This past weekend we saw unbeaten teenage prospect Phoobadin Yoohanngoh (11-0, 6) score his latest win, stopping veteran Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo and further enhancing his impressive reputation. Sadly it seems that Phoobadin will outgrow the Thai domestic scene sooner rather than later, and could well be done with Thai foes by the end of 2021.
For now however Thailand is not letting many visitors into the country and boxers travelling over to the Land of Smiles to face the teenage sensation will be few and far between. With that in mind we've tried to take a look at what might be next for Phoobadin as we give him the Five for... treatment, and think about 5 potential fighters he could be facing later this year. Including one man he publically called out this past weekend. 1- Apichet Petchmanee (8-0, 2) The man Phoobadin called out after his latest win was unbeaten Thai Apichet Petchmanee, a Lightweight hopeful who is unbeaten in but has stumbled his way through a number of those bouts, and seems like a loss waiting to happen. Apichet turned professional with a fair bit of hype and expectation on his shoulders but has failed to really deliver on his potential. Now aged 31 the time is now or never for Apichet to progress on to bigger and better things, though the feeling is that a bout with Phoobadin would see him being destroyed in quick fashion. Notably Apichet is set to fight in the coming days, against Kaewfaw Tor Buamas, but if he gets through that then the build to this fight will grow. 2- Nick Frese (10-1, 8) Whilst visitors to Thailand are limited there are some Thai based international fighters, two of which are on this list. One of those is Nick Frese, a Thai based Dutch fighter. The once touted Frese began his professional boxing career with 10 straight wins before being upset in November 2019. He's been out of the sport since then but we suspect he would happily return for a suitable bout, and a contest with the rising teenage star would be a very good reason to return to the ring. Frese is a natural Welterweight, and would be the bigger man against Phoobadin, but with more than a year out of the ring, and around 2 years since his last win, Frese would be battling ring rust and the complete lack of career momentum. The bout would also give Phoobadin a potential chance to dip his toes at 147lbs. 3- Musheg Adoian (7-3, 7) A second Thai based international fighter is the heavy handed Musheg Adoian, who's originally from Armenia. Adoian has spent his entire professional boxing career in Thailand, debuting in 2019 and fighting as recently as December 2020. Sadly he was beaten on debut and has lost his last 2 bouts, though those most recent losses do both come with an "*". The first of those two defeats was a hugely controversial decision loss to the previously mentioned Apichet, who he dropped twice. The second was a rematch with Apichet, in which he spent much of the bout fighting with 1 arm due to a nasty injury that left him a 1-handed fighter. Despite those defeats Adoian is a dangerous fighter, with nasty power, and he would be a genuine threat for Phoobadin. It's fair to say Phoobadin would be favoured, but this would be a genuine test for the youngster. 4- Downua Ruawaiking (16-1, 13) Potentially the most interesting, but least likely, match up would be a bout between Phoobadin and recent world title challenger Downua Ruawaiking, aka Apinun Khongsong. Downua was stopped inside a round last year by unified world champion Josh Taylor and hasn't fought since then. If we were part of Phoobadin's team we would be desperate to try and get a Downua in the ring with our guy as soon as possible. Whilst Downua is much better than his performance against Taylor suggests he is also a man who would be coming in on the back of an opening round loss and closing in on 2 years without a win. Now would be the perfect time to face him, before he can rebuild his confidence. Sadly it seems to be an unlikely bout, mainly because Downua's team would likely not want to risk back to back losses for their man, but from Phoobadin's side this is something they should be chasing. 5- Pharanpetch Tor Buamas (22-4, 20) We'll admit we struggled to find a fifth notably option for Phoobadin, but decided to sett on Amphol Suriyo, who has previously been known as Pharanpetch Tor Buamas. The Thai 33 year old is a veteran who has faced some notable fighters of his career but shouldn't be too much of a straight to Phoobadin. Pharanpetch has been a professional since 2011, and has typically fought at Super Featherweight or Lightweight during his career. Whilst he hasn't ever shined, and is 7-4 in his last 11, he has shown an ability to pick up an occassional upset, which was saw in 2018 against Kazuki Saito. We suspect he'd be too small, and too old to be a real test for Phoobadin, but he's likely to be better at 140lbs than Chonlatarn was and would make for a decent stay busy fight whilst waiting for the Covid19 restrictions in Thailand to be lifted. Though it would be a pretty obvious "stay busy" bout for Phobadin.
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This past Thursday we saw talented Japanese Light Welterweight Gonte Lee (3-0-1, 1) pick up his most notable win so far, as he defeated Aso Ishiwaki in an 8 rounder at Korakuen Hall. With that win under his belt Lee has done 8 rounds for the first time, and beaten his first Japanese opponent. He has also taken huge steps towards getting his first title fight.
