Category: Stamp Kiatniwat

Kazuto Ioka continues a tradition as he looks to Stamp on Kiatniwat!

12/27/2016

The boxing calender has several key dates on it that we all mark off at the start of the year. One of those is the “Golden Week” where Japanese fight fans get several notable shows over the space of a week, another is Cinco de Mayo, another is in Mid-September and a final one comes at the end of the year, where we have a tradition of big fights in Japan. Part of that end of year tradition is the huge TBS show which is headlined by Osakan star Kazuto Ioka (20-1, 12) who returns for his 5th year ending bout this year, and takes on unbeaten Thai Stamp Kiatniwat (15-0, 6), AKA Yutthana Kaensa, in a bout for Ioka's WBA Flyweight title. For Ioka the bout is a chance to extend his reign and his dominance of the end of year boxing TV ratings whilst Stamp will get his first shot at a regular title having held the interim belt for a little over a year.

Ioka really is a star of Japanese boxing. He's the face of the Osakan boxing scene and is a man who has been a star from the very early stages of his professional career, building on a solid amateur background. In just his 6th bout he claimed the Japanese Light Flyweight title before setting a then Japanese record by winning a world title in his 7th bout, stopping the then unbeaten Oleydong Sithsamerchai. Since beating Oleydong, for the WBC Minimumweight title, we have seen Ioka unify titles, adding the WBA title to his WBC belt at 105lbs, and claim world titles at both 108lbs and 112lbs, becoming the “quickest” fight to become a 3-weight champion in just 18 bouts!

Whilst Ioka isn't a flawless fighter, and looks set to be over-shadowed by the emerging talent of Naoya Inoue, he is a very rounded fighter who has added things to his game through out his career and grown into a fully fledged Flyweight. Early in his career he was a boxer though has shown an ability to brawl when he needs to, to counter punch when he wants to and fight in various styles. One constant through his career however has been his body shots which have finished off numerous opponents through his career and appears to a staple of his in ring mentality. Those body shot are thrown both as singles and as part of combinations and it's really when he gets those combinations going that he looks like a special fighter.

Although at first we did question Ioka's move to Flyweight, and he did appear to struggle with the weight to begin with, he has now matured into a very strong 112lb fighter and is seemingly the stand out fighter in the division, with the division currently under-going a major transitional period. A win here would further strengthen his standing in the sport and will potentially open up some big bouts for 2017.

Whilst Ioka is a star of Japanese boxing it seems like Thai boxing had been trying to push Stamp Kiatniwat as a future star of Thai boxing. He debuted at the prodigious age of 15 and looked like a natural talent as he picked up a series of wins against fellow novices. Those wins built some hype and momentum in 2013 and 2014 before Stamp took on, and defeated, former world champion Kwanthai Sithmorseng in August 2014. That win really put Stamp on the radar for international fans of the lower weights and got some really excited about his potential.

Sadly since beating Kwanthai we've not really seen Stamp develop into a star despite winning the interim PABA and WBA Flyweight titles, with two razor thin wins over Gregorio Lebron to win and retain the “Interim” WBA crown. In both of those bouts Stamp seemed like the bigger single puncher hitter but looked like a scared child at times against an aggressive and hard working Lebron who forced the action and hurt the youngster. In some ways they were character building bouts for Stamp but the reality is they showed he wasn't the star in the making that his promoter had hoped he'd become.

Whilst Stamp did show some early potential we really see this as being a massive mismatch and give him no chance at all against Ioka who will likely look for a stoppage in the middle rounds, almost certainly with a body shot. Stamp can hit harder than his record indicates but we'd be amazed to see him do anything to back up Ioka who will look in control from the opening seconds to the eventual stoppage. Hopefully in 2017 bouts with the likes of Takuya Kogawa, Daigo Higa, Donnie Nietes, Francisco Rodriguez Jr and McWillians Arroyo will come to fruition for Ioka who now needs some big names on his record given how unspectacular 2016 has been for him.

