This coming week we see a lot of bigger fights taking place, with world title fights and some really interesting bouts at a domestic type level. Among those is a Japanese bout featuring a former world title challenger essentially fighting to keep his career in the sport alive. It's a must win for him, and one that he will be favoured to win, despite taking a lot of punishment in some recent bouts. His opponent isn't the greatest but will be hungry to make his return to the sport count after close to 2 years out of the ring.
The One to Watch? Shun Kubo (13-2, 9) Vs Takashi Igarashi (13-4, 5) When? September 26th (Saturday) Why? We were big fans of Shun Kubo as he came through the ranks, beating Monico Laurente very early in his career and then beating Luis May 13 months later. He had some easy bouts but he took on enough early tests to interest us before winning the OPBF Super Bantamweight title. From there on we have always followed him quite intently, being fans of his style and his heart. Now knowing his career is on the line after stoppage losses to Daniel Roman and Can Xu we're really interested to see what he has left to off. Who? The 30 year old Shun Kubo is a former OPBF and WBA "regular" champion at Super Bantamweight. He's a long, rangy boxer who has a really nice style and was once viewed as the successor to Hozumi Hasegawa at the Shinsei Gym. Sadly for his nice style he doesn't have the best of chins, which makes him great value to watch, but the sort of fighter you always worry about falling apart. His heart and determination helped him survive into round 9 with Daniel Roman, despite being dropped numerous times, and his heart also kept him in longer than it needed to against Can Xu last year. As an outside fighter Kubo is a talented boxer, but he's also a man who gets dragged into wars far too easily and can end up being his own worst enemy. Of course it takes too to tangle and Takashi Igarashi is not someone to be over-looked here. The 24 year old from Aichi showed potential early on, winning his first 5 bouts before losing to Kyohei Tonomoto in the bout to decide the West Japan representative for the 2014 Rookie of the Year, at Featherweight. Following that loss his career seemed to fall apart and he went from 5-0 (1) to 13-4 (5) before vanishing from the sport in 2018, following an upset loss to Toshiya Yokogawa. We all assumed that was the end of Igarashi as a boxer, aged just 22. Now however he has decided to continue with his career, and will to get back on track as he takes on the former world champion. For Igarashi this is potentially a case of "right place, right time", and despite his break from the ring he is not an old fighter. He's a man who has had almost 2 years out of the ring to mature and is the naturally bigger man. What to expect? We really expect this to be super tense early on. Kubo is, by far, the more skilled fighter and we expect him to try and make that show early on by getting behind his southpaw jab and dictating the distance and tempo. Despite the tense start we see Igarashi making this into a war sooner or later. He doesn't stand a chance boxing with Kubo, but could, potentially, break down the former champion. As we head into the middle rounds this will hot up, and we expect some fire works. We do expect Kubo to win, in fact we expect him to stop Igarashi, but we wouldn't be surprised at all if he needs to get through some rough on the way to a victory. The bad news? There really isn't too much bad here. The bout will be streamed live on the BOXING REAL YouTube channel, and will be available free and globally. If we are looking for a negative here the only thing we can think about is the fact the bout will likely be over-shadowed by the other bouts from the day, including the WBO Atomweight title fight on the same show. We think that will be a more exciting bout than this one, despite this non-title bout being the show's main event. For those that will watch this one, it will be shown on the BOXING REAL YouTube channel.
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For this weeks one to watch we are looking at a bout featuring a once beaten former world title challenger and a relatively unknown unbeaten fighter looking to make the most of their first big shot. This wasn't the bout originally set to be covered in this series, though came about when the bout we originally wanted to write about fell apart, and the unbeaten man stepped in at relatively short notice, but more about that shortly.