With that win now under his belt we've decided to focus on Lee this week as we look at 5 potential bouts for the talented southpaw, who recent turned 25 and will not be wanting to waste too much time before moving his career to the next level. Note - Due to the current restrictions in Japan, we have only considered Japanese fighters here. 1-Koichi Aso (24-9-1, 15) Although it seems early to be taking major risks with Lee's career we really don't imagine that Teiken will hold him back. Instead we expect Teiken to want him to move towards a title fight in 2022 or 2023. With that in mind we wouldn't be surprised by Teiken looking to match their man with a former Japanese champion. There's few around at 140lbs, but one of those that would be available would be veteran Kocihi Aso. The 35 year old Aso has been an amazing servant to Japanese boxing over the years but is very much a fighter on the slide, he has lost 2 of his last 4 and looked very much washed in his razor thin win over Shogo Yamaguchi. He is an ideal opponent for Lee. 2-Akihiro Kondo (32-9-2, 18) Although Aso would be ideal there is a chance Teiken have bigger aspiration for their 35 year old hopeful. It that's right then maybe they'll take a look at former world title challenger Akihiro Kondo as a future opponent. This would be a very high risk bit of match making, but the reward would be huge. And Lee has the tools to beat Kondo. We last saw Kondo in the ring in 2020, when he pushed Daishi Nagata all the way in a 7th round technical draw. Before then however he had looked poor against Tatsuya Yanagi and was easily outboxed by Andy Hiraoka. If Lee works on the gameplan that Hiraoka did, using his speed, movement and jab, and avoids a tear with the smaller, much older Kondo, he could well take a wide decision over him. This would be a chance to make a huge statement for Lee. 3-Homare Yasui (5-1-2, 4) A left of field pick here for a potential Lee opponent is 2019 All Japan Rookie of the Year winner, at Welterweight, Homare Yasui. The 21 year old Yasui is an aggressive, exciting and physically strong fighter who is hungry to make a mark on the sport himself. He wouldn't be there to roll over, and he wouldn't be there to make up the numbers. Instead he would be, much like Aso Ishiwaki was, there to win, there to beat the touted amateur standout. He would be there looking to make a name for himself. We suspect that the skills and amateur pedigree of Lee would be enough to defeat Yasui, but he'd have to work hard for it, and it would be a very interesting match up. It would also give Yasui a chance to return to Korakuen Hall, where he won Rokkie of the Year! 4-Ryuji Ikeda (14-7-3, 9) In terms of more well known potential foes for Lee one possible opponent would be Ryuji Ikeda, a former Japanese title challenger who has experience, power and a fan friendly style. Sadly he has just one win in his last 5 bouts, and lost to recent Lee opponent Aso Ishiwaki, but there's enough value in him to make him a viable opponent for Lee at this early point in his career. Ikeda wouldn't pose too much of a threat to Lee, but should have the tools to ask questions of Lee, take Lee a few rounds and make the Teiken hopeful work for a win. Obviously it would also be a win over a former Japanese title challenger, and that would be the key here. It would also give Lee a chance to score a rare stoppage, something we don't think he'll get many of 5-Shogo Yamaguchi (12-6-3, 7) We mentioned Koichi Aso at the start of this and it seems right to mention his most recent opponent, Shogo Yamaguchi, as another potential foe for Lee, and like Aso he makes for a very interesting one. He lacks the name value and recognition of Aso, but is a very viable domestic opponent, who comes to fight, press forward, lets his hands go and can leave himself open to counters. He's not the best fighter out there, but he's more than good enough as an opponent, especially this early in Lee's career. The skills, movement and speed of Lee should be too much for Yamaguchi, but this should still be a bout that proves him as a fighter heading in the right direction and should be a similar type of test to that that Ishiwaki posed this past Thursday. This past weekend we saw Japanese star Hiroto Kyoguchi (15-0, 10) make his US debut and successfully retain his WBA "super" and Ring Magazine Light Flyweight world titles with a TKO5 win over Axel Aragon Vega, who sadly damaged his hand in round 5 of their bout. Prior to the anti-climactic ending the bout had been spectacular, with the two men trading blows on the inside in a really exciting fashion and by the time of the stoppage there was little to split the two men, who had styles that gelled perfectly.
With that win under his belt, and with more fans than ever now knowing who Kyoguchi is, it's the perfect time to take a look at 5 potential bouts for Kyoguchi going forward. 1-Kenshiro Teraji (17-0, 10) It's fair to say that there is one bout we all want to see Kyoguchi in and that's a show down with WBC champion, and fellow Japanese fighter, Kenshiro Teraji. The bout is one that fans have been wanting since Kyoguchi won the WBA and Ring titles at the end of 2018 and is one that makes so, so much sense. In fact it makes more sense now than ever. The bout would be a unification bout, between two Japanese fighters, who are a similar age, have clashed in the amateurs and are well known to be friendly with each other. Stylistically it would be a brilliant match up with Kyoguchi's pressure going up against Teraji's footwork and counter punching, and it would be massive for Japanese boxing, and the 108lb division. In the past there has been TV contracts acting as a stumbling block, though it appears those issues are now out of the way, especially with DAZN's involvement with Kyoguchi, and the biggest stumbling block now looks to be Kenshiro's April 24th defense against Tetsuya Hisada. When he gets that out of the way and we will see the demand for this bout balloon once again. 2-Elwin Soto (18-1, 12) We look at another unification bout here as Kyoguchi could take on Mexican fighter Elwin Soto, the current WBO champion. The heavy handed Soto is, like Kyoguchi, a man who likes a fight and the styles of the two men should gel brilliantly with both men being willing to hold their feet and go to war. Of the two Kyoguchi is more proven and more rounded fighter, but there's no questioning Soto's aggression and power, and his 2019 title winning performance against Angel Acosta showed he carried his power late in the bout. This would have the ingredients of a FOTY contender and would be a fantastic way for Kyoguchi to return to the US. It's worth noting that this shouldn't be too difficult to make given both men work with promoters who are affiliated with DAZN. 3-Thanongsak Simsri (14-0, 12) The most likely "next bout" for Kyoguchi is unlikely to be a unification bout, no matter how much we we want that, and is more likely to be the contractually agreed bout with Thai youngster Thanongsak Simsri. This bout was set for late last year but was sadly cancelled at incredibly short notice when Kyoguchi tested positive for Covid19. Following the collapse of that bout Simsri's team, including Green Tsuda Gym's Masaya Motoishi, secured a contractual agreement to face Kyoguchi. With that in mind we need to include him, and in fairness it does look like a brilliant match up, though perhaps a bit too early for Simsri who is still a boxing baby. The Thai is just 20 years old and has only 42 rounds to his name, though he has been sparring at a high level and was ready to go last year. Strangely the cancellation may have been a blessing in disguise for the heavy handed youngster. 