 Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
This coming Saturday attention will be on Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, for a really interesting Ohashi Gym card, headlined by a regional title bout and featuring several notable prospects on the under-card, along with a battle of veterans. The main event of the card will see the highly skilled Pete Apolinar (16-2, 10) look to make his first defense of the OPBF Super Bantamweight title, as he takes on hard hitting Japanese hopeful Yoshiki Takei (4-0, 4). The talented champion, from the Philippines, won the title in April, with an excellent KO win over Jhunriel Ramonal, but he will be up against someone who is looking to prove a point and has already shown scary power since making his professional debut in March 2021. Of the two men the more technically schooled if Apolinar, who has a slippery style and 109 rounds to his name, however he has been stopped twice and Takei is building a reputation as a brutish puncher, taking just 5 rounds to win his first 4 bouts. If Takei can't finish this one early it will a very, very interesting contest. Our preview of this out can be read here OPBF champion Apolinar faces hard hitting hopeful Takei The aforementioned battle of veterans will see 43 year old Ribo Takahata (17-10-1, 7) take on 40 year old former Japanese Super Featherweight champion Seiichi Okada (22-7-2, 13), in a bout where the loser will almost certainly retire, and the winner may well make the same decision. Takahata enters the bout on the back of 2 stoppage losses in his last 3 bouts, but is a tough, awkward fighter with a relaxed style, sadly however his style does depend on him still having good reactions and they have stated to face. As for Okada, he's 1-1-1 in his last 3, but those bouts date 4 years years now, and he's a long way from being the fighter he once was. The really does have the feeling of two men battling to end their careers. One of the notable prospects on the under-card is the very highly regarded Taiga Imanaga (1-0, 1), who returns to the ring just 2 months after his professional debut. The highly touted Imanaga, who is tipped for major success in the professional ranks, will be facing off with Filipino visitor John Lawrence Ordonio (7-3-1, 4), who will be making his Japanese debut. Imanaga was a stand out amateur, who has been viewed as part of the next generation of stars from the Ohashi Gym, and this is a credible step up for him, against a man who could easily be 10-1, with his only decisive loss coming to the hard hitting Antonio Siesmundo in April. Another highly regarded young hopeful is Kaiyu Toyoshima (1-0), who debuted last October, with a good win over Shohei Horii, and will now be looking to over-come fellow novice Akkhaphon Ngamkaeo (1-0, 1), from Thailand. Toyoshima was a solid amateur and is tipped for notable success in the professional ranks, despite the relative slow start to his career, and he an his team will feel he'll be the comfortable winner here, against the teenage Thai traveller. New Delhi, India As well as the show in Japan there is also a smaller card in India, taking place in New Delhi. The most noteworthy bout on this card will see Gaurav (7-1, 4) take on Saurabh Kumar (6-0, 3), in a rematch of a bout the two men had back in January. In their first bout Kumar took a split decision over Gaurav, to give him his sole loss, and it's fair to say that history between the two men could well fuel this bout. Guarav has fought once since then, picking up a rather pointless win in July, whilst Kumar has notched two wins, and has managed to pick up some meaningful ring time. In a 6 rounder we'll see Honey (2-1) take on Keisham Luckyson Singh (4-0, 4), with the 21 year old Singh being favoured here. Honey's loss came in 2019, when he was stopped, and whilst Singh might not be a star in the making he can certainly punch, as we suspect we'll see here.
