Bangkok, Thailand
The first Asian action of a new month came on Thursday as fans in Thailand had an interesting show.

In the main event of the Channel 7 televised card we saw Thai fighter Knockout CP Freshmart (11-0, 6) successfully retain his WBA “interim” Minimumweight title with an unexpectedly one-sided victory over Alexis Diaz (16-1, 10). On paper this was an amazing match up between two highly regarded and unbeaten fighters from very different cultures, in the end however it resembled a a cat playing with a mouse before finally finishing off their pray. Diaz started brightly but had no answer to Knockout's power and pressure which took it's toll, stopping Diaz in the 4th round.

A huge mismatch on this card saw former world title challenger Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (46-2, 28) easily see off the game but limited Arega Yunian (3-4) of Indonesia. The bout was, on paper, one of the most amazing mismatches of the year but Yunian, to his credit, did give a gutsy display before being ground down. From what we understand the plan now for the Thai is to slowly move towards a WBA title fight, though it's not yet clear which WBA belt he'll be aiming for.

A third televised bout saw Ratchasak KKP (29-3-1, 14) score an entertaining, though very 1-sided, win against Falazona Fidal (25-43-1, 8). Fidal certainly left lasting memories for playing the role of of the “enjoyable journeyman”, with pelvic thrusts and taunting, though was out matched from the off before being stopped in round 4. Although Ratchasak was always in control we did notice a number of low blows from the Thai who really didn't need to stray below the belt as much as he did.

This past Friday was a hectic day from start to finish for Asian fans who got fights from all over Asia as well as a number of fighters in action outside of Asia.

Beiing, China
The most notable action of the day came from the Chinese capital where fans got an “interim” world title bout as well as several lower level bouts. Whilst we won't pretend the show was the greatest it certainly featured some excitement and plenty of knockdowns.

We'll start with the main event which saw exciting Filipino Randy Petalcorin (23-1-1, 18) successfully defend his WBA “interim” Light Flyweight title with an opening round destruction of Chinese challenger Ma Yi Ming (12-6, 7). Petalcorin looked sharp from the off and scored a trio of knockdowns forcing the referee to halt the bout after less than 2 minutes. Considering how good Petalcorin looked here we can't help but think it's time he stepped up and started facing fellow world level fighters rather than over matched foes like Ming.

The co-feature bout on the BTV Sports telecast saw Chinese Light Heavyweight Qu Peng (7-1-1, 5) make light work of Australian visitor Dane Campbell (3-3, 2) with an opening round TKO. Campbell had been down twice before a follow up assault forced the referee to halt the contest. With this win Peng claimed the “illustrious” WBO China National Light Heavyweight title, which was paraded around the ring prior to the bout.

The opening bout on the telecast was another bout in the heavier divisions as Zulpikar Maimaitiali (1-0, 1) scored a 5th round TKO against Thai visitor Yodkhunsuk Poowana (4-3-1, 2). The Thai had been down in the opening round before being stopped by the referee, incidentally a referee from Thailand. Another China Vs Thailand bout took place off camera as Xia Shunkai (3-0, 2) took his first decision win as he over-came Kajornsak Sithsaithong (7-5, 7).

The rest of the bouts here were all Chinese affairs. One of those saw Adili Abulimiti (1-1-1) take a 6 round decision win over debutant Huang Ju Xiang (0-1), another saw Xu Que (2-1-1, 2) take a 3rd round TKO win over Peng Ding Gui (0-1) whilst the unbeaten Yelieqiati (2-0) took a 4 round shut out against Liu Peng Fei (0-1).

Beijing, China
As well as the big show in Beijing there was another show, in the same venue in fact. This one featured mostly novices in action with 9 fights in total.

The main event for this card saw the debuting Chen Sen (1-0) take a majority decision over Ji Tao (7-5, 2) in the only 6 round bout of the card. Tao was the most experienced fighter on the card, by far.

