Bangkok, Thailand
There wasn't much action this past Wednesday though Thai fans did get a televised show on Mono29. The card featured a single title fight and a trio of bouts involving promising Thai's who look like they may well have the potential to compete at a higher level, down the line at least.

The main event was the aforementioned title fight and it saw Thailand's Patomsith Pathompothong (13-4, 5) take a clear decision victory over Filipino visitor Benjie Suganob (9-4-1, 5) to claim the IBF Pan Pacific Featherweight title. This was Patomsith's first bout since losing a decision, earlier this year, to Hisashi Amagasa and there was no doubting that this latest bout was more “at his level”.

Another Thai on this card with international experience was Eaktawan Mor Krungthepthonburi (15-3, 10) who took a decision win against Indonesian visitor Frans Damur Palue (11-9-2, 6). Eaktawan, fighting for the second time as a Kiatkreerin fighter, has now strong together 9 straight wins since losing a decision in 2013 to Froilan Saludar. To date the only men to have beaten Eaktawan are Saludar, Sho Ishida and rising Filipino sensation Albert Pagara, all of whom beaten Eaktawan when the Thai travelled.

One unbeaten prospect on this card was the touted Atchariya Tor Chantaroj (5-0, 2) who scored his second stoppage win by seeing off the fragile Anshori Anhar Pitulay (8-16-2, 6) in the 2nd round of their bout. Pitulay has now been stopped 14 times in his 26 bouts. Another unbeaten prospect to pick up a win was Denchana Sakkreerin (3-0), who picked up a 6 round decision win over fellow novice Paisuk Pothonggym (0-2).

Bangkok, Thailand
Much of the Asian action this past Friday was in Thailand where there were 4 televised bouts courtesy of Kiatkreerin.

The main saw the promising Eaktawan Mor Krungthepthonburi (14-3, 10)* defend a regional title with a 5th round TKO over Filipino visitor Lionel Legada (13-9-1, 6). This was Eaktawan's first bout since signing with Kiatkreerin and we now expect we'll see him moved towards the IBF rankings and a possible IBF title fight somewhere in the future.

Another notable fighter on this card was Patomsuk Pathompothong (30-3-1, 19) who forced an early stoppage of Ronnel Esparas (10-17-1, 2). This was Patomsuk's first bout since he was stopped by Ik Yang in Macau and the plan is to now have him fight Akihiro Kondo in Japan in July. Sadly for Filipino fighter Esparas this is his 9th straight loss.

As well as the two bouts with men there were also a couple of female fights. One of those saw the unbeaten Petcharas Mor Krungthepthonburi (4-0) continued her winning run with a 6 round decision against debutant Sonsaeng Sor Aswin (0-1). The other female bout saw Maimuang Sitkhurusian (2-4-1) score a decision win over Petchladda Sor Praithong (0-1)

New York, USA
In New York things didn't go well for Filipino veteran Ranee Ganoy (36-13-2, 32) who was stopped in 4 rounds by Cletus Seldin (17-0-0-1, 14). This was Ganoy's second successive loss, and his 7th stoppage defeat, and it now seems likely that the American based Pinoy puncher will think about hanging them up.

Campeche, Mexico
Things were also poor for Filipinos in Mexico as journeyman Vergel Nebran (13-10-1, 8)** suffered his 10th loss, though he did acquit himself really well. Nebran was a huge under-dog going into his bout, against former world champion Cristian Mijares (52-8-2, 25), though managed to take some real credit for his effort, despite losing widely on the the scorecards. Notably both men were dropped here though it's clear Nebran is a better fighter than his record suggests.


*Boxrec have attributed one of Eaktawan's loses incorrectly
**Boxrec don't acknowledge Nebran's loss to Boon-Joon Seok

Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand
On Channel 7 Thai fans had the chance to see a relatively meaningless card from Ubon Ratchathani which featured a few interesting prospects but only fighting very limited opposition.

One of those fighters was PABA Featherweight champion Thong Sithluangphophun (11-0, 7) who easily over-came the limited Ruben Manakane (14-14-1, 9) in what amounted to a 6 round workd out for the unbeaten man, who was fighting in a non-title bout.

In a more meaningful, though equally as 1-sided contest, Hanuman Sithluangporphun (8-4, 2) defeated Stevanus Nanai (2-3-1, 2) and retained his interim PABA Light Flyweight title for the first time.