The One to Watch? Tugstsogt Nyambayar (11-1, 9) vs Cobia Breedy (15-0, 5) When? September 19th (Saturday) Why? The reason as to why this is one to watch is the fact is features Tugstsogt Nyambayar, a world class boxer-puncher, a former amateur standout and the brightest hope for Mongolian boxing since Lakva Sim, who last fought in 2015. The fact he's up against an unbeaten fighter, looking to make a name for himself makes this an even more compelling bout, even if we did prefer the original opponent of Eduardo Ramirez (23-2-3, 10), who was replaced by Cobia Breedy about 2 weeks before the contest. Who? We suspect most fans who follow the Featherweight division know who Tugstsogt Nyambayar is. The Mongolian really was a stellar amateur before turning professional, with many tipping him to become the second world champion from Mongolia. He started his professional career in impressive fashion and quickly rose through the ranks thanks to his exciting style and dominant performances. Sadly thougfh the last few years have been frustrating ones for him and he was beaten last time out, in a WBC world title bout, by Gary Russell Jr. Although a real talent Nyambayar has been plagued by issues and inactivity and with just 12 bouts to his name since debuting in 2015 his career really hasn't gone the many had hoped. Even ignoring the loss to Russell Jr we expected much more from the Mongolian, and hopefully he does still have the hunger to become a champion. Despite being a pro foe 5 years he is still only 28 and shouldn't be written after a competitive loss to a talent like Russell Jr. Whislt we suspect must have heard of "King Tug" we don't thing many will be too award of 28 year old Cobia Breedy, who was born in Barbados but is now based in the US. He's been a professional since 2014 and for his first 10 bouts he scored wins over very, very poor opposition. Thankfully that changed in 2018, when he beat veteran Christ Martin, but he failed to really kick on, despite taking the unbeaten record of Drew Correll. On paper he's stepping up massively to take on Nyambayar here. Although not too well known Breedy has fought on TV, beating Fernando Fuenes via technical decision on a FOX card. Watching him we see a man who is a nightmare to fight. Although not a puncher he's aggressive, has a sense of slickness to him and a lot of upper body movement. He's the sort of fighter who should make for fun fights with the right opponent and is certainly someone we have enjoyed the few times we've seen him in action. What to expect? Given that Nyamabayar lost to Russell earlier this year we could have given him leeway for taking an easy opponent here. He didn't take an easy one when he signed to take on Ramirez, but the task became tougher when he agreed to take on Breedy, who we think is the sort of fighter who will give him fits. With that in mind we see this as a genuine test for Nyamabayar, but a passable test. We expect to see Nyamabayar trying to keep things at range, boxing behind his jab and trying to control Breedy, who will be looking to get in and work the body. The jab of Nyamabayar may end up being neutralised by the upper body movement of Breedy, causing Nyambayar to fight fire with fire .We expect that will cause the tempo of the action to increase in the middle rounds giving us an exciting little war. The real question is what can Breedy take? We suspect Nyamabayar will wear him down, but he'll have to earn it and Breedy will be there, and in his face, until the second half of the fight. The bad news? Again we need to mention that Breedy wasn't the original choice of opponent, and we do wonder what he'll have in terms of fitness. We also need to realise this is a massive step up in class for him. We suspect the leap up in class will be too much, over the longer distance, but we are looking forward to this and suspect it will be a fun clash, even if we would rather have seen Ramirez battling Nyambayar. Despite a string of interesting fights in July and August it does seem like boxing tails off this coming month with September having far fewer bouts of note than the last two months. As a result we get to highlight some bouts that we typically wouldn't able to focus on. That's this case here with this week's One to Watch. It's certainly not a big bout, or a major one in any way, but it's one we suspect will be worth tuning into and will deliver an interesting technical affair, with one of the men risking his unbeaten record against someone who simply cannot afford a loss.