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 Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
Attention in Japan returns to Korakuen Hall this weekend as we get the next show in the Dynamic Glove series of shows. The card isn't one of the strongest, though interestingly when we say that they are the shows that do tend to massively over-deliver. The main event is a Japanese title fight, whilst the support-card features a former world title challenger and a once touted prospect. The main event will see veteran Makoto Kawasaki (12-8-1, 2) clash with the once touted Koki Koshikawa (9-3, 6) in a bout for the Japanese Light Middleweight title, which was recently vacated by Hironobu Matsunaga. Coming into this it's fair to say that both men have been shown to be under legitimate domestic title level, but both men will see this as a chance to claim a career defining win. Aged 37 it's hard to imagine Kawasaki getting another chance if he loses here, and sadly for him it's also hard to imagine him fighting his usual busy style with much success, over 10 rounds at his age. On the other hand Koshikawa has never really managed to develop into the professional fighter many expected him to become and now aged 31 it appears his career is winding down, and he's now almost 3 years removed from his last win. We don't expect this to be the highest quality bout, but the styles should make it entertaining and the hunger of both men to win a win a title should make it very watchable. A full preview of this bout can be read here Kawasaki and Koshikawa battle for vacant Japanese title! In the chief support bout former world title challenger Ryo Akaho (37-2-2, 25) will be up against the exciting Mugicha Nakagawa (24-7-2, 14), in what should be a very exciting match up. Now aged 35 Akaho's dreams of winning a world title seem pretty much over, after losing twice in world title bouts, but his hunger for the sport is still alive and he's looking for a 12th straight win here. Although not world class he's strong, heavy handed and does make for fun fights. Nakagawa on the other hand is 33 and has failed to win his last 3 fights, but will know that if he can get a result here he could find himself back in the domestic title picture, and jump start his career. It is however a big ask for Nakagawa, who hasn't fought since 2019 and hasn't won since 2018. On paper one of the most well matched bouts will see the in form Taison Mukaiyama (7-2, 4) battle against Ken Koibuchi (7-5-1, 6), in a nice matched bout. Coming in to this Mukaiyama is really in good form, winning his last 4 including two wins over Ryugo Ushijima and an impressive TKO win over Toru Kiyota last time out. He's got his career back on track after a 3-2 (3) start and appears to be developing into a genuine hopeful. Koibuchi on the other hand is 1-1-1 in his last 3, but has been fighting a good mix of fighters, and has been proving his chin recently, following a 2019 loss to Katsunari Endo. Mukaiyama should be the favourite, but he'll have to work for a win here. Also on this card is a bout between the once touted Shigetoshi Kotari (2-1-1, 1) and the limited, but hard hitting, Kazuaki Miyamoto (7-7, 6). Kotari turned professional with a lot of expectation on his shoulders, and was thought to be one of the future stars for Japanese boxing, and the MT Gym. Sadly for him he suffered his first loss last year, a close and competitive one to Junya Shimada, and then suffered a technical decision 5 months later, leaving him now really needing a win to get his career back on track. The 28 year old Miyamoto has proven to be dangerous at the lower levels of the Japanese scene, but with all 7 of his losses coming inside the distance he has a reputation for being a glass cannon, and we suspect Kotari's clean, effective shots will be too much for him here. The Flash Grand Ballroom of the Elorde Sports Complex, Paranaque City, Metro Manila, Philippines Title action isn't limited to Japan today and over in Metro Manila we'll see a new OPBF Super Bantamweight champion being crowned, as the hard hitting Jhunriel Ramonal (17-9-6, 10) takes on the highly skilled Pete Apolinar (15-2, 9). The title became vacant when Hiraoka Teshigawara vacated it, and it's left us with a really nice looking match up between one of the most dangerous and over-looked fighters in the sport, and one of the most gifted Filipino fighters. Ramonal is well known to fans in Asia, in part thanks to his journeyman mentality, and also his ability to score brutal upset wins, as we saw in 2019 against Yusaku Kuga and Shingo Wake. Apolinar on the other hand has shownb to be a really nice to watch boxer, who sits in the pocket and has lovely defense, but a lack of man strength at 126lbs has seen him come down a weight here. This could be a very interesting bout of power and aggression vs skills and defense. Our preview of this bout can be read here Ramonal and Apolinar clash for OPBF honours! Zamboanga City, Zamboanga del Sur, Philippines A second Filipino show is pencilled in for Zamboanga City, sadly though the details for this show are few and far between. The only bout listed for this show at the time of writing will see former world champion Milan Melindo (37-5, 13) take on Crison Omayao (24-23-5, 8) in what looks like a ridiculous mismatch. But could turn out to be a genuine banana skin for the talented Melindo. The 34 year old Melindo hasn't been since in a ring since being stopped in 6 rounds by Junto Nakatani, back in 2019, and hasn't scored a win since a very close and somewhat controversial decision over Hekkie Budler back in September 2017. We do wonder what he has left in the tank and what he has to offer at Super Flyweight, which is the weigh he'll be at here. As for Omayao he hasn't scored a win since June 2018, when he stopped the dread Rogen Flores, and is unlikely to put up anything resembling a test for Budler Others pencilled in for this show are the debuting Joshua Borleo (0-0) and the hard hitting Anthony Marcial (24-4-1, 22), though at the time of writing neither man has had their opponent for the show announced.  Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, California, USA