Bangkok, Thailand
On a second Thai card, televised on channel 5, fans saw the very promising Eaktawan Mor Krungthepthonburi (8-0, 7) retain his WBA Asia Flyweight title with an easy victory over the horribly over-matched Ardi Tefa (6-4, 4). Eaktawan, who we really like, looked in control from the off before opening up in round 3 and finishing off Tefa who landed very little throughout the bout.

A second WBA Asia title fight here saw Amin Sor Wangmoo (11-1-1, 9) retain his Super Featherweight title with a 3rd round KO against the awfully over-matched Smile Brown (6-19-1, 3). in a horrible match up that told us little about Amin's overall ability.

Also on this card were 2 all debutant match ups. One of those saw Ronnakit PKT College (1-0, 1) blow away Petchmuangkan Kor Kanyabut (0-1) inside a round in what was a genuinely interesting contest until Ronnakit's power took it's effect. In the other bout Montree PKT College (1-0, 1) showed impressive body punching as he took apart Denmanee Manoprungroj (0-1) with a crunching gut busting finish inside a round.

Tokyo, Japan
In Japan fans had a small show at the brilliant Korakuen Hall with 8 bouts, albeit none that would have registered with fans in the west.

In the main event fans saw Shusaku Fujinaka (11-5-2, 7) end a 2 fight losing streak as he scored a 6th round TKO against Hiashi Kato (7-8-2, 5). This was the second meeting between the two men following a technical draw back in 2012 and amazingly it's Fuinaka's first stoppage win since before that bout! Unfortunately for Kato this was his second success stoppage loss.

In the co-feature Takahiro Fujii (7-3-1, 2) took a razor thin 8 round split decision over Koya Sato (7-3-1, 1) in a very competitive bout. Fujii turned it up the heat in the final 4 rounds which helped him take the win but there was very little in it and no one would complain about another bout between the two. Notably this was Fujji's first bout since a narrow loss to Yutaka Sowano last May whilst Sato has now lost 3 in a row.

A third 8 rounder saw Kazuhiro Nakamura (9-5, 3) take a clear but well fought decision win over the light hitting Ryo Narizuka (7-5). Nakamura seemed too good throughout with his hook being the telling punch overall, though Narizuka did have success with his jabs and straights. The win for Nakamura was his first in more than 18 months following a long lay after a loss, last time out, to Hiroya Yamamoto whilst Narizuka saw a 2-fight winning streak come to an end.

In the sole 6 rounder fans saw Yamato Fujinaka (5-3, 1) take a close but clear decision win over Korean visitor Ki-Nam Kim (4-7-3, 2) in a Heavyweight bout. This was the third successive loss for Kim who has been inactive for 21 months coming into this bout and now has scored a win in over 2 years. For Fujinaka, who was himself returning after 23 months away from the ring, this was a 4th straight win.

On the under-card we had 4 bouts scheduled for 4 rounds. Among those was a well fought 4 round draw between Kazuma Fukino (0-3-1) and Yusaku Oshima (0-2-1) who both remained win-less due to how competitive and even their match up was. Another competitive bout saw Yoshihiro Tsukuda (1-1) claim a split decision over Hayate Fukano (0-1), one of 4 debutants.

Another of the debutants on this card was Shodai Nagata (0-1) who came up short against the previously win-less Shinobu Charlie Hosokawa (1-1, 1), who scored a 2nd round TKO. The other bout was an all debutant bout that saw Daichi Watanabe (1-0, 1) take a 3rd round TKO over Naoya Okuda (0-1).

California, USA
In the US we saw formed Mongolian amateur star Tugstsogt Nyambayan (1-0, 1) make an immediate impact in the professional ranks as he blew away the over-matched Gabriel Braxton (2-9, 1) in just 130 seconds. It was the perfect debut and the perfect statement win for “King Tug” who we are happy to tip as one of the most exciting talents out of Asia in recent years. He name may be difficult to spell, or pronounce, but this kid has the potential to be a huge star in the near future.

(Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp)

Bangkok, Thailand
December 5th is a major day in Thailand as it's the birthday of Bhumibol Adulyadej, better known as the King of Thailand. In the past there have been various key bouts fought on this date, including the WBA Super Featherweight title bout between Yodsanan Sor Nanthachai and Lamont Pearson, in 2002. Today there wasn't any world title bouts but Thai fans still got a trio of regional title bouts with the contests being rather entertaining on the whole.