The One to Watch? Ravshanbek Umurzakov (10-1, 7) vs Zoravor Petrosyan (8-0, 3) When? September 12th (Saturday) Why? Last time out we saw Ravshanbek Umurzakov have his rise through the ranks derailed in a big upset loss to Esneiker Correa, and right now he'll be desperate to get back to winning ways and put that loss behind him. In the opposite corner to him is an unheralded Ukrainian prospect looking to take his first step up in class and move his career forward. We come in to this one expecting skills from both and both men will be looking to take strides in their careers after rather long breaks from the ring. Who? Once beaten Uzbek fighter Ravshanbek Umurzakov looked like he had the potential to go a long way early in his career. Within his first 10 professional bouts he had beaten the likes of Eden Sonsona, Roberto Gonzalez and Roldan Aldea. He had looked talented, exciting, heavy handed and like someone to get very excited about. Sadly however he was really battered by Esneiker Correa this past January, and his rise instantly hit a brick wall. This will be his first bout since that loss and it's going to be interesting to see what effect that loss has on him. At 27 there is time on his side, but another loss will be very, very hard for him to come back from. Unbeaten 22 year old Zoravor Petrosyan is a fairly unknown Ukrainian prospect, but is someone who looks like a real talent and is now getting a chance to show what he can do at a higher level. Prior to turning professional Petrosyan was a stand out amateur, winning Ukrainian titles at under 17, under 19 and under 22 levels, and reaching the quarter finals of the 2018 Under 22 European Championships. Sadly he's yet to shine in the professional ranks but from the footage of him he looks like a natural talent with solid handspeed, nice technical skills. He doesn't have much pop on his shots, but does have a lot to like about him and we see a really talented prospect when we see him. What to expect? We genuinely expect to see a very, very good performance from Petrosyan, he looks like he could end up really asking questions of Umurzakov and genuinely frustrating the Uzbek. Sadly though the lack of power in Petrosyan's punches is likely to be his downfall and whilst we do expect him to look good we don't imagine he will get Umurzakov's respect. Technically Umurzakov is a less talented boxer than his Ukrainian foe, but he's much stronger, more powerful, experienced and mature. We suspect that, in the later rounds, that will prove to be the difference and Umurzakov will begin to grind down the talented youngster, bully him around, and eventually stop him. We expect Umurzakov to stop Petrosyan, but we also expect that we'll be more impressed by Petrosyan than by Umurzakov. The bad news? This will be shown on an RCC stream, so it'll be free and widely available over youtube. There really isn't too much to complain with her, though there is a worry that Petrosyan's lack of experience as a professional could be a bit of an issue here. Fingers crossed that that won't be an issue and that Petrosyan won't freeze in what is, very clearly, a step up in class for the talented youngster. This coming is a tricky one to pick a fight to be excited about. The volume of fights is significantly reduced from what it has been in recent weeks. Despite that we think we've found a fight worthy of people's attention in a rather obscure and well hidden Thai card. The bout is expected to be the next step forward for a really talent Thai hopeful who we see as being one of the country's brightest prospects.
The One to Watch? Nattapong Jankaew (5-0, 3) vs Samartlek Kokietgym (34-13-1, 12) When? September 6th (Sunday) Why? We love using these weekly articles as a chance to shine a light on either a potential Fight of the Week, or a promising young prospect who deserves attention. This week is very much about the prospect, who looks like one of the true hidden gems of Thai boxing, Not only that but he's stepping up to take on a 2-time world title challenger in what is an excellent match up for the youngster's 6th professional bout! Who? The 24 year old Nattapong Jankaew isn't a name we expect to see being touted by many outside of Thailand, but in his short career he has shown enough to get excited about. He made his debut in September 2019 and scored 4 by wins by the end of the year, picking up an interim Thai national title in one of those bouts. He looked likely to keep up a high level of activity this year until boxing was put on an hiatus in Thailand. In his only bout in 2020, way back in January, he shut out John Kenan Villaflor over 10 rounds and claimed a minor regional title along the way. Although we don't think many have seen Nattapong Jankaew he is someone worth trying to check out. He's a Thai who, surprisingly, uses an American-like style. Watching him we see someone who is clearly inspired by he likes of Floyd Mayweather Jr and James Toney, using a shoulder roll, looking very natural, and throwing some really nicer counters. He's also shown an ability to switch stances and looks genuinely class. There is work to do, but for a guy with just 5 fights we like him, a lot. Samartlek Kokietgym, also known as Wittawas Basapean, is a 35 year old veteran who made his professional debut around a decade ago and has shared the ring with a who's who of who. During his lengthy career he had faced fighters like Kwanthai Sithmorseng, Fahlan Sakreerin Jr, Muhammad Rachman, Denver Cuello, Mark Anthony Barriga, Randy Petalcorin, Naoya Inoue and Akira Yaegashi. Sadly for him he has typically lost to the best fighters he has faced, but he has