When we talk about the best boxers on the planet right now we tend to talk about Floyd Mayweather Jr, Guillermo Rigondeaux and Andre Ward. The first two of those are particularly known for being able to use their legs to neutralise an opponent's aggression and pressisure whilst lading their own shots in return. Earlier today it appeared that Akira Yaegashi (19-3, 9) had been taking notes from both Mayweather and Rigondeaux as he put on a similar showing of boxing and moving as he defeated Mexican challenger Edgar Sosa (49-8, 29) and retained his WBC Flyweight title.
The fight, for the first two rounds, looked like a chess match. It was close, it was nip and tuck and neither guy made much of a statement as they felt the other guy out. By the third round however the fight was beginning to come alive as both Sosa moved up a gear and began to find his range with the right hand. This forced Yaegashi to do two things. Firstly he had to answer back which is exactly what he did, then he had to think of a way to neutralise it.
Rather than stupidly going toe-to-toe with Sosa we saw Yaegashi going on to the back foot, moving around the ring then cutting in and unloading before getting back out. It was negative and some what dull looking at times but he forced Sosa to come after him, circled away and then connected as Sosa struggled to cut the distance.
After 4 rounds we had began to settle into a pattern that would dictate much of the fight. Sosa would slow pressure Yaegashi, Yaegashi would skip around him. When Sosa was in distance and threw Yaegahi either returned the favour or avoided it and countered. At times it was was the sort of thing you'd expect to see from Mayweather, at others Yaegashi showed his warrior mentality and traded.
Whilst Yaegashi was losing the occasional round where Sosa managed to have that bit of extra success, it was clear that the Mexican was simply too slow with both his hands and feet to make this this close. The fighter's heart was still in Sosa but at 34 he was showing serious signs of slowing down and the wear and tear of a man having had a long and gruel ling career.
Going in to the final 4 rounds the WBC opening scoring had left us in no doubt that Sosa would need a KO. Unfortunately it seemed almost impossible. Unless Yaegashi had used up his entire there was no chance of Sosa forcing an early conclusion to the bout.
Rounds 9, 10 and 11 went on the same script as many of the previous rounds with Yaegashi boxing on the move. This changed however in round 12 as the men spent the final minute beating 7 shades out of each other in the longest action sequence of the fight.
With the decision already known before being announced due to the open scoring the question wasn't who had won but more, about the future. At 34 this could well be the end for Sosa who has a fantastic career, for Yaegashi this victory may well lead to a second contest with Kazuto Ioka and in all honesty, that's a fight I want to see all over again
Showing posts with label Flyweight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Flyweight. Show all posts
Friday, 6 December 2013
Friday, 29 November 2013
Koki Eto v Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep
Earlier this year Koki Eto (14-3-1, 10) put on a memorable performance as he defeated Thailand's Kompayak Porpramook for the WBA interim Flyweight title. Sadly for Eto his reign came to an end earlier today as he traveled to Thailand and was stopped by Yodmongkol Vor Saengthep (33-2, 20).
The Thai started like a man with a point to prove and by the end of round 3 it was obvious that the Champion was in trouble. Although Yodmongkol is far from a puncher he had rocked the Japanese fighter hard in the the third round as the challenge got off to a dream start.
Things went from good to better for the Thai who proved he was capable of shipping shots in the fourth round as Eto managed to tag him with a number of eye catching body shots. Unfortunately for Eto nothing he did had an effect on Yodmongkol who had totally established control by the end of round 5. Although Eto seemed like he was throwing a lot he wasn't having much of an effort and Yodmongkol was landing the better, crisper and cleaner shots time and time again.
The power of Yodmongkol was evident again in round 6 when he dropped Eto. Eto, who hadn't really been rocked in 12 rounds against Porpramook, was caught off balance by the knockdown was legitimate and further proved just how excellent the challenger had been. The pressure was now firmly on the champion.
Eto surprisingly responded very well to the knockdown as he won clearly round 7 and made a solid case for himself in round 8. Sadly however they were his last hurrahs and from round 9 onwards Yodmongkol re-assumed control and slowly but surely beat the fight out of Eto who looked ready to stopped in rounds 10 and 11
With Eto taking a lot of punishment it seemed like the fight could well have been stopped, instead however Eto went in to round 12 in a massive hole. Unfortunately he didn't see out the final round as Yodmongkol drilled him in the twelfth and forced a slightly premature ending to the bout with a truly eye catching knockout
The Thai started like a man with a point to prove and by the end of round 3 it was obvious that the Champion was in trouble. Although Yodmongkol is far from a puncher he had rocked the Japanese fighter hard in the the third round as the challenge got off to a dream start.
Things went from good to better for the Thai who proved he was capable of shipping shots in the fourth round as Eto managed to tag him with a number of eye catching body shots. Unfortunately for Eto nothing he did had an effect on Yodmongkol who had totally established control by the end of round 5. Although Eto seemed like he was throwing a lot he wasn't having much of an effort and Yodmongkol was landing the better, crisper and cleaner shots time and time again.
The power of Yodmongkol was evident again in round 6 when he dropped Eto. Eto, who hadn't really been rocked in 12 rounds against Porpramook, was caught off balance by the knockdown was legitimate and further proved just how excellent the challenger had been. The pressure was now firmly on the champion.
Eto surprisingly responded very well to the knockdown as he won clearly round 7 and made a solid case for himself in round 8. Sadly however they were his last hurrahs and from round 9 onwards Yodmongkol re-assumed control and slowly but surely beat the fight out of Eto who looked ready to stopped in rounds 10 and 11
With Eto taking a lot of punishment it seemed like the fight could well have been stopped, instead however Eto went in to round 12 in a massive hole. Unfortunately he didn't see out the final round as Yodmongkol drilled him in the twelfth and forced a slightly premature ending to the bout with a truly eye catching knockout
Saturday, 12 October 2013
Juan Carlos Reveco v Ricardo Nunez
Whilst much of the boxing world had their attention on the US with Orlando Salido fought Orlando Cruz, Timothy Bradley fought Juan Manuel Marquez and Vasyl Lomachenko made his professional debut there was also action, at the world level, in Argentina.
Fighting in his home area of Mendoza the WBA Flyweight champion Juan Carlos Reveco (32-1, 17) successfully retained his title defeating Panamanian puncher Ricardo Nunez (26-4, 22), a fighter who always has the power to hurt fighters, even if his boxing skills aren't the most impressive.
The difference in boxing skill was evident from the off with Revecco utilising his speed and skills to hit Nunez with out taking much in return. It seemed almost evident from the off that this was actually a mismatch. Sure, Nunez seemed to have the power to turn things around but he was really struggling to connect with that power as Reveco impressed from the opening bell.
Unfortunately in the 8th round, and whilst well a head on the scorecards, Reveco came off worse from a clash of heads and unfortunately, with his right leaking blood, he was denied the chance to go for a late stoppage with the referee calling for the cards.
Although Reveco was denied his opportunity of going for a stoppage he was able to take a clear, clear decision with scores of 80-71 across all 3 cards to retain his title.