The biggest bout involving an Asian fight this coming Saturday is a bit of an unexpected one as Mongolian fighter Tugstsogt Nyambayar (12-1, 9) took a short notice chance to face unbeaten American Chris Colbert (15-0, 6), for Colbert's WBA interim Super Featherweight title. Originally Colbert had been set to face Yuriorkis Gamboa, but Gamboa had to pull out due to injury with Nyambayar replacing him. The Mongolian will be moving up in weight for this bout, but he will likely be aware that he's also being over-looked, and has nothing to lose here. He'll be hungry to claim a "world title", even a WBA interim belt, and it would open big doors for him. Colbert on the other hand looks like one of the future stars of American boxing, and a good performance by him could open the doors to some potentially huge fights at 130lbs down the line. Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan As well as the great fight in California, it's also a busy day through Asia this Saturday, with the most meaningful single bout coming from Korakuen Hall, in the main event of a Dynamic Glove show. That main event will see former WBO Super Featherweight champion Masayuki Ito (26-3-1, 14) take on former Japanese Light Welterweight champion Valentine Hosokawa (25-8-3, 12) in a bout at Lightweight. Coming in to this both men will feel they need to win. Ito was beaten last December, losing a close decision to Hironori Mishiro, and has lost 2 of his last 3, including a loss to Jamel Herring in 2019. He really needs a big win to get his career back on track. The 40 year old Hosokawa on the other hand was last seen losing to triple crown Lightweight champion Shuichiro Yoshino and he will be hoping that a win over Ito will secure him one more shot at a title. This should be a great mix of skills, excitement, and under-rated power from both men. It just really is a shame the rest of the card is rather weak on paper. IPI Tingub Gym, Mandaue City, Cebu, Philippines As well as the card in Japan we have more action across Asia with shows in the Philippines and Korea. Of those shows it's the Filipino show which is the much more interesting and features a number of very notable fighters. The main event here will see the once beaten Pete Apolinar (14-1, 8) battle against the regularly entertaining Jess Rhey Waminal (14-3-1, 8) in a bout for the OPBF Silver Featherweight title. Coming in to this both men are 26, but that's almost where the similarities end. Apolinar has been busy over the last 12 months, with 3 fights since October 2020, and has put his sole loss well behind him, winning his last 9. Waminal on the other hand hasn't fought since November 2019 and has lost 2 of his last 5. Regardless Waminal is a live opponent and will be here looking for the win. In a truly fantastic match up we'll see Mark Vicelles (13-0-1, 7) take on Jerven Mama (12-0-1, 7) in a fantastic bout between unbeaten fighters. This is almost as good as it gets for All-Filipino bouts. The 25 year old Vicelles is world ranked and is looking to build on two wins in the last 12 months, but the southpaw is certainly not going to have things all his own way here. Aged 24 Mama is the slightly younger man and the slightly taller man, but will need to rely on more than those two small advantages. We genuinely wouldn't be surprised if this stole the show here. In a likely mismatch we'll see the fringe world class Christian Araneta (19-2, 15) take on veteran puncher Richard Claveras (19-7-2, 16). On paper this isn't an awful match up, but it's hard to imagine Araneta losing. In fact it seems to be a clever bit of match making to get Araneta a win after his controversial decision loss to Sivenathi Nontshinga back in April. Claveras has the power and aggression to make this interesting, if he lands, but that's a big if. On paper we're also set to get a mismatch between Tomjune Mangubat (13-2-1, 11) and Ernie Sanchez (19-15-1, 10), however this might be a lot tougher than it looks on paper. Sanchez, at his best, is a very upset minded fighter, with under-rated power, very high level experience, and the ability to take out opponents if they make a mistake. Mangubat should be favoured, but he'll need to make sure not to take liberties with Sanchez, or he could be made to pay. Urdaneta Cultural Sports Complex, Urdaneta City, Pangasinan, Philippines A second Filipino card will be coming from Urdaneta City, and this is a much less interesting event than the one in Cebu. The star of the card here is the unbeaten Charly Suarez (6-0, 5), who will be expected to pick up an easy win as he takes on the limited, but experienced, Eduardo Mancito (18-11-2, 9). Suarez is one of the best natural talented in the Philippines, but the 32 year old now needs to step up, massively, and sadly for him it