From the 8 under-card 4 went the distance and 4 finished early. One of those that failed to go the distance saw Su Cheng (2-0, 1) claim a 2nd round TKO against Lin Jing Huang (0-1), another 2nd round TKO saw Alimu Wushouer (1-0, 1) over-come Yan Xiao Long (0-1). A 3rd TKO saw Dilixiati (1-0, 1) stop Lin Bing He (0-1) whilst a bout that ended in round 4 saw Tan Zheng (1-1, 1) over-come Ye Bao Fei (0-1)

In terms of bouts that went the distance a couple of those were clear and a couple were very close. One of those clear bouts saw Niu Zhong Jie (1-0) over-come Yu Chang Tian (0-1) whilst the other was a win for Cai Jun Cheng (1-0) who defeated Zhang Yi Feng (0-2). In the closer bouts fans saw Zhang Qi Xiu (1-0) take a majority decision over Halimubieke (1-2) and Wang Yin Gang (3-0, 1) take a victory over Su Shi Long (0-1).

Bangkok, Thailand
There was also some televised action from Thailand where fans had the chance to see several notable names in action.

One of those notable names was former world title challenger Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (45-2, 27) who took on the visiting Alwi Alhabsyi (13-22-3, 3) in what looked like a complete mismatch on paper. Whilst Panomroonglek got the much expected win, a stoppage in the 5th round, we were impressed but the gutsy effort of Alhabsyi who gave a lot more of an effort than many fighters in his position. Unfortunately for him he was down twice with the final one coming at the end of round 5. (Note at the time of writing boxrec.com list this as a 3rd round KO, the footage however proves that it was round 5).

Another notable name was Noknoi Sitthiprasert (54-4, 31)* who scored his 53rd straight win as he stopped the debuting Tonpetch Sithchansing (0-1) in round 3. This was as much of a mismatch as the records would suggest and it leaves us wondering just how many poor opponents they can find Noknoi to pad his record.

Yet another notable name in action here was former WBA “interim” Flyweight champion Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep (35-3, 21)* who managed to defeat the massively over-matched Jopher Marayan (7-6-2, 3) of the Philippines. Marayan came to fight but was busted up and bloodied by the time the referee stopped the bout in round 4. Prior to the stoppage Marayan was dropped and looked looked wobbly with his effort clearly taking it's toll on him. Despite the loss for Marayan we would like to see more of him as he's a fighter who comes to win. With this win Yodmongkol claimed the WBA Asia Flyweight title.

A final notable name here was Ratchasak KKP (27-3-1, 13) who took a stoppage win over Chaosamut Sithchansing (0-1). Chaosamut came to fight and did show some nice touches in a bout that became a slugfest. Unfortunately for the novice he was broken down despite a brave effort. As with many of the other losers on this card we genuinely want to see more of Chaosamut who impressed us more than Ratchasak did,

Metro Manila, Philippines
In the Philippines fans saw a show with a few interesting bouts.

The most notable of those saw the heavy handed Warlito Parrenas (24-6, 21) make light work of Thai visitor Kaichon Sor Vorapin (25-14, 9). Parrenas, ranked #1 by the WBO at Super Flyweight, disposed of Kaichon in the 3rd of a scheduled 10 rounds. This was the Thai's 5th straight stoppage loss and it seems clear he's no longer any sort of a threat.

Tokyo, Japanese
In Japan fans got an 8 fight show at the Korakuen Hall and although none of the bouts were huge there was a number of notable names and notable results.

The main event saw an upset as Tatsuya Otsubo (8-6-1, 3) took a close unanimous decision against ranked fighter Akihiko Katagiri (16-8-2, 7). This was Katagiri's first loss since he was stopped by Jhonny Gonzalez around 2 years ago however for Otsubo this was his 6th win and he has really turned his career around after a 2-6-1 start to his career.

