then we can see the title changing hands. (Image courtesy of boxmob.jp) If we run through the names of the current Japanese champions one name that appears to stand out is Suyon Takayama (20-1, 7). Takayama, the Japanese Welterweight champion, is a fighter who really has been lost in the background and massively over-shadowed by Yoshihiro Kamegai, the only other Japanese Welterweight of note. It's a shame to admit this but Takayama is a fighter that even we over-look on a regular basis. Although he's the "forgotten champion" on the Japanese domestic scene Takayama is very credible fighter and a man who has held his title for almost 2 years and already made 3 defences. Unfortunately he's over-shadowed not just be Kamegai in his division and the other champions across the various divisions and also his own stable mates, many of whom are simply more exciting, more engaging and more interesting than Takayama. Fighters like Shuhei Tsuchiya, Hiroki Okada and Kyotaro Fujimoto all steal the headlines whilst Takayama fades into the background. Another thing that hurts Takayama is his competition. He's been facing the top contenders but they simply lack any recognition themselves and worst of all the fights are hard to find video of making it almost impossible for fight fans to spread the word about him. It's a shame but it's what's happened unfortunately. The next challenger for Takayama's Welterweight title is Koshinmaru Saito (20-5-1, 11), who is actually the man he beat to win the title back in 2012. In their first meeting Saito gave a good account of himself though came up short on the score cards in a battle for the then vacant title. Sadly for Saito that was his third title effort and his third title bid having previously lost, by stoppage, to Daisuke Nakagawa and Akinori Watanabe, both of whom are big punchers and exciting fighters to watch. Unfortunately when you look through Saito's record there is nothing on there that stands out except for his title bids. No other opponents have any name value. On paper he looks good but in reality its difficult to say and his best result was the close loss to Takayama in their first bout. Just like the first bout we're expecting to see Takayama winning. We suspect this will be a competitive bout but we only expect one man to win, and in fact we expect this to be scored wider than their first bout with Takayama having improved whilst Saito has aged. It may be Saito's last chance but it's probably come a bit too late. Ranked #1 in the Japanese rankings Saito is the obvious challenger but he's an uninspiring opponent and in all honesty this fight should lead the way to the only fight that matters in the Japanese Welterweight scene. Takayama Vs Kamegai. Come on guys, lets have that one made for early next year! (Image courtesy of http://www.kadoebi.com) The OPBF titles are viewed as an honour by fighters through out Asia, though unfortunately not all the challengers for the belts are particularly great. This is the case this weekend as Korean Jung-Hoon Yang (8-5, 2) challenges for the OPBF Welterweight title. Yang is a 2-time Korean champion at 147lbs and he is a former OPBF title challenger. Although his record may suggest that he's a bum, he really isn't and had he had better connections he may well have had a slightly better record. Despite his record though he did score a notable victory in his last bout, taking a decision over Japan's Shamgar Koichi. It's that victory that has really helped him to get this opportunity. Unfortunately for Yang his last OPBF title fight ended terrible, with the Korean stopped in just 4 rounds by the big punching Akinori Watanabe. We're expecting something similar to happen here as he takes on reigning champion Yoshihiro Kamegai (23-1-1, 20), another monstrously big punching Japanese fighter. Kamegai, if you've somehow not seen him, is a fun to watch fighter. He's generally quiet basic and can be out boxed but few will out slug him with his explosive power. At his worst Kamegai can be made to look stupid, stationary and 1-dimensional, as he was in his loss to the under-rated Johan Perez, at his best though he's a terrifying puncher who destroys what he hits. From what we know of Yang he's not an awful fighter but we simply can't imagine him taking the power of Kamegai very well at all and his own lack of fire power won't keep the Japanese fighter honest. Instead Kamegai will walk though the return fire in the knowledge that his own heavy artillery will simply be too much for the over-matched challenger who will likely last 4 or 5 rounds as Kamegai slowly but steadily grinds down his challenger. We;re hoping that if Kamegai, as expected, is successful here we'll see him in with a more fitting challenger next time. We know that the Welterweights in Asia are limited but fights featuring Kamegai and Suyon Takayama, Akinori Watanabe, Teerachai Kratingdaenggym or Patomsuk Pathompothong would all be very interesting. Certainly more so than this bout seems like to be. If you want us to sum this up in a world we're expecting to see a show case performance of Kamegai, his power and his style. He's almost always fun to watch, but it's just a shame that it's not coming against a suitable dance partner. (Poster courtesy of boxmob.jp) The Welterweight division in Asia is the one that starts to see the big drop off in talent. Sure some top Welterweights do come from throughout Asia but the number is significantly less than one might imagine which is a shame, though it does meet with what we tend to think about Asian's in general with them being naturally smaller people than we typically find