seems unlikely he'll be able to get the competition he needs to have a genuinely meaningful somewhere down the line. Mancito is a good, solid stalwart of Filipino boxing, but should be very clearly out of his depth here. Another noteworthy name on this card is the upset minded, and heavy handed, Jhunriel Ramonal (17-8-6, 10), who looks set to shake some ring rust as he takes on the very limited Landy Cris Leon (13-22-5, 6). Sadly for Ramonal, who had such much momentum at the end of 2019, his career hit a brick wall due to the Covid19 pandemic and he's not fought since scoring a brutal KO win over Yusaku Kuga at the very end of 2019. He should pick up an easy win here, though we suspect he might want to get a few rounds before taking Leon out. DND Boxing Gymnasium, Hwaseong, South Korea On a KBM show in Hwaseong we'll see an international title fight as Min Ho Jung (10-3-2, 1) clashes with Hwang Kook Je (6-2-2, 2) in a bout for the WBC Asian Boxing Council silver Welterweight title, which is currently vacant. Coming in to this the 27 year old Jung will be the favourite, given his better record and the fact he's the slightly bigger man, but he's lost 2 of his last 3 and is really struggling for form coming in to this one. Je on the other hand has stopped two of his last 3 and was more active in 2020. Although this isn't for a major title the bout is still a pretty interesting one and should provide great entertaining for fans at the DND Boxing Gymnasium Songwon University, Nam-Gu, Gwangju, South Korea The card in Hwaseong isn't the only one in Korea this Saturday as we'll also be getting action from Gwangju, thanks to KBA who show case one of the most exciting talents in Korea in what appears to be a mismatch. The exciting local headlining the event is the unbeaten Jong Seon Kang (12-0-2, 6), who will be facing John Ray Logatiman (6-9-2, 2), who is a late replacement on this show. Originally Kang was supposed to defend his WBO Oriental Featherweight title but his original opponent was injured and has had to be replaced. As well as the chance to see Kang we'll also see Jung Woo Kim (4-3-1, 2) defending his KBA Welterweight title in the co-feature bout.  This coming Saturday is a hectic day for fans of Asian fighters, with a host of shows through out Asia, some of which will show case some of the brightest prospects in Thailand and the Philippines. As well as the action in Asia there is also set to be some interesting action in Russia, which could end up stealing the day!
Suamlum Night Bazaar, Ratchadaphisek, Bangkok, Thailand The best of the Asian action, at least on paper, comes from Thailand where we get two bright prospects taking on veterans in what should be very good tests for the youngsters. One of the youngsters on this card is 17 year old sensation Phoobadin Yoohanngoh (10-0, 5), who will be looking to record his second defense of the WBA Asia Light Welterweight title, as he clashes with former multi-time world title challenger Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo (61-7, 41). The talented Phoobadin has been impressing for a while, and really shone last year, particularly in his title defence against Atchariya Wirojanasunobol, but there is a lot of work for him to do before thinking about world titles. The highly experienced Chonlatarn, best known for losing in world title bouts against Vasyl Lomachenkoand Chris John, is going to be a game opponent here, but we suspect the 36 year old will be under-sized and under-powered against the very promising teenage hopeful. The second notable hopeful on this show will be Tanes Ongjunta (7-1, 4), who takes on Kompayak TC Muay Thai (61-11, 41), also known as Suriyan Satorn or Kompayak Porpramook. The talented Ongjunta was upset early last year, when he came undone against an inspired Adrian Lerasan, but since then he has reeled off 3 low key wins and is now taking a big step up, as he tried to give his career a kick start. The 38 year old Kompayak has lost 6of his last 8, but has, typically, been in the ring looking to score wins. We suspect Kompayak will be in there giving his all against Ongjunta, but will come up short, and potentially suffer a late stoppage against the talented Ongjunta. Cebu, Philippines As well as the action in the Philippines there will also be prospects in action over in the Philippines. One of the exciting prospects on this card is the once beaten Peter Apolinar (13-1, 8), who looks to record a 9th successive win, as he takes on Juanito Paredes (8-6-1, 3). There talented 25 year old Apolinar has shown some real potential, but has faced far too many limited opponents to develop his skills properly and he really does need some step ups when the world returns to normality. Sadly Paredes looks like another limited foe for Apolinar, and another man he should easily defeat. Another mismatch featuring a bright hopeful will see the unbeaten Mark Vicelles (12-0-1, 6) take on Arnold Garde (10-10-3, 4). The unbeaten 25 year old Vicelles has won his last 9 in a row including solid wins over the likes of Robert Onggocan and Jesse Espinas but sadly this looks like a massive step backwards for him. Garde has lost his last 4, and 6 of his last 7 and it's unlikely he will pose anything of a test for Vicelles. The exciting and hard hitting Tomjune Mangubat (12-2-1, 10) will be in action against the very limited Ryan Maano (5-10-2, 1). Although certainly not a big name Mangubat can be involved in some really great action fights, as we