In the co-feature Hikaru Nishida (12-7-2, 4) took an easy win over Thai visitor Kungsuk Sor Sompong (0-1). Nishida stopped the Thai in the 2nd round of a scheduled 8 rounder. This was Nishida's second win since losing a competitive decision to Akio Shibata last July in an OPBF/Japanese title fight.

A third scheduled 8 rounder saw Kimika Miyoshi (10-8-1, 5), a former female OPBF title holder, take out Muyalek Sithsaithong (3-1, 1) after just 1 minute of their bout.

Another notable name here was IBF Asia Featherweight champion Takuya Watanabe (25-5-1, 12) who blew out Sornnarai Sor Bangkhru (0-1) in 117 seconds of a scheduled 6 rounder. We're not hoping to see Watanabe in a more notable bout as he is genuinely an interesting fighter. Another 6 rounder saw Yamato Nakagawa (5-5, 3) make light work of the limited Ryota Koizumi (6-11-1, 4).

On the under-card we saw qualified accountant Kohei Kashino (2-0, 1) take a decision win over Akihrio Hikicho (3-5-3). Kashino's stablemate Riyako Goshi (3-3) wasn't as lucky however as she saw her 3-fight winning run come to an end in a wide decision loss to Yumiko Shimooka (2-1, 1). The reamining under-card bout ended in a draw as Shinjiro Kawada (2-1-1, 2) failed to see off Ryo Nakanko (1-2-2).

Accra, Ghana
In Africa things didn't end too well for the hard hitting but fragile Joebert Delos Reyes (13-5-1, 10) who was stopped in the 4th round by Emmanuel Tagoe (23-1, 10). This bout, for the WBA International Lightweight title, was ended on the 3-knockdown rule with Reyes being bounced on and off the canvas in round 4.

Eastern Cape, South Africa
Sadly things were frustrating for for Randy Braga (15-1-1, 3) who lost his unbeaten record in controversial circumstances. The Filipino, who travelled to South Africa to take on the heavy handed Macbute Sinyabi (25-4, 19), came incredibly close to claiming the IBO Inter-continental Featherweight title but was unfortunate on two of the cards as he lost a very close split decision to the home fighter.



(Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp)
(*Boxrec records are missing recent bouts for both Yodmongkol and Noknoi)

This past Thursday was a great day for fight fans in Asia with action in both Japan and Thailand

Chonburi, Thailand
The most notable action occurred in Thailand where fans got the chance to see a bit of everything, ranging from former world champions to novices beginning their careers.

The former world champion was Indonesian veteran Muhammad Rachman (65-12-5, 35) who was hoping to call himself a world champion for the 3rd time as he went up against unbeaten Thai Knockout CP Freshmart (10-0, 5). Knockout, who was defending his WBA interim Minimumweight title for the first time, quickly showed that his 19 years of youth “advantage” was more than enough to over-come the Indonesian fighter who had previously held the IBF and WBA world titles. Knockout was too good, too energetic, too fast and over-all too good for his experienced for gave his best but was never really in the bout.

In an under-card bout fans saw the highly experienced Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (44-2, 26) retain his PABA Bantamweight title with an 8th round KO against the smaller but game Mateo Handig (13-9, 7). Panomroonglek is said to be targeting a world title shot and this was more about ticking over than anything else, though the PABA title was on the line.

Another bout on this card saw Noknoi Sitthiprasert (53-4, 30) extend his winning streak to 52 straight wins as he took a decision win over Filipino journeyman Donny Mabao (21-25-1, 4) in what was a third meeting between the two men. Noknoi had beaten Mabao in both 2009 and 2010 and is now 3-0 against the busy Filipino who has now lost 4 in a row.

We are aware that there were other bouts on this show though unfortunately we've not had those results as of yet. From what we understand one bout involved Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep, who returned to the ring for the first time since he was stopped by Juan Carlos Reveco at the end of 2014, whilst another involved the exciting Chanachai Cp Freshmart. Hopefully we'll get those results shortly.

