​This coming Friday we'll see the long awaited ring return of WBA Light Flyweight "Super" champion Hiroto Kyoguchi (15-0, 10), who takes on "regular" champion Esteban Bermudez (14-3-2, 10), in what's expected to be a potential FOTY contender between two aggressive, hard hitting and exciting fighters looking to put down a marker to say they are the #1 fighter at 108lbs.
 
Of the two men the 28 year old Kyoguchi is the more well known and the more successful fighter. He had been a notable Japanese amateur before turning professional and debuting in 2016, with a low key win in Osaka. In just over 10 months he had gone from debutant to OPBF champion, stopping Armando de la Cruz for the OPBF Minimumweight title in February 2017. Just 5 months later he claimed the IBF Minimumweight title, the first world title of his career, which he defended twice before moving up in weight. At 108lbs he quickly established himself as one of the top divisional fighters, stopping Hekkie Budler at the end of 2018 for the WBA "super" title. Sadly since winning the Light Flyweight title he has lost a lot of momentum with just 3 defenses in 3 and a half years, as injuries and covid have really thwarted his career. He managed to record two defenses in 2019, but saw two planned defenses in 2020, against Andika D'Golden Boy in May and Thanongsak Simsri in November, fall through due to issues relating to covid. He managed to make his most recent appearance in March 2021, when he beat Axel Aragon Vega in 4 rounds. The plan was to get him back out in the ring later that same year but injuries saw his return being delayed, and delayed, to the point where he had now been out of the ring for well over a year.
 
In the ring Kyoguchi is a strong, powerful, aggressive fighter who combines the traits of a boxer-puncher with those of an intelligent pressure fighter. He comes forward, he applies pressure behind a stiff jab, and although he's not the quickest with his feet his pressure is smart and effective. He cuts the ring off well and forces his fight on opponents. Notably he is not the sort of fighter who needs to take control early on, instead building his success as fights go on, as we saw notably against Budler who started really well before being broken down in the second half of the fight. As well as his pressure style he's also a heavy handed boxer, with a great variety of shots and solid stamina, having been 12 rounds 5 times. He uses a lot of his amateur pedigree when he needs to but also has the explosive combinations and power on the inside that appear to be inspired by Roman Gonzalez, who he has stated is one of his favourite fighters.
 
Whilst Kyoguchi has been a fixture at world level for several years the same can't be said of Bermudez. The Mexican 26 year old debuted back in 2013, aged 17, and won his first 6 bouts before having a technical draw to end his winning run. Following that draw he tested the water at difference weights, and in 2015 suffered his first loss, when he was stopped inside a round by Francisco Perez Cardenas. That loss was quickly followed by his second loss, a decision loss at the hands of Gilberto Parra. He then began a small bounce back, scoring a notable win over former WBC world champion Oswaldo Novoa in 2019 before the pandemic slowed his rise, keeping him out of the ring for a year. Unfortunately on his return he was beaten again, losing a decision to Rosendo Hugo Guarneros. With a 13-3-2 (9) he was given a shot at WBA "regular" champion Carlos Canizales in May 2021 and was expected to be the next victim of Canizales' power however Bermudez shocked the boxing world and stopped Canizales to claim the title. He has, however, been out of the ring since that bout, giving him a lay off of over a year, and has had a bit of a stop start year, with planned bouts being cancelled which could have affected his hunger, desire and training for this bout.
 
In the ring Bermudez looks like a big guy at 108lbs. He has long levers, and looks a bit of a physical freak making weight. He's very rough around the edges, his shots often look like he's pushing them and he falls short. He's not crisp, or clean, or accurate and he's defensively not the smarted. He is however a powerful guy and even his cuffing slow shots appear to have real venom in them. His power is the scary type of power that makes his opponents scared of him, overly respectful, and wary. He does a lot of things wrong, but with his power, his reach and his willingness to commit to big shots he is a nightmare to fight. We saw those tools force Canizales on to the backfoot, where he is less effective, and we expect him trying to do the same to Kyoguchi here.
 