Unfortunately the cut was nasty and Reveco may not be able to fight again this year, effectively ruling out a possible super-fight in Japan with either Roman Gonzalez or Kazuto Ioka, both of whom have shown an interest in a fight with the Argentinian.
Fighting in his home area of Mendoza the WBA Flyweight champion Juan Carlos Reveco (32-1, 17) successfully retained his title defeating Panamanian puncher Ricardo Nunez (26-4, 22), a fighter who always has the power to hurt fighters, even if his boxing skills aren't the most impressive.
The difference in boxing skill was evident from the off with Revecco utilising his speed and skills to hit Nunez with out taking much in return. It seemed almost evident from the off that this was actually a mismatch. Sure, Nunez seemed to have the power to turn things around but he was really struggling to connect with that power as Reveco impressed from the opening bell.
Unfortunately in the 8th round, and whilst well a head on the scorecards, Reveco came off worse from a clash of heads and unfortunately, with his right leaking blood, he was denied the chance to go for a late stoppage with the referee calling for the cards.
Although Reveco was denied his opportunity of going for a stoppage he was able to take a clear, clear decision with scores of 80-71 across all 3 cards to retain his title.
Unfortunately the cut was nasty and Reveco may not be able to fight again this year, effectively ruling out a possible super-fight in Japan with either Roman Gonzalez or Kazuto Ioka, both of whom have shown an interest in a fight with the Argentinian.
Monday, 12 August 2013
Akira Yaegashi v Oscar Blanquet
If I was to say one of my favourite fights is Akira Yaegashi (18-3, 9) then that it's fair to assume that I was really looking forward to the first defense of his WBC Flyweight title. Unfortunately however the Japanese action man's fight with Oscar Blanquet (32-6-1, 23) really failed to live up to expectation as they styles completely failed to gel.
The first few rounds were by far the most competitive with the scores through 4 showing a genuinely close contest with the open scoring showing 39-37 once to each man a 38-38 score card leaving us effectively with a split draw through the first 4 rounds.
After the competitive nature of the opening few rounds Yaegashi started to turn up the screw and built on his crisp jab by landing lovely sweeping counter left hooks. Unfortunately the more Yaegashi the more and more negative Blanquet became with the Mexican beginning to hold, spoil and turn to the referee after every hurtful body shots. It was obvious from about round 6 onwards that that Blanquet felt he was unable to win and was instead going to make things difficult for Yaegashi.
Despite being held constantly Yaegashi would continue to land the bouts only notable shots which included a low blow and a knockdown both in round 8 which saw the round scored 9-8 in favour of Yaegashi who by now had established a notable lead on all 3 cards.
With the open scoring having Yaegashi well out in the lead he made sure he won round 9 and then almost cruised the final 3 rounds picking his spots and effectively telling Blanquet that he was no longer going to force a fight and be thwarted by a man who wasn't there to fight. As we all know Yaegashi is an action fighter but it was obvious through the later rounds that he was a frustrated fighter and refused to let Blanquet further frustrate him.
Unfortunately this may well go down as Yaegashi's least entertaining televised fight, though on the whole it was due to the negativity of Blanquet as opposed to anything Yaegashi did or could have done. Hopefully next time out he'll face a more willing dance partner.
The first few rounds were by far the most competitive with the scores through 4 showing a genuinely close contest with the open scoring showing 39-37 once to each man a 38-38 score card leaving us effectively with a split draw through the first 4 rounds.
After the competitive nature of the opening few rounds Yaegashi started to turn up the screw and built on his crisp jab by landing lovely sweeping counter left hooks. Unfortunately the more Yaegashi the more and more negative Blanquet became with the Mexican beginning to hold, spoil and turn to the referee after every hurtful body shots. It was obvious from about round 6 onwards that that Blanquet felt he was unable to win and was instead going to make things difficult for Yaegashi.
Despite being held constantly Yaegashi would continue to land the bouts only notable shots which included a low blow and a knockdown both in round 8 which saw the round scored 9-8 in favour of Yaegashi who by now had established a notable lead on all 3 cards.
With the open scoring having Yaegashi well out in the lead he made sure he won round 9 and then almost cruised the final 3 rounds picking his spots and effectively telling Blanquet that he was no longer going to force a fight and be thwarted by a man who wasn't there to fight. As we all know Yaegashi is an action fighter but it was obvious through the later rounds that he was a frustrated fighter and refused to let Blanquet further frustrate him.
Unfortunately this may well go down as Yaegashi's least entertaining televised fight, though on the whole it was due to the negativity of Blanquet as opposed to anything Yaegashi did or could have done. Hopefully next time out he'll face a more willing dance partner.
Thursday, 1 August 2013
Kompayak Porpramook v Koki Eto
After last Saturday's war between Omar Figueroa and Nihito Arakwa it may have been fair to say that it'd take a long time until we saw a better fight, surprisingly however it took less than a week as Kompayak Porpramook (50-5, 35) and Koki Eto (14-2-1, 10) put on a fight for the ages.
The opening round saw Eto boxing well behind his jab and using his reach for almost 2 minutes before exploding in to an all-out assault on the Thai who appeared to suffer a knockdown only moments from the bell. Instead of ruling a knockdown the referee gave Porpramook the benefit of the doubt and ruled it a slip.
The opening round had been a bit one sided though was fought and excellent pace, what few could have expected however was what was to come around the following 4 rounds were fought at an electric pace with both men just landing bombs on each other with little regard of what was coming their way. The action looked less like boxing and more like a video game as bombs were traded time and time again with neither man taking a backwards step.
Through the first 5 rounds the action was close with neither man really able to establish themselves as the dominant force. Surprisingly in round Eto seemed to get back on his toes and try boxing more than he had in the previous few rounds. Although the Japanese fighter tried to create the distance he would have liked he was dragged back in to a war by Porpramook who refused to allow this battle to turn into a boxing contests.
Unfortunately for Porpramook he appeared to start tiring as we entered the second half of the bout and although he held his own in round 7 he really struggled to in the later rounds as Eto called on unfathomable energy reserves to claim round 8.
Rather oddly the television broadcast cut away between rounds 8 and 9 and didn't return until round 10 meaning that I have no idea what happened in round 9, though from what I saw of round 10 Porpramook was starting to really struggle with the pace of the action.
In round 11 the Thai tank was looking completely void of gas and Eto, whilst clearly tiring himself easily out worked the Thai champion who was unable to keep up the pace with with Eto who's youth was doing him major favours in out working the champion.
Despite looking tired in round 11 Eto charged out in round 12 seemingly under the belief he needed a KO to take the title. His assault was something special straight from the bell and he had Porpramook reeling all over the place from the off. Unfortunately the first assault was eventually seen off by Porpramook who did all he could to remain upright.
Amazingly Eto would mount 1 more explosive attack, this time sending Porpramook down to the canvas for the only official knockdown of the fight.
I'm not sure whether the knockdown was needed or not but Eto had done enough to take the decision and become the first Japanese born fighter in history to claim a world title on Thai soil thanks to this amazing performance.
If you were unable to catch the fight on Thai Channel 7 make sure you find it online and watch it, you will not be disappointed!