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Stamp and Lebron finally meet...for the second time

2/1/2016

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The WBA “interim” titles have become a real issue, though one the WBA now seem to finally be stamping out. For a long time the titles were used to collect extra sanctioning fees for bouts that typically don't feature a world class fighter as opposed to temporarily filling a void following an injury to the champion. Sometimes they do however lead to good bouts, though bouts that could have been made as eliminators

In the talent laden Flyweight division, which features the likes of Roman Gonzalez, Juan Francisco Estrada, Kazuto Ioka, Juan Carlos Reveco, Amnat Ruenroeng, Brian Viloria, Takuya Kogawa, Edgar Sosa, Johnriel Casimero, Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep and McWilliams Arroyo the need for the best to face the best is obvious, especially for titles and for the major recognition that those top tier belts bring for the fights.

Unfortunately rather than the WBA forcing bouts between the likes of Ioka and Estrada they have allowed 3 title holders, and essentially extended a joke that was never funne. Estrada is the “Super” champion, Ioka the “regular” champion and little known Thai Stamp Kiatniwat the “interim” champion.

On December 10th, Stamp (14-0, 6) was supposed to defend his title against the man he beat for the belt, Gregorio Lebron(13-3, 11), for whatever reason that bout was delayed and will now take place this coming Friday, leading Thai fans to get a second “world level” rematch in as many days.

The first bout between the two men came back in August and saw Stamp claim a majority decision over Lebron, a fighter from the Dominican republic, courtesy of two 10-8 rounds. The decision upset Lebron's team, who accused two of the judges of bias and lead to the WBA calling for a rematch, leaving us where we are now.

In their first bout both took turns to be the aggressor in what was a solid bout overall, and the perfect eliminator type bout. Although a vaunted puncher Lebron only really seemed to hurt Stamp once whilst Stamp scored two knockdowns, and came the closest to forcing the referee to stop the fight. For many who watched the fight though Stamp was spending too many rounds being negative, inactive and backing off rather than than making the most of his speed and skills.

Since their first bout neither man has fought, however they have both aged. For Stamp that will have seen the teenager mature and grow more into a man, and the time between the originally scheduled date and the actually bout will have given yet more time to mature. He's still a teenager but certainly a more mature man than he was in their first meeting. For Lebron he's aged and is now heading towards his 34th birthday, an old age for a man in the lower weights. Saying that however Lebron hasn't been in a lot of wars and has only tasted 53 rounds of professional experience, with 12 of them coming against Stamp in their first meeting, making him a very fresh 33 year old.

In their first fight it was Stamp who looked the more intelligent fighter, especially early on when he landed counter hooks, flashy combinations and showed good movement. He was however the man who was under-pressure and looked like a fighter unsure of himself a sign of his youth and inexperience. Lebron however looked like a powerful and aggressive man, looking to teach the youngster lesson with his power punches. We're expecting much of the same here, with Stamp looking to use Lebron's pressure against him whilst Lebron will again be looking to use his vaunted power to stop the youngster, and keep the judges out of the result rather than risk another decision loss.

For both men however this bout will be different to their first. Lebron will know the officiating away from home isn't as favourable as it is at home. He'll be more aggressive and look for the KO more than he did last time out, taking more risks and throwing more reckless and wild hayemakers. As for Stamp he'll likely have fewer lulls and be less negative. When he attacks he'll look to make a bigger statement and try to make his rounds clearer when he wins them. The Thai may also swing less widely when he attacks, having missed wildly with a number of left hands in the middle rounds.

Like their first bout we're expecting to see Lebron coming forward and Stamp countering. We however think that Stamp will manage to up the ante late and force a late stoppage on to the hard hitting Dominican who we know can be hurt by Stamp.

For those who missed the first one, we've included it below.

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Stamp and Lebron meet again to settle the score

12/5/2015

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The WBA “interim” titles have become a real issue. No longer are the titles used for the original purpose of being an “interim” belt but instead they act as a whole new title allowing the WBA to collect extra sanctioning fees for bouts that typically don't feature a world class fighter. Sometimes they lead to good bouts, though bouts that could easily have been eliminators, other times however the bouts are little more than a marketing tool for the promoters to make money and sell a show.