saw in his 2019 thriller against Jong Seon Kang. Sadly this looks very much like a tick over for the exciting 23 year old. Maano has scored 2 wins his last 11 and it's hard to imagine him picking up another one here. The unbeaten Regie Suganob (5-0, 1) has slowly been developing his reputation in the sport and he looks to continue building as he takes on Paolo Sy (6-5-1, 3) here. The talented Suganob isn't being rushed, but this is a good step forward and will be the first time he's competed in an 8 rounder, which should force him to answer some new questions. Although Sy's record is under-whelming he did should some real toughness in his 2019 loss to Shokichi Iwata and we suspect he will serve as a bit of a test for Suganob here. Former world title challenger Arthur Villanueva (32-4-1, 18) will fight for the first time since his 2019 loss to WBC Bantamweight champion Nordine Oubaali. The talented Villanueva will be matched somewhat softly here, as he goes up against domestic foe Bryan Tamayo (6-1-2, 2). It's hard to see anything but a win for the skilled and experienced Villanueva, but there are question marks about the long lay off and his hunger after losing in several world title bouts. On the other hand this is a gigantic step up in class for Tamayo, who has never faced someone with more than 10 wins. Hard to see past a Villanueva win, though we do wonder about his long term future in the sport. Another former world title challenger on this card is Mark Anthony Barriga (9-1, 1), who returns to the ring after more than 2 years out of the ring. The talented Barriga was last out there losing a split decision to Carlos Licona in December 2018 in a bout for the IBF Minimumweight title, sadly he lost that bout by split decision and then took a lengthy break from the ring. His return looks to be a super easy one as he takes on Junuel Lacar (8-6-3, 6) in a 6 round Light Flyweight bout. As with several others on this show the focus seems to be on shaking some ring rust from the A-side and giving them some rounds whilst having plans for bigger things later in the year. Jakarta, Indonesia We stay in Asia for a show in Indonesia, which is a much lower quality show but does feature a decent main event. That main event will see the once touted Patrick Liukhoto (11-2-2, 7) take on veteran Tommy Seran (28-18, 16). Liukhoto won his first 9 bouts in a row before going through a rough patch, where he went 0-2-1, and lost all the moment he was building. Since then he has gone 2-0-1 and is pretty much in "must win" territory. Seran on the other hand is a true stalwart but a man who has been consistently picking up losses in recent years, losing his last 6 and going 5-17 in the last 8 years. This should be a chance for Liukhoto to kick start his struggling career. RCC Boxing Academy, Ekaterinburg, Russia We also get a number of Central Asian fighters in action in Russia on an RCC card in Ekaterinburg, in what is genuinely a solid and exciting card. The most notable of the Central Asian hopefuls is unbeaten Tajik contender Muhammadkhuja Yaqubov (16-0, 9), who looks to score his 17th win as he takes on fellow unbeaten Lunga Sitemela (13-0, 7). The bout will see Yaqubov looking to make his 4th defense of the WBC International Super Featherweight title, which he won back in 2018, and a win here should move him another step towards a world title fight, potentially later this year or early next year. Sitemela is a South African hopeful who will be making his international debut, and fighting outside of his homeland for the first time. On paper Sitemela looks like a good test, but his competition so far has been under-whelming and this should be regarded as a massive step up in class for him. In another good looking match up Erzhan Turgumbekov (8-1-1, 2) will take on Gaibatulla Gadzhialiev (7-2-1, 3). The Kyrgyzstan born, Russian based, Turgumbekov will be looking to bounce back from a 10th round TKO loss to Albert Batyrgaziev, which he suffered last August, but isn't being matched softly here and is instead in with a live opponent. Gadzhialiev begane his career in the US, way back in 2016, but has been fighting in Russia in recent years. Sadly for him he is 1-2-1 in his last 4, but the losses have all been close and there is a good argument he should have taken a win in his draw. This could end up being the hidden gem of the weekend, and should be a very hotly contested match up. In a female match up Russian based Kazakh born Tatyana Zrazhevskaya (10-0, 3) will be up against Estrella Valverde (18-6-2-1, 3) for the WBC "interim" female Bantamweight title, a title that has no real right to exist given the WBC female Bantamweght title was defended just a few months ago. The unbeaten Zrazhevskaya has been matched softly, to say the least, and this is a big step up for her on paper, though it's one her team will be confident that she can make without too many issues. Valverde has lost in her 4 bouts outside of Mexico and we suspect she'll lose again here, but she is, by far, the most notable opponent for Zrazhevskaya so far. December 18th-Golovkin headlines in the US, bumper card in Kazakhstan and action in the Philippines12/15/2020  This coming Friday is a busy day in the world of Asian boxing with Asian fighters in action in the US, Kazakhstan and the Philippines. The day is also a really interesting one with world title bouts, prospects and contenders all in action making it a real great day to sit down and watch some fights.