Although a big favourite Kyoguchi will need to be really, really cautious here. Especially given his inactivity in recent years. He has the skills and the tools to deal with Bermudez, especially with his body shots and combinations in the pocket, but at mid-range and longer distance Bermudez will have consistent success and will get Kyoguchi's respect. For Kyoguchi to win he needs to get inside, he needs to stop Bermudez getting full leverage on his shots and he needs to grind down the challenger. It's not going to be an easy task, but it's one he has the skills to do.
 
We expect to see Bermudez have real success early on, maybe even wobbling Kyoguchi in the first few rounds. As the bout goes on however Kyoguchi will begin to shake his ring rust, settling into the task at hand and begin to break down Bermudez in a scintillating bout.
 
Prediction - TKO10 Kyoguchi

​This coming weekend fight fans around the globe will be focused on the Light Heavyweight division as the unbeaten Dmitrii Bivol (19-0, 11) takes on Mexican megastar Saul Alvarez (57-1-2, 39), at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The bout will see Bivol looking to extend his WBA Light Heavyweight "super" title reign, whilst Alvarez will look to further cement his place as the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet, and one of the greatest Mexican fighters of all time.
 
The bout promises to be a serious test for Canelo, who has looked sensational in recent years, whilst Bivol will get a chance to make a huge name for himself and prove he really is as good as his fans believe.
 
Of the two fighters there is no doubting that Alvarez is the bigger name and the more prominent star. The Mexican is widely regarded as the face of the sport and the biggest global star boxing has. Not only is he regarded as a huge star but he's also widely regarded as the best pound-for-pound fighter, and has had success from Light Middleweight up to Light Heavyweight, winning titles in all 4 weight classes. Not only that but his resume is also incredible, with wins against the likes Shane Mosley, Austin Trout, Erislandy Lara, Miguel Cotto, Amir Khan, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, Gennady Golovkin, Daniel Jacobs, Sergey Kovalev, Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant.
 
In the ring Canelo is a supreme fighting machine. He's an offensive fighter, who presses forward on the front foot, mentally breaks fighters with his front foot pressure, but applies that pressure in an intelligent, educated fashion. He uses smart footwork to cut the ring off, excellent head movement to make fighters miss, a tight guard to block shots that head his way, and some of the best body punching in the sport. Although not a huge single punch puncher Canelo is heavy headed, and his shots do damage right through the bout, with his power carrying late into bouts. He's often looks under-sized at 168lbs, never mind 175lbs, but he's physically imposing, thick, heavy set and incredibly strong, allowing him to push naturally bigger men around. Worryingly for opponents he's also intelligent, with a good boxing brain and he has shown an ability to adapt when he needs to. If we're looking for flaws with Canelo, he does have relatively slow feet, movement has caused him issues numerous times during his career and fighters have had success by keeping him chasing, but he his typically got to them sooner or later, Floyd Mayweather Jr aside.
 
Russian based fighter Bivol is a fighter who has generated a lot of buzz among the hardcore fans early in his career, with exciting performances, and highly developed skills, along with an impressive work rate and a fan friendly style. His early years as a professional gave hints at him something a bit special, and someone worth tuning into. It was noted that he was a stand out amateur, though from his early days as a professional it was clear he had a style suited to the professional ranks. Early career wins over the likes of Felipe Romero, Jackson Junior and Felix Veral, all in his first 7 fights, put him on the fast track. Sadly however as the level of competition improved Bivol's style began to move away from exciting and over the last 4 or so years he has gone from exciting to conservative, controlling and effective, turning fans against him, despite solid wins over the likes of Sullivan Barrera, Isaac Chilemba, Jean Pascal and Joe Smith Jr.
 
In recent years Bivol has focused a lot on boxing. Dictating the range, tempo and style of the fight. Using footwork to create space. Controlling the action behind his long straight punches, and good timing, rather than work rate, aggression and combinations. He has seemingly been happy to cruise to wins, and had disappointing performance against the likes of Isaac Chilemba and Craig Richards as a result. There is no doubting his talent, but there is a lack of fire, excitement, drive and in some ways ambition. And it has resulted in a lot of his recent fights feeling dramaless, as he sucks the excitement out of bouts. It works, and gets results, but certainly does feel like he has lost much of the good will he had.
 
