 This coming Sunday is an incredibly busy day in Japan, with 4 shows across the country. Whilst they aren’t all great shows, with two of them being very weak, it is still a very notable day and should be a great one for fight fans, especially those in Osaka City.
EDION Arena Osaka, Osaka, Osaka, Japan The biggest show, though maybe not the most important, is in Osaka as Green Tsuda and Shinsei work together to create a solid card at the EDION Arena Osaka. In the main event we’ll see 2-time Japanese Featherweight title challenger Jinki Maeda (14-2, 9) take on the hard hitting Ren Yamabe (8-3, 7). On paper this shouldn’t be a tough test for the talented Maeda, who’s only losses have come to Reiya Abe and Keisuke Matsumoto, but in fairness to him he’s had a tough few years with those title losses and will be looking to work his way to a third title fight in the in 2025, with this likely to be more of a tune up against a dangerous opponent, than a true test. As for Yamabe, this is a good opportunity for him to show what he can do, especially on the back of a win over Hikaru Matsuoka in this same venue in September, but it is also a very clear step up in class for him against one of the best Featherweights in Japan. Yamabe has the power to make this interesting, if he lands, but is the very clear under-dog. In the chief support bout we’ll see Filipino fighter Romel Oliveros (11-8-2, 5) up against recent WBO Asia Pacific Super Flyweight champion Tetsuro Ohashi (12-4-1, 3). Ohashi, looking to rebuild following an August loss to Ryusei Kawaura, seemed to be on a good run prior to that loss, with wins against Ayato Hiromoto and a career best win over Kenta Nakagawa, but the loss to Kawaura has set him back, and it’s clear he’s being matched softly as he rebuilds and begins a new chapter of his career, at Bantamweight. Oliveros is a capable fighter, on his day, but in recent years he has been the sort of fighter who has struggled to get results, winning just 2 of his last 7, going back to 2019. He’s essentially there for Ohashi to have some rounds again and build some confidence, then get an actual test. In potentially the best bout of the card, we’ll see Welterweights collide as the in form, and JBC ranked Takafumi Shibata (8-2, 6) takes on 37 year old Taiki Henzan (7-5, 5). Shibata has been in great form winning 4 in a row, all in the first 3 rounds, since losing a close decision to Riku Nagahama back in 2023. He is aggressive, has a fun style, and seems to be getting more confident in his power, aggression and body shots. Henzan is known for his power, though showed a lot of improvement last time out a very close decision to Takeru Kobata. Notably Henzan has lost 4 of his last 5, but is tough, has power, and is willing to fight fire with fire, which could make this a real tear up, and a tear up may well favour Henzan. Another featuring a Filipino visitor will see the limited Arnold Garde (12-15-6, 5) taking on JBC ranked Flyweight Yuga Inoue (16-4-1, 3). Garde, much like Oliveros, can be a solid fighter on his day, as seen with his win against Robert Paradero last year and other notable results against Aries Buenavidez and Yeroge Gura. Sadly though he is also a fighter seen as being fragile, with 12 early losses including 8 in the first 2 rounds. The talented Inoue is a highly ranked domestic contender, who is looking to score his second win since losing, by brutal KO, to Japanese champion Jukiya Iimura in April. On paper this is an easy bout for him, but it’s clear that his team are looking to keep him busy, have him rebuild his confidence then move on to bigger and better things in the new year. L-Theatre, Osaka, Osaka, Japan Staying in Osaka City, we get a second show in the city, though this is a much smaller event promoted by Taiho Promotions. The only real bout worth noting here is the main event, which will see Daichi Hirai (8-5, 1) take on Tatsuya Terada (7-8-2, 1), in what should be a fun 8 round fight at the lower end of the domestic scene. The 23 year old Hirai has shown what he can do, scoring noteworthy wins against Takuto Mino, Riku Yamashita and Seong Yeong Yang but has lost his last 2, including a loss in a JBC Youth Bantamweight title bout. He’s understandably seeking a confidence booster after those setbacks. As for Terada, the 35 year old veteran has scored just 1 win since the start of 2018, going 1-6-1 in his last 8. Whilst he has lost to some capable fighters in that run, and has never been stopped, it's fair to say with his age and those losses the ambition might be dwindling and that’s why he’s been selected to face the much younger Hirai. Art Center, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan The second most important show for the day is in Hyogo, where we see 3 bouts of genuine note, two of which feature a regionally and domestically ranked fighter looking to move their career forward, and one Strongest Challenger match. The main event will see 