In the talent laden Flyweight division, which features the likes of Roman Gonzalez, Juan Francisco Estrada, Kazuto Ioka, Juan Carlos Reveco, Amnat Ruenroeng, Brian Viloria, Takuya Kogawa, Edgar Sosa, Johnriel Casimero, Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep and McWilliams Arroyo the need for the best to face the best is obvious, especially for titles.

Unfortunately rather the WBA forcing bouts between the likes of Ioka and Estrada they have allowed 3 title holders. Estrada is the “Super” champion, Ioka the “regular” champion and Stamp Kiatniwat the “interim” champion.

On December 10th, 3 weeks before Ioka faces Reveco in a rematch, we'll see Stamp (14-0, 6) defend his title against the man he beat for the belt, Gregorio Lebron (13-3, 11).

Their first bout, which came back in August, saw Stamp claim a majority decision over Lebron, a fighter from the Dominican republic, courtesy of two 10-8 rounds. The decision seemed to upset Lebron's team, who accused two of the judges of bias and lead to the WBA calling for a rematch, leaving us where we are now.

In their first bout both took turns to be the aggressor in what was a brilliant bout overall. Although a vaunted puncher Lebron only really seemed to hurt Stamp once whilst Stamp scored two knockdowns, and came the closest to forcing the referee to stop the fight. For many who watched the fight though Stamp was spending too many rounds being negative and backing off rather than than making the most of his speed and skills.

Since their first bout neither man has fought, however they have both aged. For Stamp that will have seen the teenager mature and grow more into a man. He's still a teenager but certainly a more mature man than he was in their first meeting. For Lebron he's aged and is now heading towards his 34th birthday, an old age for a man in the lower weights. Sayign that however Lebron hasn't been in many wars and has only tasted 53 rounds of professional experience, making him a very fresh 33 year old.

In their first fight it was Stamp who looked the more intelligent fighter, especially early on, when he landed counter hooks, flashy combinations and showed good movement. He was however the man who was under-pressure and looked like a fighter unsure of himself. Lebron however looked like a powerful and aggressive man, looking to teach the boy a lesson with his power punches. We're expecting much of the same here, with Stamp looking to use Lebron's pressure against him whilst Lebron will again be looking to use his vaunted power to stop the youngster, and keep the judges out of the result.

For both men however this bout will be different to their first. Lebron will know the judging away from home isn't as favourable as it is at home. He'll be more aggressive and look for the KO more intently than he did last time out. As a result he may take more risks and leave himself more open to the counters of the Thai. As for Stamp he may himself have fewer lulls, make a bigger statement when he attacks and try to make his rounds clear when he wins them. The Thai may also swing less widely when he attacks, having missed wildly with a number of left hands in the middle rounds. We suspect the key difference will be confidence with both men feeling more confident this time around and both looking to make the most of that when they get in the ring.

We suspect that this will have a lot moments like their first fight, with Lebron coming forward and Stamp countering. We however think that Stamp will manage to prove a point and score a stoppage late in the bout, proving that he has improved from the first bout and that he has matured as both a man and a fighter

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Stamp Kiatniwat looks to stamp out the threat of Lebron!

7/3/2015

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The WBA “interim” titles are a scourge to boxing. There are simply too many of them and too many are going to undeserving fighters, often beating fighters who deserved to be no where near a title opportunity themselves. Whilst sometimes the interim titles give us amazing fights, such as 2013's war between Koki Eto and Kompayak Porpramook, they tend to be mismatches to give one fighter a leg up at the expense of an over-matched and under-whelming foe, such as Randy Petalcorin's bout with Walter Tello from last year.

We suspect we're about to see another of those good match ups in late July as the WBA attempt to appease their friends in Thailand and help make Stamp Kiatniwat (13-0, 6) a “world champion” aged just 17.

Stamp, who has been impressive at times, will be taking on little known Dominican puncher Gregorio Lebron (13-2, 11) for the WBA “interim” Flyweight title. A belt that was last held by another Thai, Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep who managed to take it from the aforementioned Koki Eto.