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Hollywood, Florida, USA The biggest show of the day for Asian fighters is in Florida, where Matchroom and DAZN put on one of their final shows of 2020. It's not a massive show, but it's certainly a noteworthy one. The main event of the card will see Kazakh Middleweight great Gennadiy Golovkin (40-1-1, 35) defending his IBF and IBO titles against unbeaten Polish challenger Kamil Szeremeta (21-0, 5). For Golovkin this will be his first defense of the titles since reclaiming them in October 2019, when he narrowly beat Sergiy Derevyanchenko, and we do wonder what the 38 year old Kazakh has left in the tank, especially given the 14 month break between fights. Sadly however it's unlikely that Szeremeta will ask him any real questions in what is a massive step up in class for the Polish man. Our full preview of this bout can be read here Golovkin returns against unbeaten Szeremeta A second Kazakh on this show will be the unbeaten Ali Akhmedov (16-0, 12) who clashes with fellow unbeaten Carlos Gongora (18-0, 13) in a bout for the IBO Super Middleweight title. The exciting Akhmedov has been facing very poor competition so far, and this is, very clearly, a step up in class for him, and his team will know that a win puts him on the verge of a "real" world title fight. As for Gongora the Ecuadorian was a stellar amateur, competing in 2 Olympics and 3 World Amateur Championships, but at 31 this is his first real test. This is an excellent match up, and one that promises to be very, very interesting. In a female world title bout we'll see Korean Hyun Mi Choi (17-0-1, 4) make her international debut and look to make her latest defense of the WBA Super Featherweight title. The hope was that she would be in with some sort of name opponent or at very least a live foe for her US debut but instead she is matched with late call up Calista Silgado (19-11-3, 14), from Colombia. On paper Silgado looks like she can punch, but her record against opponents of some quality has shown she is limit. Thankfully she is tough, but this should be a straight forward defense for Choi, who deserves better from Matchroom. Our preview of this bout can be read here WBA champ Hyun Mi Choi makes US debut as she takes on Calista Silgado! Tynyshpayev Academy of Transport and Communications, Almaty, Kazakhstan In Kazakhstan Tukeshov Promotions will be putting on an event with a staggering 22 bouts on it! Given boxrec currently list 132 bouts taking place anyone where on the globe on Friday it's amazing that a single show will have 22 of them! Of course we won't go through all of them, but there are 3 that have really got our interest. The best of the bunch is a Cruiserweight bout between Kazakh amateur star Kamshybek Kunkabayev (1-0, 1), who has eyes on a medal at the Tokyo Olympics, and under-rated Ukrainian Serhiy Radchenko (7-6, 2). On paper a nothing bout, even for a 1-0 prospect, but this should actually be a legitimate test for Kunkabayev given that Radchenko has given the likes of Krzysztof Glowacki, Ruslan Fayfer, Adam Balski and Artur Szpilka real tests. We suspect the big man from Kazakhstan will be too good, but this is not the gimme it looks on paper. Another potentially tough bout for an unbeaten Kazakh will see Sultan Zaurbek (9-0, 7) take on Vladyslav Melnyk (12-2, 7). Zaurbek has been needing a step up for a while, with MTK feeding him a lot of limited opponents early on and this is a much needed step up in class against a fighter who has proven himself and shown a desire to win. Zaurbek is very talented, but we don't yet know if he's very good. Melnyk is a 22 year old Ukrainian who will be coming in to this with belief and we suspect the hunger to test the Kazakh. Potentially a very compelling match up. Another prospect worthy of real attention on this card is Talgat Shayken (2-0, 1), who will be up against Russian foe Maxim Churbanov (8-7-1-1). Shayken, who is now just 20 year's old, has got a lot of potential, but that potential needs work and he needs developing. The 34 year old Churbanov is well travelled and tends to be a good test for decent fights, asking questions of fighters like Michal Syrowtka. Shayken should win but bouts like this will help hone and develop his undeniable potential, so we've no issues with him being moved slowly. IPI Compound, Mandaue City, Cebu, Philippines Over in the Philippines we get two shows thanks to Omega Sports who have split an event in two for Covid19 safety reasons. The first of the two shows is Kumbati 6 and features two interesting prospects on it. One of the prospects in question is unbeaten Light Flyweight Mark Vicelles (12-0-1, 6), who takes on veteran Arnold Garde (10-10-3, 4) The talented Vicelles comes into this bout with wins against Robert Onggocan and Jesse Espinas and is very talented, however it's understandable that his team are just looking to keep him ticking over here. Garde was once a a decent opponent, capable of asking questions of good fighters, but he has now lost 6 of his last 7, and been stopped in 4 of those bouts. We see this being another loss for him. The other notable prospect