The opening round saw Eto boxing well behind his jab and using his reach for almost 2 minutes before exploding in to an all-out assault on the Thai who appeared to suffer a knockdown only moments from the bell. Instead of ruling a knockdown the referee gave Porpramook the benefit of the doubt and ruled it a slip.
The opening round had been a bit one sided though was fought and excellent pace, what few could have expected however was what was to come around the following 4 rounds were fought at an electric pace with both men just landing bombs on each other with little regard of what was coming their way. The action looked less like boxing and more like a video game as bombs were traded time and time again with neither man taking a backwards step.
Through the first 5 rounds the action was close with neither man really able to establish themselves as the dominant force. Surprisingly in round Eto seemed to get back on his toes and try boxing more than he had in the previous few rounds. Although the Japanese fighter tried to create the distance he would have liked he was dragged back in to a war by Porpramook who refused to allow this battle to turn into a boxing contests.
Unfortunately for Porpramook he appeared to start tiring as we entered the second half of the bout and although he held his own in round 7 he really struggled to in the later rounds as Eto called on unfathomable energy reserves to claim round 8.
Rather oddly the television broadcast cut away between rounds 8 and 9 and didn't return until round 10 meaning that I have no idea what happened in round 9, though from what I saw of round 10 Porpramook was starting to really struggle with the pace of the action.
In round 11 the Thai tank was looking completely void of gas and Eto, whilst clearly tiring himself easily out worked the Thai champion who was unable to keep up the pace with with Eto who's youth was doing him major favours in out working the champion.
Despite looking tired in round 11 Eto charged out in round 12 seemingly under the belief he needed a KO to take the title. His assault was something special straight from the bell and he had Porpramook reeling all over the place from the off. Unfortunately the first assault was eventually seen off by Porpramook who did all he could to remain upright.
Amazingly Eto would mount 1 more explosive attack, this time sending Porpramook down to the canvas for the only official knockdown of the fight.
I'm not sure whether the knockdown was needed or not but Eto had done enough to take the decision and become the first Japanese born fighter in history to claim a world title on Thai soil thanks to this amazing performance.
If you were unable to catch the fight on Thai Channel 7 make sure you find it online and watch it, you will not be disappointed!
Saturday, 27 July 2013
Juan Francisco Estrada v Milan Melindo
In a riveting contest for the WBA "super" and WBO Flyweight Juan Francisco Estrada (25-2, 18) narrowly out pointed Filipino challenger Milan Melindo (29-1, 12).
The fight started relatively well for the defending champion who appeared to take the opening 2 rounds with his jab and combinations as Melindo slowly worked his way in to the bout with his sharp and accurate shots. It seemed that although Estrada was doing enough to win the rounds Melindo was making a strong case to claim them with his own work rate.
As we entered the middle rounds it seemed that Melindo was growing in confidence and went from making rounds competitive to arguably claiming several of them as the bout turned in to a high speed chess match. It appeared that if the bout continued to be a chess match then it was going to begin to totally turn Melindo's way with his technically superior skills. Despite the visible success for Melindo Estrada never seemed too bothered in trying to change the direction of the fight as he seemed to feel he was doing enough to bag the rounds. Looking back it appeared he was viewing the bout the same was as the judges.
To the neutral observer it was starting to look like the bout was up for grabs in the championship rounds with an upset clearly possible. Estrada tried to change that in round 11 as he took the fight to a tiring Melindo and dropped the Filipino late in the round. Although Estrada recovered his feet and made it to the bell it was beginning to look like he was all in and was going to have to run to see out the final round.
Estrada set out for round 12 the way he had ended round 11 and appeared to clearly hurt Melindo late in the round with the Filipino's legs buckling big time. Unfortunately for Mexican he couldn't finish off Melindo who showed guts and determination to see out the bell.
I myself had the bout very close and expected the decision to be either a very close unanimous decision or even a split. Instead the scorecards were all in favour of the defending champion who impressed the judges much more than he had impressed me, which was odd because I usually love watching Estrada. Saying that however it does appear that there is a lot more to Estrada than being a insanely fun to watch and teak tough brawler.
The fight started relatively well for the defending champion who appeared to take the opening 2 rounds with his jab and combinations as Melindo slowly worked his way in to the bout with his sharp and accurate shots. It seemed that although Estrada was doing enough to win the rounds Melindo was making a strong case to claim them with his own work rate.
As we entered the middle rounds it seemed that Melindo was growing in confidence and went from making rounds competitive to arguably claiming several of them as the bout turned in to a high speed chess match. It appeared that if the bout continued to be a chess match then it was going to begin to totally turn Melindo's way with his technically superior skills. Despite the visible success for Melindo Estrada never seemed too bothered in trying to change the direction of the fight as he seemed to feel he was doing enough to bag the rounds. Looking back it appeared he was viewing the bout the same was as the judges.
To the neutral observer it was starting to look like the bout was up for grabs in the championship rounds with an upset clearly possible. Estrada tried to change that in round 11 as he took the fight to a tiring Melindo and dropped the Filipino late in the round. Although Estrada recovered his feet and made it to the bell it was beginning to look like he was all in and was going to have to run to see out the final round.
Estrada set out for round 12 the way he had ended round 11 and appeared to clearly hurt Melindo late in the round with the Filipino's legs buckling big time. Unfortunately for Mexican he couldn't finish off Melindo who showed guts and determination to see out the bell.
I myself had the bout very close and expected the decision to be either a very close unanimous decision or even a split. Instead the scorecards were all in favour of the defending champion who impressed the judges much more than he had impressed me, which was odd because I usually love watching Estrada. Saying that however it does appear that there is a lot more to Estrada than being a insanely fun to watch and teak tough brawler.
Saturday, 22 June 2013
Juan Carlos Reveco v Ulises Solis
Argentinian Juan Carlos Reveco (31-1, 17) successfully defended his WBA Flyweight title as he over-came the overmatched challenge of Ulises Solis (12-14-2, 7).
Reveco, a talented fighter in one of the deepest division's in world boxing was clearly the better man from the first bell. He was quicker, more skilled and just overall more talented and he showed it.
Although Solis showed his heart he didn't have the talent to match and was dropped twice in round 6 as Reveco started to turn the screw in front of his countrymen. Solis, who really should never have been put in a world title fight, got up from both of those knockdowns though looked like a man living on borrowed time.
For Solis round 7 was a much better round than the previous one, though that appeared to be more down to Reveco than Solis himself.
It wouldn't take long for Reveco to really let his hands go in again and in round 8 he dropped Solis 3 times forcing the referee to call a halt to proceedings.
For Reveco this was his second "stay busy" defense in 3 bouts (having also defended the interim WBA belt against Julian Rivera late last year). Hopefully the Argentinian will now face a real opponent as opposed to limited fighters like Solis.
Reveco, a talented fighter in one of the deepest division's in world boxing was clearly the better man from the first bell. He was quicker, more skilled and just overall more talented and he showed it.
Although Solis showed his heart he didn't have the talent to match and was dropped twice in round 6 as Reveco started to turn the screw in front of his countrymen. Solis, who really should never have been put in a world title fight, got up from both of those knockdowns though looked like a man living on borrowed time.
For Solis round 7 was a much better round than the previous one, though that appeared to be more down to Reveco than Solis himself.