26 year old Seira Kishida (10-2-2, 3) look to build on back to back wins as he takes on the once beaten Kirei Yasumura (8-1, 3), who looks to rebuild with his second win since losing last December to Yoshiaki Sakamoto. Coming into this Kishida, who is huge for a Featherweight, is ranked in the top 10 by the JBC, and will look to make the most of his long and accurate jab to move a step closer to a title fight. As for Yasumura, he will be desperate to claim Kishida’s rankings, and will be hungry for what is a big opportunity for the 25 year old, who hasn’t been able to build on his All Japan Rookie of the Year win, from back in 2022. The chief support bout, and technically the most important bout on the show, is a Strongest Challenger bout as the 29 year old Shun Kosaka (20-9, 4) takes on former Japanese Flyweight champion Josuke Nagata (6-2), himself only 26 years old, to decide who gets a shot at the Japanese belt during the champion Carnival. Kosaka has been something of a perennial contender over the years and is currently ranked #1 by the JBC. Despite that he has only landed a single shot at the Japanese title, coming against Seigo Yuri Akui in 2019 who stopped him inside a round. He has hovered around the top of the domestic scene, but lost against every notable name he’s faced losing not just to Akui but also the likes of Junto Nakatani, Takuya Kogawa Tetsuya Hisada and Yuga Inoue and the feeling seems to be one more loss and that’s probably him done in and around the title picture. As for Nagata he won the belt in his 5th professional bout, but lose a razor thin decision to Jukiya Iimura in his first defense last year. He will know a win over Kosaka opens the door to a rematch with Iimura, and will be determined to get that chance, and reclaim the title. He will, however, know that he's on the road here fighting in Kosaka’s home city, and will need to make sure the judges can’t deny him. The third bout of note will see JBC #1 ranked Bantamweight contender Kaisei Matsumoto (8-0, 5) take on Filipino visitor Wilbert Berondo (17-7-2, 6), in what is essentially a tune up bout before he fights for the Japanese title at the Champion Carnival next year. The 23 year old Matsumoto has rapidly climbed through the rankings since making his debut in 2022 and winning the All Japan Rookie of the Year that same year. he's had a quiet 2024, with his only other bout of the year being a win over Yoshiaki Sakamoto, but knows that Berondo will come to ask questions. As for Berondo the 29 year old Filipino is becoming a regular in Japan, with this being his 5th but in the country. He is 0-4 on his visits, but has faced stiff competition, including Hinata Maruta and Kenshin Oshima. He's tough, and although more a Super Flyweight than a Bantamweight he should have the tools to take Matsumoto deep into the fight, and maybe even last all 8 rounds with him. Cocoland, Ube, Yamaguchi, Japan Over in Ube we get the least notable Japanese card of the day, as Orio Boxing gym brings boxing back to the Cocoland in Ube, for the first boxing event in the venue in over 5 years. Unfortunately it’s not a particularly big card. The card really is much smaller than the EDION Osaka and Hyogo card, and is essentially built around local fighter Taisei Sakai (5-6-3, 2), who faces off against Teru Nobita (8-5-2, 3). The 28 year old Sakai, lives in Ube and will be fighting in his hometown for the first time. Coming into this he has had very mixed results, but is unbeaten in his last 3 and has turned things around well after starting his career 0-3-1. A win here for him, could help bring boxing back to Ube on a more regular basis. Sadly though Sakai will be the under-dog with Nobita being the favourite coming into the bout. Nobita is more tested, his best wins are better than anyone Sakai has beaten, and he was mixing at a good level only a few fights ago. Saying that however, his career does seem to be falling apart, and he's now more than 2 years removed from a win, going 0-2-1 in his last 3. This is very much a small local card, but one that should see the fans turning out for Sakai. Ramindra Lumpini stadium , Bangkok, Thailand Interestingly we get minor regional title action in Thailand, as Japan’s Katsuya Murakami (15-3-1, 4) faces Cambodian fighter Vichith Oat (6-3-1, 4) for the lightly regarded WBC Asian Continental Super Flyweight title. Murakami will be making his international debut here, at the age of 30, and will be hoping to capture his first title, after previously coming up short in a bout for the Japanese Flyweight title in 2023, losing a wide decision to Jukiya Iimura. As for Oat this will be his 10th bout in Thailand, where he has essentially based his career, and will be the second title bout of his career, losing in a WBC Asia Light Flyweight title bout to Danai Ngiabphukhiaw back in 2022. On paper it’s hard to see past a Murakami win, though Japanese fighters don’t tend to fare well on Thai soil.