4-Axel Aragon Vega (14-4-1, 8) II Given the disappointing ending to Kyoguchi's bout with Axel Aragon Vega this past weekend it leaves a logical bout to be made, a rematch! The first 4 rounds of their first bout was genuinely fantastic, though we do feel like we were seeing a change in the tide in rounds 4 and 5, with Kyoguchi boxing more and warring less, and it would have been interesting to see if Vega could have coped with that change and adapted his own style. Something we were denied the chance to see due to Vega damaging his hand on Kyoguchi's "titanium head". The styles of the two men gelled instantly, they gave us 3 fantastic rounds of trading on the inside, and it was a bout fought at an amazing tempo and with high quality work from both. The disappointing ending has left fans wanting more, and we suspect the two fighters would be very open to going again! 5-Carlos Canizales (22-0-1, 17) Carlos Canizalez, also known as "CCC", is the forgotten man of the division and the current WBA "regular" champion making him a very notable contender for the "Super" title held by Kyoguchi. He's also a man who has shown no issues with travelling and has already fought in Japan twice, Malaysia and China. Given his willingness to travel he could clash with Kygoguchi in Japan or the US without any major issues and would make for a thrilling bout with the Japanese star. There is also some history here as the only "mark" on Canizales' record actually came against Kyoguchi's former Watanabe Gym stablemate Ryoichi Taguchi, giving a little bit of extra edge to this potential bout. Other potential opponents for Kyoguchi include (but certainly isn't limited to) Felix Alvarado Daniel Matellon Masamichi Yabuki Agustin Mauro Gauto Sivenathi Nontshinga Jonathan Gonzalez Edward Heno This past weekend we saw Chinese Heavyweight giant Zhang Zhilei (22-0-1, 17) have his most interesting bout to date, as he narrowly squeaked a draw with Jerry Forrest (26-4-1, 20), despite scoring 3 knockdowns in the first 3 rounds of the fight. By the end of the bout Zhilei was looking like he was out on his feet, running on fumes and was lucky the bout was a 10 rounder, and not a 12 rounder as it seems a given he would have been stopped.
Despite narrowly escaping with the draw, and his unbeaten record, Zhang is now in an awkward position. He has been hyped for years as a potential Anthony Joshua opponent, for a contest at the "Birdsnest" in China, a bout that never seemed to make any sense, and the draw has seemingly killed that hype. At the age of 37 he can ill afford to take a backwards step, but he also can't be rushed and suffer a career ending loss. Despite the hype being burst is still a world ranked Heavyweight and the type of fighter that some emerging names may fancy their chances against. Whilst he will be looking to bounce back from the recent draw. With that in mind we've decided to take a look at 5 potential bouts for Zhang. These are all bouts that are, at least partially, high risk bouts, but are also high reward bouts for "Big Bang" and would keep him in the title mix if he can win them. 1-Trevor Bryan (21-0, 15) Working with Don King is never in anyone's plans, but if Zhang wants to leave the door open to a world title fight he and his team might need to "work with the devil" and secure a bout between Zhang and Trevor Bryan, the WBA's "Regular" champion. Bryan isn't an amazing fighter and this is quite possibly the only way Zhang can win a Heavyweight world title. Bryan certainly isn't terrible, and he wouldn't be a blow out for Zhang by any means, but he is essentially Zhang's only chance at a world title. Sadly it's hard to imagine Don King risking Bryan against anyone even half decent, or for King and Eddie Hearn to work together on making this one. 2-Bogdan Dinu (20-2, 16) A potentially easier to make bout than a clash with Bryan for Zhang and his team would be a bout with Romanian fighter Bogdan Dinu. The 34 year old Dinu needs a big win of his own to be relevant after 2 stoppage losses in his last 4 bouts, and a win over Zhang would be huge for his career, the sort of win he needs to get himself in the mix. Likewise Zhang would feel he would be too much, too strong and too powerful for the Romanian giant. This would be one that could end early, either way, or could end up getting very messy the longer it goes on. Interestingly a win for Zhang here would see him being ranked very highly by the WBA, given that Dinu is inexplicably ranked #3 by the World Boxing Association, meaning that the Chinese giant would be on the verge of a world title fight if he could over-come Dinu. 3-Martin Bakole (16-1, 12) When we think of real possibilities for Zhang we perhaps need to think of Eddie Hearn looking to match him within the Matchroom stable. Hearn isn't too known for doing this, which strikes us as being stupid and frustrating, but it is something he can do without too many issues. With that in mind a bout between Zhang and British based Congolese fighter Martin Bakole would make a lot of sense. This would be a 50-50 style match up and would pit two big, but flawed, fighters against each other and the loser would be in an awful position, whilst the winner would be legitimately on the verge of something huge. From Hearn's perspective this could be a great chance to clear out one of his many Heavyweights, with the loser likely to have little value to the promoter afterwards. 4-David Price (25-7, 20) One thing Zhang's draw with Forrest showed was that his stamina was poor, his power was good, and that the longer the bout went the more he struggled. With that in mind we can't help wanting to match him with someone similar, and the first person who jumps to mind is English giant David Price. Interestingly both men are the wrong side of 35, both men are limited puncher, both are physical giants and both men won medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, with both actually losing to Italian legend Roberto Cammarelle. It would be an easy(ish) one for Matchroom to put together and promote and could be a lot of fun, as long as it doesn't last the distance. 5-Hughie Fury (25-3, 14) Staying with the idea of Zhang facing a "big British lad" another alternative would be a bout with Hughie Fury. As a viewing spectacle this wouldn't be fun, not in the slightest. Fury is well known for putting on dull performances and Zhang has terrible stamina, but as with the Bakole fight it would be a fight where the loser would, essentially, be put on the chopping block for Eddie Hearn, who would see little value in keeping the two of them. In terms of strengths Zhang has the clear edge in power, and for all his flaws he can certainly punch, but Fury has youth and speed on his side, and the younger man would be the favourite. Whilst we would hate to watch this, at least if it goes beyond 3 or 4 rounds, it would be a compelling case of a "must win" for both men, and should be a very, very easy bout to make. Just over a week ago Japanese Featherweight Hinata Maruta (11-1-1, 9) scored the best win of his career, stopping Ryo Sagawa to claim the Japanese Featherweight title. It was, at last, Maruta living up to the early hype and expectation that had been put on his shoulders when he turned professional aged just 18. It was proof that Maruta was a special talent, and that things were, at last, starting to click for a man who was seemed to be groomed for success.