Although a solid Light Heavyweight Bivol is certainly no physical freak at the weight, nor a massive puncher. With Canelo looking to make his name at the weight, Bivol is the ideal foe for him, unlike Joe Smith Jr and Artur Beterbiev, who can both bang. Bivol will try and box with Canelo, and will have success, with his footwork, straight punching and work at distance. Sadly though we don't see him keeping Canelo at bay long enough to rack up the rounds, and instead he will be forced to either stand and fight, or go through the motions to lost a decision.
 
We don't see Bivol having the hunger needed to make this into a fire fight late on. Instead we see him starting well, being caught up in the middle rounds, and then having Canelo take the lead, with his work rate and pressure, and go on to take a wide, clear, decision over the champion. Bivol will have moments, but will simply not do enough.
 
Prediction - UD12 Canelo

​On April 22nd we'll see WBO Minimumweight champion Masataka Taniguchi (15-3, 10) [谷口将隆] make his first defense, as he takes on the hard hitting Kai Ishizawa (10-1, 9) [石澤開] in a mouth watering match up that promises explosive action. For Taniguchi the bout is a chance for him to build on his big win over Wilfredo Mendez late last year, and notch a second victory over Ishizawa whilst also keeping his title. As for Ishizawa, the bout is about much more than the belt, and for him the contest seems personal as he attempts to avenge the sole defeat on his record. With a bit of history between the two men we expect this to be something of a personal bout, and quite possible one of the real hidden gems for the month.
 
Of the two men the more accomplished is Taniguchi, clearly. He was a notable Japanese amateur before turning to the professional ranks, and there was a lot of expectations on his shoulders. He, and fellow Watanabe Gym fighter Hiroto Kyoguchi, were seen as the next generation of fighters at the gym, and the men to replace the likes of Takashi Uchiyama, Ryoichi Taguchi and Kohei Kono. Both were rushed to notable fights, but sadly for Taniguchi he would come up short in his bigger bouts, losing against Reiya Konishi, Tsubasa Koura and Vic Saludar. Despite those losses it was clear he was a real talent, who had the tools to go all the way, but just fell short in bouts with the most on the line. Tellingly however he has rebuilt and used those losses to build his hunger, which has resulted in him winning his last 4 bouts, including his victories over Ishizawa in 2019, a win over Hizuki Saso for the Japanese title in 2020 and his win over Mendez last year for the WBO title.
 
In the ring Taniguchi is a very high level boxer-puncher, with under-rated body punching, good shot selection and an impressive array of technical skills. He's not a huge puncher, or the mot aggressive, the most physically imposing, but he's a very solid boxer, who can do everything, very well without being excellent in any specific area. As a fighter he's proven to have a solid chin, good work rate, a good engine and be willing to dig deep late in bouts. Sadly though whilst he is very good his flaws can be targeted, and his lack of being incredible in any area does leave him with areas where opponents can target him. For example Vic Saludar was too strong, and managed to force Taniguchi to back up a lot, however he will given anyone a tough bout and with his confidence at an all time high, it's fair to say only genuine world class fighters will be able to beat him. He has, after all, improved a lot from his losses.
 
Aged 25 Kai Ishizawa is a nightmare for the division, as he continues to develop from a young man with terrifying physical strength and power, into a man in his prime years. He is very much a fearsome individual and arguably the most dangerous man in the 105lb weight class. He turned professional without much fan fare, joining the likes of Junto Nakatani at the MT Gym, but quickly started to build a reputation for himself with his power, aggression and eye catching style. Things were boosted when he stopped Tatsuro Nakashima and then claimed the Japanese Youth title with an impressive win over Yuga Inoue. Sadly for Ishizawa his winning run came to an end in 2019 when he was beaten by Taniguchi, though since then he had gone 4-0 (3) and claimed the Japanese national title, with a win over Katsuki Mori this past January.
 
