This past Friday was a busy in Asian boxing with 3 televised cards across the continent.

Ningbo, China
The most significant of the cards was in China where we had a trio of title bouts, all of which were won by local fighters as the Chinese boxing scene continues to develop, without kicking up much of a fuss.

The main event of the card was the most significant bout on offer and saw former world title challenger Xiong Zhao Zhong (26-6-1, 14) claim the OPBF Minimumweight title, and add it to his WBC International title. Zhong, China's only ever male world champion, looked better than ever as he out boxed Filipino fighter Crison Omayao (17-10-3, 5) to a wide decision. Omayao, well known for losses to Japanese fighters Naoya Inoue, who was making his debut at the time, and Kosei Tanaka, did put up a genuine effort but looked slightly lost against the more capable Zhong.

In another title bout China's Cai Zong Ju (6-1, 1) was very fortunate to take a decision win against Japanese warrior Mari Ando (12-8, 5), in a bout that saw Ju retain her WBC International female Minimumweight title. Ju started well but was really dragged into a war in the middle rounds as Ando came on strong, bust Ju's nose and gave her hell. Despite the genuinely competitive nature of the fight Hubert Minn some how had this one 8-2 to Ju in what is a genuine shocking score card.

The lesser of the title bouts here saw the really promising Xu Chan (7-2) claim the WBA Ocean Super Featherweight title with a 10 round decision win against Thai veteran Chaiyong Sithsaithong (37-14-4, 26). Chan, who does lack power, looked like there was plenty to get excited about but he will need to link up with a good trainer if he's to have the career that his naturally ability suggests he could have.

On the under-card fans got 3 non-televised bouts. One of those saw local fighter Bai Shan Bo (4-0-1, 1) take a 6 round decision against Indonesian veteran Heri Andriyanto (21-20-2, 10). On paper it was a good win for the novice but Andriyanto has gone 2-5 in his last 7 and now looks like a spent force. Another of those under-card bouts saw Thai based Iranian Mohamadreza Hamze (7-6-1, 2) take a decision win over the win-less Ju Xiang Huang (0-2), with Hamze bouncing back from a loss in South Korea. The remaining under-card bout was a female bout and saw the unbeaten Gao Li Jun (3-0, 1) over-come Thailand's Lookkaew Sithpracha (0-2).

Pathum Thani, Thailand
Zhong wasn't the only former world champion in action as Thai fans got the chance to see one of their former title holders in action in the headline bout of a card on Channel 7.

That former world champion was Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (45-6-1, 23) who retained his WBC ABCO Bantamweight title with an easy 2nd round KO win against Frans Damur Palue (11-10-2, 6). This was little more than a stay busy fight for Suriyan who really is just awaiting the WBC ordering a Bantamweight world title eliminator, possibly against Rodrigo Guerrero or possible with Liborio Solis.

Suriyan's younger brother Nawaphon Por Chokchai (30-0, 23) extended his perfect record with a farcical victory against Medgoen Por Kobkua (0-1). The bout saw Nawaphon give Medgoen several free shots in the first 3 rounds before fight back in round 4 and despatching the debutant with ease. We need to wonder what purpose this bout served other than to further bloat Nawaphon's record.

A more interesting match up, on paper at least, saw Ponsaklek Sithdabnij (5-3, 4) over-come Heri Purnomo (2-6, 1) with a 2nd round KO. Purnomo came to win and seemed to sting Pongsaklek I the opening round but had no answer to a second round assault as Pongsaklek moved up a gear.

Another 2nd round win on this card saw Kongfah Nakornluang (23-1, 14) get back to winning ways as he easily saw off Bovy Jumpolnamkaenglod (0-1). This was Kongfah's first bout since he suffered a shock loss to the aforementioned Pongsaklek.

Bangkok, Thailand
Another Thai card came from Bangkok and was aired on Channel 3.

The main event here was a PABA Super Flyweight title fight that saw Chatpetch Sithmorseng (12-3-2, 6) easily out point Filipino visitor Jetly Purisima (20-17-4, 5) in what was a shut out win for the Thai fight.

The really promising Romnakit PKT College (5-0, 3) went the distance for the second time in his career, though continued his perfect winning streak as he over-came Junar Adante (5-2-1, 2) over 8 rounds. Although relatively unknown outside of Thailand Ronnakit, also known as Ronnakit Technopoly Bangkok, does look to be a really promising fighter worth keeping an eye on.

Another unbeaten fighter extending their winning run on this card was Dennapa Kiatniwat (6-0, 3), who stopped Kongpichit Sithprayoon (0-4) in 4 rounds.

Tokyo, Japan
This past Friday there was 3 Asian shows with 2 in Japan. For us the more noteworthy of those came form the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.

The most notable bout on this card saw the always exciting Takuya Kogawa (24-4, 13) reclaim the Japanese Flyweight title to begin his second reign. The all-action warrior managed to out point the tough Hiroki Saito (9-5, 5) in an entrancing 10 round battle that brought the best from both men. Kogawa, who lost the title in 2013 to Suguru Muranaka, has now got a lot of exciting options in front of him, including a possible rematch with Muranaka or a chance to move into another world level bout with some really big names for the lower weights.

