July 22nd-Keita Kurihara takes on Renan Portes

7/18/2024

Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
This coming Monday we get a small but notable card at Korakuen Hall thanks to Ichiriki promotions.

The main event is a really under-whelming bout, as limited Filipino visitor Renan Portes (13-16, 6) takes on OPBF Bantamweight champion Keita Kurihara (18-8-1, 16) in a bout at Super Bantamweight. Portes is better than his record suggests, but is certainly not a threat above the domestic Filipino level, and has gone 5-13 in his last 18 bouts, including going 0-4 in bouts outside of the Philippines and 0-3 in Japan. Sadly his only real win of note has come against Jason Canoy Manigos, and whilst that win was last time out it said more about just how faded Canoy is now a days. As for Kurihara the hard hitting Japanese fighter has tested the water at 122lbs before, but does seem more of a natural at Bantamweight. Notably he has been stopped in 2 of his last 4, but has bounced back by avenging both those defeats to become a 3, and now 4 time OPBF Bantamweight champion. This should be little more than a stay busy, or tune up, bout for Kurihara, but his results in recent years have been hard to predict, and there are serious cracks showing in his toughness. Saying that, he should still have what’s needed to win against Portes.

The only title bout on the card will see JBC and OPBF Female Atomweight champion Honoka Kano (7-1-2, 2) in action, as she defends her national title against the woman she beat for the Japanese title back in 2023, Mont Blanc Miki (6-6-1, 2). In their first bout Kano took a 6 shutout win over Miki, and since then has defended the Japanese title twice, and unified it with the OPBF title, which she did last time out when she beat Nao Sakamoto over 8 rounds and pushed herself to within touching distances of a world title fight. As for Miki she has won 2 in a row since losing to Kano, including a TKO win over the previously unbeaten Aori Matsuo. Notably the loss to Kano was the final bout in a 6 run win-less streak for Miki, who went 0-5-1 during that run, and she seems to have finally turned things around with her recent wins.

In a solid supporting bout Haruki Ishikawa (10-5, 8) will take on #2 ranked JBC Bantamweight Kenshin Oshima (8-3-1, 4), who is looking to secure a third shot at the Japanese title in the not too distant future. Ishikawa, the clear under-dog here, began his career 8-1 before losing to Toshiya Ishii, and since then he has struggled to get his career back on track, going 2-4, though he did win the Japanese Youth Super Bantamweight title in one of those two wins. Ishikawa is limited, can be out boxed, can be stopped, but does have enough power to keep fighters honest, and if he catches someone clean he is a dangerman. As for Oshima, he’s a talented fight, but someone who hasn’t yet lived up to his early potential losing an early fight, fight to a draw in his 5th bout, which saw him have a career record of 3-1-1 (3) and suffer recent setbacks to Kyosuke Sawada and Seiya Tsutusmi in 2 of his last 3. He’s seems to lack the power needed to make a mark at the top of the domestic scene, and although there is plenty of skill, behind what he does he does seem to be missing something that will get him to the top domestically.

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