Unlike many Minimumweights Ishizawa doesn't get into the ring to just win, but instead win inside the distance. By pressing, bullying and pounding his opponents in the pursuit of a stoppage. He typically fights behind a tight, high guard, presses forward, and looks to break opponents down with his physicalpressure, heavy hands and brutal shots. He mixes things up nicely, to head and body, and makes fighters wilt under his pressure. So far only two fighters have survived the distance with him, Taniguchi and Yuni Takada, and coming in to this bout it's clear that Ishizawa doesn't want Taniguchi to repeat the act. He will also have learned form that loss, and will now know that against a fighter liek Taniguchi he really can't wait like he did in the first fight, and instead needs to be more intense, get closer, and let his hands fly more willingly.
 
As seen in their first bout, there is no denying that Taniguchi is the better boxer. He's more agile, uses straight punches well, picks his shots excellently and is all round a more complete fighter than Ishizawa. He managed to neutralise Ishizawa for stretches in their first bout, and although Ishizawa was always dangerous it was a pretty clear win for Taniguchi.
 
For things to change here Ishizawa will need to make Taniguchi uncomfortable. He will need to get close, rip the body more, and get his uppercuts off. He will need to push Taniguchi on to the ropes, take his movement away and get to work. If he can do that, he stands a genuine chance of avenging his loss and claiming the WBO title.
 
Notably though we see Ishizawa again struggling to get into range and get his shots off. What we're expecting is for Taniguchi to keep things long, use his quicker legs early on, take some steam out of Ishizawa in the first 4 or 5 rounds. Hold when he needs to. In the second half a more tired Ishizawa will be slower anyway, and from there Taniguchi should be able to pick, poke and prod his way to either a decision win or a late stoppage.
 
Prediction - TKO12 Taniguchi

Throughout the history of our great sport, the Flyweight division has given his a host of legendary names. The likes of Jimmy Wilde, Pancho Villa, Fidel LaBarba, Midget Wolgast, Benny Lynch, Fighting Harada, Pone Kingpetch, Masao Oba, Miguel Canto, Yuri Arbachakov, Pongsaklek Wonjongkam, Nonito Donaire, Omar Andres Narvaez and Roman Gonzalez, to name just a few, have etched their names in the annals of the sports all time legends.
 
Today it's hard to look at the Flyweight division and know which fighter will be the next to add their name among the divisional greats, though a number of fighters certainly seem capable of becoming divisional greats. One such fighter is current WBO champion Junto Nakatani (22-0, 17), who returns to the ring this coming weekend in pursuit of his second defense of the title, as he takes on Ryota Yamauchi (8-1, 7).
 
Although a long, long, long way from establishing himself as a legend, the 24 year Nakatani old certainly has the tools and time to make a huge mark on the sport. Despite that he has already made a name for himself as one of the best in the division today, and has down so by gradually building his reputation, rather than being moved rapidly through the ranks like many top current Japanese fighters. He debuted in 2015, aged just 17 and first began to make a name for himself the following year, when he went on to win the All Japan Rookie of the Year, beating future world champion Masamichi Yabuki in the final. In the years that followed he continued to progress, develop, mature and improve, whilst moving towards more notable fights. Along the way he won the Japanese Youth and Japanese national Flyweight titles, as well as scoring a very notable TKO win over Milan Melindo, and in 2020 he finally got a shot at a world title. In that bout he faced off against talented Filipino Giemel Magramo, in what looked like a 50-50 style fight. Despite being well matched on paper Nakatani dominated the contest with a real break out performance, stopping Magramo in 8 rounds, whilst dominating him on both the outside and the inside. Since that win he has defended the belt once, stopping Angel Acosta in his US debut last year in 4 rounds, in a bloody contest that saw Acosta being left a bloodied mess.
 