It wouldn't take long for Reveco to really let his hands go in again and in round 8 he dropped Solis 3 times forcing the referee to call a halt to proceedings.
For Reveco this was his second "stay busy" defense in 3 bouts (having also defended the interim WBA belt against Julian Rivera late last year). Hopefully the Argentinian will now face a real opponent as opposed to limited fighters like Solis.
Friday, 26 April 2013
Kompayak Porpramook v Jean Piero Perez
Over the past year or two Thai boxing has been on a visible slide with the country actually have 0 world champions. That changed today when former WBC Light Flyweight champion Kompayak Porpramook (50-4, 35) stopped Venezuelan Jean Piero Perez (20-6-1, 14) to claim the interim WBA Flyweight title.
The bout started well for Perez who had a good first round using his jab and movement to maintain a solid distance between himself and the Thai. Although the Thai fighter came back late in the round it was certainly a good round for the Venezuelan who was backing off the back foot well.
Sadly for Perez the success that Porpramook had late in the round grew through a very dominating second round that saw the Thai cutting off the distance excellently. Although Perez coped well with much of the pressure he did seem hurt at one point as Porpramook began to target the body, an effective tactic in the heat of Thailand.
Porpramook had continued success in round 3 as he walked through the attacks of Perez and seemed to wobble the Venezuelan who was just unable to keep Porpramook off him. At the end of the round the Thai seemed to be storming the fight having established himself mentally as the stronger fighter and as the aggressor.
Things took a turn in Perez's favour in round 4 as he worked hard and kept Porpramook from throwing too much back. Although Perez probably did enough to claim the round in terms of his work many of his attacks were ineffective as he landed on the gloves of the Thai who, whilst throwing much less, appeared to land the telling shot to the body as he continued his tactic of breaking down the co-challenger.
Having put a lot in to round 4 Perez was attacked hard in round 5 as the Thai looked for an early finish. Perez appeared hurt numerous times though saw out the storm as Porpramook went in for the kill. It was obvious that the pressure of Porpramook and the conditions were taking their toll on the Venezuelan who was starting to take a bit of a beating. The beating of round 5 continued into the next as Porpramook hurt Perez early then went on a sustained attack with Perez trapped in the corner before the referee was forced in to wave the bout off.
The bout started well for Perez who had a good first round using his jab and movement to maintain a solid distance between himself and the Thai. Although the Thai fighter came back late in the round it was certainly a good round for the Venezuelan who was backing off the back foot well.
Sadly for Perez the success that Porpramook had late in the round grew through a very dominating second round that saw the Thai cutting off the distance excellently. Although Perez coped well with much of the pressure he did seem hurt at one point as Porpramook began to target the body, an effective tactic in the heat of Thailand.
Porpramook had continued success in round 3 as he walked through the attacks of Perez and seemed to wobble the Venezuelan who was just unable to keep Porpramook off him. At the end of the round the Thai seemed to be storming the fight having established himself mentally as the stronger fighter and as the aggressor.
Things took a turn in Perez's favour in round 4 as he worked hard and kept Porpramook from throwing too much back. Although Perez probably did enough to claim the round in terms of his work many of his attacks were ineffective as he landed on the gloves of the Thai who, whilst throwing much less, appeared to land the telling shot to the body as he continued his tactic of breaking down the co-challenger.
Having put a lot in to round 4 Perez was attacked hard in round 5 as the Thai looked for an early finish. Perez appeared hurt numerous times though saw out the storm as Porpramook went in for the kill. It was obvious that the pressure of Porpramook and the conditions were taking their toll on the Venezuelan who was starting to take a bit of a beating. The beating of round 5 continued into the next as Porpramook hurt Perez early then went on a sustained attack with Perez trapped in the corner before the referee was forced in to wave the bout off.
Monday, 8 April 2013
Shinsuke Yamanaka v Malcolm Tunacao
WBC Bantamweight champion Shinsuke Yamanaka (18-0-2, 13) successfully retained his world title as he stopped Filipino challenger Malcolm Tunacao (32-3-3-, 20) in the 12th and final round.
Yamanaka started the bout well and not only established his pace on the bout with his 2 handed attack but also dropped the challenger twice in round 3 as he built up a solid lead on the score cards in the early portion of the bout. Tunacao, who had been blasted out in a round in his last world title bout back in 2001 showed real heart to not only survive but to start to battle back.
Tunacao who had been forced to wait a long time for another world title bout refused to just let his chance slip away and he battled back hard and in round 7 he appeared to genuinely hurt Yamanaka. The success Tunacao had had in round 7 saw a notable momentum shift and the Filipino came out for round 8 with real vigour as he claimed another round and seemed to be in the ascendency.
Sadly for the challenger his work in rounds 7 and 8 failed to wear out the champion who got a second wind in round 9 as Tunacao appeared to be running out of steam. The Filipino refused to just back down though was looking like he had given it his all and Yamanaka moved up a gear as he took rounds 10 and 11 before dropping Tunacao in the final round. The bloodied challenger attempted to get to his feet but the referee had seen enough and saved him from any more damage.
For Tuncao this is probably the end. The Filipino has been a great servant to the sport though sadly was forced to wait too long for his chance. Yamanaka on the other hand is perhaps looking to old foe Ryosuke Iwasa for what could be a rematch of their memorable clash from a few years back.
Yamanaka started the bout well and not only established his pace on the bout with his 2 handed attack but also dropped the challenger twice in round 3 as he built up a solid lead on the score cards in the early portion of the bout. Tunacao, who had been blasted out in a round in his last world title bout back in 2001 showed real heart to not only survive but to start to battle back.
Tunacao who had been forced to wait a long time for another world title bout refused to just let his chance slip away and he battled back hard and in round 7 he appeared to genuinely hurt Yamanaka. The success Tunacao had had in round 7 saw a notable momentum shift and the Filipino came out for round 8 with real vigour as he claimed another round and seemed to be in the ascendency.
Sadly for the challenger his work in rounds 7 and 8 failed to wear out the champion who got a second wind in round 9 as Tunacao appeared to be running out of steam. The Filipino refused to just back down though was looking like he had given it his all and Yamanaka moved up a gear as he took rounds 10 and 11 before dropping Tunacao in the final round. The bloodied challenger attempted to get to his feet but the referee had seen enough and saved him from any more damage.
For Tuncao this is probably the end. The Filipino has been a great servant to the sport though sadly was forced to wait too long for his chance. Yamanaka on the other hand is perhaps looking to old foe Ryosuke Iwasa for what could be a rematch of their memorable clash from a few years back.
Toshiyuki Igarashi v Akira Yaegashi
In a hugely impressive performance former WBA Minimumweight champion Akira Yaegashi (?-?) jumped 2 weights and claimed the WBC Flyweight title and defeated Toshiyuki Igarashi (?-?) in a thoroughly enjoyable battle, the type of which Yaegashi has been making his name.
The challenger got off to a lightning quick start taking the fight to the champion who looked sluggish in the early part of the bout. Yaegashi was like a terrier and refused to give Igarashi the room he needed to work and instead got close and worked hard with the mindset of "I'm not just going to beat you, I'm going to beat you up". It was thrilling to watch.