shown himself to be a tough guy, who lasted into round 11 with Inoue and round 12 with Yaegashi. In recent years he has been picking up a lot of losses, losing his last 4 and going 2-7-1 in his last 10, but hasn't been stopped since he fought Yaegashi back in 2016. In fact he's only been stopped 3 times, by Cuello, Inoue and Yaegashi. At his best Samartlek was never a world beater, but was always a capable enough fighter. He liked to come forward, fight behind his jab and press an opponent. We've not seen his most recent fights, be we don't imagine he's changed his style too much. If anything has really changed we suspect it's down to his age and the fact he's fighting at higher weights than he used to. What to expect? On paper there is a massive difference in experience here but it's hard to imagine that mattering too much give the advantages that swing the other way. Whilst Samartlek is the more proven and much more experienced fighter he is also the naturally much smaller and much older man, who is seemingly on the slide, if not shot. What we expect is to see Nattapong come forward, behind his defensive stance, open up when he wants and show case the eye catching defense that has really impressed us. We see him slipping and sliding the shots of Samartlek, but being fully aware that if he does get caught it really won't matter, given the natural size difference and the lack of power Samartlek has. When Samartlek does come forward the footwork and movement of Nattapon will be allowed to shine, and he'll really show off how smart and fleet footed he is. We don't imagine Nattapong will manage to stop Samartlek, but we do see him toying with the veteran on route to a wide decision. The bad news? Whilst this will actually be free to watch on the Tan Telecom Boxing Promotion facebook page we know very few people actually tune into boxing on facebook. It's a shame, and it will mean people will miss out here. We hope do tune in, but facebook, as a streaming service for boxing, really has struggled, even when bigger names have been in action, for US cards. There's also a real risk that this could be a rather dull fight, given the gulf in skills between the two fighters. This could be very one sided, but lack any chance of a stoppage, which could get dull to watch. With so many bouts being cancelled, and vanishing from schedules, we have again had a problem with this series. Originally we had planned to cover Bektemir Melikuziev's bout on a DAZN. That bout, and card, was cancelled last week and as a result we turn out attention to Japan for a much smaller profile bout from Tokyo.
The One to Watch? Kosuke Tomioka (2-0, 2) vs Shota Hara (2-2-1) When? August 31st (Monday) Why? Firstly lets just begin by not talking explicitly about the fighters but about boxing in a more general sense. This is a bout which will be streamed for free on the A-Sign Boxing Youtube channel. With that in mind we have two reasons to tune in before we even talk about the fighters. This is free, and we all love free, and it helps support a small promoter, and that is something we should all be getting behind right now in these difficult times as boxing fans. With those reasons out of the way this is a Rookie of the Year bout featuring one of the hottest young talents in Japan and someone who has started to get a lot of buzz, despite only being 2-0 and 18 years old. On paper it's another step forward for him, whilst his opponent has never been stopped and will be coming to win. This should be a great test, and will give fans a chance to dip their toes into the whole Rookie of the Year thing. Who? Aged 18 Kosuke Tomioka is regarded as one of the best teenagers in Japan. He's explosive, skilled, slick, exciting and, unlike many Japanese fighters, is happy to show boat and entertain. The talented youngster ticks boxes in terms of talent and entertainment and we expect to see him reaching the later stages of the tournament without too much bother. Although Tomioka didn't manage to make a splash in the higher ranks of the amateurs, which is generally a sign of a real talent, it does need noting that he turned professional at 16 and made his professional debut just weeks after his 17th birthday. Just to add to that he was a very, very good amateur at the Under Junior and Under 15 levels, winning 6 titles in those age groups. Aged 25 Shota Hara isn't tipped for anything big but is also no push over. Unlike Tomioka he's a man and he has seen his body fill up, and he's moved from Flyweight, tested the water at Bantamweight and is now competing in Rookie of the Year at Super Flyweight. Despite his record entering the bout he's certainly not an easy out at this level and is a capable fighter with a counter punching style and a very nice left hook. Defensively Hara isn't the best, but he does land nice counters, can box and will look to make Tomioka pay for any mistakes he makes. He will not be there to make up the numbers. What to expect? We expect Tomioka to box and move, it's something he does and looks so natural doing. Despite his talent we suspect he'll need to stay sharp and keep his focus as Hara does like to soak up pressure and counter well. We suspect that Hara knows he is the slower man, the less technically capable fighter, and the less flashy fighter. He is however the man, the more mature fighter, and the one who will look to hug, hold, push and pull Tomioka. If he can use his man strength in the clinch and counter Tomioka clean he does have a chance at scoring the upset here. It is however a big "if" as we suspect that Hara will be struggling with the skills and speed of Tomioka, who will show