In the ring Nakatani is huge for a Flyweight, he's tall, rangy and looks like his body hasn't really started to fill out properly yet. In all honesty he seems like he could end up as high as Super Bantamweight, or even Featherweight, by the time his career is over. Whilst he has shown he can use his size well, with an excellent jab, great straight punches and intelligent hooks, he has also shown he can fight on the inside and be a dog when he needs to be, as seen in his wins over Seigo Yuri Akui, Magramo and Acosta, among others. Aged 24 he is still maturing, still improving, and is already a scary fighter for the other fighters in the Flyweight division, as he seems capable of doing almost everything, and doing it whilst in control of the action. Like all great fighters he switches between head and body at will, controls the tempo of the bout, and can change tactics as and when needed. Although maybe not as slick as IBF champion Sunny Edwards, or as aggressive as WBC champion Julio Cesar Martinez, he is arguably the most rounded fighter in the division, and a genuine nightmare for anyone at 112lbs.
 
Whilst Nakatani has been taken from relative obscurity to world champion by the MT gym, his challenger was something of a notable amateur who has been moved very aggressively by his team, the Kadoebi Boxing Gym. As an amateur Yamauchi went 38-15 (14) in the tough Japanese domestic amateur scene. Despite not having a stellar record, his style was more suited to the professional ranks, and that was seen almost straight away with his aggression and power shots breaking down Lester Abutan and Yota Hori in his second and third professional bouts. In just his fifth professional bout he travelled over to China and faced off with the then world ranked Wulan Tuolehazi, and lost a very competitive bout that saw a bit of home cooking from the 3 "wise men". That bout saw both men being dropped, and was a genuinely brilliant 12 rounder which allowed Yamauchi to prove his stamina, heart, desire and overall ability, even in hostile territory. Since that loss he has gotten back to winning ways, and scored a number of decent wins over the likes of Alphoe Dagayloan, Satoru Todaka and Yuta Nakayama, whilst winning and defending the WBO Asia Pacific Flyweight title.
 
Aged 27 Yamauchi is now in his physical prim, he looks mature, strong and powerful, and a lot of his style is based on his physicality and aggression. He has solid foundations from his amateur days, a nice jab, good variety in his shots, and applies constant pressure behind his jab and footwork. Although he does have a great jab, he uses it more to force opponents backwards, and to get inside, where he can go to work, rather than boxing and moving on the backfoot. His shots are heavy, damaging and when he unleashes on the inside he looks genuinely brutal, especially with his left hands to the midsection. At range he has struggled in the past, and against Tuolehazi, the Chinese fighter caught him time and time again with counter left hands, but he has improved since then and is certainly more defensively aware than he used to be. Worryingly for Yamauchi is the fact he's really jumping up in class here. Wins over the likes of Dagayloan and Nakayama are decent, but do not prepare a fighter to face someone who is genuinely world class. Another thing Yamauchi is missing is rounds. he does have a 12 round bout and an 8 rounder under his belt, but on average his bouts have gone just 5 rounds, and he's only gone beyond 6 a total of 3 times.
 
Having watched both men through their careers so far, we've been fans of both. We've loved watching Nakatani develop in front of our eyes, from a teenager to a national and then world champion, and his development has shown that fighters should take regular steps up in class, and be allowed to show what they are capable of against good fighter. We've also loved to see Yamauchi being moved aggressively and treat like a special fighter in the making. We've also been able to see bother fighters develop their styles and their in ring behaviour. Sadly for Yamauchi however, it does feel like this step up is a significant one, and that his strengths don't play into the very few weaknesses of Nakatani, who has a better jab and is cleaner and more varied on the inside. Yamauchi will certainly have moments, but we feel a lot of his work will come back with interest.
 
Despite feeling confident Nakatani will have too much, both inside and outside, we do expect this to be fought, mostly, up close, with the two men trading shots, making for a thrilling action bout, until Yamauchi finally has his resistance broken in the second half of the fight. He will give it his all, but eventually have to go out on his shield, having played his part in something of a special and all action bout. We wouldn't be surprised to see Nakatani being once or twice, Yamauchi to be dropped, at least once, and a lot of heavy power shots being thrown in a bout that could over-shadow the huge Middleweight bout between Gennady Golovkin and Ryota Murata, which headlines the card this is on.
 