on Kumbati 6 is the twice beaten Tomjune Mangubat (11-2-1, 9), who returns to the ring for the first time since is 2019 epic with Jong Seon Kang, which is a bout everyone should get around to watching. In the opposite corner to Mangubat will be the limited Reymond Empic (7-5, 3), who is looking to avoid a third straight loss. On paper this isn't an awful bout for Mungubat, coming in off a loss himself, but Empic has lost 3 of his last 4 and is unlikely to be a serious test for Mungubat. IPI Compound, Mandaue City, Cebu, Philippines The other show from Omega Sports will be Kumbati 7, and this looks a more stacked one, with prospects and a couple of world title level in action. The best bout on this show will see the once beaten Christian Araneta (18-1, 14) take on Roland Jay Biendima (15-6-1, 8) in what should be a sensational battle. Araneta is looking to score his second win since a 2019 injury TKO loss to Daniel Valladares, and is very highly regarded. He is however also the smaller man and Biendima showed his toughness earlier this year, when he went toe-to-toe with Kento Hatanaka back in February. This should be a real test for Araneta. Sadly we don't expect to see Albert Pagara (32-1, 23) have any sort of issues at all when he takes on Virgil Puton (18-14-2, 9). Once up a time Puton was good regional level opponent, giving the likes of Shuya Masaki and Masayuki Ito questions to answer. Now a days however he looks about spent and has been stopped in 3 of his last 6. Pagara should be too quick, too powerful and far too good to go too many rounds here with the worn and weary Puton. The once beaten Peter Apolinar (12-1, 8) looks to score his latest win as he goes up against the limited Danilo Tampipi (9-11-2, 5), who has been stopped in 3 of his last 4. Apolinar has won his last 7, including a very solid win over Jetro Pabustan in October, and shouldn't need to work too hard to pick up a win here. One other man who should be picking up an easy win is the all action Carl Jammes Martin (15-0, 14), who fights for the first time since December 2019. The 21 year old sensation is one of the most fan friendly fighters in the Philippines and he should be looking at big bouts in the next year or two. Here however he's just looking to take over and shake some ring rust as he takes on Richard Rosales (14-13-2, 8), who has lost his last 4 and 7 of his last 8.  IPI Compound, Mandaue City, Cebu, Philippines
After months and months of waiting boxing is finally back in the Philippines with Omega boxing putting on a card this coming Wednesday. The event isn't a huge one, but it is an interesting one and it is one with huge intrigue given how long it's taken the country to get the sport up and running. The main event of the show will see world level contender Christian Araneta (17-1, 14) look to bounce back from a 2019 loss to Daniel Valladares. The talented Araneta had given Valladares a great fight before suffering an injury that forced a disappointing early end to a contest that looked like it was set to be a real fire cracker. Given the injury and long lay off it's hard to complain about Araneta getting an easy one, and an easy one he is getting, as he takes on domestic rival Richard Rosales (14-12-2, 8). Rosales has lost 6 of his last 6, including stoppages to Reiya Konishi and Dave Apolinario, and it's hard to imagine this being anything more than an easy work out for Araneta. In an interesting support bout the once beaten Peter Apolinar (11-1, 8) will take on former world title challenger Jetro Pabustan (30-7-6, 9). Coming in to this Apolinar is riding a 6 fight winning streak since a 2015 loss to Jeo Santisima and on paper this is a really good step up for him, with the hope being for him to shine and move towards some for of title in the near future. At 30 years old Pabustan is a veteran and is a veteran who has taken a lot of punishment recently, including a TKO loss to Hiroaki Teshigawara in 2017 and a KO loss to Carlos Ornealas in 2018. Pabustan at his best would have been a great test for Apolinar but we see this as a very faded version of Pabustan. In a Light Flyweight bout we'll see the unbeaten Mark Vicelles (11-0-1, 5) take on Junuel Lacar (8-5-3, 6). The talented Vicelles has won 8 in a row after a draw early in his career and looks to be slowly making a name for himself, helped in part by wins over Robert Onggocan and Jesse Espinas. Lacar on the other hand has won just once in his last 7, going 1-4-2, and is not expected to be much of a test for Vicelles here, despite a win last time out against Romeo Tenorio. In a bout all the way up at, or around, 140lbs we'll see the unbeaten Carlo Bacaro (5-0, 4) look to extend his perfect record as he takes on Jeffrey Stella (4-9-3, 4). On paper this looks like a massive mismatch, but Bacaro has only really been beating novices so far in to his career and it's hard to know what he really has in the tank. Stella on the other hand is a man who was fighting at Super Flyweight in 2018, and has gone 0-8-2 in his last 10!  Through December every weekend seems to have something of note happening in the wonderful world of Asian boxing.