On paper the bout looks like a good test for Stamp, the usual step up in class where a fighter moves from facing journeymen to opponents that try to win. In reality however the bout is a politic move by the WBA who seem to already know that Stamp could be worth a lot of money for a Flyweight and is unlikely to really push for fights with either the WBA “regular” or “super” champions. It's another nice revenue stream for the “Association”, but one that further dents their reputation, or what is left of their reputation.

Stamp Kiatniwat is a really promising young fighter. The 18 year old has been a pro for little more than 2 years and yet has already scored a really big win over Kwanthai Sithmorseng. That win should entitle the youngster to, at very least, a world ranking. He has also won, and defended, the interim PABA Flyweight title, further winning favour with the WBA. For Stamp to have a world ranking, and for Stamp to be considered a viable challenger to a world champion isn't hard to believe, even if that ranking was the lower end of the top 15 and his shot was a voluntary shot by a generous champion.

Typically Thai boxers are known as relatively basic come-forward guys who are very strong but not the most technically astute fighters. Stamp however is a bit more of a rounded boxer with a boxer-puncher style who enjoys fighting at mid-range, can force the action or fight as a counter-puncher. At the moment he does appear to lack his “man strength”, though as a teenager that is to be expected, though that lack of power has almost forced him into needing to hone his skills. Sometimes however he does get caught in the almost stereotypical “Thai” mindset of “I'm going to outfight you”, which was a massive issue against the tough Espinos Sabu who really pushed Stamp hard.

On paper the best win Stamp has was the one over Kwanthai, a former world champion, in reality however the win over Sabu was the most telling. Stamp boxed excellently early on, with a very sharp jab, intelligent movement and good counters. Later in the bout however he seemed to run out of steam and was really forced to grit his teeth and see out the storm. That would have been an excellent learning experience for the youngster who will have developed more in the final few rounds of that fight than in all the other bouts together.

As for Lebron the 33 year old has done very little of note. He has beaten 4 fighters with winning records and is on an 11 fight winning streak, including a win over Angelo Munoz for the WBA Fedelatin title last September, in what is Lebron's most recent bout, 10 months ago. That win was Lebron's biggest to date, after a 4 year career.

From the footage of Lebron he's a strong looking pressure fighter, a bit of a bull in fact. He appears to be very strong, comes forward with a lot of upper body movement and looks like a very confident fighter capable of cutting the ring down. He's not the quickest, or most accurate, but he looks like the sort of fighter who could be a very good gatekeeper for the division.

On paper Lebron looks like a big puncher. From the footage we've seen it seems more that he's heavy handed rather than a KO artist, but every shot he lands takes a toll and is thrown with bad intentions. Not only does he put real spite on his shots but he throws vicious combinations when he has a stationary target. If you can limit him to one shot at a time you have a chance to make him miss and make him pay, however if you stand and trade with him he could really do damage.

To date all of Lebron's bouts have been in the Dominican Republic, a stark world of difference to Thailand. He has looked impressive and he passes the “eye test” if you will, even if his competition does leave a lot to be desired. This is a huge step up for him, but it's impossible to rule him out given what we've seen.

Whilst we are cynical about the WBA's motives in making this bout we must admit that this actually should be a really good fight. We know Lebron's competition has been terrible, really it has, but watching him suggests he can actually fight. If Lebron is as good as recent footage suggests, he could end up being a real surprise package for the Thai's who well have over-looked him. Stamp is the more technically proficient fighter but Lebron is the bigger puncher, looks to be the stronger guy and certainly not the type of guy you want to stand and fight with. If Stamp decides to trade we'll find out a lot about his toughness, though we suspect the Thai will try to stay on the move and use his movement, as well as the Thai conditions, to try and take a decision.

(Image courtesy of "The Champion Thailand")

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Kazuto Ioka continues a tradition as he looks to Stamp on Kiatniwat!

Stamp and Lebron finally meet...for the second time

Stamp and Lebron meet again to settle the score

Stamp Kiatniwat looks to stamp out the threat of Lebron!

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