what he can do, out boxing the older man at range, landing sneaky body shots up close, and keep things at a safe distance, for the most part. Whilst we aren't expecting a war or a thrilling back and forth battle here, we are expecting fans to become aware of just how good the 18 year old Tomioka is. The bad news? We know some people aren't interested in Rookie bouts, and it's a shame as many of them are entertaining, well matched, exciting and lay down the early frame work for some excellent fighters. This is a Rookie bout, and one we really do think is a good chance for fans to get a feel for what they are about. This going to be fun, it's a chance to see a man that many in Japan are tipping as one of the country's future stars and it should feature plenty of exciting flashes of 2-way action. As mentioned yesterday we've got two "Ones to Watch" this week, and here is the second of those bouts. This one takes places of the weekend and is expected to be made available to watch live on Boxing Raise. It's a match up that might not look amazing on paper but it should be a very interesting one and is a meaningful bout on the domestic stage
The One to Watch? Daisuke Watanabe (10-4-2, 6) vs Shingo Kusano (13-8-1, 5) When? August 22nd (Saturday) Why? We absolutely love tournaments and on Saturday we see the end of the Hajime No Ippo 30th Anniversary Featherweight tournament that began last November. The tournament, a 7 man competition, was supposed to finish back in May but due to the global situation was pushed back until August 22nd. The finalists are certainly not the two men we expected to see, and the tournament has legitimately been full of upsets, but we're here now with a bout between Daisuke Watanabe and Shingo Kusano. Who? The 29 year old Daisuke Watanabe is a man who has had a very odd career. His results are inconsistent, but he's been matched very tough pretty much from the off, leading to him sporting a 6-4 (3) record after 10 bouts. Despite his record he is much, much better than those numbers suggest and those results are, at least in part, down to the tough competition he's faced so far, including Sho Nakazawa, Gakuya Furuhashi, Reiya Abe, Toshiki Shimomachi, Dai Iwai and Richard Pumicpic. He's reached the final thanks to a semi-final victory over Richard Pumicpic and will almost certainly know a win here gets him right in the mix for a domestic title fight. Defensively Watanabe has got work to do, he can be hit, he can be caught clean and he's not got an iron chin, having been stopped twice. He's also offensive, presses forward and can be countered. He is however not the type of fight you want to stand in front of too long, given his powerful right hand. Aged 31 this could end up being the last bout of note for Shingo Kusano, who has been a professional since 2011 and has certainly had some mixed results himself. Prior to the tournament he had lost 4 in a row, and was without a win in over 3 years. His career looked over. The tournament has however seen that all change, thanks to a 5th round TKO win over Qiang Ma and a big upset over Jae Woo Lee in the semi-final. Although somewhat chinny he appears to be determined to make this tournament his and with two upsets already in the tournament it looks like he know it's win or bust for his career. Kusano's style is that of a relaxed counter puncher. He looks to create range and land his southpaw left hands at range, backing off a lot and looking to make opponents over-reach and leave themselves open. He lacks lights out power, but is gritty, determined, and surprisingly swift for a 31 year old. What to expect? Neither of these men are high intensity fighters, however given he dynamic and styles of the two men this has the potential to be a compelling match up from the off. Watanabe is a come forward boxer-puncher. He's got solid bang in his shots, looks to set things up at range. He counters nicely with his straight right hand, but often throws it in a looping fashion. His jab, whilst crisp, is often under-utilised, and whilst that can be a problem we don't see it playing into this fight too much. Kusano is a southpaw who backs up a lot, almost invites pressure, and looks to counter on the back foot. That's a style that should gel well with Watanabe's come forward boxing, and should see both men finding a nice range to work at. Kusano style of creating range and boxing at distance could end up suiting Watanabe a bit too well and allow Watanabe to shoot off his heavy right hand regularly. Unsurprisingly we expect to see Watanabe coming forward and Kusano back off, with Kusano trying to draw leads from Watanabe and counter them. This could work well for him, given Watanabe's loopier shots, or could end up going very badly for Kusano, given the power that Watanabe has. This could be tactical, interesting, and although not a thrill a minute fight there could be real drama in any exchanges the two men have. The bad news? The only real bad news here is that we've waited so long for the bout. It was, as mentioned, supposed to be in May but got pushed back. We wonder if either man is up for it like they would have been had it been held in May, as scheduled. Also for those not subscribed to Boxing Raise this will, sadly, be one you miss out on. This week we've decided to do two different "Ones to Watch", in part due to the fact so many we've wanted to cover in this series recent being cancelled. So for the first of this weeks "Ones to Watch" we focus on the mid-week Kadoebi show, which will give us a WBO Asia Pacific Flyweight title in the main event, but an even more interesting looking support bout at Lightweight.