Tokyo, Japan
In Japan fans had a great day of action which culminated in a really exciting Japanese title fight though also showcased an OPBF title holder, a female world champion and a former Japanese title holder as well as several novices.

The least experienced fighter on the card was Toru Kiyota (1-0, 1) who made a successful debut with an opening round victory over Kohei Isozaki (1-2). Although Kiyota now has some professional experience under his belt it is worth noting this bout lasted just 123 and was Isozaki's second successive stoppage loss.

Another undercard bout that failed to last long was a Middleweight clash that saw Rasher Aoki (3-2, 1) blow away Tomoki Akutsu (1-2) in the second round. This Akutsu's first bout since he was stopped inside a round by Kenyu Ojima last June and it seems clear that his durability will hold him back.

In an interesting Light Flyweight bout fans saw the promising Kenichi Miyazaki (8-1-1, 2) take a clear 6 round decision over the experienced Takuro Habu (11-10-2, 3). This was Miyazaki's 3rd straight since being stopped in the West Japan Rookie of the Year back in November 2013 and it seems clear that he has a lot of potential.

Another 6 rounder saw WBA Atomweight champion Ayaka Miyao (20-5-1, 4) take a clear and comprehensive victory over Momoko Kanda (8-7-2, 2). The bout showed the class difference between a world champion and a domestic level fighter however it comments made after the bout that served as being notable with Miyao suggesting she was open to fighting WBC Atomweight champion Momo Koseki. If that bout can be made it would be the first ever Atomweight unification bout.

In an 8 rounder fans saw Tatsuya Yanagi (11-2, 4) take a razor thin decision over the more experienced Toru Suzuki (24-5, 8) in a minor upset. Yanagi had entered on back-to-back losses, including a decision loss to the much touted Johnriel Maligro, though had won the 2012 All Japan Rookie of the year. Suzuki, the more experienced man, had been stopped in 3 of his previous 5 and appears to have found his level as being below national title level. Notably Suzuki was testing the water as a fully blown Super Featherweight having previously made his name as a Featherweight.

In another 8 rounder we saw Masaki Saito (12-10-4, 3) score an upset win over former Japanese Super Featherweight champion Seiichi Okada (18-6, 11). Sadly for Okada, who made 3 defended of the national title in 2011, it appears this will have been the final nail in his coffin. The popular 32 year old has lost 5 of his last 7 now and has been stopped in 4 of those bouts suggesting it's time he though about retirement. It's a shame for Okada if that's it but he's had a good career over-all. For Saito this is a huge win and he's now 4-1-1 (2) in his last 6 suggesting he's turning his career around.

The most notable of the 8 round bouts saw OPBF Super Flyweight champion Ryo Matsumoto (14-0, 12) make light work of Thai visitor Thanuthong Chor Kangwal (0-1) who was stopped after 33 seconds of round 2. The talented Matsumoto landed a liver shot that left Thanuthong in agony and showed the huge gulf in class between the two fighters. Prior to the fight Matsumoto had hinted at aiming for a Bantamweight world title later in the year and on this showing he does look healthier as a Bantamweight than as a Super Flyweight.

In the main event the fans got a real treat as Japanese Featherweight champion Satoshi Hosono (27-2-1, 20) over-came a very spirited effort from Rikiya Fukuhara (30-8-1, 22). Fukuhara, who had previously been stopped by Hosono, started really well but had to pull himself off the canvas in round 4 as Hosono's power and toughness forced Fukuhara into the wrong type of fight. Late on Fukuhara managed to find some success but it was too little too late to over-come the tough Hosono who is hoping to get another world title fight, though seems unlikely to beat any of the current champions, sadly. For Fukuhara this may be the end of his long career, which has seen him claim the Japanese Super Bantamweight title and challenge for titles at both Featherweight and Super Featherweight.


(Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp)

Nakhon Sawan, Thailand
This year has certainly been a very slow one to get going but it seems like we now have life in the world of boxing and today we saw the first world title bout in Asia for 2015. We also saw a couple of youth title bouts and a couple of other contests.

The show, which was televised on Thai channel 7, began with one of the WBC Youth title fights as WBC Youth Minimumweight champion Chanachai CP Freshmart (2-0, 1) successfully defended his title. Chanachai was battling against the more experienced Wilber Andogan (10-18-4, 4) and although Chanchai did show signs of inexperience he thoroughly dominated Andogan who did very well to survive the scheduled 10 round distance. Whilst this was the first we'd managed to see Chachai in action he did look impressive and we're going to look forward to see him again in the future as he looked a very aggressive and exciting young fighter.

Following the starter we then got the main event bout which was another bout at Minimumweight as WBC world champion Wanheng Menayothin (37-0, 12) made the first defense of his title. Wanehng, who won the title last year when he stopped Oswaldo Novoa, was taking on unknown Filipino challenger Jeffrey Galero (11-1, 5) and a it seemed in the early rounds as if Wanheng was trying to figure out his Filipino opponent who had success in the opening rounds with his smart movement and intelligent boxing. Sadly for Galero he was then put under 10 rounds of increasingly stiff pressure and although he survived the pressure he was the clear loser come the final bell.

In the show's third bout we again saw title against as the brilliant Kongputorn CPFreshmart (6-0, 4)* retained his WBC Youth Flyweight title with a brutal beating of the very badly over-matched Zhang Fang Yon (0-2). Yon showed some bravery early on but took a pounding before being saved in round 3 by the referee. By the end Yon was bleeding from various cuts, was having his head snapped back and rocked repeatedly and the bout was becoming a show case for the very talented Kongputorn who we hope to see matched a little harder in the next few months.

After the title bouts fans then had the chance to see a former world title challenger in action as Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (43-2, 25), best known for his loss in 2013 to Koki Kameda, dismantled a horribly over-matched Indonesian foe, believed to be Edo Anggoro (7-3), in 3 rounds. The match was a farcical mismatch in what Anggoro did little other than show his guts as he picked himself of the canvas repeatedly. We're unsure if Angoro was the opponent though if it was it seems his record is massively incomplete.

As the broadcast went off air there was still a fight going on involving Noknoi Sitthiprasert (52-4, 30) who managed to over-come the win-less Mongkol Patanakan Gym (0-8), who had been stopped in 6 of his previous 7 defeats.

California, USA
In the US the unbeaten Ruslan Madiev (3-0, 1) recorded his first stoppage as he took 102 seconds to defeat Cesar Martinez (4-5-2, 1)

*Boxrec still fail to recognise Kongputorn's debut win over Veeradej Manoprungroj, which can be seen here 

(Image courtesy of Thairec.com)

Thailand
On December 26th, a date known as "Boxing Day" in Great Britain, Thai fans had a small, but notable and genuinely interesting, show that featured 2 of the most promising young fighters in Thailand as well as a former world title challenger.

The former world challenger was Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (42-2, 24) who out pointed the ultra-busy Samuel Tehuayo (18-29-2, 3), who has now gone 1-11 for the year. Panomroonglek has been said to be in talks about getting a world title fight in 2015 and although we can't see him beating any of the top Bantamweights right now he may as well chase a big fight at this point in his career. Notably this was the Thai's 5th straight win since his 2013 loss to Koki Kameda in a bout for the WBA Bantamweight title.

As for the prospects one of those was the excellent Kongputorn CPFreshmart (6-0, 4) who went the scheduled distance with the tough Filipino Joel Kwong (1-8, 1). Kwong may not be the best fighter but he's been giving some of the best in Thailand really good work outs in the last 18 months, having gone the distance with Ratchasak KKP, Sod Kokietgym, Petch Kokietgym and Petchbarngborn Kokietgym. We are big fans of Kongputorn and a work out like this will not do him any harm at all, especially as it helped to show up some of his defensive holes and will give him areas to work on.