Thankfully for those who need a bit of a break this coming weekend looks like the best on to take some time to yourself, but is still a pretty interesting weekend with a female world title fight, a Japanese youth title fight and a GAB title fight all coming on Saturday! Kagoshima, Japan The biggest of the shows takes place in Kagoshima, where we see a female world title fight, as well as domestic stalwart take on a Thai visitor and a Rookie of the Year winner taking on an unbeaten Thai puncher. The world title fight will see Japanese veteran Tenkai Tsunami (26-12-1, 15) make her second defense of the WBO female Light Flyweight title as she takes on Filipino challenger Jessebelle Pagaduan (12-1-1, 5), who gets her third shot at a world title. The 35 year old Tsunami has held this title since March 2018, but has only defended it once due to challenging Naoko Fujioka for the WBA Flyweight title earlier this year, and fighting to a draw in a fantastic 10 round back and forth. Filipino fighter Pagauan, also 35 years old, has failed in 2 other title challenges, both in Japan. In the first she lost to Nao Ikeyama, in a bout for the WBO Atomweight title, before a headclash with Kumiko Seeser Ikehara saw her WBO female Minimumweight title fight end in a technical draw. Although Pagaduan will be hungry, she will be up against it here. Our preview of this bout can be read here Tsunami and Pagaduan clash in WBO world title fight! In a supporting bout Naoya Haruguchi (15-11, 6), one of the most over-looked fighters in Japan, will take on Thai visitor Sanchai Yotboon (6-3, 6). Although Haruguchi's record is patchy at best his last 4 defeats have come to current Japanese champion Norihito Tanaka, current OPBF champion Lito Dante, former world champion Tatsuya Fukuhara and former world title challenger Riku Kano, and he wasn't embarrassed in any of those bouts. As for Yotboon he is 0-3 in Japan and was actually the debut opponent for Ginjiro Shigeoka in September 2018. Incidentally Yotboon was stopped by another fighter on this card, Sora Takeda, back in April. Talking about Sora Takeda (5-1, 1) the 2018 Rookie of the Year winner is in an interesting bout of his own as he takes on unbeaten Thai puncher Phanuwit Siriwong (7-0, 6). Since winning Rookie of the Year last December Takeda hasn't really done much, with his sole bout being his 3rd round KO win over Yotboon. The 18 year old Siriwong on the other hand has notched up 6 stoppage wins this year and will be in Japan looking to score his biggest win to date. Osaka, Japan A second Japanese show is headlined by a Japanese Youth title bout, as Kyohei Tonomoto (9-2, 4) looks to make his first defense of the Japanese Youth Featherweight title. The under-rated Tonomoto, who suffered early career losses to Shingo Kawamura and Reiya Abe, has won his last 4 and took the title last time out with a decision win over Hikaru Matsuoka. On the other hand the once beaten Ryotaro Motohashi (9-1, 2) is on a 7 fight winning run, including a credible win over Noboru Osato back in April. This isn't a bout that will get much attention but could end up being a very compelling bout for those in Kishiwada. Our preview of this bout can be read here Tonomoto to defend Youth crown against Motohashi! Cebu, Philippines As well as the action in Japan we're also set for some Filipino action, with the most notable of two Filipino cards coming from Cebu. Sadly this card isn't a particularly strong one, with the only bout of real interesting being the main event, which will pit the hard hitting Jeo Santisima (18-2, 15) against former OPBF Super Flyweight champion Rene Dacquel (20-9-1, 6). This should be a good test for Santisima, but Dacquel has lost his last 3, and suffered his first stoppage loss last time out. Santisima will be favoured, but this is still a solid test for him at this stage in his career. In the main support bout Peter Apolinar (10-1, 7) will take on former OPBF title challenger Lloyd Jardeliza (8-10-4, 6). Although Jardeliza did once fight for an OPBF title, way back in December 2015, he has gone 1-5-1 in his last 7 and appears to have essentially given up actually trying to win fights On the under-card the unbeaten Regie Suganob (3-0, 1) will take on Rolly Dorong (1-1- 2) and Go Hosaka (4-0, 3) takes a good step up in class to battle Boyce Sultan (10-12-1, 5). These bouts will see Hosaka and Suganob fighting their third bout in the space of 5 months, though it's unclear on just how much ALA can really push them at this moment in time. Metro Manila, Philippines There will also be a small card in Metro Manila, which will be headlined by a bout between Cris Paulino (20-4, 8) and Mateo Handig (15-20, 9), who clash for the GAB Super Flyweight title. On paper this should be an easy win for Paulino. Although limited the 26 year old dubbed "The King" is a solid fighter on the Filipino scene, and all 4 of his losses have come to fighters above domestic level. On the other hand Handig has picked up just 2 wins since he upset Katsunari Takayama back in 2012, going 2-15 in his last 17. A mismatch to say the least. |
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