With the Japanese title now around his waist we've decided to look at 5 potential bouts for the 23 year old Maruta, who will be looking to build on his win over Sagawa and take huge strides towards a potential world title fight. 1-Reiya Abe (20-3-1, 9) One man we would love to see Maruta in against is the highly skilled Reiya Abe, a talented southpaw counter puncher who would be a very interesting opponent for Maruta. The newly crowned champion would go in to the bout as the favourite, but he would be expected to have a real test here against a man who controls distance well, will look to neutralise the reach and speed of Maruta and is just as talented as the champion. Abe is regarded as a boxing genius in Japan, and it's hard to argue with that, though he can also be a lazy genius and at times cruises a bit too much, waiting for a mistake, rather than pressing the action himself. Against Maruta that would be an issue for Abe though it would also give Maruta a chance to get some experience against an incredibly skilled southpaw. This would be highly level stuff from the off and a compelling bout to view, even if it wouldn't be the most exciting. 2-Shun Kubo (14-2, 9) Whilst we would absolutely love to see Maruta take on Abe we could under-stand if Maruta wanted to take on a bigger name and someone more well known. If that's the case than a bout against former WBA and OPBF Super Bantamweight champion Shun Kubo would be a smart match up for the Morioka Gym to pursue. Kubo, who faces Ruito Saeki in March, is a long, rangy, technical boxer, but also one who lacks in terms of durability. He's technically solid, and should ask questions of Maruta, but his questionable chin would be a major issue against someone with the power of Maruta. Despite that a win for Maruta against Kubo isn't meaningless. In fact it would be very meaningful. As mentioned Kubo is a former world champion, and he has also only been beaten by world class fighters, losing in 9 rounds to Daniel Roman and in 6 rounds to Can Xu. A win for Maruta over Kubo would see him earning comparisons to Xu and Roman and taking huge strides towards a world title fight of his own. 3-Daisuke Watanabe (12-4-2, 7) Notably Maruta might not get much of a choice about his first defense and may well be forced to make a mandatory defense against the #1 ranked JBC fighter. If that's the case then he may be expected to take on Daisuke Watanabe, who's very much an under-rated and often over-looked fighter. Watanabe has been matched hard since making his debut in 2014 and was 2-2 after his first 4 bouts. Since then he has scored notable wins against the likes of Gakuya Furuhashi, the current Japanese Super Bantamweight champion, Dai Iwai, Richard Pumicpic and Shingo Kusano, who he beat in the Hajime No Ippo 30th Anniversary tournament last year. Watanabe's record might not look like that of a real threat to someone like Maruta, but his power, aggression and determination would see him asking questions of Maruta, and testing what the young champion has in his locker. Maruta would be a very clear favourite to win, but this would still be a solid match up and very good first defense. 4-Genesis Servania (34-2, 16) Staying with Japanese ranked fighters, and looking at people who mean something on the world stage, a bout between Maruta and former world title challenger Genesis Servania would be a compelling match up, and a potentially huge opportunity for Maruta. Internationally Servania is known for one, his 2017 world title thriller with Oscar Valdez, that saw both men being dropped. Whilst Servania has done very, very, little since then his name does still man something and a win over him would almost certainly help Maruta leap towards a world title fight. Aged 29 Servania is still very much in his physical prime and isn't a shot fighter, despite how bad he looked against Carlos Castro in 2019. He is however a fairly predictable fighter, who fights behind a tight guard, and is somewhat slow, making for an easy target for someone quick and rangy, like Maruta. On paper this would be a step up for the newly crowned champion, but would also be a bout he'd be expected to win, dominantly. 5-Musashi Mori (12-0, 7) OR Satoshi Shimizu (9-1, 9) We're cheating a little bit here, but for a good reason. We want to see Maruta face the winner of the May 13th clash between Musashi Mori, the WBO Asia Pacific champion, and Satoshi Shimizu, the OPBF champion, in a bout for the triple crown! Ths bout really sells it's self and would be a unification bout for the Japanese, OPBF and WBO Asia Pacific titles. No matter who wins the May 13th bout between Mori and Shimizu they would make for the ideal dance partner for Maruta in the fall. Of the two Mori is the younger, more technically skilled fighter, and would pose some really interesting questions from a technical stand point for Maruta. Shimizu on the other hand is a crude, open, wild fighter, with lights out power, who would test Maruta's chin and and how Maruta copes with a fighter who is just as long and rangy as he is. Maruta against the winner of Shimizu Vs Mori is the bout that should be made as soon as possible, and the winner of that would be incredibly close to a world title fight in 2022! Note the bout between Maruta and Sagawa was supposed to be aired last weekend on Fuji TV. Due to the earthquake that hit Japan on Saturday the broadcast was delayed and it will be aired on February 19th as a result Just over a week ago fight fans at Korakuen Hall saw the talented Yudai Shigeoka (3-0, 2) claim his first title, winning the Japanese Youth Light Flyweight title with a TKO win against fellow youngster Ryu Horikawa. The win was an impressive one for Shigeoka, who showed his skills, power, strength and speed to overcome a very highly skilled fighter who will almost certainly rebuild from the loss and go on to achieve success of his own.