The other prospect in action was Kongfah CP Freshmart (10-0, 5) who stopped his opponent with a devastating uppercut. Unfortunately we've not got the name of Kongfah's foe but we do know that this was Kongfah's second brilliant KO of the year following his eerie knockout against Sangthong Chor Pakdee back in August.

Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand
The most notable Asian bout of the day happened in Thailand where PABA interim Bantamweight champion Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (41-2, 24) successfully defended his title and stopped Indonesian visitor Junior Bajawa (14-4, 7), with Bajawa retiring in his corner. We suspect, from what we've been told, that this bout win will set up Panomroonglek for a world title fight with a WBA title holder though at the moment we're unsure over which WBA title holder with suspicions that it could be Jamie McDonnell of the UK.

In another televised bout from this card we've been told that Kongputorn CPFreshmart (4-0, 3) continued his winning run with a 3rd round retirement victory over Jomyuthlek sor Narongchai (10-3, 3). 

Metro Manila, Philippines
Another show where we only have the main event result at the moment came in the Philippines where Rogelio Jun Doliguez (19-2-2, 14) lost a split technical decision to Dennis Tubieron (19-3-1, 8). Doliguez was dropped early in the bout and was later stopped after a nasty clash of heads forced the referee to end the bout. Again we're hoping for the under-card results shortly.

Tokyo, Japan
In Japan we had the second day of Rookie of the Year East semi-finals. This show, like yesterday's, saw the winners taking a step towards the All Japan Rookie of the Year finals later this year. 
In the Minimumweight division Yuki Kubo (5-1, 2) out pointed Akihiro Hikichi (3-4-3) with a clear cut decision. A less clear cut bout was in the Light Flyweight division where Sho Kimura (5-1-1) progressed despite only draw with Akira Kokubo (1-3-3), that was because Kimura won on one of the 3 cards, effectively taking a "minority" draw if you will. On paper it was the Flyweight division that had one of the best match ups as Sonin Nihei (5-0-1, 1) maintained his unbeaten record and got past the heavy handed Naoki Mochizuki (5-1, 4).

At Super Flyweight we had our first stoppage as Hokuto Sakata (5-3-1, 3) took out the previously unbeaten Yugo Ueda (3-1, 2) in the third round. This was one of 5 stoppages on the show and we'll get to the others in a moment or two.

The Bantamweight division featured one of the most competitive contests as Ken Kodama (4-0-1, 1) narrowly out pointed Junichi Obara (6-3-1, 1) with a split decision. We also had a split decision up at Lightweight where Shintaro Nakamura (5-2-1, 2) just over came Shoma Koga (3-2-1, 3).

The second KO of the show came as Super Bantamweight as Yuki Matsudo (7-1, 3) scored an opening round KO against Hikaru Takaki (6-5, 5). At Featherweight we saw Naoto Miroya (6-1-1, 3) force a 3rd round retirement of Yu Takegaki (4-3-1, 1) whilst at Super Featherweight Yutaka Ekawa (5-2-1, 2) upset Hikaru Akutsu (4-1, 3) with a 2nd round KO. There was also a KO in the show ending Middleweight bout as Asahi Hatsumi (4-1, 2) took out Naoya Kaneko (3-3, 3) in 3 rounds.

The remaining contests came in the Welterweight divisions. At Light Welterweight Yasuki Katagiri (4-0, 1) out pointed Shunsuke Fukushima (3-3-2, 2) in a very tight fight whilst at Welterweight Masaya Tamayama (4-0, 3) took a majority win over Hiroki Ashizawa (2-1, 2).

Krasnodar, Russia
The one card where we do have all the results for, for now at least, came in Russia as we had a card with some international attention.