Yaegashi continued to wail away in the middle rounds though Igarashi started to slowly come in to the bout and land his own shots which began to mark up the 30 year old challenger who seemed to wear his swelling as badges of honour rather than act concerned about the markings adorning his face. In fact the swelling and blood may well have driven him on as the bout became a brutal war in the later rounds with both men shedding claret as the fight started to become more of a back and forth war with the younger Igarashi having some real success late.
With both men looking like they had been in a war there was only ever going to be one winner. A war was always going to favour Yaegashi who had shown his love of in ring warfare with his famous victory over Pornsawan Porpramook. This bout may not have quite lived up to the Yaegashi v Porpramook bout though it wasn't down to trying on Yaegashi's part, in fact it was only his domination in the early rounds that prevented such a FOTY candidate.
This ends Igarashi's 9 month reign as the WBC and the Linear Flyweight champion and possibly ends his career at the top level. He's a talented fighter though in a division like Flyweight you've got to be a great fighter right now to be at the top, not just good.
Yaegashi, now a 2-weight world champion is a fighter who appears to have options aplenty. He could look for not only a rematch with Ioka (either at Flyweight or Light Flyweight where Ioka holds the WBA title), a fight with fellow champions Juan Francisco Estrada and Moruti Mthalane (both of which would be amazing to watch) or take a deservedly easily fight after 3 very tough bouts in the last 18 months.
With his style and mindset Yaegashi may not have a many years left at the top though I've got to admit he's become one of the sports must watch fighters in the past few years with his toughness and his aggressive style both of which should help him grow a cult following in the west.
The challenger got off to a lightning quick start taking the fight to the champion who looked sluggish in the early part of the bout. Yaegashi was like a terrier and refused to give Igarashi the room he needed to work and instead got close and worked hard with the mindset of "I'm not just going to beat you, I'm going to beat you up". It was thrilling to watch.
Yaegashi continued to wail away in the middle rounds though Igarashi started to slowly come in to the bout and land his own shots which began to mark up the 30 year old challenger who seemed to wear his swelling as badges of honour rather than act concerned about the markings adorning his face. In fact the swelling and blood may well have driven him on as the bout became a brutal war in the later rounds with both men shedding claret as the fight started to become more of a back and forth war with the younger Igarashi having some real success late.
With both men looking like they had been in a war there was only ever going to be one winner. A war was always going to favour Yaegashi who had shown his love of in ring warfare with his famous victory over Pornsawan Porpramook. This bout may not have quite lived up to the Yaegashi v Porpramook bout though it wasn't down to trying on Yaegashi's part, in fact it was only his domination in the early rounds that prevented such a FOTY candidate.
This ends Igarashi's 9 month reign as the WBC and the Linear Flyweight champion and possibly ends his career at the top level. He's a talented fighter though in a division like Flyweight you've got to be a great fighter right now to be at the top, not just good.
Yaegashi, now a 2-weight world champion is a fighter who appears to have options aplenty. He could look for not only a rematch with Ioka (either at Flyweight or Light Flyweight where Ioka holds the WBA title), a fight with fellow champions Juan Francisco Estrada and Moruti Mthalane (both of which would be amazing to watch) or take a deservedly easily fight after 3 very tough bouts in the last 18 months.
With his style and mindset Yaegashi may not have a many years left at the top though I've got to admit he's become one of the sports must watch fighters in the past few years with his toughness and his aggressive style both of which should help him grow a cult following in the west.
Sunday, 17 March 2013
John Riel Casimero v Luis Alberto Rios
Filipino road warrior John Riel Casimero (18-2, 10) managed to retain his IBF Light Flyweight title by winning on the road once again as he out pointed Panamanian Luis Alberto Rios (18-2-1, 13) in a genuinely forgettable fight.
The fight started with the typical feeling out round that Rios taking a number of jabs from the more skillful looking Casimero who appeared to be the quicker and more intelligent fighter. Sadly however the feeling out round seemed to repeat it's self round after round as neither man really managed to open with more than the odd power shot here and there. Sadly the bout seemed to see both men posing and seeking counter opportunities rather than forcing the pace an this lead to a number of dull and uneventful rounds.
Although Casimero was by far the better boxer the better blows in a number of the later rounds came from the challenger who started to land his power shots, though rarely managed to land more than a single one here and there as the bout continued to be dominated by jabs. Sadly for Rios however he had given up too many rounds by the time he had started to land his bigger shots for them to really count on the judges cards.
Despite myself, and TYC Sports, seeing the bout as being relatively close (due to the fact both men did very little in a number of rounds) the official scoring had Casimero as a very clear winner winning by very wide margins with cards that suggested it was a dominating performance when really it wasn't.
The fight started with the typical feeling out round that Rios taking a number of jabs from the more skillful looking Casimero who appeared to be the quicker and more intelligent fighter. Sadly however the feeling out round seemed to repeat it's self round after round as neither man really managed to open with more than the odd power shot here and there. Sadly the bout seemed to see both men posing and seeking counter opportunities rather than forcing the pace an this lead to a number of dull and uneventful rounds.
Although Casimero was by far the better boxer the better blows in a number of the later rounds came from the challenger who started to land his power shots, though rarely managed to land more than a single one here and there as the bout continued to be dominated by jabs. Sadly for Rios however he had given up too many rounds by the time he had started to land his bigger shots for them to really count on the judges cards.
Despite myself, and TYC Sports, seeing the bout as being relatively close (due to the fact both men did very little in a number of rounds) the official scoring had Casimero as a very clear winner winning by very wide margins with cards that suggested it was a dominating performance when really it wasn't.
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Juan Carlos Reveco v Masayuki Kuroda
Argentinian Juan Carlos Revecco (30-1, 16) scored the first defense of his WBA Flyweight title since being upgraded from interim status as he traveled over to Japan and beat former Japanese Light Flyweight champion Maayuki Kuroda (21-4-2, 13) in a thoroughly engaging 12 round battle.
The fight started somewhat slowly though started to pick up from round 3 and by the end of round 4 both men were starting to land clean blows on the other. Revecco, the more skilled man of the two was easily landing the cleaner looking blows and the better combinations though Kuroda wasn't to be out down and landed a number of rangy looking body hooks to the torso of the champion.
Despite the copious amount of action, and punches landed by both men, neither man really seemed to have the other in any difficulty at all as shots simply appeared to have no effect on either man which did take some of the gloss out of what was a genuinely watchable encounter.
Sadly for the challenger his inexperience at the world stage and over the 12 round title distance showed as he often looked just a little too limited and a little bit too easy to hit as he lost numerous close and competitive rounds. He was brave though sadly lacked the spark needed, on the day to try and claim the title from the visiting champion.
For Revecco, who said he had a 2-fight plan to face Brian Viloria (with this being fight 1) all I can say is that I hope fight 2 is a big improvement, or Viloria will simply eat him up for breakfast with his power, speed and technique. In fact from the evidence on show here, Revecco should be hoping that that Viloria never faces him, or the Argentinian will be in for a very painful night.