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 This coming Sunday is a busy day in Japan, with 4 shows in the country, along with a minor show in South Korea.
Art Center, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan On paper the best of the shows takes place in Kobe, where we see a mouth watering domestic match up, and a highly ranked domestic contender, keeping busy with a title fight potentially waiting for him. The highly ranked fighter is JBC #3 ranked Flyweight Tetsuya Mimura (11-4, 2), who looks to tick over as he takes over the very limited Takefumi Higashi (6-14, 1) in an 8 rounder. The talented, but light punching Mimura has suffered losses, but a lot of them have been really close, including defeats to Riku Kano and Yuga Inoue, and he comes into this on the back of successive wins. As for Higashi, he has lost his last 4, and 8 of his last 9. Mimura really shouldn’t struggle here, but should get some worthwhile rounds against a limited but game foe. On paper a much better bout on this card will see the light punching Yoshiaki Sakamoto (7-2-1) take on the unbeaten Kaisei Matsumoto (7-0, 5). Coming into this Matsumoto is ranked #6 by the JBC at Bantamweight, and despite only being 22 he is showing a lot of potential, and maturing into his body and building his punching power, as was seen in December when he stopped Azusa Takeda. Sakamoto suffered his first stoppage loss a year ago, when Tulio Dekanarudo stopped him in 5 rounds, but he has bounced back from that loss and recently gave Kirei Yasumura his first loss. Sakamoto is the naturally bigger man, and should serve as a tough, durable foe for Matsumoto, who has the potential to really be a major name on the Japanese scene in the future. Aioi Hall, Kariya, Aichi, Japan Another small, yet potentially very exciting card, takes place in Aichi and will be streamed live on Youtube thanks to Sakana and their Youtube channel. On paper the most well matched bout will see Kenta Sugawara (5-2-2, 3) take on Yuto Oki (5-2, 2) in what we suspect will be a very, very hotly contested bout between two men trying to move their careers on. The 32 year old Sugawara comes into this on the back of a 4 fight unbeaten run, whilst Oki will be fighting for the first time since November 2022. Despite the lengthy lay off, Oki does have time on his side, and is only 25 now. This should, really, be a very fun bout. Another potentially fun fight will see Kenta Kamimura (5-2-1, 3) take on Chinese puncher Abulimiti Tuersunniyazi (9-3-1, 7). On paper this one looks good, and could be good, if Kamimura can take a shot from his foe, however he has been stopped in both of his losses, and Tuersunniyazi’s record suggests that he can certainly punch, having stopped his last 4 opponents. Whilst Tuersunniyazi has the edge in power, on paper, it should be noted that his wins have come at a very, very low level, and this is something of a step up for him. The main event of this show will see the 35 year old veteran Beverly Tsukada (4-5-2, 2) take on Keigo Nakayama (4-2-1, 3), in what will be Tsukada's second bout since the start of 2021. Tsukada is a talented southpaw, and is better than his record suggests, but at 35 years old and with just 4 rounds since 2021 it's hard to know how much ambition he still has left. As for Nakayama he's unbeaten in his last 4, and will be looking to build on the momentum he's started to generate since a 2017 loss to Toma Kondo. L-Theatre, Osaka, Osaka, Japan Over in Oaka we get a show promoted by Nobuhiro Ishida, the card isn’t a big one, but does feature a notable hopeful as Japan’s Takafumi Shibata (6-2, 4) takes on Thai visitor Nattawut Maneewong (6-1, 4). Shibata turned professional following a strong amateur career, and was expected to be a notable player on the domestic scene. He's not yet managed to reach the heights expected of him, but his two losses so far have certainly not been terrible ones, losing to the sensational Mikyo Watarai and to former OPBF champion Riku Nagahama. He’s still viewed as a potential domestic and regional contender and will be looking to show