Prediction - TKO9 Nakatani

On March 19th we'll see the second defense of the IBF Flyweight title by slippery unbeaten English fighter Sunny Edwards (17-0, 4) as he takes on Pakistani fighter Muhammad Waseem (12-1, 8) in Dubai, in a very interesting looking bout which could see Edwards stamp his claim as one of the best in the division, or could see Waseem put Pakistan on the boxing map and become the first world champion from the South Asian country, finally living up to the promise he showed at the start of his professional career. The bout is a must win for both men, and is one where the skills of the two men, should make for a genuinely excellent bout, though sadly it may well be coming whilst the two are at very different points of their careers.
 
The ?? year old Edwards is one of the most under-rated fighters in the sport today, and for much of the early portion of his career he was over-shadowed by brother Charlie Edwards, a former WBC Flyweight champion, who was regarded by many as the better fighter. Today however it appears that the more slippery Sunny is the better boxer of the two brothers. His career started slowly, tucked away on Fran Warren shows, mostly against domestic competition, but in 2021 he broke out in a huge way, as he comfortably out boxed wily old veteran Moruti Mthalane to claim the IBF title. That win was a huge one for the division, and although it was a stylitically easy one for the fleet footed Edwars, it was an impressive show case of his concentration, stamina, focus and speed, as he preverented Mthalane from closing the distance and neutralised the South African's pressure round after round. Since winning the title he has defended the belt once, beating Filipino Jayson Mama, with a wide decision back in December.
 
Edwards is a wonderfully skilled technical boxer, arguably one of the best in and around the lower weights. He's fleet footed, slippery as an eel and has impressive handspeed, timing, and understanding of range. Sadly for him he does lack power, stoppages are incredibly rare during his career, and whilst he lands plenty he can't regularly make opponents back away, despite consistently landing clean blow. Whilst he does land clean on a consistent basis, opponents don't. In fact opponents regularly fall short, or at best land on arms, and are often beaten mentally just as much as physically. Although he hasn't been tagged regularly through his career, there is some positives for his opponents, as we have seen him dropped before, and we've also seen him pick up injuries in fights, and in fact he struggled in one or two bouts at domestic level, something the other top Flyweights will see as a chink in his armour. Notable his lack of power will also see the other top Flyweight look to take extra risks, to drag him into a fire fight, something that the likes of Ricardo Sandoval, Seigo Yuri Akui and Julio Cesar Martinez would feel comfortable in doing.

Whilst the 26 year old champion is coming in  to his prime the challenge is certainly not, in fact at 34 years old Waseem would become one of the oldest men to win a Flyweight title were he to pick up the upset win here. Sadly for him his career has been a hugely frustrating one since turning professional in 2015, in South Korea. It has been a career that has seen funds being promised but not deliver, and has seen stretches of inactivity, and really not gone the way he, and those that have worked with him, would have hoped. He began his career in a 10 round title bout, scored a very notable win just 13 months later, beating Giemel Magramo and then things really ground to a halt with 3 meaningless wins in Panama before he got a shot Moruti Mthalane for the IBF title in 2018. That bout showed what Waseem could do, as he lost a razor thin decision against the brilliant South African, but since then he has fought just 4 times, and struggled to get a major fight during that time, and has looked somewhat demotivated by the sport at times, notably against Ganigan Lopez.
 
At his best Waseem was a brilliant boxer-puncher, who took a wealth of amateur experience to the professional ranks, and looked like someone who was going to be a star for Pakistani boxing. His early work with Korean promoter Andy Kim seemed to have him on the fast track to the top, but a lack of financial backing slowed that rise, drastically. Now a days it does seem like some of his sharpness has faded with time and he's not as quick, explosive, or sharp as he once was. He's still very capable, but he doesn't look the same fighter that had excited us early in his career, and had come so close to stopping Mthalane in 2018. In fact he now looks some what over-patient, in recent bouts, and whilst technically excellent, there is a lack of fire in some of his performance and we're only seeing glimpses of how good he was, just a few short years ago.
 