Whilst the main event was brilliant there was also 3 very good supporting match ups. One of those saw fringe Super Featherweight contender Shingo Eto (17-3-1, 9) move a step closer to fighting for the OPBF title as he out pointed Filipino veteran Edgar Gabejan (27-32-6, 9) in a very competitive bout. Although Gabejan's record is far from impressive he's actually a very solid fighter and showed that once again here.

Another supporting bout saw Hideo Sakamoto (16-1-3, 5) suffer an unfortunate draw with Hiroki Teshigawara (9-1-2, 4). Some at ringside felt this was a political decision that cost Sakamoto what should have been a clear but competitive decision win though the draw does keep the under-rated Bantamweight in the hunt for a title fight in the next few years. Although talented Sakamoto doesn't belong in the ring with the likes of Shohei Omori, though will be a good opponent for anyone at the domestic level.

The third of the noteworthy support bouts saw the under-rated Ryoichi Tamura (4-2-1, 1) take a split decision over heavy handed southpaw Yusuke Suzuki (6-2, 4) in an enthralling contest between two novice professionals putting it all on the line in what was a perfect example of what boxing is about. We won't pretend this was the highest skilled fight in history but it exemplified the fight game perfect.

As well as the 4 main bout this card also featured 5 lower level bouts, all scheduled for the 4 round distance.

Of those under-card bouts just a couple went this distance. These both saw wins for debutants with Kazuki Naya (1-0, 1) out pointing Daisuke Uchikawa (2-2-1, 1), in a competitive Featherweight bout, while Rikiya Ono (1-0) easily saw off Shogo Isaka (0-1).

A bout that almost saw the final bell ended with more than a minute of round 4 gone as 17 year old prospect Junto Nakatani (2-0, 2) stopped Akira Kokubo (1-6-3), giving Kokubo his first stoppage loss. The remaining bouts both ended in the opening round with Welterweight Shunsuke Nakamura (2-0, 1) stopping 34 year old debutant Akio Uwajima (0-1) at the end of the opening stance whilst Junki Kobayashi (2-1, 2) stopped Ryo Kato (1-2) midway through the opening stanza.

Osaka, Japan
The other Japanese card came from Osaka where Harada Promotions put on an 8 fight card.

The main event here saw Japanese domestic contender Tetsuya Hisada (23-9-2, 13) score a 2nd round TKO against fellow contender Atsushi Aburada (10-8, 6). Hisada came out swinging with bad intentions and a big flurry dropped Aburada early in the second before a follow up attacked forced the referee to step in. Coming in Aburada had, just 2 fights back, fought in a Japanese title fight against Yu Kimura but this loss ends any chance of him getting another any time soon. It does however open the door to Hisada getting a well deserved shot, something he's amazingly never had before.

The co-feature bout here saw Riichi Kawase (7-6-3, 2) score a 2nd round KO against Hiroki Yoshimura (7-12, 4), who has now been stopped 10 times. Yoshimura beat the 10 count but was waved off by the referee. Another early win saw Kyohei Tonomoto (7-2, 3) take out Paisitong Muangsima (0-1) in 161 seconds.

In a 6 rounder Hiroshi Takagi (5-4, 1) took a decision win over the very light punching Takahiko Nakajima (4-7-1). This win for Takagi was his third in a row and it's fair to say he has turned his career around after a 2-4-1 start. He is however unlikely to progress far given that he's already 29 years old.

Like the other card this one had a number of 4 rounders, all of which went the distance. The most notable of those saw the unbeaten Tuki Takahashi (5-0, 1) extend his perfect start with a decision win against Yosuke Shimagawa (5-6-1, 2). Another unbeaten picking up a win here was Yuna Hara (2-0) who out pointed the debuting Joken Takaoka (0-1). It wasn't all good news for people who came in unbeaten however as Maya Uegaki (1-1, 1) suffer a decision loss to Minayo Kei (1-1). The remaining bout saw Takashi Oura (4-4, 1) level off his record with a decision win over Takahiro Horio (1-1).

Pathum Thani, Thailand
In Thailand we saw a number of Nakornluong fighters in action as they continued their march towards numerous world title bouts.

In the main event of the card the WBC #1 ranked Flyweight contender Nawaphon Por Chokchai (29-0, 22) successfully defended his WBC Asian Boxing Council Flyweight title with a 3rd round KO over over-matched Filipino Wiljan Ugbaniel (13-5-1, 4). Nawaphon, who has set his eyes on Roman Gonzalez, was too big and too strong for Ugbaniel and although he landed a massive low blow in round 2 it was a culmination of shots that eventually forced Ugbaniel to take the count in the corner.

A huge mismatch saw the always fun to watch Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (35-4-1, 32) put in a stay busy performance as he stopped Indonesian visitor Jack Amisa (21-36-2, 14) inside a round. The always aggressive Srisaket now has eyes on a rematch with Carlos Cuadras, as it seems likely that that bout may come before the year is over. Notably Amisa was unhappy at the stoppage but he did seem to take his time getting up and had been given a slow count as it was.

Another mismatch saw the criminally under-rated Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (44-6-1, 22) took a straight forward win over the much taller Ibuki Tanaka (0-2). On paper this was a total mismatch, as it proved to be in the ring, but it seemed that Suriyan was working on how to deal with a tall fighter and how to make the most of his “shortness”. Whilst it's not a given it could be that he's looking to get a title fight with a champion later in the year, and many of the top champions in the division are taller than him. Tanaka, to his credit, show real grit and toughness, but was never competitive before being stopped.

(Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp)

Tokyo, Japan
The big show this past Wednesday came from the Korakuen Hall where fans got a real treat of a card with several notable names in significant bouts.

The most notable of the bouts was the shows main event which saw talented southpaw Shingo Wake (19-4-2, 11) show off his ability and dominate Thai veteran Mike Tawatchai (35-8-1, 21) in an IBF Super Bantamweight world title eliminator. The bout was all Wake who dropped only a round or two against a man who really had no answer to his skills, speed or movement. The fight was for the right to become Carl Frampton's mandatory and it's fair to say that Wake will be a very interested party when Frampton defends his title against Alejandro Gonzalez Jr in July.

Another notable man in action was former world title challenger Hisashi Amagasa (29-5-2, 19) who easily out pointed Patomsith Pathompothong (12-4, 5) in what was Amagasa's first bout since his loss to Guillermo Rigondeaux last December. Although Amagasa failed to get the knockout he was completely in charge from the opening round.

Another one sided bout saw popular female fighter Tomomi Takano (8-1, 5) claim her first title as she won the OPBF female Super Bantamweight title with a dominant display against Thailand's Nongbua Lookpraiaree (9-13-1, 1). Takano used her reach and height to keep Nongbua at range where she was unable to land anything of note. Although the win was a clear one for Takano it seems obvious that she was fighting a tailor made opponent who never had anything to threaten her with.

On the bottom part of this card there was a trio of 8 round under-card bouts. One of those saw the return to the ring of the touted Kenta Onjo (5-1, 3) who easily out pointed San Saknarong (2-3). This was Onjo's first bout since his surprise defeat to Jonathan Baat earlier this year.

Another of the under-card bouts saw Takaaki Ishikawa (11-6, 6) score a 4th round TKO against Kanae Onogi (6-8-1, 3) whilst another saw Kazuki Matsuyama (12-5, 6) score a 3rd round TKO against Yoshiyuki Suzuki (5-8-5, 1).

Khon Kaen, Thailand
As well as the card in Japan there was also one in Thailand.

The headline bout here saw highly regarded Bantamweight hopeful Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (42-6-1, 21) score a 2nd round KO against Filipino slugger Jomar Fajardo (14-8-2, 7). Sadly this bout ended with Fajardo suffering a nasty looking injury to his shoulder.

Another bout here saw the exciting but limited Kongfah Nakornluang (22-0, 14) defeat Filipino visitor Wilber Andogan (10-20-4, 4) in a gruelling contest. Andogan retired in his corner with what appeared to be another injury.

We also know that Jirapan Nakornluang was in action on this show though we're unsure on who he was facing or the eventual result from from the bout.

(Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp)

Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand
There wasn't much action this past Thursday, but it did include one of the best looking bouts, on paper, for the weekend.

That bout was a WBC Super Flyweight world title eliminator between former champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (34-4-1, 31) and former world title challenger Jose Salgado (34-3-2, 27). On paper it was genuinely mouth watering. In the ring however things were one sided with Srisaket essentially breaking down his Mexican foe through 3 and a bit rounds, all of which were one sided. Salgado had his moments but they were fleeting with Srisaket instilling his pressure, intensity and strength on Salgado who seemed unable to prevent himself from being bullied before being stopped part way through round 4 as Srisaket landed bombs at will.

A second former world champion in action on this card was Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (42-6-1, 20) who kept busy with an easy win against the horribly over-matched Khunsuk Chaiyonggym* (0-1). Suriyan really did as he wished before finishing his foe with a sickening body shot very early in round 2. The nose of the shot was disgusting and it was little wonder that that the waved was swiftly stopped, though Khunsuk did manage to get back to his feet in an impressive showing of toughness.

Another notable fighter on this card was highly ranked Flyweight contender Nawaphon Por Chokchai (28-0, 21) who saw off an opponent, believed to be Chatpetch Sithsaithong* (0-1), with flurry. Although none of the shots looked particularly big Chatpetch was looking done a long time before the finish. We know Nawaphon is wanting a world title fight with Roman Gonzalez but he really shouldn't be wasting his time on fights against this level of opposition which is doing little for his development.

This card also featured 2 “unknown” bouts. Neither boxrec, our Thai friends at tko.in.th or ourselves have managed to identify. Hopefully their names will become available soon however there is a worry that the bouts, like many others form Thailand, will go relatively unreported.


*Names are guesses based on the Thai transliterations of the names we were given.

Thailand
This past Tuesday saw Thai fans having some action on Channel 3. The fights were big but they did feature some notable fighters in action.

The most notable man in action was former WBC Super Flyweight champion Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (41-6-1, 10) as he stopped fellow Thai Yodpichai Sithsaithong (10-13, 4) in a stay busy fight. Suriyan, who is waiting for a bigger bout to be arranged later in the year, did as he pleased with Yodpichai before moving through the gears and finally finished off Yodpichai in round 5 with a spiteful left hook to the head.

WBC #1 ranked Flyweight Nawaphon Por Chokchai (27-0, 20) easily retained his WBC Asian Boxing Council Flyweight title as he stopped the horribly over-matched Dion Arema (3-4, 2) in the 5th round. Prior to the finish Arema had been battered from pillar to post by Nawaphon who continues his chase of a world title fight with Roman Gonzalez.

Another bout on this card saw the unbeaten Jirapan Nakornluang (4-0, 3) defeat an unknown opponent, who's name we hope to get soon. The opponent gave a good effort in the opening round but Jirapan took advantage of his defensive flaws in round 3 dropping him twice with right hands. The gutsy foe tried to get back to his feet but was counted out on his way up.

As well as the 3 bouts mentioned this card also featured another couple of bouts. Sadly however we've not got the names of those involved in those bouts.

This past Tuesday Asian fans in Thailand and Japan had action to make note of.

Pathum Thani, Thailand
In Thailand fans got televised action courtesy of Channel 3 who aired a short Nakornluang promoted show featuring a highly ranked Flyweight, a former Super Flyweight champion and a very promising young novice.

The novice was the unbeaten Jirapan Nakornluang (3-0, 2) who managed to continue his winning run as he defeated Italian debutant Philipo Piatada (0-1) with a 6 round unanimous decision. Another bout that went the distance saw former WBC Super Flyweight champion, and current Bantamweight contender, Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (40-6-1, 18) take a decision over experienced Indonesian loser Samuel Tehuayo (18-33-2, 3). Meeting for the second time Suriyan did what he needed to do to take home the win though again left us wondering why Tehuayo, aka “Sammy Hagler”, is still used as a journeyman considering his run of 4-33-2 has really failed to see him do much more than survive at times.

In the main event of this show fans saw Flyweight contender Nawaphon Por Chokchai (26-0, 19) successfully defend his WBC Asian Boxing Council Flyweight title with a 5th round KO against Filipino Southpaw Powell Balaba (8-13-1, 5). This was Balaba's 4th straight loss and it again leaves questions as to how a bout like this will really help Nawaphon prepare for a world title fight, or a mooted world title eliminator.

Tokyo, Japan
In Japan fans had a show that was much more competitive on paper and provided plenty of action, though did also feature one bit of disappointment. The card, which was mostly a B class tournament looked brilliant on paper and proved, on the hole, to be really good.

The began with a 4 round bout, the only 4 round bout on the show, and saw the debuting Yuta Ishikawa (1-0, 1) defeat fellow debutant Makoto Yamazaki (0-1) in the 3rd round with a KO to begin his career with a win.

The second bout was at Middleweight where the win-some, lose-some Koji Kase (5-4, 2) managed to narrowly defeat the heavy handed Wataru Seino (4-3, 4). For Seino this was his first bout in more than a year, following an opening round defeat to Koki Tyson Maebara in the 2013 Rookie of the Year final whilst Kase has now streaked to 3 straight wins following a 4 fight losing run.

A scheduled bout involving Kenya Noguchi (2-0, 2) against an experienced Thai foe was supposed to be the 3rd bout on the card but was sadly cancelled, and we're unsure why.

The first B-class tournament bout was the shows 3rd contest and it saw a notable upset as Tatsuji Kakumoto (5-5, 1) took a clear decision win over Yuji Okinori (6-2-1, 1) in a bout at Flyweight. The 22 year old Kakumoto certainly doesn't have a great record but it's clear he's better than the numbers suggest and many of his losses have been razor thin decisions. As for Okinori this is his 3rd straight set back following a 6-0 (1) start to his career.

Kakumoto's win was one of two bouts in the Flyweight division with the other being between Kensuke Sasaki (3-1, 2) and Yasuhiro Tanaka (4-2-2) with Sasaki taking a clear but hard fought decision over his more experienced foe. Sasaki is a man we suspect is being groomed as a better prospect than many may suspect and he could well be a man to make a note of. Tanaka on the other hand suffered his second defeat in 3 bouts.

One of the most competitive bouts saw Hyuma Fujioka (5-3-1) take a hotly fought split decision win over Naoto Fuimoto (7-5-1, 4). Fujioka entered this bout following a stoppage loss to Gaku Aikawa 10 months ago and fought possibly the best bout of his career so far to inflict the second successive decision on to Fujimoto who has also lost last December.

Heavy handed Super Bantamweight Kazuki Yokoyama (7-2, 5) continued to leave opponents in his wake as he notched up the 5th stoppage of his career and forced the referee to save Shota Kumazawa (6-7-1, 5) in the 4th round. For Yokoyama this is a second straight win following an opening round defeat in November 2013 whilst Kumazawa has now lost 4 of his last 5 dating back to 2012.

The talented Shingo Koike (7-2, 3) appeared to be under pressure early on against Ryuta Nakajima (5-5-1, 4) though in round 3 it was Nakajima who ended up on the canvas following a wonderful shot from Koike who ended the bout. Having been out of action for 14 months this was a great win for Koike, even though Nakajima had lost his previous 3.

In a really exciting contest between two men who believed there power was the key fans saw Takahiro Shinohara (6-4-2, 6) stop Atsuhi Kudo (3-4-2, 3) in the 3rd round. The bout saw plenty of exchanges and was a fun fight with Kudo being stopped on his feet. For Hinohawa this was his second win in a row following almost 2 years of inactivity. Kudo has now been stopped for the first time.

Possibly the pick of the bouts, at least on paper, was the penultimate contest on the show which saw the talented Daisuke Watanabe (2-0, 2) dispose of the more experienced Ryuto Araya (7-3-1, 1) in the second round, with the corner throwing in the towel to say Araya. Watanabe caught out eye last year when he stopped Toru Kudo in the 4th round and we suspect he's going to achieve something notable sooner rather than later, so keep an eye on this 23 year Featherweight hopeful. Araya on the other hand suffered his first stoppage defeat and saw a 2-fight winning streak come to an end.

In the final bout of the show fans saw Makoto Kawasaki (6-2-1, 1) take a 5 round decision over Mamoru Takeuchi (5-6-3). This loss ended a 3 fight winning streak for Takeuchi whilst Kawasaki scored his second win in a row. In the ring this was a big of a mismatch with Kawasaki being too good for Takeuchi who was unable to really compete with his more skilled rival.

Bangkok, Thailand
On Friday Thai fans got treat to a televised card, unfortunately however it was a card that consisted primarily of mismatches.

The biggest of the mismatches, at least on paper, was a clear stay busy fight that saw former WBC Super Flyweight champion Srisaket Sor Rugnvisai (32-4-1, 29) make light work of the game but thoroughly out classed Ardi Tefa (6-3, 4), who was stopped in the 3rd round. Srisaket is lining up a WBC world title eliminator with Jose Salgado and this bout literally a tune up bout prior to that one which is expected in late Spring.

Srisaket wasn't the only former world champion in action here as his close friend Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (39-6-1, 18), himself a former WBC Super Flyweight champion, defeated the debuting Daoden Sithsaithong (0-1), also in the 3rd round. Suriyan is expecting to be moved towards a WBC Bantamweight title fight later in the year and this was, like Srisaket's bout, a stay busy contest.

The main event of the card wasn't a stay busy fight, but was an interesting development in the career of the limited but incredibly fun Kongfah Nakornluang (19-0, 11). Kongfah is among the most limited 19-0 fighters you'll find but he made light work of the badly matched Rendi Stone (3-4-1, 2). Stone, an Indonesian journeyman, was battling for the WBC Silver youth Super Flyweight title but was stopped in the 3rd round by Kongfah.

Another promising unbeaten fighter on this card was Jirapan Nakornluang (2-0, 2) who stopped Ratchasi Himalaigym (0-1) after 3 rounds. We were impressed by Jirapan on his debut and it seems like the talented Thai is going to be one to keep an eye on for the long term, especially given his big stablemate. As for Ratchsai he appeared to have a lot of promise though was retired with what appeared to be a damaged hand

One other bout on this card saw Jaipetch Chaiyonggym (4-3, 1) score a 6 round decision win over Denchai Por Korbkua (1-2) in what was a second meeting between the two men who first fought last November.

Camarines Sur, Philippines
In the Philippines fans also got some action though, as with the Thai show, much of it was mismatches.

The main trio of bouts went a combined 9 rounds an all went to the expected winner. One of those bouts saw former world title challenger Bernabe Concepcion (33-6-2, 19) quickly take care of Indonesian visitor Rasmanudin (18-8-3, 9). Rasmanudin was stopped in the 2nd of a scheduled 10 rounds  and suffered his 5th stoppage loss as a result. Sadly for the Indonesian "Lost Boy" this was his 4th loss in 5 bouts and it seems any hope he had of fighting for a major title are now dead and buried.

A second of the main bouts saw Al Sabaupan (24-2-1, 19) pull himself off the canvas in the opening round en route to stopping Geisler AP (6-5, 3) in the 3rd round. Geisler is probably best known for being stopped in a round by IK Yang in Macau last year and it's clear that also Sabaupan is exciting he's never going to reach the top. He will however always be fun to watch.

The remaining main bout saw saw Jestoni Autida (7-2, 2)  score a 4th round TKO over the experienced Pit Anacaya (9-25-2, 2).

As well as the 3 headline bouts there was also 5 other bouts. The weakest of these was a 4 rounder which saw Jerwin Mejes (2-1, 2) pick up his second win as he stopped the debuting Ali Francisco (0-1) in the 3rd round. Mejes's win was one of just two stoppages on the under-card with the other one being scored by Philip Luis Cuerdo (7-1, 4) who took out Ryan Bajala (3-2-1, 1) in the second round.

The remaining three undercard bouts all went the distance. Of the three bouts only one of them ended in what we would describe as an upset as Gabriel Royo (10-11-2, 8) managed to overcome Michael Rosal (5-4, 3), though it was a minor upset with Royo taking an 8 round split decision. The other undercard bouts saw Ariel Arevalo (4-1-2, 1) over-come Diover Mangaya-ay (1-6-1) with a 6 round unanimous decision and JayAr Diama (3-5-4, 1) defeat Alberto Pentecostes (1-4-1), also by 6 round unanimous decision.

California, USA
In the US we saw Cruiserweight hopeful Murat Gassiev (20-0, 13) take a stay busy win over Terrance Smith (8-18-3, 5) with Smith being disqualified in the 4th round. Gassiev was well in charge and Smith knew it as the out classed American did all he could to prevent a fight, eventually being DQ'd for his holding.

This past Friday was a busy day in the world of Asian boxing, both regionally and internationally.

Mendoza, Argentina
In Argentina fans saw a WBA Flyweight title fight that saw interim champion Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep (34-2, 20) attempt to unify his title with “regular” champion Juan Carlos Reveco (35-1, 19). Sadly for Yondmongkol he was stopped in the 5th round as Reveco unloaded on his and forced the referee to step in. Prior to the stoppage both men had scored knockdowns with Reveco going down in round 2 and Saengthep down just prior to the stoppage.

Quebec, Canada
In Canada was saw several Russian's in action and all of them seemed to have very different nights.

The most disappointing of the Russian's was Dmitry Sukhotsky (22-3, 16) who looked awful, genuinely awful, as he challenger Adonis Stevenson (25-1, 21) and put up a nothing effort. Sukhotsky did little more than follow the champion who landed left hands at will before stopping Sukhotsky in round 5 after scoring a trio of knockdowns in the round.

Another notable Russian on the card was the unbeaten Artur Beterbiev (7-0, 7) who over-came Jeff Page Jr (15-1, 10) with a 2nd round TKO. Whilst on paper the result was a good one the performance was terrible from Beterbiev who was dropped in the opening round and showed little more than crude power as he came out swinging for the fences whilst setting nothing up. It was, in many ways, a humbling performance from one of the most touted up-and-comers in the sport and will hopefully serve as a reminder that he needs to use his boxing ability as well as his power.

A third Russian was the debuting Vislan Dalkhaev (1-0) who scored a clear win over journeyman Csaba Toth (13-25-1, 8).

Samut Prakan, Thailand
The feature bout in Thailand saw former world champion Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (28-6-1, 17) bounce back from his recent loss to Shinsuke Yamanaka with a very easy win over the horribly over-matched Tony Arema (3-6). Arema was never able to put the That under any pressure and midway through the opening round Suriyan landed a nasty left to the body which put Arema down in agony, where he stayed for the count. Strangely this bout was for the WBC Asian Boxing Council Bantamweight title and see Suriyan getting immediately back into the mix for a world title fight in 2015.

In a stay busy fight we saw former WBC Super Flyweight champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (31-4-1, 28) score a straightforward win over limited journeyman Jemmy Gobel (18-16-5, 13). Srisaket tried to pick his shots in a controlled opening round as it appeared he was attempting to get some rounds under his belt though Gobel didn't take the chance to test the Thai, despite landing some clean uppercuts in the opening round. In round 2 Srisaket went to work and broke down Gobel with steady and hurtful body shots that quickly had Gobel in trouble, a follow up attack up top dropped the visitor who stopped soon afterwards.

Another bout on this card saw the limited, but unbeaten and exciting, Kongfah Nakornluang (18-0, 10) over-come the win-less Vichannoi Chaiyonggym (0-3) with a 6 round decision in what was an unexpectedly close fight. As is often the case Kongfah made life very difficult for himself but very entertaining for us and we don wonder how many times he can get away with having such damaging fights though we can't complain about the entertainment as he is great value every time he's in the ring.

Possibly the stand out performance came from debutant Jirapan Nakornluang (1-0, 1) who dominated fellow debutant Toto Lookmuangbangklang (0-1) en route to securing a 4th round TKO. If we were to suggest that Jirapan was the most complete Thai prospect we've seen recently we wouldn't be lying and he looks like he has the potential to be the real deal. He showed a nice sharp jab at range and really great body work up close, that body was eventually what ground out Toto. This guy is one to watch.

The remaining bout on the show saw Denchai Por Korbkua (1-1) claim his first professional win as he over-come the more experienced Namphol Sithsaithong (7-9, 5) to take home a 6 round split decision. The scoring was a bit all over the place here unfortunately.

Hyogo, Japan
We're sorry it's taken us a while to get all the results from this show, which was the only Japanese show last Friday and came courtesy of Shinsei Promotions.

In the main event fans saw the very promising Shun Kubo (6-0, 4) score his best win to date as he took a decision over the world ranked Luis May (15-8-1, 7). Both men had knockdowns rules against them, though the one against Kubo did seem harsh, and May had a point deducted to leave us with weird looking scorecards but it was a clear win for Kubo who has announced himself with this win. Although clearly a novice Kubo has called out Japanese champion Yukinori Oguni and has made it clear that the domestic title is his aim for next year.

An interesting co-feature saw Toshiya Yokogawa (7-7-1, 6) score a shock win over Tokiya Nishioka (9-4-2, 5) with a 2nd round KO. Another bout from the top of the card saw Takahiro Shigee (12-1-1, 10) score a 5th round TKO against Petchfankaen Keelanakornpatom (0-1), this was Shigee's first bout since he was stopped by Rodrigo Guerrero. The least interesting of the 8 rounders saw Kenta Sugimoto (8-7-1, 1) score his first stoppage as he over-came Saengpetch Lukmatulee (0-1) in the 2nd round.

The undercard here featured 5 bouts scheduled for 4 rounders with only a single bout failing to go the distance. The one bout that didn't go to the final bell saw Makoto Mizoshita (3-1, 2) score an opening round blow out against Hiroki Yatomi (2-1, 1).

In bouts that went the distance we saw Shintaro Yano (1-0) take a debut win with a split decision Shin Tomita (1-1-2), another close decision saw Taichi Sugimori (3-1) take majority decision over Ryusuke Tanaka (3-3, 1). The closest bout saw Ryo Sumiya (1-1-1) fighting to a draw with Shohei Matsuo (1-1-1). The only clear decision saw the unbeaten Kenta Sakata (2-0-1) take a clear decision over Kodai Nakashoya (0-2)

(Image, from the Kubo fight, courtesy of boxingnews.jp)

Tokyo, Japan
We've got to admit that we love big mid-week fights. There is something unique about waking up on a Wednesday or Thursday morning and looking forwards to grown men trading punches in the search of title glory and when it's a world title bout  between two world class fighters.

That's exactly what we had earlier today when WBC Bantamweight champion Shinsuke Yamanaka (22-0-2, 16) took a hard fought but relatively clear decision win over Thailand's teak tough Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (37-6-1, 16), a former WBC Super Flyweight champion himself. Suriyan came in to the bout as a huge under-dog with betting firms though was the mandatory challenger and came in with real determination to win by bullying and applying constant pressure on Yamanaka. At times it worked wonderfully for the Thai though at the end of the day the power differential between Yamanaka, one of the sports premier punchers pound-for-pound, and Suriyan, a former world title challenger at Flyweight proved the difference with Yamanaka scoring knockdowns in rounds 7,8 and 9 to ease his way over the finishing line. Although Yamanaka did have a serious test he was never close to losing though will have a new found respect for the Thai.

In the co-feature we saw another collision of world class fighters as former 2-weight world champion Takahiro Ao (27-3-1, 12) claimed a tough decision win over former 2-time Super Featherweight champion Juan Carlos Salgado (26-4-1-1, 16). The bout was widely viewed as an unofficial world title eliminator and it's fair to say that Ao will be weighing up his options to fight a world champion at 135lbs, or fight in an official eliminator, in 2015. For Ao this was his 4th win since he lost the WBC Super Featherweight title to Gamaliel Diaz back in 2012, almost 2 years ago to the day. As for Salgado this now sees him falling to 1-2 in Japan following a shock win over Jorge Linares back 2009 and a subsequent loss to Takashi Uchiyama in 2010.

Whilst the show's top 2 bouts when the distance the chief support bout didn't as the very heavy handed Kenichi Ogawa (13-1, 11) took care of Ribo Takahata (10-5-1, 2) in the 7th round of their scheduled 8 rounder. Ogawa has now won 5 successive bouts since his sole defeat a little more than 2 years ago whilst Takahata has continued on his win one-lose one pattern that goes back 10 fights!

The only 6 rounder on the show was the closest bout on the score cards saw Kenta Yamada (7-4) taking a 6 round majority decision over Takushige Sato (5-6-1, 2) in a very competitive contest that saw the judges scoring the bout 58-57, twice, and 57-57

As with most shows the bulk of this card was 4 rounders, in fact there was a trio of them though combined they lasted just 8 rounds. Only one of the 4 rounders went the distance saw Masayoshi Yamasaki (1-1) scoring his first win as he over-came the still win-less Katsuaki Kinoshita (0-5) in a very 1-sided 4 rounder scored 40-35 by all of the judges. A second of the early bouts ended in the 3rd round as Masato Nunotani (1-1, 1) saw off the previously unbeaten Kohei Isozaki (1-1) whilst it took Yutaka Motoyoshi (4-8, 4) just 32 seconds to finish Tatsushi Kagawa (4-8-1, 1).

(Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp)

Not every day is a great day for Asian boxing and it's fair to say this past Friday wasn't a great one with more lows than highs, despite some interesting action all over the word

Kobe, Japan
The most significant of the shows came at the Portopia Hotel in Kobe. The venue, making it's professional boxing debut, looked stunning though sadly couldn't help Japan's Teiru Kinoshita (19-1-1, 3) over-come South African puncher Zolani Tete (19-3, 16) in a bout for the IBF Super Flyweight title. Kinoshita did impress, in some ways, with his toughness but that was the about all the positives he could take out of the bout that he clearly lost. The fight, Kinoshita's first world title bout, could well be his last and we'd not be shocked if he fell back to Japanese domestic level following this loss.

In the chief support bout to Kinoshita's contest fans got to see a rematch between Shinichiro Morikawa (16-4-1, 11) and Ryota Kihara (6-9-4, 5). The two men fought last year with Morikawa taking a close decision over 8 rounds. This time around the judges weren't needed as Morikawa saw off Kihara in just 4 rounds as he dominated his limited foe.

A third bout of note on this same card saw Jonathan Baat (26-5-3, 12) dominate Yubon Kanayama (10-5, 3) to inflict Kanayama's 5th loss in 8 bouts. For Baat this was a bounce back victory follow a loss last time out to Qiu Xiao Jun, in what was a third bout between the two men.