The fight started somewhat slowly though started to pick up from round 3 and by the end of round 4 both men were starting to land clean blows on the other. Revecco, the more skilled man of the two was easily landing the cleaner looking blows and the better combinations though Kuroda wasn't to be out down and landed a number of rangy looking body hooks to the torso of the champion.
Despite the copious amount of action, and punches landed by both men, neither man really seemed to have the other in any difficulty at all as shots simply appeared to have no effect on either man which did take some of the gloss out of what was a genuinely watchable encounter.
Sadly for the challenger his inexperience at the world stage and over the 12 round title distance showed as he often looked just a little too limited and a little bit too easy to hit as he lost numerous close and competitive rounds. He was brave though sadly lacked the spark needed, on the day to try and claim the title from the visiting champion.
For Revecco, who said he had a 2-fight plan to face Brian Viloria (with this being fight 1) all I can say is that I hope fight 2 is a big improvement, or Viloria will simply eat him up for breakfast with his power, speed and technique. In fact from the evidence on show here, Revecco should be hoping that that Viloria never faces him, or the Argentinian will be in for a very painful night.
Saturday, 17 November 2012
Brian Viloria v Hernan Marquez
In one of the stand out fights of the year, Hawaiian Brian Viloria (32-3-0-2, 19) unified the WBO and WBA "super" titles at Flyweight as he stopped exciting and fun to watch Mexican Hernan "Tyson" Marquez (34-3, 25).
The bout started quickly with Viloria making an excellent start and imposing his will from the opening bell. Late in the round, with his only notable shot of the opener Marquez seemed to wobble Viloria who fired back hard and dropped the Mexican. Viloria's domination continued through to round 4 as he took a clear lead on the card using his excellent boxing and speed to dominate Marquez.
In round 5, arguably the round of the fight, Marquez came on strong and really hurt Viloria before unleashing a relentless, yet wild flurry aimed in Viloria's general direction. Sadly for Marquez few of his real power shots landed as he blew his load and was eventually dropped for the second time as he showed the signs of being a very tired fighter. Amazingly he got straight back up and fired back at Viloria, as if he knew he had just let Viloria off the hook.
After the fifth round we then had 2 pretty quiet rounds as both men took their chance to catch their breath. Despite these being slower rounds, they were still clear Viloria rounds as the "Hawaiian Punch" showed off his boxing ability.
Rounds 8 and 9 saw arguably Marquez's only rounds as Viloria was quiet whilst Marquez forced the action and forced the fight. Although Marquez was having some success, the steam on his attacks seemed to be some what stunted by the fact he had taken some serious body shots earlier in the fight.
With Marquez coming back in to the fight and needing a knock out it was littler wonder that he started round 10 fast unloading on Viloria with a huge series of shots, most of which were hitting the arms and shoulders of Viloria. Viloria then unleashed a bomb of a counter on Marquez who dropped like he'd been shot. It looked like that was that, then amazingly Marquez got back up. Despite recovering to his feet, it was obvious he wasn't fit to continue and his corner threw in the towel soon afterwards rather than risking the youngster to more damage.
Following this victory it's fair to say Brian Viloria is the #1 guy at 112lbs, despite the linear title being held in Japan by Toshiyuki Igarashi. It's likely that Viloria will be facing Roman Gonzalez next time out in a mouth watering class, though Juan Carlos Reveco is also a plausible opponent. For Marquez however he's young enough to come again, this loss isn't the end of the line, and it'd be hard for anyone to write him off following a display like this against a fighter like Viloria.
The bout started quickly with Viloria making an excellent start and imposing his will from the opening bell. Late in the round, with his only notable shot of the opener Marquez seemed to wobble Viloria who fired back hard and dropped the Mexican. Viloria's domination continued through to round 4 as he took a clear lead on the card using his excellent boxing and speed to dominate Marquez.
In round 5, arguably the round of the fight, Marquez came on strong and really hurt Viloria before unleashing a relentless, yet wild flurry aimed in Viloria's general direction. Sadly for Marquez few of his real power shots landed as he blew his load and was eventually dropped for the second time as he showed the signs of being a very tired fighter. Amazingly he got straight back up and fired back at Viloria, as if he knew he had just let Viloria off the hook.
After the fifth round we then had 2 pretty quiet rounds as both men took their chance to catch their breath. Despite these being slower rounds, they were still clear Viloria rounds as the "Hawaiian Punch" showed off his boxing ability.
Rounds 8 and 9 saw arguably Marquez's only rounds as Viloria was quiet whilst Marquez forced the action and forced the fight. Although Marquez was having some success, the steam on his attacks seemed to be some what stunted by the fact he had taken some serious body shots earlier in the fight.
With Marquez coming back in to the fight and needing a knock out it was littler wonder that he started round 10 fast unloading on Viloria with a huge series of shots, most of which were hitting the arms and shoulders of Viloria. Viloria then unleashed a bomb of a counter on Marquez who dropped like he'd been shot. It looked like that was that, then amazingly Marquez got back up. Despite recovering to his feet, it was obvious he wasn't fit to continue and his corner threw in the towel soon afterwards rather than risking the youngster to more damage.
Following this victory it's fair to say Brian Viloria is the #1 guy at 112lbs, despite the linear title being held in Japan by Toshiyuki Igarashi. It's likely that Viloria will be facing Roman Gonzalez next time out in a mouth watering class, though Juan Carlos Reveco is also a plausible opponent. For Marquez however he's young enough to come again, this loss isn't the end of the line, and it'd be hard for anyone to write him off following a display like this against a fighter like Viloria.
Tuesday, 13 November 2012
Juan Carlos Reveco v Julian Rivera
Argentinian Juan Carlos Reveco (29-1, 16) successfully retained his "interim" WBA Flyweight title as he scored a very clear and very easy decision victory over Mexican challenger Julian Rivera (13-7, 2).
Reveco, a talented fighter was in control from the start to the end against a very limited Mexican who, although being game, was thoroughly out classed and out-boxed from bell to bell. Whilst Reveco was in cruise control through out, he couldn't put Rivera away as he claimed only a 12 round decision with scores of 120-107 across the board.
With this victory Reveco has tried to put himself #1 in the queue to face the winner of the up coming WBA "super" and WBC Flyweight title unification bout between Hernan "Tyson" Marquez and Brian Viloria (which takes place on November 17th). However it seems the WBA has upgraded Reveco to the "regular" champion and he's certainly got a target on his back as Roman Gonzalez is expected to view him as an "easier title" at Flyweight, as long as Gonzalez gets past his own up coming bout (also November 17th).
For Rivera this was a case of knowing your place and not upsetting the applecart, and that's what he did. He was there to make up the numbers and not much else.
Reveco, a talented fighter was in control from the start to the end against a very limited Mexican who, although being game, was thoroughly out classed and out-boxed from bell to bell. Whilst Reveco was in cruise control through out, he couldn't put Rivera away as he claimed only a 12 round decision with scores of 120-107 across the board.
With this victory Reveco has tried to put himself #1 in the queue to face the winner of the up coming WBA "super" and WBC Flyweight title unification bout between Hernan "Tyson" Marquez and Brian Viloria (which takes place on November 17th). However it seems the WBA has upgraded Reveco to the "regular" champion and he's certainly got a target on his back as Roman Gonzalez is expected to view him as an "easier title" at Flyweight, as long as Gonzalez gets past his own up coming bout (also November 17th).