The best of the bouts saw Chatpetch Sithmorseng (9-3-1, 5) successfully retain his PABA interim Super Flyweight title with a very well fought draw against Filipino Fernando Ocon (13-8-1, 5). For Ocon this was his 6th bout in Thailand and his experience of fighting in the country showed as he put on a genuinely great performance, on that possibly deserved a win. For Chatpetch this draw ends a run of 9 straight wins though we suspect that he'll be happy to have kept his title and put on a very memorable performance in a really good fight.

Although Ocon gave a great account of himself in his draw he wasn't the only visitor to give a good effort as Indonesian fighter Ichal Tobida (10-13, 8) also gave a great effort as he tried to over-come the much touted Eaktawan Mor Krungthepthonburi (7-0, 6) and claim the WBA Asia Super Flyweight title. Unfortunately for Tobida his effort was for naught as he was stopped by Eaktawan in round 4. Despite the loss Tobida did impress and we suspect his real "fighting weight" is around 115lbs and not the 110lbs he fought Ryo Miyazaki at back in September, hopefully he'll get the chance to fight again at Super Flyweight. For Eaktawan this was the sort of fight he needed with someone trying to fight back against and we saw the Thai take a few shots before finally seeing off his Indonesian foe.

Although both Chatpetch and Eaktawan had to work for their wins the same cannot be said for teenage prospect Stamp Kiatniwat (11-0, 5) who retained his PABA interim Flyweight title with an easy victory over Filipino foe Geboi Mansalayao (9-18-4, 3). Stamp again showed off why fans in Thailand are excited about him though we're now hoping to see him move up a level and face more opponents who are either going to extend him rounds or attempt to beat him, Mansalayao did neither before crumbling to Stamp's body shots.

Bangkok, Thailand
In a different Thai show a visitor did actually win as Brayd Smith (12-0, 10) managed to stop Indonesia's Anshori Anhar Pitulay (8-14-2, 6). 

(Image courtesy of our great friends over at Thairec.com)

This past Friday was all about Thailand where we had 2 separate shows with a trio of title contests.

Bangkok, Thailand
One of the two televised Thai shows came from Bangkok courtesy of Thai Channel 7.

This show featured 2 televised bouts with the first of those being a WBA Asia and PABA Flyweight title fight that was won by the unbeaten Eaktawan Mor Krungthepthonburi (6-0, 5) , who defeated Filipino visitor Edison Berwela (13-29-7, 3). Berwela was forced to retire in the 4th round. Prior to the retirement it did appear that his time was numbered as Eaktawan was going through the gears.

The second title bout saw Nop Kratingdaenggym (11-0, 1) successfully defend his PABA Super Bantamweight title with a decision win over Filipino foe Eranio Semillano (10-6, 3). Nop again showed off his skills but his complete lack of power really is going to hold him back, a reach shame considering how he is, stylistically, different form many of his compatriots.

The under-card on here featured 3 blow outs. The quickest of which was an opening round blow out by Tirachok Kiatniwat (6-0, 4) who swiftly took card of Petchkosin Manoprungroj (0-2) in what we believe was a rematch from Petchkosin's debut. It took just 2 rounds for former world champion Kwanthai Sithmorseng (47-3-1, 25) to defeat Saentawee sor Pholasing (0-1) in what was Kwanthai's first bout since his decision loss to Stamp Kiatniwat. The other blow out saw Dejpichit Kiatniwat (1-0, 1) who scored an opening round blow out against Petchmanee Sor Tanayong (1-1, 1).

Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand
The other of those Thai shows was in Nakhon Ratchasima where we had a third title fight on a show televised by Channel 3.

The title fight here saw Petchbarngborn Kokietgym (28-7-1, 11) successfully retain his PABA Super Bantamweight title with a stoppage victory over the gun-shy Ki-Chang Kim (5-2-1, 1). Kim wasn't happy at the stoppage though he had left the referee with little option due to being clearly out classed and unwilling to really fire back.

The other main televised bout on this card saw Norasing Kokietgym (12-0-1, 9) stop Indonesian foe Jemmy Gobel (18-25-5, 13) to extend his unbeaten run. Norasing is ready for much more pressing tests than this one though with it could be a while before we see him in a really competitive bout.