Aged 23 the future promises a lot for Shigeoka, who can easily make a name for himself at either Minimumweight or Light Flyweight, and follow his brother, Ginjiro Shigeoka, to the top of the sport. With the latest win behind him we've decided to take a look at 5 potential bouts for Shigeoka when he next steps into the ring as we give Shigeoka the "Five For" treatment. 1-Kenichi Horikawa (41-16-1, 14) With Shigeoka getting his first taste of silverware recently we suspect he'll be wanting more, and more. With that in mind we suspect Shigeoka will be taking a look at some of the other title holders at 108lbs and 105lbs. One of the potential options for a senior title would see Shigeoka take on veteran Kenichi Horikawa, the current OPBF Light Flyweight champion. On paper this would be a massive jump up on class for Shigeoka, to take on a genuine battle hardened veteran with more than 50 bouts to his name and over 400 professional rounds. Horikawa is a tough test for anyone on the domestic scene, however at the age of 40 his best days are best him and he is slower than he was. If Shigeoka uses his speed and skills he could end up getting a huge win here against a very well respected veteran. 2-Reiya Konishi (17-3, 7) Whilst we suspect Shigeoka will be wanting to claim his second professional title an alternative option is that he looks to score a win of note in a non-title bout. If that's an option that he finds exciting then the perfect opponent for the youngster would be former 2-time world title challenger Reiya Konishi. At his best Konishi is a handful, and he gave Carlos Canizales a really tough bout in 2018, with little to split the two men. Since then however he has looked poor, and losses to Felix Alvarado and Katsunari Takayama in his last two have shown that Konishi is perhaps not the future world champion he once seemed. Takayama's game plan against Konishi showed a tactic that worked and we suspect Shigeoka could replicate that against Konishi to take a clear win. Despite favouring Shigeoka against Konishi, this would be a gut check for the youngster, and just the type of fight he would need to prove himself. 3-Riku Kano (17-4-1, 8) Going back to the idea of Shigeoka wanting more titles, another potential belt for him to chase is the WBO Asia Pacific Light Flyweight title. That is currently held by Riku Kano, who won the belt last year with a decision over Ryoki Hirai. Kano was once viewed as a super prospect himself and even fought for a world title when he was just 18, but since then his career has repeatedly faltered and he really needs to build on his title win. With that in mind a Kano may well see a win over Shigeoka as the type of victory that would help boost his career in the right direction. Kano also has the edge in experience and has proven he can go 12 rounds. On the other hand Shigeoka is probably the bigger, stronger man, and he'll be confident that he will have too much for Kano, much like stablemate Shin Ono had a few years ago. We would favour Shigeoka, but this would be close to a 50-50 and a very well matched bout. 4-Kai Ishizawa (7-1, 7) Talking about well matched bouts, one we think could be amazingly well matched would be a contest between Shigeoka and the thunderously hard hitting Kai Ishizawa, with this one taking place at Minimumweight. Ishizawa is a thunderous puncher and a legitimate threat on the Japanese title scene, as we've seen in his bouts against the likes of Tatsuro Nakashima, Yuga Inoue and even Masataka Taniguchi, who he dropped before losing a close decision to. Ishizawa is a dangerous man at 105lbs, and if he catches an opponent clean he can take them out, and that includes Shigeoka. However he can be lazy at times, and he can be out boxed, and Shigeoka has got the size, skills and speed to out box Ishizawa. This would be a great test of boxer vs puncher, and would be a fantastic match up, but would see both men taking a real risk in facing the other man. This, sadly, might be one we need to wait a while for, but boy would we love to see this! 5-Lito Dante (17-11-4, 9) II The first 4 names on this list are all Japan, and as we write this it seems likely that anyone fighting in Japan will only be able to face Japanese opponents for the foreseeable future, at least if they are fighting at home. If Shigeoka can, however, wait until later in the year to return to the ring the obvious next match up for him would be a rematch with OPBF Minimumweight champion Lito Dante. These two fought in late 2019, when Shigeoka, in his second professional bout, defeated Dante in a 6 rounder. Now, in 2021, it would be great to see Shigeoka face off with Dante once again, this time over 12 rounds for the OPBF title. It would be a serious ask for Shigeoka to beat Dante over the longer distance, but it certainly isn't out of the question for the talented Japanese youngster to keep his range, box, mover and control the pace of the bout. This would be a massive step up from facing Dante over 6 rounders, but we dare say that a win here would suggest that Shigeoka was pretty much ready for a world title fight. Late last week we saw Japanese veteran Gakuya Furuhashi (27-8-1, 15) put in a career defining performance to witn a thrilling 9 round war with Yusaku Kuga and claim the Japanese Super Bantamweight title, doing so in a 2021 Fight of the Year contender. It was Furuhashi’s third shot at the domestic title and it was likely his last, if he lost. He knew his career needed him to win, and he dug deep, found limitless energy and did what he needed to stop Kuga.