We'll be honest, we would love Waseem to win, putting Pakistan on the boxing map, giving the country it's first world champion, and helping potentially ignite a love of boxing in a country that is cricket mad. A prime Waseem could well have managed that, with his pressure, physicality, and power. With a 34 year old Waseem however the difference between the two men will be foot speed, with Edwards being too light on his feet, too quick with his hands and too slippery. Waseem will commit to coming forward, applying pressure, but much like Edwards' win over Mthalane, we see father time playing a notable role in this bout, and the stylistic strength of Edwards being too much for Waseem to over-come.
 
Prediction - UD12 Edwards ​

On September 22nd 2021 the Japanese boxing world had a notable upset as the long and impressive WBC Light Flyweight reign of Kenshiro Teraji (18-1, 10) came to an end in his 9th defense, as he was stopped by the unheralded Masamichi Yabuki (13-3, 12), who dethroned the champion in round 10. The result was a huge one for those who follow the lower weight classes, and also a bout that essentially derailed a dream title unification between Kenshiro and WBA "super" champion Hiroto Kyoguchi, who had began to make a name in the US thanks to linking up with Eddie Hearn, Matchroom Boxing and DAZN.

Following that bout there was a complaint put forward by Kenshiro's team, including his father, that the bout had been marred by head clashes, notable caused by Yabuki, with one late in the bout negatively affecting Kenshiro, who didn't look the same after one particular clash. This issue was raised with the JBC, who did their best impression of the British Boxing Board of Control and pretended it had no bearing on the result of the bout, and the WBC, who took steps to order a rematch, recognising the head clash, along with Kenshiro's reign as reasons for the men to go again in an immediate rematch. Around the time of the WBC order the terms for the rematch were agreed relatively quickly between the 4 sides involved, Green Gym - who promote Yabuki, BMB and Misako Gym - who represent Kenshiro, and Shinsei, who promoted the first bout and will also promote this one.
 
Coming in to this bout there is a lot of small stories that feel somewhat unresolved from their first bout. Their first fight had been marred with issues before and during the contest. The most notable of those wasn't, however, the head clash. Instead it was Kenshiro contracting covid in the weeks before the bout. He had been said to only have had mild symptoms, but the bout had been re-arranged due to his positive test, and it was suggested that issue getting back into fighting shape only weeks after contracting the virus had taken it's toll on him, leaving him less than 100% come fight night. Notable we have seen numerous fighters being affected by the virus, and many of them haven't looked themselves in their first bout following the illness. It's maybe didn't change the outcome of the bout, but it's fair to say that Kenshiro's preparation for that first bout was certainly not great. Given that covid affects the repository system, and  Kenshiro had looked tired in the middle of the bout, there is a good chance the issues of the virus were still affecting him in the ring. As for the bout there was the well reported issue with head clashes, which went unpunished by the referee. Coming in to this rematch we're expecting to see Kenshiro at 100%, and determined to avenge his loss, reclaim his title and do more than just win, we expect him to look to make a statement. As for Yabuki he'll be wanting to put to bed any idea that he needed to be facing a somewhat sub-optimal Kenshiro to win, and that he relied on some generous work from the referee to win. In fact he's also like to feel fired up by the suggestions that he was fighting dirty and couldn't have taken home the win without now well noted issues with his head. With those things in mind we're expect to see both men fighting with more hunger, more desire and more stubbornness than in their first bout. Those traits alone could actually affect this bout, quite considerably.
 
For those who haven't followed the two men, and their careers so far, it's worth learning something about the two fighters.
 
Prior to last year's huge win Masamichi Yabuki wasn't known at all outside of Asia. In fact he'd only fought once outside of Japan, scoring a win in South Korea. In Japan he was probably best known for 3 things. The first of those was losing to Junto Nakatani in the 2016 All Japan Rookie of the Year final at Flyweight, the second was his 2018 loss to Seigo Yuri Akui, and his third was winning the Japanese Light Flyweight title in 2020, when he stopped Tsuyoshi Sato inside a round. Even in  Japan he wasn't a big name, fighting mostly in Kariya and only having had 3 fights at Korakuen Hall, the holy land of Japanese boxing. Despite his set backs he had scored notable wins, stopping Gilberto Pedroza in 2 rounds, Ryuto Oho in 6, Rikito Shiba in 4, Sato in 1 and had defended defend the Japanese title with a wide win over Toshimasa Ouchi. He was however very much regarded as something of a local star in Central Japan, and someone who had been showcased a fair bit on Boxing Raise, thanks to their relationship with Yabuki's promoter.
 
In the ring Yabuki is a really good boxer-puncher, or more of a puncher-boxer if we're being honest. He's one of the hardest punchers at 108lbs, and like many punchers wants to create space to have full extension on his shots. He does that through a combination of solid footwork, and being something of a physical freak at the weight with long arms and a lean body. Unlike most puncher's he's not really an out and out aggressive fighter, though he certainly has that in his locker, and instead looks to create openings before landing his power shots, and either hurting them and going for a finish, or breaking them down as the bout goes on. As we saw in the first match with Kenshiro, when he has has his man hurt he can really put his shots together, and he is a natural finisher. He's not the quickest, or the sharpest, but he's hard hitting, well schooled, understands his advantages, and with such a big win against Kenshiro last time out, he'll be full of confidence, self belief and determination to keep a hold of the WBC title.
 
Although Yabuki is something of an unknown outside of Japan it's fair to say that Kenshiro had something of an international following prior to his loss to Yabuki. He had gotten attention early in his career due to his name and impressive performance, and within just a few years of his debut he had quickly raced through the rankings, winning the WBC title with a close decision win over Ganigan Lopez. After struggling in his first defense, a narrow in over Pedro Guevara, Kenshiro began to impressive, and defended the title against Gilberto Pedroza, Gangigan Lopez, Milan Melindo, Saul Juarez, Jonathan Taconing, Randy Petalcorin and Tetsuya Hisada. He had a solid claim as the best fighter in the division, in terms of resume and in terms of ability. Sadly though Kenshiro's career has had issues the last few years, including a drunk incident that forced his bout with Hisada to be delayed and contracting Covid 19 just weeks before the originally scheduled date for his bout with Yabuki. He also appeared to be quietly dropped by Fuji TV, who had carried most of his world title bouts before the Hisada bout, and didn't fight at all in 2020.
 
In the ring Kenshiro, at his best, is a brilliant boxer. He's light on his feet, intelligent, creates space for his sharp punches, mixes his shots up well, and has one of the best jabs in the sport. In fact he pretty much shut down Melindo with his jab in 2018. He also has under-rated power, wonderful placing of his body shots, and the ability to take opponents apart with his accuracy, timing and variety. Notanly Kenshiro really can do it all, and is just as comfortable taking the fight to an opponent as he is boxing and moving, picking his spots and punishing mistakes, which he does draw a lot of for counter opportuntiies. Looking at flaws he does have a knack of dropping his defense on his way out, and backing up in straight lines. There are also question marks to be had about his confidence and mental state coming into this bout, and whether or not Covid has had a lasting effect on him. If it does he may well be in trouble here. It's also worth asking just how committed he is to sport, and what hunger he still has following his title loss last year.
 
Going in to the first bout we expected Kenshiro to have a fair straight forward task with Ybuki, though we did suggest that Yabuki had a chance late on if Kenshiro slowed down. We feel that Covid, and the issues Kenshiro had getting back into shape following the illness had a major impact on that first fight. With that in mind we'll against be backing Kenshiro to win here, and avenge his loss. However we do wonder if we'll get the same Kenshiro that managed 8 world title defenses, and if not he could be in trouble again here, against a man we don't think will want to easily hand back the title.
 
We expect Kenshiro to start well, and to then conserve energy in the middle rounds, expecting a big Yabuki finish and keeping something in reserve for those late rounds. In rounds 9, 10, 11 and 12 we expect to see Kenshiro then putting the jets back on, and out working Yabuki to take a competitive decision win.
 
Predcition - UD12 Kenshrio