The main event saw American superstar Roy Jones Jr (59-8, 42) stopping the awfully mismatched Hany Atiyo (14-3, 10) in just 75 seconds in what was little more than a farce to give Jones an easy and impressive looking win. Unfortunately it was a farce even Stevie Wonder could see through.

Prior to the Roy Jones Jr bout there had been 5 other contests on the show, all more entertaining than the disgrace that followed them. 

The first of the undercard bouts saw Soslan Tedeev (4-0, 4) continue his rise through the ranks with a 3rd round KO against the more experienced, and usually durable Bacho Kvaratskhelia (16-12-3, 6). The Georgian visitor suffered his first stoppage defeat in over 4 years, dating back to a stoppage loss to Serhiy Fedchenko. On paper this is very impressive from Tedeev who may be one of the many Russian fighters on the very of breaking through.

In an equally as impressive victory Ruslan Faifer (4-0, 1) took a very clear decision over the substantially more experienced Yuriy Barashian (27-7, 18) to claim the vacant WBC Baltic Silver Cruiserweight title. Although the title doesn't have much of a meaning it is still a great win for Faifer who stepped up massively and beat a 2-time world title challenger in an 8 round bout. Whilst it's true that Barashian was a Light Heavyweight in his prime this was still a good win considering where Faifer is in his own career, the beginning.

Another man with an impressive showing was Aik Shakhnazaryan (14-0, 5) who thoroughly dominated the brave and tough Sergio Mauricio Gil (16-4-2, 12). Gil was dropped twice, in rounds 5 and 10, though showed great heart to see out the 10 round bout when he could have quit. The scored of 100-88 all showed the domination by the unbeaten Russian who is ready to be moved towards a more meaningful fight.

In another title bout David Avanesyan (18-1-1, 9) out pointed Ramon de la Cruz Sena (18-12-2, 11) to defend the WBC Baltic Welterweight title with ease. This was another widely scored contest in favour of the Russian winner who was never really in any trouble at all.

The most oddly scored bout of the show was in the co-feature as Fedor Papazov (16-1, 10) took a very, very wide decision over the durable Felix Lora (18-13-5, 9). Lora was down in rounds 6 and 7 and had numerous points taken to result in score cards that read 98-87, 98-86 and 99-85 all in favour of Papazov. Yes that was a 10 rounder with scorecards as wide as 14 points! Staggering. This bout saw Papazov defending the WBC Baltic Lightweight title for the first time.

New South Wales, Australia
In Australia local fans had the chance to see their very own Davey Browne (20-1-1, 6) dominated Filipino foe Rey Las Pinas (19-10-5, 11) in a very 1-sided bout for the WBC Eurasia Pacific Boxing Council Super Featherweight title. We do need to wonder what the Filipino fighter was doing at 130lbs considering he's usually a Super Bantamweight, though it appears he was doing little more than surviving in a shut out loss.

As we've mentioned we will be hoping to add the other bouts from the Philippines soon. Sadly with Saturday being a busy day we've decided to publish this "as is" ahead of the bouts tomorrow. Sorry for any confusion however.

Bangkok, Thailand
Tuesday may not have been an action packed day but it may turn out to have been a significant day for several Thai fighters who won their bouts earlier on.

The show, which in total featured 4 bouts, was headlined by the unbeaten and wonderfully named Knockout CP Freshmart (7-0, 4) who lived up to his first name by stopping win-less Indian fighter Sandeep (0-4) in the 5th round to defend his WBC Youth Minimumweight title. Our excellent Thai source has informed is that following the fight Knockout's promoter has suggest that the unbeaten fighter could be about to receive a top 15 ranking with the WBC. It's worth noting that prior to this bout Knockout was #24 with the WBC though with 6 defences of the Youth title he may well be given an improved ranking, even if the opponents were poor.