With that win under his belt we thought Furuhashi was in a great position to weigh up his options and look at some match ups that are out there for him. And boy is there a lot of options out there for the new champion. In fact we struggled to whittle it down to just five for this week’s “Five for… Gakuya Furuhashi”. 1-Hiroaki Teshigawara (22-2-2, 15) Our first option is probably the least likely, all things considered, but would be the most interesting option in our eyes, as we favour unification bouts quite strongly in this series. That would be a bout between Japanese champion Furuhashi and OPBF champion Hiroaki Teshigawara. If we’re being totally honest we suspect Teshigawara, who is highly ranked by the WBC and IBF, has no intention of keeping his OPBF title, never mind unifying it, and is instead focusing on getting a world title fight. From a fan perspective however we would love to see this one, and it would be a fantastic battle. Every fight Furuhashi is in sees a lot of leather thrown, and he comes forward looking to make a fight an inside battle, and Teshigawara is an educated boxer-puncher who would look to catch Furuhashi coming in with heavy shots. It would almost certainly be a win for Teshigawara, but would still be a real fun one to watch. 2-Ryoichi Tamura (14-5-1, 7) II In 20219 we saw Furuhashi earn a shot at the Japanese title with an amazing 8 round decision win over former Japanese champion Ryoichi Tamura, in a bout that could easily have gone either way. We had our jaws drop watching the intense action involved in that one and to see the two do it again over 10 rounds for the belt would be amazing. Of the two fighters Furuhashi is the quicker, sharper man but Tamura is the stronger man with a more imposing physicality. What they have in common, however, is what makes a fight between the two a sure fire thriller, and that is that they fight in similar fashion, wanting to entertain fans, wear their opponents down and have a thrilling toe to toe war. This would be the sort of fighter that would push both men closer to retirement, but would have fans glued to the in ring action. At the time of writing Tamura is ranked #4 by the JBC, but the rankings do need up dating and he could well be banging on the door for a title fight when the update does go through. 3-Toshiki Shimomachi (12-1-2, 8) Whilst we would love to see Furuhashi get a chance to face a fellow warrior, like Tamura, there is also a case of wanting to see him face a fighter with a very, very different style, especially given his recent wars with Kuga and Tamura. With that in mind a bout between Furuhashi and the slippery, counter punching stylist Toshiki Shimomachi would be an interesting fight. For Furuhashi this would seem like a lower profile first defense, but one where he would certainly not take the punishment we’ve seen from him in recent bouts. It would look like an easier match up on his body than some of the others but would be a mentally testing bout for the champion. As for Shimomachi this would be a huge chance for him to show what he can do on the national stage, as he looks to grow from being a former Japanese Youth Champion to a full national champion. It would be a bout where the challenger would be the clear under-dog, but he would certainly have a good chance here against someone who does give a lot of countering opportunities. 4-Ryohei Takahashi (19-4-1, 8) We’re back to looking at potential wars here and bout between Furuhashi and former world title challenger Ryohei Takahashi would certainly be an entertaining one, and one fought between two men who are at a similar level. Takahashi is best known for his loss in an IBF world title fight to TJ Doheny and despite looking out of his depth there his toughness did impress and he ended up taking a real beating from Doheny. Against Furuhashi we would expect something similar, with Furuhashi being too good, too sharp, and too quick. However we would expect this one to be incredibly entertaining and a real fun fight from the opening bell. Takahashi lacks the ability to control the distance and tempo of the bout, and would be forced to fight Furuhashi’s style, something that will always be fan pleasing. Given Takahashi is ranked #5 by the JBC his name should certainly be in the mix, and given his world level experience a win over him would be meaningful for Furuhashi. 5-Ryosuke Nishida (3-0, 1) A wildcard choice to close this out would be a bout between Furuhashi and the fast rising Ryosuke Nishida, who scored a huge win last December over Shohei Omori. The win over Omori saw Nishida claim a #6 ranking with the JBC and puts him, potentially, in place to tie a Japanese record for the fewest fights to win a Japanese title, a record held at 4 bouts by the likes of Naoya Inoue, Akinobu Hiranaka, James Callaghan, Modest Napunyi and Joichiro Tatsuyoshi. Of course Nishida would be a big under-dog against Furuhashi but he was also the under-dog against Omori and showed some fantastic potential in that bout. We love unification bouts but we also love to see fighters daring to be great and seeing Nishida get a shot at the title in just his 4th bout would be amazing. Like the potential Shimomachi bout this wouldn’t be an all out war, that’s not Nishida’s way, but it would be a very compelling match up mixing Furuhashi’s pressure with the movement and speed of Nishida. Others considered (as this really was a long short list to whittle down): Ryo Akaho Ryo Matsumoto Shingo Wake Yukinori Oguni Yuskau Kuga II Matcha Nakagawa *All rankings correct at time of writing on January 25th. This past Friday on Boxing Raise we saw the hard hitting Kosuke Saka (21-5, 18) retain the Japanese Super Featherweight title, recording his first defense, as he stopped Takuya Watanabe in a solid bout. The expectations were that this would be something special, and whilst the bout failed to hit the heights expected of it, it was still a very engaging and solid contest until Saka took out Watanabe in round 6.
Following that win we had a quick and tried to think about what should be next for the hard hitting champion and realised there is a lot of interesting domestic options for him. In fact from where we're sat the Japanese Super Featherweight division currently being one of the most compelling domestic scene's out there. Whilst having a look at the options we decided Saka was a perfect fighter to give our "Five for..." treatment to. 1-Kenichi Ogawa (25-1-1-1, 18) Our first choice for Saka’s next defense is probably not likely, but it would certainly be something worth watching, and a big fight for Japanese fans, with Saka facing Kenichi Ogawa. The world ranked Ogawa will have his eyes set on a world title bout of some kind, but in reality the world we live in today makes international travel awkward at best, and maybe Ogawa will need to look elsewhere for a notable fight. With that in mind it would be great to see the handed Ogawa look to recapture the Japanese title that he held between 2015 and 2017. A bout between himself and Saka would have the ingredients to be an explosive encounter, with a strong feeling of tension. Both men would know they have the power to take the other out, but they would also know their opponent has the power to take them out. 2-Masanori Rikiishi (9-1, 5) II Our second choice is a much, much more likely option and that would see Saka rematching the talented Masanori Rikiishi. In 2018, in just his third professional bout, Rikiishi dared to make a statement and was stopped in 2 rounds by Saka, with his lack of professional experience showing through. Since then Rikiishi has won 7 in a row and late last year he made it clear he was wanting a chance to avenge his loss to the hard hitting Saka. Rikiishi has also been edging himself towards the Super Featherweight division, as if targeting Saka and his title. As for Saka this would be a chance to prove that he can beat an improved Rikiishi, and make a solid second defense against a man in great form. The bout would also, given the title status, have significantly more attention than their first bout. 3-Kanehiro Nakagawa (10-6, 5) Our third choice is probably the most likely and that would be a bout between Saka and the JBC#2 ranked contender Kanehiro Nakagawa, who could potentially be ordered as a mandatory title challenger this year. On paper Nakagawa looks like a massive downgrade from some of the other names on this list, given his less