On an under-card bout Petchchorhae Kokietgym (8-0, 5) over-came an Indonesian visitor, sadly we're waiting for him to be identified by boxrec.com, whilst Kanda Por Muangpetch (2-1) defeated win-less Laos born fighter Lamnammoon Kwanjaisrikort (0-6).

(Image courtesy of Thairec.com)
(Results courtesy of Pal)

This past Friday was an amazing day of boxing in Asia with a number of major cards through Asia and a lot of very notable bouts.

Tokyo, Japan
Although there was 3 notable cards today there was only 1 standout card, the Ohashi promoted "The Fight" card in Tokyo. The card not only had the best fights on it but also the best prospects.

The show, which had several televised bouts, began off TV with a number of bouts of varying levels. 

The least significant bout on the show saw Kazuki Sanpei (3-2, 1) score his first stoppage with a 2nd round TKO over fellow unknown novice Genji Ishida (1-4). The bout really was a preliminary bout but it was the only contest on the card that didn't excite us in one way or another.

The first of the 5 significant bouts on the show saw Takuma Inoue (3-0, 1) score his first stoppage as he beat Thai debutant Chanachai Sor Siamchai (0-1) in 2 rounds. The contest was by far the easiest of Takuma's young career though it was still an impressive performance by the 18 year old who is tipped to go a very long way in the sport. It's a shame this bout was such a huge step backwards from his last fight, an 8 round decision win over Fahlan Sakkreerin Jr, though it seems likely that Inoue will take a big step up in his next bout with a possible title fight looming.

Following Takuma Inoue's win fans then saw the highly touted Ryo Matsumoto (12-0, 10) blow away Thai veteran Denkaosan Kaovichit (63-5-1, 26). Kaovichit, a former Flyweight world champion and an interim world champion at Super Flyweight, was supposed to be a good test for Matsumoto though the touted Japanese fighter dropped the Thai in the opening round and then crumpled him in round 2 with a devastating body shot. After the fight it was strongly hinted that Matsumoto would be challenging for the Japanese Super Flyweight title currently held be fellow unbeaten prospect Sho Ishida.

The first televised bout, at least in Japan, was a Middleweight contest between Olympic champion Ryota Murata (5-0, 4) and Mexico's Adrian Luna Flores (17-3-1, 11). The bout saw Murata score a clear 10 round decision over his Mexican foe though look less than impressive with serious questions be asked about his stamina late in the contest. The Mexican looked ready to go in round 10 though Murata was out of gas and had to coast the final round. The official cards were all in favour of Murata, 100-90, 99-91 and 98-92 though it's clear that he has a lot more work to do before stepping up to world level. After just 5 fights however no one will begrudge Murata more developmental fights.

Murata's bout was followed, at the venue and on Japanese TV, by the first of two world title fights. This contest saw Japanese star Naoya Inoue (7-0, 6) in action defending his WBC Light Flyweight title against Thailand's limited but tough Samartlek Kokietgym (17-5, 5). Inoue was in control through out the bout though he looked more flawed than he had in his previous 6 bouts. Fighting with the intention of putting on a show Inoue neglected his defensive duties more often than not as he loaded up with big shots, devastating combinations and some very eye catching offence. At the end of the day however it was a clear case of Inoue trying to entertain the fans and post-fight he admitted that it was a "garbage fight", an honest admission from a young fighter who is chasing genuine greatness. Whilst it was a poor bout it was Inoue's final one at 108lbs and he's now going to be moving to Flyweight where bouts against Juan Francisco Estrada and Amnat Ruenroeng were both mooted.

Another man who Inoue could fight is Roman Gonzalez (40-0, 34) who over-came Inoue's friend and stablemate Akira Yaegashi (20-4, 10) to claim the WBC Flyweight title in one of the best bouts of the year. The fight started slowly though quickly heated up with both Yaegashi and Gonzalez trading combinations through out the fight. Unfortunately for Yaegashi his warrior's mentality let him down in the end and he was eventually stopped after being dropped for the second time in the bout. Prior to the stoppage he had began to look exhausted and it was clear that he wasn't going to last the course against arguably the #1 offensive fighter in the sport. Unlike many fighters these two showed respect to each other before and after the bout knowing that the fight sold it's self on paper and didn't need hyping. In the ring both were warriors and both gave their all, though for Yaegashi he was simply up against a better warrior with bigger weapons.