that potential here. On paper Maneewong has a good record, but when you look at what's beneath the numbers it's thinner than paper, with all of his wins come against fighters without a win, and his loss coming the one time he's fought outside of the Singmanassak Muaythai School he was stopped, in 4 rounds by Japan's Ryuji Ikeda. This should be a good confidence builder for Shibata. L-Theatre, Osaka, Osaka, Japan Before the Ishida promoted show at the L-Theatre we’ll get West Japan Rookie of the Year show at the same venue, the card This card is set to feature 6 bouts in total, with many of them being Rookie of the Year bouts, all of which are 4 rounders, and none of which feature anyone of any fighters of any real note. Of course winners of Rookie of the Year do become well known, but until the competition is over it's hard to say much about any of the novices that compete in the annual tournament. Buffalo Boxiing Gym Taejeon, Gwangju, South Korea For a second day running we get a low level Korean card, with this one being promoted by former world champion Myung Woo Yuh. The most notable bout on the show isn’t a good one, but it does show the low level of action on the card, as Do Il Yoo (3-4) takes on Yong Hee Lee (2-5, 1). Coming in to this the two men seem to be heading in different directions with their careers, with Lee losing 5 of his last 6, whilst Yoo has won his last two, after going 1-4 in his previous 5, and with such momentum coming into this bout, it would be a surprise to see change that, especially give Lee is now 37, and on the back end of his career anyway.  Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
This coming Tuesday we get the next show from the Diamond Glove series of events. The card was, on paper, is one of the stronger Diamond Glove shows we'll get this year, but sadly saw it's main event being cancelled in the build up. The planned main event would have seen Japanese Welterweight champion Keita Obara (25-4-1, 22) defending his title against Yuki Nagano (19-3, 15), the man he beat for the title back in 2020. Sadly this was cancelled in March when Obara suffered a leg injury. As a result the main of the card will now see former Japanese Featherweight champion Ryo Sagawa (11-2, 6) takes on former WBA Super Bantamweight champion Shun Kubo (15-2, 10) in a scheduled 8 rounder. For Sagawa this is his second bout since losing the Japanese title last year, when he was stopped in 7 rounds by the sensationally talented Hinata Maruta. The talented Sagawa was last seen in the ring in October when he avenged his first loss, against Retsu Kosaka. As for Kubo, it's now more than 4 years since he lost the WBA world title, and since then he has gone 3-1, with his most recent bout being a 3 round win over Ruito Saeki more than a year ago The card also has a notable female bout on it, as professional novice Mizuki Hiruta (1-0) battles former world title challenger Terumi Nuki (12-4, 8), in a huge step up for Hiruta. As an amateur Hiruta was very solid, winning 29 bouts and racking up more than 40 bouts in the unpaid ranks. She looked excellent on debut last year, and seems set to be moved incredibly quickly through the ranks. Nuki on the other hand is battle tested, and has been in with the likes of Mariana Juarez and Debora Anahi Dionicius, and is a very capable fighter, despite not being competitive at world level. This should be a great chance to see if Hiruta is as good as her team believe her to be. Another really interesting supporting bout will see Mikyo Watarai (0-0) make his professional debut against Takafumi Shibata (2-0), in a battle between two former Japanese amateur standouts. As an amateur Shibata came in the top 3 in several major domestic competitions and had a style more suited to the pro ranks. Since making his debut in 2021 he has proven to be exciting, fun to watch and busy in the ring, though he does lack power and it does seem like he's still very much a work in progress. As for Watari he ran up an excellent 77-15 (19) record in the unpaid ranks and impressed in several national tournaments. As an amateur Watari was aggressive, exciting and and very composed, with a style that should translate over to the professional ranks very nicely.  EDION Arena Osaka, Osaka, Osaka, Japan