than appealing record, however he is probably in the best form of any Japanese fighter at 130lbs having won his last 5 bouts, with wins over Taiki Minamoto, Ken Oato, Ryuto Araya and Seiichi Okada. That level of competition has seen him climb rapidly through the rankings and earn a shot. In terms of his style, he has the toughness, determination and work rate to make for a thrilling clash with Saka and this would be a firefight well worthy of main eventing a Dynamic Glove show. 4-Yoshimitsu Kimura (12-2-1, 7) Staying with men well ranked by the JBC a bout between Saka and #7 ranked Yoshimitsu Kimura. This would be a very different type of test from many on this list, but also a really interesting one. Kimura isn’t a big name challenger but is a solid fighter, well known on the Japanese scene and the type of fighter who has been in some great fights already. His 2019 battle with Hironori Mishiro showed the level he could compete at, losing a razor thin decision for the OPBF title, and his 2020 draw with Shuma Nakazato was equally good. Kimura is a speed boxer-fighter, who often finds himself needing to fight more than box, and that could be a downfall against Saka, or it could make for an instant classic. Either way, we would love to see this one and would anticipate something special. For as long as it lasts, at least. 5-Kazuhiro Nishitani (21-5-1, 12) We started with a former Japanese champion and we’ll end with one, with Kazuhiro Nishitani, a former Japanese Lightweight champion, being a very interesting match up for Saka. The talented Nishitani was last seen in the ring losing a clear decision to Kenichi Ogawa, but he showed enough in that bout to remain in the title mix and against a man like Saka the styles should make for a very interesting bout. Nishitani is tough, really tough, a very relaxed boxer who rides shots well and fights smartly and has real determination. His career defining win over Shuhei Tsuchiya, back in 2017, was fantastic and in many many ways Saka has some similarities to Tsuchiya which should make for a dramatic bout. Nishitani has never been stopped, and Saka would love to change that, whilst Nishitani would love to get a shot to become a 2-weight champion! *Note rankings are right as per the English version of the JBC rankings on January 25th. Back on January 14th we saw talented Japanese fighter Takuma Inoue (14-1, 3) claim his latest win and bag himself the OPBF Bantamweight title, with an excellent performance against Keita Kurihara.
The younger Inoue brother defeated Kurihara with a technical decision and looked the much better boxer throughout the contest, and in fact he looked better than he ever has. He looked sharp, light on his feet and like a man who was concentrating on making himself a better fighter, rather than caring too much about his opponent in the opposite corner. With that win now under his belt we’ve decided to take a look at what could be next for Inoue as we give him the “Five For” Treatment and look at 5 potential bouts for Inoue when he next fights. 1-Daigo Higa (17-1-1, 17) On paper one of the most logical bouts for Inoue’s next contest is a clash with fellow Japanese fighter Daigo Higa, in a bout that would see the OPBF and WBO Asia Pacific titles being unified. Higa really impressed in his regional title win back in December, when he battered Yuki Strong Kobayashi on New Year’s Eve, but does still need to answer more questions before getting a world title fight at 118lbs. As for Inoue a win over Higa would put him right in the mix for a shot at a world title and would see him proving himself against a very strong pressure fighter, the type of fighter many feel could have his number. On paper this would be a fantastic domestic bout, though could be scuppered, potentially, by TV with Inoue being a Fuji TV fighter and Higa being a TBS fighter, albeit one that TBS doesn’t seem to be committed behind as of yet. 2-Emmanuel Rodriguez (19-2, 12) If a bout with Higa can’t be made and we have to look internationally a bout between Takuma Inoue and former IBF champion Emmanuel Rodriguez would certainly be a compelling one, and one with something of a backstory, as well as a chance for Inoue to bolster his international standing. Back in 2019 Rodriguez was stopped in 2 rounds by Takuma’s older brother, Naoya Inoue, though before the “Monster” dispatched Rodriguez there were some heated moments at Rodriguez’s work out. That would be some easy heat to play with from a promotional stand point, and of course with Naoya stopping Rodriguez this would be a chance for the Puerto Rican to get revenge on the Inoue family. It’s unlikely this bout would happen, but if it did we would be in for a bit of a technical chess match between two very smart fighters and it could end up being one of those very enjoyable high speed chess-style bouts. 3-Nawaphon Por Chockhai (50-1-1, 40) Staying on the idea of needing to face a foreign opponent a potential foe for Inoue would be 29 year old Thai contender Nawaphon Por Chokchai, who like Inoue is also wanting to secure a world title fight sooner rather than later. The highly experienced Nawaphon has only had one major bout in his 52 bout career, and that was a 2017 loss to Juan Hernandez Navarrete in a WBC Flyweight title bout. Since then Nawaphon has run up 14 straight wins and become a feature on the WP Boxing series, but desperately needs a big international fight to move towards a world title bout. With that in mind Inoue makes the perfect opponent for Nawaphon, and a win over Takuma would help Nawaphon get a world title fight. On the other hand Takuma would see a win over the experienced Thai as a chance to take huge strides towards a potential second WBC world title bout of his own. Given the styles of the two men this would be a really fun fight, with Nawaphon pressing and Inoue boxing and moving, giving us a really good gelling of styles. 4-Zolani Tete (28-4, 21) One other potential foreign opponent that Inoue could be looking at would be former 2-weight world champion Zolani Tete. The 32 year old South African hasn’t fought since losing the WBO Bantamweight title to Johnriel Casimero in 2019, but the talented southpaw shouldn’t be ignored when we talk about the Bantamweight division. It seems clear he’s a talented fighter and given his size and physical attributes he’s also a nightmare to fight. After all who wants to fight a tall, rangy, quick, awkward, powerful southpaw? Well someone looking to prove they are a world class fighter and deserves a world title fight, just like Takuma Inoue. We’ve seen Tete travel in the past, in fact he won his first world title in Japan when he beat Teiru Kinoshita for the IBF Super Flyweight title, and he would likely be open to travelling for face Inoue in a world title eliminator. For fans this might not be the most exciting bout but would be a compelling and high level fight. 5-Sho Ishida (29-2, 15) Of course at the moment Japanese fighters aren’t allowed to leave Japan and fighters coming into Japan isn’t possible either. With that in mind we’ve gone back to looking at domestic options and landed on former Super Flyweight world title challenger Sho Ishida, who looks likely to remain at Bantamweight going forward. Ishida has long promised a lot but has failed to deliver at the highest level, losing to Kal Yafai and Israel Gonzalez, and the 29 year old now needs to begin delivering. A way to do that is to try and make sure he’s regarded as the top contender in Japan. To do that he needs to beat some of the other top Japanese fighters at the weight, including Inoue. As for Inoue a bout with Ishida would give him the chance to defend his OPBF title and take huge strides towards a second world title fight of his own. The bout wouldn’t be big for fans outside of Japan, but in Japan this would be part of the classic rivalry between East and West Japan and would certainly be a very, very interesting technical match up. Back on January 16th we saw Japanese Welterweight fighter Ryota Toyoshima (13-2-1, 8) score the biggest win of his career, by far, as he overcame Riku Nagahama at Korakuen Hall to claim the OPBF Welterweight title. The victory over Nagahama was a hard fought bout overall but one where Nagahama seemed to be the clear winner, and one where his performance was genuinely fantastic. He was full of energy throughout the contest, kept throwing bombs and seemed on the verge of a stoppage, several times.