Nonthaburi, Thailand
In Thailand fans got the chance to see a low profile show headlined by the very promising Teerachai Kratingdaenggym (27-0, 21) who retained his PABA Welterweight "super" title once again. Teerachai became the first fighter to stop Filipino Nelson Gulpe (8-3, 3) who has now lost 3 successive bouts though never has been bossed around as he was here. Sadly it's a shame that Teerachai still isn't stepping up when he has the potential to be so much more than he is showing. We understand there is a lack of Welterweights in the Orient though he needs to find someone better than Gulpe to fight next time out.

Another prospect ready to step up is Eaktawan Mor Krungthepthonburi (5-0, 4) who continued his winning run with an easy stoppage over Indonesian visitor Gaspar Ampolo (2-25-2, 1). Eaktawan didn't look great but didn't really struggle struggle. Like Naoya Inoue however it seemed that Eaktawan ignored his defensive responsiblities in the aim of entertaining fans.

A third bout on this show saw Inthanon Sithchamuang (23-7, 13) defeat the always game Indonesian journeyman Heri Amol (34-19-4, 14). Unfortunately for Amol this was his 5th straight loss and comes just a month after he was defeated by Japanese debutant Ken Shiro. 

Dubai
In Dubai fans saw the international debut of ALA who took their "Pinoy Pride" shows on the road for the first time and saw their trio of fighters all come back with victories.

The first of those Filipino's to notch up a victory was the popular Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista (36-3, 25) who took a 7th round technical decision over Juan Jose Martinez (19-2, 15). The fight was entertaining with both men loking for the knockout and although Bautista did score a knockdown in round 5 he was badly cut from a punch. The fight however came when the cut was worsened by a headclash that left the doctor with no decision but to take the fighters to the cards early where Bautista took a majority decision for the win.

One of the two co-features saw the unbeaten Arthur Villanueva (26-0, 14) claim the IBF International Super Flyweight title with a very narrow split decision win over the heavy handed Henry Maldonado (19-4, 14). The bout, refereed by British veteran Mickey Vann, saw an amazing second round which featured a knockdown against Villanueva though again saw many questioning Villanueava's world class potential. On the back of this fight and Villanueva's narrow win over Fernando Aguilar we're starting to think that he's either not as good as advertised or really struggling at Super Flyweight. Whatever it is, something is going to stop "King Arthur" from reaching the heady heights expected of him.

In the other co-feature we saw the ultra-talented Genesis Servania (25-0, 11) successfully retain WBO Inter-Continental Bantamweight title with a retirement victory over Jose Cabrera (22-5-2, 10). Cabrera had been dominated through out the early portion of the fight and had been dropped in round 2 and battered in rounds 3 and 4 though the bout swung in round 5 and Servania became hesitant after feeling the power of his Mexican foe. From round 8 the bout swung back in favour of the Filipino and Cabrera was eventually pulled between rounds 9 and 10 to give a relatively disappointing ending to the contest.

Prior to the bouts with the Filipino star trio there was a trio of under-card bouts. One of these saw another Filipino, Larry Abarra (3-2-1, 2), take a decision victory over Thailand's limited Chatpayak Sithkopon Nuengkawkawhok (2-8, 1). Another of the undercard bouts saw Dubai based Ugandan Deo Kizito (1-0) take a very narrow decision win over the previously unbeaten Anusher Abdullaev (4-1, 4). The remaining bout was a 1-sided beat down as Mohammad Akram (2-0-1, 1) dominated Thailand's Kong Windy Sports (1-6) to record a 2nd round victory.

Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Another title fight took place in Burkina Faso as Filipino Silvester Lopez (22-8-2, 16) attempted to claim the WBC International Super Bantamweight title. Sadly for Lopez he suffered a wide loss to Alexis Boureima Kabore (23-1, 6). Lopez, now fighting way above the division that he first made his name, really is too small for Super Bantamweight and should be looking to move back down to Bantamweight, at the highest. Of course however he'll fight where opportunities arise.

Lombardia, Italy
In Italy fans saw the return to the ring of Japanese born European based Aniya Seki (25-3-2, 2) who took a decision over journey-woman Claudia Ferenci (8-36-5, 3). This was Seki's first bout following her stoppage loss to Judith Rodriguez a few months back and although Seki won here few will feel she will be a world champion before she calls it quits on a long career.

(Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp)