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)
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It's not often we can openly say this but, what a great day Friday was with free to watch action in Japan and Thailand. Tokyo, Japan We're used to having televised Friday morning fights from Thailand so they were nothing new however what was a very unexpected treat was the fact Dangan 112 was streamed live, over Ustream, by Miyata Gym who streamed the show from start to end in what was genuinely a treat for the fans. We know Miyata aren't the first to do it, SGS have done it several times, but that didn't stop it being a treat from the opening bout to the final contest. The opening two bouts were both C Class tournament final bouts and both proved how much the tournament meant to the fighters in action. The first saw Wataru Takeda (3-0-1, 1) take a well earned 4 round victory over Taiga Higashi (1-1, 1). Although this was a clear under-card bout it showed how much difference there is between a lot of the undercard bouts in Japan and their equivalents in the west. Both guys wanted to win, both gave it their all, and both helped put on a very good bout, even if Takeda did look the better fighter, as evidenced clearly in round 4. The second of the C class tournament bouts saw Ryusei Ishii (4-1, 2) really impress us with his fan friendly style, Sergio Martinez like movement and hands down stance as he out pointed the dangerous Kenta Yamada (3-1, 3) with ease. Ishii dropped Yamada to show his dominance in power and in boxing in a really, really stunning performance by the 18 year old southpaw hopeful. The third bout saw another promising youngster catch out eye, Ryota Ishida (2-0, 2). Ishida, another 18 year old, dropped his previously unbeaten foe Yusuke Moriya (1-1) late in the opening round before tearing into him at the start of the second and eventually forced the referee to save a tired looking Moriya who tried to fight back but was unable to stop the onslaught from Ishida who really looks like an exciting and promising young fighter for the future. The surprise performance of the show came from Masaya Kohama (2-2-1) who didn't look likely to catch our attention considering his record. Kohama however took his chance and boxed beautifully to get past Keisuke Ogino (2-6, 1) in a bout that what was one of the most pleasant surprises we've seen in a ring for a very long time. A closer look at Kohama's record has convinced us that he's much better than his record indicates and we'd suggest keeping an eye on him for the long run, if he progresses as he could do then he may be another of the late bloomers of Japanese boxing. We saw a second stoppage on the show when Ryosuke Takami (5-1, 4) stopped the busier but less skilled Tsubasa Matsudo (4-9-3, 1) in 4 rounds. Matsudo had started fast but was eventually broken down when he began to slow in what was another interesting bout despite the differences in the records between the two men. In the chief support bout we saw Wataru Miyasaka (9-2-1, 2) out point Yuki Iwasaki (11-6, 6) over 8 rounds. The bout did have a few competitive rounds but there was no argument over who the winner was with Miyasaka looking the more complete fighter in a majority of the rounds. It was a clear decision but still an entertaining contest. The highlight of the show was, as expected, the main event which pitted former world title challengers against each other in what was viewed as a must win contest for both men. The bout saw Takuya Kogawa (23-4, 13), a man coming in on the back of a very controversial loss to Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep in Thailand, battle against Hiroyuki Hisataka (22-13-1, 10), who came in to the bout following losses to Ryo Matsumoto last time out via decision and Omar Andres Narvaez, via stoppage in a world title bout. On paper it was close to a domestic super fight and turned out to be a super fight watch with Hisataka trying to impose himself on Kogawa with his natural size and strength whilst Kogawa used his skill and speed to win rounds, land hurtful counters and generally do enough to win the rounds, including a 10-8 second round. Going into the final round Hisataka needed a knockout though both men fought as if they each needed to finish it and we got a final round to remember as the two slugged it out in a thriller. We suggest you give this one a watch if you have the time. We won't say this was the card of the year, but it was incredibly good from start to end and for a domestic card shown over Ustream for free it put to shame a lot of the big US cards on premium TV. Well done to all involved for this very enjoyable show. Ratchaburi, Thailand As well as the Japanese action there was also a show from Thailand than seemed to end quicker than anyone had suspected with a host of blow outs. The quickest of those saw Kongfah Nakornluang (16-0, 9) dispatch the over-matched Santos Kwanjaisrikod (0-2) inside a round in what was little more than a mismatch to help rebuild Kongfah's confidence following his struggle with Den Sithsaithong last time out. The most eye catching victory was scored by former WBC Super Flyweight champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (29-4-1, 26) who stopped the naturally bigger Boido Simanjuntak (18-24-1, 7) in the opening seconds of the 6th round with a very eye catching 1-punch knockdown. Boido did get up from the knockdown, somehow, but was unfit to continue continue and probably needed a few moments to know where he was. In the main event of the show we saw Nawaphon Por Chokchai (24-0, 17) successfully defend his WBC Asian Boxing Councuil Flyweight title with a 4th round KO of the usually tough Filipino Donny Mabao (21-23-1, 4). On paper this was a mismatch but it become more so when Nawapon appeared 3 if not 4 divisions bigger than the Filipino visitor. Western Australia, Australia "Down under" we did a trio of Thai's in action and they had mixed fortunes. Whilst veteran Sapapetch Sor Sakaorat (31-16, 20) was defeated in 4 rounds by Luke Sharp (10-2-2, 3) and we did Yingtai Sithdara (0-7-1) defeated in 2 rounds by Jacob Santoro (2-0, 1) we also saw Thonthai Rajanondh (17-19, 5) take an unexpected 2nd round TKO against Dan Carter (0-2). (Image courtesy of boxingnews.jp) 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) |
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