The most notable show this coming takes place in Osaka, as Green Tsuda put on a very interesting card featuring a number of promising young prospects. The most notable bout on the card will see 4-time world title challenger Hiroyuki Kudaka (27-19-4, 11) take on the fast rising, and very promising Ryusei Kawaura (9-0, 6), in what is a huge step up in class for Kawaura. The 36 year old Kudaka has a staggering 50 bouts to his name, including bouts against the likes of Takefumi Sakata, Denkaosan Kaovichit, Hugo Fidel Cazares, Oleydong Sithsamerchai, Sonny Boy Jaro and Andres Omar Narvaez and whilst he has come up short at world level he is an experience, exciting and tough warrior who always gives his all. Kawaura on the other hand is a skilled boxer-mover, who has been developed under the eye of former world champion Hiroshi Kawashima, who sees Kawaura as his successor. This will be the pressure and aggression of Kudaka against the boxing, movement and defensive skills of Kawaura. Former Japanese Super Flyweight champion Takayuki Okumoto (24-10-4, 11) will serve as a major test as he takes on takes on talented youngster Jukiya Iimura (2-0, 1), who is taking a huge leap up in class. The 30 year old Okumoto won the Japanese title in 2018, when he beat the aforementioned Kudaka, and made 3 defenses before losing the belt in late 2019. Since losing the title he hasn't looked particularly good, but he'll feel his experience will be the difference maker here. Iimura has impressed since turning professional, and was a very talented amateur, but this is a massive leap up in class for a 23 year old in just his third professional bout. Saying that however, if Iimura wins he could find himself in the domestic title picture next year. The third bout of interest on this card will see unbeaten fighters collide as Takafumi Shibata (1-0) takes on Reiji Kodama (3-0, 1). Shibata was a former amateur standout, who is tipped for big things in the coming years, however there are question marks about his power and his size, especially at 140lbs which seems likely to be the weigh he's competing at going forward. Kodama on the other hand turned professional without much fan fare and scored a very solid win over the debuting Shota Fukumori in August, with Fukumori having been a good amateur. This is a great chance for Kodama to get his second win over a decent or a chance for Shibata to show what he can do against someone who has shown himself to be a very capable fighter. Gachibowli Indoor Stadium, Hyderabad, India As well as the action in Japan there will also be two cards in India. One of those takes place in Hyderbad and is the more notable of the two, though is a show that is rescheduled from November 28th That main event will see unbeaten Indian hopeful Karthik Sathish Kumar (7-0, 3) look to win the WBC Asian Boxing Council Silver Lightweight title as he takes on Indonesian veteran Hero Tito (29-15-2, 11), who will be having his 47th bout. Kumar will be favoured, after all he's at home, he's unbeaten and he's the younger man, though this is a massive leap up in class for him, and his competition so far has been novices and very limited fighters. Tito on the other hand is no world beater, but he can notch the odd upset, as we saw in April when he beat countryman Hebi Marapu. If Tito is hungry he could well pick up his 30th professional win here, and score 3 wins in a row for the first time since 2013! KLVSP Boxing Hall, Pune, India The second Indian card comes from Pune, and is a show that is set to feature 8 bouts in total, with 12 of the fighters on the show being debutants. Sadly little really is known about any of the fighters on this card, though all the bouts on it are 4 rounders.  This coming Sunday is a relatively busy day in Japanese boxing with 3 shows, including Rookie of the Year action, debuts of stand outs, a former champion and several notable Japanese domestic contenders.