Although Knockout was the main event he wasn't actually the most recognisable fighter on the show, that honour was held by former WBA Bantamweight title challenger Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (40-2, 23) who stopped debuting Indian Balbeer (0-1) in the 4th round of a scheduled 6 rounder. 

The only other bout, currently, listed on boxrec shows a 6 round decision victory for Kongfah CP Freshmart (6-0, 2) who over-came Petchchumpol Sor Visetkit (4-2, 2) to continue his unbeaten run. We've actually been informed that a 4th bout saw the debuting Kongphutorn Nor Nophiran (1-0, 1) taking a 3rd round KO over Veeradej Manoprungroj (1-2), who had previously been stopped just once, by current WBA interim Flyweight champion Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep. We've been told that Kongphutorn is a notable Muay Thai fighter and that he may be fast tracked if he chooses to continue in professional as opposed to Muay Thai.

It's rare for a Tuesday to be a big day in boxing but this past Tuesday was a major day in Asia with a trio of title fights and two major shows.

Bangkok, Thailand
The first of the shows was in Thailand and televised, at least partly, on Thai Channel 7.

Not only was the Thai card the first show to get under-way but in terms of significance it also had the "biggest" bout of the day as WBA "interim" Flyweight champion Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep (34-2, 20) defended his title for the first time. Yodmongkol had genuinely impressed when he won the title ripping it from the hands of Japan's exciting but limited Koki Eto. Unfortunately though this time he disappointed us. Fighting against Takuya Kogawa (22-4, 13) we knew this was set to be a good fight and proved every bit as good as anticipated though it was Kogawa making much of the action and bringing the fight with amazing combinations and bundles of energy. Unfortunately for him however the judges weren't impressed and it was Yodmongkol, pictured, who controversially retained his title.

Whilst Kogawa had impressed there was some suggestion after the fight that he's considering retirement. We're really hoping that he doesn't as he proved himself here and he belongs in other top fights amongst some of the best at 112.

Another man who impressed on the show was Thai novice Palangpol CP Freshmart (2-0, 2) who scored a hugely impressive stoppage over Indonesia's experienced Jack Amisa (20-30-2, 14). Whilst Amisa is beatable and has regularly lost through his career he rarely gets stopped and very rarely gets beaten by such a novice. Excellent win by Palangpol.

The only other bout on the show that we have the result for saw former world title challenger Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym (39-2, 22) stopping Rick Paciones (6-17-2, 3) in 3 rounds.

Tokyo, Japan
Over in Japan we had two national fights on an excellent domestic show. The first of those title fights saw the excellent and unbeaten Hiroki Okada (8-0, 7) managing to over-come his toughest so far. Okada, fighting against Masayoshi Kotake (9-8-1, 5), was taken the distance for the first time though did more than enough to secure the Japanese Light Welterweight title.

The second title fight saw a slight upset as Tadashi Yuba (45-9-2, 32) lost his Japanese Light Middleweight title to Takayuki Hosokawa (25-10-3, 8)  via a majority decision. Yuba, aged 37, now seems likely to retire and hang up his gloves after a memorable and historic career.

As well as the title fights there were a further 5 bouts on the card. These included a 6th round KO victory for Masahiro Ishida (14-5-2, 8) who saw off the over-matched Ryuta Wakamatsu (9-9, 6). Ishida's victory was one of two stoppages on the card alongside one scored by Hideto Miyoshi (7-2-1, 5) who stopped Hitoshi Ando (4-6-1, 3).

The biggest name on the under-card was Dai Iwai (14-3-1, 5) who managed to win a competitive 8 round decision over Shogo Ishikawa (10-6, 3). Another victory on the under-card was scored by Yoshiyuki Takabayashi (7-3, 3) who managed to score a 5 round victory over Ryuto Araya (5-2-1).

The only other bout on the show show saw Mitsumasa Takahashi (8-4-1, 2) fighting to a draw with Takeshi Goda (7-2-1, 2).


(Picture courtesy of WBAnews.com)