For Rivera this was a case of knowing your place and not upsetting the applecart, and that's what he did. He was there to make up the numbers and not much else.
Saturday, 3 November 2012
Toshiyuki Igarashi v Nestor Daniel Narvaes
In a much closer than expected bout Japanese WBC Flyweight champion Toshiyuki Igarashi (17-1-1, 10) struggled past Argentinian challenger Nestor Daniel Narvaes (19-1-2, 9) in a bout that perhaps shows up the problem with the "Linear" championship. I'm sorry but there is no way on earth that we can really claim that Igarashi is better than either Brian Viloria or Hernan "Tyson" Marquez (who meet each other to decide the division's true #1 in my eyes, later this year).
Narvaes, the younger brother of current WBO Super Flyweight champion Omar Andres Narvaez, started the bout quickly and forced Igarashi to fight back from the opening bell as he really brought the fight to the champion with a very high work rate.
If things were hard for the champion from the off, they just got harder as Igarashi suffered nasty cuts over both eye brows and had to fight back with claret covering his eyes and his face noticeably marked up. It appeared that Narvaes, a real unknown in the boxing world, was on his way to an upset before Igarashi bit down hard and did just enough to claim the victory despite being deducted a point for a head clash.
The hellacious action and back and forth nature of the bout was always going to lead to close scores and it showed with Igarashi taking a majority decision with cards of 114-112 (twice) and 113-113.
For Igarashi my advice is stay from the other other top fighters in the division. He was lucky to be in the right place at the right time after Sonny Boy Jaro defeated a fading Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (who lost again earlier this week) and really shouldn't be regarded as the divisions best fighter. In all honesty, at best, Igarashi is the fourth best fighter in the division (also behind South African Moruti Mthalane). He could well do with a number of easier defenses in Japan to help him mature into a real champion thankfully the WBC rankings do have a few weaker options such as Oscar Blanquet (who has already fought in Japan) and Anuar Salas (who's ranking I simply cannot explain).
It's strange to have a "Linear" and "Ring" champion who isn't ready for a genuine top tier fighter, such as the other 3 "real" champions or the top contenders such as Rocky Fuentes or Milan Melindo, however as I said Igarashi was simply a lucky man to be in the right place at the right time.
For Narvaes this fight should really be a sign that he can copy his brother and become a world champion, however he's unfortunate to have lost here against the weakest champion in the division. It's fair to say that the other 3 champions would almost certainly have had an easier night with Narvaes than Igarashi did. If the little Argentinian cannot force a rematch I'd advise him to look towards an all Argentinian battle with current WBA "regular" champion Juan Carlos Reveco, as long as Reveco gets past Julian Rivera next weekend.
Narvaes, the younger brother of current WBO Super Flyweight champion Omar Andres Narvaez, started the bout quickly and forced Igarashi to fight back from the opening bell as he really brought the fight to the champion with a very high work rate.
If things were hard for the champion from the off, they just got harder as Igarashi suffered nasty cuts over both eye brows and had to fight back with claret covering his eyes and his face noticeably marked up. It appeared that Narvaes, a real unknown in the boxing world, was on his way to an upset before Igarashi bit down hard and did just enough to claim the victory despite being deducted a point for a head clash.
The hellacious action and back and forth nature of the bout was always going to lead to close scores and it showed with Igarashi taking a majority decision with cards of 114-112 (twice) and 113-113.
For Igarashi my advice is stay from the other other top fighters in the division. He was lucky to be in the right place at the right time after Sonny Boy Jaro defeated a fading Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (who lost again earlier this week) and really shouldn't be regarded as the divisions best fighter. In all honesty, at best, Igarashi is the fourth best fighter in the division (also behind South African Moruti Mthalane). He could well do with a number of easier defenses in Japan to help him mature into a real champion thankfully the WBC rankings do have a few weaker options such as Oscar Blanquet (who has already fought in Japan) and Anuar Salas (who's ranking I simply cannot explain).
It's strange to have a "Linear" and "Ring" champion who isn't ready for a genuine top tier fighter, such as the other 3 "real" champions or the top contenders such as Rocky Fuentes or Milan Melindo, however as I said Igarashi was simply a lucky man to be in the right place at the right time.
For Narvaes this fight should really be a sign that he can copy his brother and become a world champion, however he's unfortunate to have lost here against the weakest champion in the division. It's fair to say that the other 3 champions would almost certainly have had an easier night with Narvaes than Igarashi did. If the little Argentinian cannot force a rematch I'd advise him to look towards an all Argentinian battle with current WBA "regular" champion Juan Carlos Reveco, as long as Reveco gets past Julian Rivera next weekend.
Saturday, 1 September 2012
Moruti Mthalane v Ricardo Nunez
In the final world title fight of the weekend we saw the IBF Flyweight title defended by South African Moruti Mthalane (29-2, 20) who viciously stopped the Panamanian challenger Ricardo Nunez (24-3, 20) in a fight of the year contender.
The bout started excellently for the champion who dropped the challenger with a single shot in the opening round. Although Nunez recovered to his feet he took a shelling to end the round and it appeared as if we were going to have a very early night on our hands as the champion couldn't miss. The champion again had the better of the action in the following round as he blocked most of Nunez's attacks and landed some picture perfect counters that appeared to shake the challenger time and time again.
In round 3 the bout took a total 180 and Nunez's relentless aggression was rewarded as he dropped the champion in the late stages of the round after the two men had had a tear up of a round. Nunez continued his onslaught successfully in the following round as he leveled the scores on my card at 37-37. Mthalane was forced mostly to cover up doing the 4th as Nunez went hell for leather looking to end the bout early.
At the start of the 5th it was Mthalane looked ragged as he swung and miss and it seemed as if South African boxing was going to have a nightmare of a night as Nunez kept throwing trying to again drop the champion. Although Mthalane was starting to look tired at the end of the round the challenger couldn't capitalise as the tempo of the fight started to drop after a crazy start.
Round 6 was the most nip and tuck of the rounds with both men having solid spells but neither man really standing out, though it was obvious that Nunez was on the verge of punching himself out. His crisp aggressive punching had started to look less crisp, his defense had started to look more porous and whilst it was the challenger bringing the fight it was also the challenger being tagged the harder. The following round saw Mthalane regain control of the bout against a visibly tiring Nunez who was starting to look incredibly inefficient as Mthalane snapped his head back and forced him backwards. It appeared as if the talented South African was about to take the fight down the stretch anticipating that Nunez would wear himself out.
The end of the bout came in round 8 with Mthalane taking advantage of Nunez's slower hands and lower work rate, everything the champion was throwing was landing and snapping the head of the challenger back. A single show seemed to hurt the challenger and the champion pounced unleashing a flurry, this had Nunez in trouble and trying to run across the ring to freedom. Mthalane refused to let his pray go and unleashed one of the most devastating and prolonged attacks you will see in a boxing ring this year as he volleyed a none stop combination to the head of Nunez. The referee stood idly by as Nunez took 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 clean blows, the referee seemed to want to give the challenger every chance but the fight was done as he kept watching on 13, 14,15,16 Mthalane wasn't going to stop until the referee called the bout. Nunez's unconscious was draped between the ropes by the time the referee had seen enough and finally stepped in several seconds too late.