With that win under his belt, and with the current restrictions with entry to Japan we’ve decided to take a look at 5 potential opponents for Toyoshima’s first defense. Sadly due to the restrictions in Japan we’ve only looked at fighters currently based in the Land of the Rising sun for this “Five For...” though there is every chance things will change by the time Toyoshima returns to the ring much later in the year. 1-Yuki Beppu (21-1-1, 20) One thing we’re huge fans of are unification bouts. By that we don’t just mean world title unification bouts but unification bouts at every level of the sport, including regional unification bouts. With that in mind seeing Toyoshima put his OPBF title on the line against WBO Asia Pacific champion Yuki Beppu makes an obvious #1 pick for us here. The two men are both based in Japan, both hold regional titles, but are heavy handed, and both make for good action fights. Together they should give us brutal action and thrilling back and forth exchanges for as long as the two men can last. Of the two Beppu is the more proven and the more experienced, but Toyoshima’s win over Nagahama is pretty much on par with Beppu’s best win, over Ryota Yada, and the two men would match up very, very nicely in the ring. This is genuinely a bout we’d love to see later this year and one which would likely give us a FOTY contender. 2-Shoki Sakai (25-11-2, 13) Talking about potential FOTY contenders, a bout between Toyoshima and the teak tough Shoki Sakai would also have the potential to deliver something amazing. Toyoshima is a big punching boxer-puncher, when that style goes up against a tough and aggressive pressure fighter we tend to get something very special and that would be expected if Toyoshima clashed with Sakai. Although not too well known in Japan, where he has only fought twice, Sakai has proven his value as a gatekeeper in the West with bouts against the likes of Gor Yeritsyan, Alexis Rocha and Eddie Gomez. This would be a real mental test for Toyoshima, who would be facing a man with the edge in experience and toughness, but also a chance to legitimise his reign. It would also give Sakai a shot at a regional title, adding it to the WBC Youth world title he won way back in 2015. 3-Rikuto Adachi (14-2, 11) It’s fair to say that against either Beppu or Sakai we would expect to see Toyoshima being given hell. A much easier bout would be a defense against Rikuto Adachi, as long as Adachi gets through his March bout for the Japanese Youth title. Compared to Beppu and Sakai it’s fair to say that Adachi would be a massive down ground, but the heavy handed youngster, who now fights out of the Ohashi gym, would likely jump at the opportunity to take on the OPBF champion. Adachi is very much a work in progress, and although he’s been at the Ohashi gym for a while now he hasn’t been active, due to injuries, and will likely need a couple of wins under his belt before taking on Toyoshima. On the other hand that might suit the champion who damaged his hand in 2019, and may well feel like a good rest after his war with Nagahama, which was a very punishing bout for both men. If this doesn’t take place this year it will certainly be one that could end up happening somewhere down the line, given that both men are still relatively young. 4-Yuichi Ideta (14-15-1, 7) Whilst we love unification bouts there is also a bit of us that loves seeing a fighter rewarded for a really big win. Last year Yuichi Ideta scored a massive win as he upset Ryota Yada in December, ending a very long winless run. At the 36 Ideta isn’t going to have many bouts left in his career, and as a feel good story it would be great to see Ideta get a shot at a title. With that in mind, why not have Ideta get a shot at Toyoshima later in the year. On paper it would be a massive mismatch, but so was Ideta’s bout with Yada and he showed that when he was determined and hungry he could score big upsets. It’s a shame in some ways that Ideta beat Yada, as a bout between Yada and Toyoshima would be more interesting on paper, but we certainly wouldn’t complain if Ideta got a crack at the OPBF title as a reward for beating Yada last year. 5-Keita Obara (23-4-1, 21) We go back to unification bouts to finish this off, as a bout between Toyoshima, the OPBF champion, and Japanese national champion Keita Obara would certainly be one worth considering. On paper Obara would be the massive favourite, given his higher level of experience and his more proven career track record. However at 34 years old Obara is certainly getting on in terms of age and isn’t actually a natural Welterweight, despite looking good at the weight. He fought much of his career at Light Welterweight and only moved up to 147lbs in 2017, following a loss to Eduard Troyanovsky. He has also had mixed success at Welterweight, with a loss to Alvin Lagumbay in 2018 really standing out as proof he can be beaten by regional level fighters. Saying that, Obara would be favoured over Toyoshima but Toyoshima certainly has the power and energy to make this interesting and the win over Nagahama will have filled him with a lot of confidence. This would be explosive and exciting, but also potentially, very tense. |
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With this site being pretty successful so far we've decided to open up about our own views and start what could be considered effectively an editorial style opinion column dubbed "Thinking Out East" (T.O.E). Archives
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