in the west. The lack of real quality in and around the 147lb division has seen some pretty poor national champions in the past come out of Japan. Fighters like Takejiro Kato, Minoru Horiuchi (who was admittedly only and interim champion) and Dynamite Matsuo weren't really "national champion" level fighters. At the moment however Japan does have a Welterweight champion to be proud of in the form of Suyon Takayama (19-1, 7) who may not be a world beater but is a credible champion and a world ranked fighter, holding a WBA #14 ranking. As well as his status on the world stage Takayama is a man who has already recorded two title defenses. Of the two defenses already made by Takayama it's fair to say that one was a respectable one, taking a narrow decision over Moon Hyun Yun whilst the other, a decision over Cobra Suwa, summed up the weakness in the division. Unfortunately for Takayama his next defense is another that suggests just how weak the Japanese domestic scene is as he takes on #1 ranked challenger Tetsuya Suzuki (29-11, 17). On paper it's actually a great defense with Suuki being a 2-time Japanese Middleweight champion and a former OPBF Middleweight champion. In reality however Tetsuya was lucky that the Middleweight division at the time was weak. This was shown in the fact that Tetsuya's first reign began with a narrow decision over Keiji Eguchi, who was was stopped in his previous bout and his next bout, whilst his second came against Norifumi Suzuki, who had an impressive though thoroughly padded record. As for the OPBF title that Tetsuya won, that came against Pil-Seung Oh who had last 5 of his previous 8 and would go on to lose his following 3. IT was another example of a fighter winning a title against a very weak foe. Whilst it's unfair to say Tetsuya's a bum, he really isn't, he's also not the sort of fighter who should really be winning national titles. He's the sort of fighter who we think in another era wouldn't have made much of a mark on the domestic scene and in all honesty is a million miles from being fringe world class. This is shown perfectly in the fact he has lost 3 of his last 7 and of the wins he scored recently some have very poor. One of those wins came in a narrow decision against Thai veteran Prawet Singwancha whilst two of the other's were over winless Thai "body-donors" Udomsin Nonpitayakom and Petchmongkol Na Nonthachai. We think that Takayama will clearly win this. It's been so long since Suzuki scored a notable win that we're unsure what he has in the tank and Takayama being younger, fresher, more suited to the weight and growing in confidence we can only see one winner and it could well be his most impressive so far. As far as Japanese Welterweights go the only fight Takayama should be thinking about after this is a contest is a bout with OPBF champion Yoshihiro Kamegai. That bout would decide the best in Japan, unify the titles and see the winner take a big step towards a world title fight. That's three things worth fighting for! (Photo Courtesy of Boxmob) Some bouts genuinely leave us wondering what is going on in our great sport, and not in a good way. This Friday sees one such bout as unbeaten Thai Teerachai Kratingdaenggym (23-0, 17) defends his PABA Welterweight super title against a Mexican challenger. The PABA, or Pan Asian Boxing Association, is, well, the Asian off shoot of the WBA. How a Mexican qualifies for a PABA title fight is genuinely a mystery though it seems that Fernando Castaneda (21-7, 14) is some how able to fight for an Asian title. Now idea how but that's what we have. Teerachai, pictured, one of the most promising young Thai's in the sport, is a fighter who has been slowly climbing in to the world rankings on the back of credible, as opposed to great, victories. The 21 year old, who is incredibly strong, has already shown traits needed to become a future world champion. He has shown solid power, the ability to go 12 rounds, a hurtful jab and very solid skills that appear to be developing fight after fight. Although relatively untested, with his best win to date coming against Behzod Nabiev, Teerachai is a fighter who is likely to be moved up this year as he attempts to make the most of his skills. Unfortunately however he kicks off his year with this fight against Castaneda. Castaneda, who has been a professional since 2007, has had a relatively up and down career. The peak of it came in July 2011 when he defeated Fidel Monterrosa Munoz though just months later Castaneda was stopped by Johan Perez in an interim world title fight at Light Welterweight. Since the loss to Perez things have been good on paper for Castaneda with 4 wins though they have all come at a very low and he did lose his most recent contest, being out pointed by unbeaten Colombian Janer Gonzalez. Fighting in Asia for the first time it's hard to see Castaneda coming away with a positive result, even more so when you consider he's facing a hard hitting and well schooled fighter in Teerachai who will be looking to establish his heavy jab and hurtful straight right. When the Thai gets them going then it's hard to see Castaneda surviving the distance. The Mexican will likely start well though by the mid rounds will have slowed with Teerachai and the Thai conditions getting too much for the Mexican challenger, who has already been stopped 3 times, including two to much lower level fighters than Teerachai. We're not sure how the PABA have sanctioned this one though we are sure that Teerachai will be successful. |
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
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