City Sogo Gym, Hirakata, Osaka, Japan The biggest show of the day will be in Hirakata City and be promoted by Green Tsuda, who are putting on a very solid overall card. The main event will see former Japanese Super Flyweight champion Takayuki Okumoto (23-10-4, 11) take on Sonin Nihei (10-5-2, 2), in the second bout between the two men. Okumoto desperately needs a good performance to get his career back in track, following back to back losses including a big upset defeat to Akui Furatani last year. With that in mind it's probably no surprise to see him facing an opponent he easily beat when he last faced him, in fact in 2016 Okumoto stopped Nihei in just 2 rounds and will be looking to do the same here. Nihei, who was once regarded as a contender himself, is 2-4 in his last 6 and his career certainly seems to be going through a rough patch, meaning this is very smart match making from Okumoto's team. In the chief support bout the talented and very promising Jinki Maeda (7-0, 4) will be looking to pick up his 8th straight win as he takes on Yuya Azuma (5-5-1, 1). Although this should be a straight forward win for Maeda, who is slowly moving towards a title fight it is worth noting that Azuma is no push over and despite losing his last 2, to very talented fighters. We expect to see Maeda needing to work hard for a victory here, and get plenty of rounds under his belt here. Also on this card are two notable debuts. One of those is Takafumi Shibata (0-0), who takes on Ryosei Niguma (5-3-1, 3), and the other is Kaito Yamasaki (0-0), who battles Kohei Hamamoto (4-2-1, 3). Both of the debutants will be expected to shine as they kick off their career's in 6 rounders. Shibata fought around 50 times in the amateurs, had about 30 wins and came third in the All Japan championships in 2018. Yamasaki on the other hand had almost 40 bouts, won 24 and shined at the National High School championships. Ohama Gym, Sakai, Osaka, Japan A second notable card in Osaka will be taking place in Sakai City, with Mitsuki promoting the event. It's not as big as the Hirakata city show, but there are 3 noteworthy bouts on this show. The show's opening bout is a 6 rounder between two JBC ranked female fighters as Sarasa Ichimura (3-8-1) takes on Aoi Watanabe (3-4, 1), in the second bout between these two women. Entering this bout both are ranked in the top 10 of their respective divisions, with Ichimura being a Minimumweight and Watanabe being a Flyweight, and Watanabe will be looking to beat Ichimura for the second time this year. Their first bout wasn't particularly exciting, but with both women having JBC rankings the bout is certainly a meaningful one. Another noteworthy bout here will see two fighters who reached the All Japan Rookie of the Year finals in February facing off. In one corner is the once beaten Seika Fukuda (5-1, 1), who lost to Tsubasa Nari at Super Featherweight, and in the opposite corner will be Eiji Togawa (6-4, 3), who was beaten by Hiromasa Urakawa at Lightweight. Whilst neither man is expected to go far in the sport, this is almost the perfect comeback fight, and should be a very fun one to watch. The main event will see JBC #2 Flyweight ranked fighter Shun Kosaka (16-7, 4) take on Shota Asami (8-8, 4), in what should be a pretty straight forward win for Kosaka at least on paper. Coming in to this Kosaka has fought at the top level of Japanese domestic boxing and shared the ring with the likes of Takuya Kogawa, Seigo Yuri Akui and Junto Nakatani, sadly however he lost to those 3 men and is now 1-4 in his last 5. Asami is no world beater, and he's 1-3 in his last 4, but he's proven to be very competitive in those losses and is certainly better than his record suggests. Aioi Hall, Kariya, Aichi, Japan At the Aioi Hall we'll get the Central Japan Rookie of the Year Finals, with 9 bouts set for this show, from Minimumweight up to Welterweight. There was originally 10 bouts scheduled but the final at 140lbs has been cancelled. The first really interesting match up on the show comes at Flyweight where 18 year old Yuki Morikawa (1-0-1) risks his unbeaten record against the much more experienced Katsuki Matsuura (6-4-1, 1). Morikawa made his debut back in 2019, with a draw, but looked good in his second bout, this past May, and a win here would move his career onto bigger and better things Matsuura on the other hand is 24 and on paper looks like a handful. It worth noting however that Matsuura is 1-4-1 in his last 6, and has really no momentum at all coming into this bout. The second bout of real interest to us here us at Bantamweight where Kenta Sugawara (2-1-1, 1) clashes with Takuto Mino (2-0). The 21 year old Mino made his debut last November, and struggled in that bout, but looked solid last time out against Yuto Oki. Mino on the other hand hasn't really had much moment with his career, and was only able to earn a draw last time out, though is more experienced and has been a professional since 2018. At Super Bantamweight we'll see 30 year old Fumiya Abe (4-2-1, 2) look to bounce back from a 2020 TKO loss to Ren Anzai as he takes on the unbeaten Prince Fujiwara (3-0-1, 2), who impressed us in 2020 with his win against Judgement Aizu. Aged 22 there is real potential for Fujiwara, from the Suruga Danji gym, so we're looking forward to seeing how he performs here. |
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