Lower down the card Naoki Yamamoto (5-7-2, 3) managed to out point Ryoki Hirai (3-2-1, 1) over 4 rounds in a very competitive contest.  Another 4 rounder saw Hayato Shimosakoda (1-1) take a decision over Yosuke Goto (1-5) whilst the hard hitting Takuya Hashimoto (4-4, 4) upset Masashi Wakita (4-2, 2) with a 2nd round KO.

Tokyo, Japan
A second card in Japan took place at the Korakuen Hall. Although the supposed main bout, a Japanese Super Bantamweight bout between Hidenori Otake and Daisuke Furuhashi, was cancelled the card it's self went on with some interesting contests.

After the main event was cancelled the previous chief support became the new main event and that saw Ryuto Oho (6-1-1, 2) fighting to a very competitive majority draw with Shuji Hamada (12-6-4, 2). Sadly for the 19 year old Oho this was a second successive set back following his sole loss to Jo Tanooka and we dare say that he's not matured into a Super Flyweight,yet. Oho did impress us last year when he was fighting at Flyweight, where he won the Rookie of the Year, and maybe he needs to try and return to 112lbs.

In the chief support bout on this card fans got to see the return to the ring of Spice Matsushita (12-8, 2) who returned to the ring after more than a year out of action. Matsuhsita not only returned to the ring but did so with a hard fought decision over Toshimitsu Goto (12-11-1, 5)

A third bout on this card saw Takuma Okada (5-9, 2) take a 6 round against the light hitting Tsuyoshi Nishimura (4-7-1, 1). The win for Okada saw him ending a 2 fight losing streak though it did extend Nishimura's losing run to 2 fights.

We know at the moment that we have more results to come from Japan though for now these are the only ones we have.

Pathum Thani, Thailand
On a televised card in Thailand fans got to see the world ranked Nawaphon Por Chokchai (22-0, 16) successfully defend his WBC Asian Boxing Council Flyweight title for the 9th time! Nawaphon defeated Thailand's usually durable Jay-ar Estremos (10-8, 4) inside the distance the retain his title and inflict just the second stoppage loss on to Estremos. Interestingly Estremos had, earlier this year, pushed Kwanpichit OnesongchaiGym all the way in a bout many felt Kwanpichit had been gifted a win in and with that in mind you need to realise just how good this win was.

There were other bouts on this card but at the moment we aren't sure on the specific results. What we do know however is that Suriyan Sor Rungvisai (37-5-1, 16) won a decision and Kongfah Nakornluang (14-0, 8) took a stoppage. Hopefully we'll be able to fill in the full results in the coming day or two.

New South Wales, Australia
In Australia we had more disappointment as former Japanese and OPBF Bantamweight title challenger Jerope Mercado (26-7-3, 9) suffered a very debatable split decision loss to Valentine Borg (7-1, 4). Jerope, best known for his fights with Rolly Lunas, Ryosuke Iwasa and Kohei Oba, was judged to have been shut out on two of the cards though it's doubtful that anyone else could possibly have had the bout a shut out. Notably for Borg this was his first bout since his stunning stoppage loss to Joebert Delos Reyes and it appears that loss has damaged the confidence of Borg who was previously unbeaten and tipped to move on to bigger and better things.

East Cape, South Africa
It was also a disappointing day in South Africa as Filipino Edrin Dapudong (29-6, 17) lost the IBO Super Flyweight title in a controversial split decision to South Africa's very own Lwandile Sityatha (17-3-1, 7). The bout was the first defence of the title by Dapudong, who took the belt with an opening round KO against Gideon Buthelezi, though unfortunately this is his second controversial loss in South Africa following a split decision to Buthelezi back in 2012. With 2 split decision losses in 3 bouts it's fair to question whether or not "The Sting" will ever return to fight in South Africa.

New York, USA
The disappointment for Asian fighters continued in New York where "Mongolian Mongoose" Bayarn Jargal (17-5-3-1, 11) saw his bout with Cletus Seldin (13-0-0-1, 10) end in a No Contest. Jargal was injured around the eye from a clash of heads and was unable to continue forcing the bout to a No Contest. Prior to the ending Jargal was making Seldin look limited, though we're not sure if he was managing to over-come the naturally bigger American fighter.

California, USA
It wasn't all bad for Asian's however and in California we had the chance to see the impressive debut of Chinese Heavyweight giant Taishan Dong (1-0, 1). The 6'11" giant managed to drop Alex Rozman (2-7, 1) several times before he told the referee that he couldn't go on. Dong didn't have things all his own way though he he'll have learned more by fighting Rozman, who came to win, than fighting someone who was happy to fold the first time they were hit. For those who missed this fight it's now on our video section.

Also on this card was a victory for popular Filipino Mercito Gesta (28-1-1, 16) who looked genuinely sensational as he beat up and broke down the experienced Luis Arceo (28-13-4, 18) who was stopped by the doctor late in the fight. Arceo came to fight but Gesta was too good, too fast, too talented and too powerful, in fact this was possibly the most complete performance we've ever seen from Gesta who looks to be finally be reaching his potential. No one doubted how good Gesta could be but they had questioned whether he would ever fulfil his promise, this performance suggests he can.