As a result of that, and the fact it's a mid-week bout, this is a day earlier than usual, but the second of the two "Ones of To Watch" this week will be up tomorrow as a result! The One to Watch? Yuichiro Kasuya (13-2-2, 4) vs Masanori Rikiishi (7-1, 4) When? August 19th (Wednesday) Why? The men involved in this one both have something in the "L" column on their records, but that barely matters in Japan where unbeaten records are less important. What is key is this is a bout we expect to be very interesting and competitive. Both of these men can box, both are looking to go places and, on paper, it's a very evenly matched bout. It pits a light punching boxer mover against a heavy hitting boxer-puncher, which can provide an interesting in-ring dynamic. The bout should be a highly skilled affair, and the winner will almost certainly find themselves on the verge of a regional or domestic title bout. This is a compelling match up despite the fact neither man is well known outside of Japan. Who? The talented but light punching Yuichiro Kasuya is a Kadoebi promoted fighter who is in the top 10 of the JBC, OPBF and the WBO Asia Pacific rankings. He's a talented but frustrating fighter who promised a lot as a teenager but has failed to build on that promise in the way we, and others, had expected. At just 23 years old however time is still on his side. He came to our attention way back in 2014, when he won the All Japan Rookie of the Year, aged 18, but since then has gone 7-2-2 (3) and spent a full year out of the ring. Masanori Rikiishi proved himself as a talented amateur, running up a 25-5 (15) record in the unpaid ranks, before turning professional in 2017. He would win his first two bouts but would then come up short against Kosuke Saka in 2018, in what was a case of trying to bite off too much too soon. Since then he has scored 6 wins, including a very good one last time out against Freddy Fonseca. Interestingly he's the younger brother of Japanese national Light Flyweight champion Masamichi Yabuki and at 26 years old he is tipped for big things on the Japanese and regional scene, following in the footsteps of his brother. He's a big big fighter at the weight and although not as destructive as Yabuki he is very much a talented boxer-puncher, as shown by his rankings with the OPBF and JBC and his performances against the likes of Fonseca. What to expect? On paper this looks really interesting and could end up being either a brilliant match up between two well matched fighters, as it looks on paper, or a frustrating mess of a fight. We expect Kasuya to to try and keep the bout at range, he will move and box and try to stay safe, whilst using his jab to rack up points. It's something we've seen from him in the past and something that did lead to his early career success. In recent bouts he's shown more willingness to sit on his shots, and has stopped 3 of his last 5, but when he's stepped up to domestically ranked fighters he struggled and we expect to see him show a lot of respect to Rikiishi's power. With Rikiishi we have a more aggressive boxer-puncher who can damage opponents, hit them hard and can also box to a game plan. For our money he's physically the stronger guy, as well as the bigger puncher here. He might be giving away a little bit in height and reach but his southpaw stance will help neutralise the jab of Kasuya, and he will look to land the hard shots, whilst pressing with intelligent pressure from center ring. We see Kasuya starting well, but after a few rounds the power difference will prove to be a difference maker with Kasuya being backed up, holding, spoiling, and struggling to maintain his offense. In the end his good start will mean something, but not enough with Rikiishi taking a narrow decision. The bad news? This looks interesting but as mentioned it could become a frustrating mess. If Kasuya tastes the power of Rikiiishi and doesn't like it we could see him holding a lot, and spoiling. We hope that doesn't happen but it could. Also the southpaw-orthodox dynamic could result in headclashes and some really ugly moments. Hopefully we avoid those however and get a really engaging tactical bout at mid-range. This coming weekend is a packed one with action, as boxing continues to build it's momentum and slowly returns to something resembling normal. With that in mind we had a few options for this week's "One to Watch", however we did go with the obvious on from the US on Saturday night! It's the obvious choice but it's a good choice as the one to make sure you watch this week!
The One to Watch? Israil Madrimov (5-0, 5) vs Eric Walker (20-2, 9) When? August 15th (Saturday) Why? There are a few reasons to be really excited about this contest. Not only does the bout feature one of the sports most exciting rising hopefuls but it's also a world title eliminator and a chance to see questions asked of a man many are tipping for the top. The bout will also, potentially, see the fast tracked hopeful needing to show what he can do against a durable and world ranked foe. Who? Unbeaten Uzbek fighter Israil Madrimov is widely regarded as a nailed on future world champion. The talented Uzbek was a stand out amateur who turned professional in 2018, fighting in a 10 rounder straight away, and since then has marched up the rankings towards a world title shot. So far he has stopped all 5 of his opponents and barely lost a round so far. His total professional career has lasted just 25 rounds and he already been linked to world title fights. Blessed with freakish power, speed and athleticism Madrimov is one of the most young fighters in the sport, and the 25 year old looks ready for big things. There are however questions for Madrimov to answer still, such as questions regarding his chin, his stamina and his ability to move to plan B when he can't hurt an opponent. Given what he did as an amateur however we think he'll answer those questions with ease, when he's finally asked them. Eric Walker on the other hand is a 37 year old American veteran who has been a professional since late 2013. Despite turn professional late, at the age of 30, he has managed to carve out a solid career. He won his first 15 bouts, including an upset over Christopher Pearson, before losing a competitive decision to Patrick Day. Walker bounced back from that loss and competed in "The Contender" where he beat John Jackson and John Thompson before losing a razor thin decision to Brandon Adams in the semi-final of "The Contender". Since then he has reeled off 3 straight wins and moved himself in to the WBA rankings. Coming in to this Madrimov is ranked #2 by the WBA whilst Walker is ranked #6. What to expect? We genuinely expect to see Madrimov make a statement here and look to not just win but to look amazing on route to his victory. Walker will however look to play his part and come in to the bout seeking an upset. Although not the most naturally gifted fighter on there Walker is a deceptive quick and sharp fighter. He's clumsy, and awkward at times, but strong, tough and has under-rated power, with shots coming from some unorthodox angles. He could ask questions of Madrimov early on with those odd shots, but we suspect that by round 4 or 5 he'll be getting used as target practice and be broken down. Walker is tough, he's never been stopped and went to war later on in his win over Christopher Pearson. Sadly for him however that toughness will see him prolonging his punishment from Madrimov, and getting badly beaten up the longer the bout goes. We expect Madrimov to show some patience, take a round or two to see what Walker has to offer, then begin to go to town. The bad news? Whilst this will be a world title eliminator it's unclear when the winner will get a shot at a world title. The WBA Light Middleweight champion is over on PBC and if Madrimov wins, as expected we could end up waiting a while to see him getting a shot. Alternatively we could end up with the WBA playing silly buggers and creating a "new title" to keep things ticking over. Sadly until the WBA sort out the mess they keep creating any WBA "eliminator" will be seen as a bit of a joke. One thing was don't see enough of is great all-Korean bouts. It seems we could be seeing a change that in the near future, and we have had one or two in the last few years, but they are still rather rare. Thankfully this weekend we get actually get two, one of which is my pick for this week's "One to Watch".
The One to Watch? Jong Seon Kang (10-0-2, 6) vs Seong Yeong Yang (8-2-5, 4) When? August 8th (Saturday) Why? We love action bouts and given the fighters involved in this one we are expecting nothing short of a thrill a minute, full on war with incredible action, intense exchanges, limited defense and amazing wills to win. This isn't likely to be a bout for a purist, but for those who want a rock em sock robots style fight this should be ideal. The men both like to let their hands, both men are flawed, and both know how to put on a show! Who? Aged just 18 Jong Seon Kang is one of the countries brightest hopes, and is already a multi-year professional, having debuted back in November 2017. Although not a big name Kang really impressed us last year when he fought 5 times, going 3-0-2 (2). Whilst his bouts weren't at the highest level he certainly wasn't just beating limited opponents, in fact he managed to upset Ravshanbek Shermatov, travelled to China and beat Qixiu Zhang, and then defeated Tomjune Mangubat in an absolute thriller in Vietnam. He's tough, gutsy, throws a lot of leather and in his win over Mangubat was a genuinely sensational bout that showed he determination and saw him climb off the to earn the win. It's fair to say that the 24 year old Seong Yeong Yang has a weird looking record, with 5 draws from 15 bouts however don't let that fool you into thinking he's not a good fighter. In fact he's become a very good fighter after a really weird 2-4-2 start this his professional career, and he's now unbeaten in 11 bouts. As with Kang his competition hasn't been amazing, but he's shown an incredible work, amazing engine, guts and drive. His most notable result is his 2019 draw in China against Jian Wang. That bout, like Kang's against Mangubat, was just an exceptional, all out, free swinging, intense war. Defense wasn't something either man wanted to show us, and we weren't complaining! What to expect? Given that both fighters are limited, action fighters who have high work rates, limited defense, throw in high volume without massive amounts of power we're going to tell you all to expect something special. Really special. From the opening round we expect to see a lot of leather thrown. Of the two Kang is probably the more technical, but he's certainly not a technical fighter in a traditional sense. Kang is probably the higher volume guy, but not by a significant amount. We would expect Kang to be more willing to move, look for angles and space, but be willingly dragged into a tear up. That will give us some exciting exchanges early on, but as the fight goes on, and the foot work slows, we expect to see more toe-to-toe exchanges in what will, potentially, be a FOTY contender. It might seem hyperbolic but this bout has the potential to be something truly amazing. We know it's going to be relatively low level, but that doesn't matter too much here, it's going to be entertaining and that's why it's this weeks one to watch! The bad news? At the time of writing it's unclear if the bout will be aired live, however it's a Cocky Buffalo show under the auspices of the KBA so at the very least we know it's going to be made available online after the bout. We might need to wait to watch it, but the wait will be worth it! Although we're seeing more boxing in the East there is still a disjointed feel to lots of things, with bouts being cancelled, and events being changed almost daily. Thankfully though Thailand seems to be on top of things, and we're now starting to see some regular action from "The land of Smiles".
With that said this week's "One to Watch" is coming from Thailand and is a bout that has seen more attention than a typical all-Thai bout! The One to Watch? Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (47-5-1, 41) Vs Amnat Ruenroeng (20-3, 6) When? August 1st (Saturday) Why? It's rare to get a bout in Thailand that has some interest in the west, but that's exactly what we have here with a bout between two former world champions who meet in the main event of a WP Boxing event. The bout won't just be a rare bout between two well known Thai's but will also likely lead the winner into another world title fight. This is a bout that has significance well beyond the realms of Asian boxing, despite featuring two Asian fighters. This has implications on the world scene. The WP Boxing is also proof of concept behind "studio boxing" with all the events being held at the Work Point Studio in Bang Phun. We've seen BT Sport trial something similar, but the WP Boxing series dates back a few years now and they almost all run from a studio with no issues at all. For a small event in the west this may end up being something we get to see more of in the west. Who? We suspect almost every fan to know something about Srisaket Sor Rungvisai. The 33 year old from Si Sa Ket is a 2-time WBC Super Flyweight champion, one of the hard hitting hitting fighters in the lower weights and a human tank. He is best known for his wins over Roman Gonzalez, both of which came in 2017, but other notable wins include victories over Juan Francisco Estrada, Jose Salgado and Yota Sato. He's a power punching and aggressive Super Flyweight and a physical monster who is looking to become a 3-time world champion. Aged 40 Amnat Ruenroeng is an ancient "smaller man", but he's had a strange career in general. He made his professional debut at the age of 32, won the IBF Flyweight title at the age of 34, and scored a string of notable wins when he was the IBF champion. During his title reign Amnat beat the likes of Kazuto Ioka, Zou Shiming, John Riel Casimero and McWilliams Arroyo. Although a talented boxer he was a master at bending the rules, knowing how to foul and get away with it. He's not typically a physically imposing fighter, but he is a surprisingly strong one. What to expect? We'll be honest we actually see this as being a bit of a mismatch. Although both men are former world champions Srisaket is still in, or around, his prime. Amnat on the other hand is very much coming towards the end of his career. Not only that but Amnat is also the naturally smaller man, despite having slight edges in height and reach he is less powerfully built than Srisaket. It's also worth noting that Amnat has suffered a lot of punishment in recent years, including a KO loss to John Riel Casimer, a TKO loss to Nawaphon Por Chokchai and a loss in a kickboxing bout against Tenshin Nasukawa. We expect to see Srisaket struggle early on with the tactics and jab of Amnat, but after 3 or 4 rounds we suspect that Srisaket's strength and power will begin to break down the 40 year old, who will begin to look for a way out by rounds 5 or 6. The bad news? For one of the few times in this series there really isn't too much bad to talk about. The bout will be streamed for free, via Matchroom and Work Point, there's no paywall or tape delay issues. Maybe the one issue is the fact the the bout is a mismatch and the it's on at an awkward for a Western audience, but it's still worth tuning in for. |
Takahiro Onaga
Takahiro Onaga is a regular contributor to Asian Boxing and will now be a featured writer in his own column where his takes his shot at various things in the boxing world. Archives
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