Nunez looked to be awake by the time the broadcast cut off but he certainly looked to be a man who had taken a lot of unnecessary punishment due to some awful officiating.
For Nunez I expect a very long rest, at 24 I hope it's not the end of his career at the top level as he's fun to watch but the prolonged punishment at the end of the bout may well see his career all but done.
I'd also expect Mthalane to take a break, put his feet up and watch, with the rest of the world, as Brian Viloria and Hernan Marquez battle in a unification at Flyweight. I can only assume that Mthalane will be looking at the winner of that bout as his #1 target for next time out, maybe even on a major show in the US.
The bout started excellently for the champion who dropped the challenger with a single shot in the opening round. Although Nunez recovered to his feet he took a shelling to end the round and it appeared as if we were going to have a very early night on our hands as the champion couldn't miss. The champion again had the better of the action in the following round as he blocked most of Nunez's attacks and landed some picture perfect counters that appeared to shake the challenger time and time again.
In round 3 the bout took a total 180 and Nunez's relentless aggression was rewarded as he dropped the champion in the late stages of the round after the two men had had a tear up of a round. Nunez continued his onslaught successfully in the following round as he leveled the scores on my card at 37-37. Mthalane was forced mostly to cover up doing the 4th as Nunez went hell for leather looking to end the bout early.
At the start of the 5th it was Mthalane looked ragged as he swung and miss and it seemed as if South African boxing was going to have a nightmare of a night as Nunez kept throwing trying to again drop the champion. Although Mthalane was starting to look tired at the end of the round the challenger couldn't capitalise as the tempo of the fight started to drop after a crazy start.
Round 6 was the most nip and tuck of the rounds with both men having solid spells but neither man really standing out, though it was obvious that Nunez was on the verge of punching himself out. His crisp aggressive punching had started to look less crisp, his defense had started to look more porous and whilst it was the challenger bringing the fight it was also the challenger being tagged the harder. The following round saw Mthalane regain control of the bout against a visibly tiring Nunez who was starting to look incredibly inefficient as Mthalane snapped his head back and forced him backwards. It appeared as if the talented South African was about to take the fight down the stretch anticipating that Nunez would wear himself out.
The end of the bout came in round 8 with Mthalane taking advantage of Nunez's slower hands and lower work rate, everything the champion was throwing was landing and snapping the head of the challenger back. A single show seemed to hurt the challenger and the champion pounced unleashing a flurry, this had Nunez in trouble and trying to run across the ring to freedom. Mthalane refused to let his pray go and unleashed one of the most devastating and prolonged attacks you will see in a boxing ring this year as he volleyed a none stop combination to the head of Nunez. The referee stood idly by as Nunez took 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 clean blows, the referee seemed to want to give the challenger every chance but the fight was done as he kept watching on 13, 14,15,16 Mthalane wasn't going to stop until the referee called the bout. Nunez's unconscious was draped between the ropes by the time the referee had seen enough and finally stepped in several seconds too late.
Nunez looked to be awake by the time the broadcast cut off but he certainly looked to be a man who had taken a lot of unnecessary punishment due to some awful officiating.
For Nunez I expect a very long rest, at 24 I hope it's not the end of his career at the top level as he's fun to watch but the prolonged punishment at the end of the bout may well see his career all but done.
I'd also expect Mthalane to take a break, put his feet up and watch, with the rest of the world, as Brian Viloria and Hernan Marquez battle in a unification at Flyweight. I can only assume that Mthalane will be looking at the winner of that bout as his #1 target for next time out, maybe even on a major show in the US.
Friday, 20 July 2012
Toshiyuki Igarashi v Sonny Boy Jaro
Back in March the boxing world got it's first big upset of the year as one of the all time great Flyweights, Pongsaklek Wonjongkam was stopped in just 6 rounds by the unheralded Sonny Boy Jaro (34-11-5, 24). With the win over Wonjongkam, Jaro claimed the WBC and Ring Flyweight titles and was now making his first defence of the title as he took on the highly regarded Japanese fighter Toshiyuki Igarashi (16-1-1, 10), a former Japanese champion.
The fight started with Igarashi controlling the range well with his more controlled and accurate boxing but every so often Jaro would catch Igarashi with a solid shot as both men repeatedly tested the others' resolve. What started out as a high paced boxer v brawler contested would soon become an incredibly competitive war of wills as both men banged solid shots off the other head. It swiftly become Igarashi's crisper punching and superior handspeed against Jaro's teak tough chin and wild but thudding swipes as neither man took a step backwards. After 4 rounds the judges were split, with a score of 39-37 either way and a draw on the 3rd card.
During the middle rounds it seemed as if Igarashi started to pull ahead of the champion managing to show some glimpses of genuine class but then every time he looked like he was starting to control the bout Jaro would come charging back and try to steal the round. It seemed as if the world title meant everything to both men as neither man backed down. After 8 rounds it appeared as though we were set to crown a new champion then out of nowhere Jaro produced easily his best round and it suddenly appeared as if Igarashi, who had only gone 9 rounds 3 times in his career was starting to tire. Jaro seemed to be coming back into the bout and in a big way.
Going into the championship rounds it was anyone's game and whilst we had Igarashi in a slight lead we could see an argument for almost any score possible with only 3 or 4 clear rounds in the first 10. The 11th round however was, like round 9, a clear Jaro as he caused a nasty cut on Igarashi's eye and landed a number of heavy shots, it seemed as if Jaro was trying to close the show and whilst Igarashi wasn't badly hurt he struggled to get much off offensively.
Knowing the bout was close both men put it all on the line in round 12 with Igarashi taking the round and almost forcing down at one point as Igarashi turned up the heat and took the round with a blistering final 90 seconds.
The fight, one of the best of the year, was competitive through out with the score cards (116-112, 115-113, 112-116) all reflecting the competitive nature of the bout though it was Igarashi's work that was preferred by 2 of the judges with him taking the title back home. For Jaro it may well be his farewell, for Igarashi however it may be his coming out party. Whilst it's unlikely we would love a rematch between these two before Jaro hangs them up.
The fight started with Igarashi controlling the range well with his more controlled and accurate boxing but every so often Jaro would catch Igarashi with a solid shot as both men repeatedly tested the others' resolve. What started out as a high paced boxer v brawler contested would soon become an incredibly competitive war of wills as both men banged solid shots off the other head. It swiftly become Igarashi's crisper punching and superior handspeed against Jaro's teak tough chin and wild but thudding swipes as neither man took a step backwards. After 4 rounds the judges were split, with a score of 39-37 either way and a draw on the 3rd card.
During the middle rounds it seemed as if Igarashi started to pull ahead of the champion managing to show some glimpses of genuine class but then every time he looked like he was starting to control the bout Jaro would come charging back and try to steal the round. It seemed as if the world title meant everything to both men as neither man backed down. After 8 rounds it appeared as though we were set to crown a new champion then out of nowhere Jaro produced easily his best round and it suddenly appeared as if Igarashi, who had only gone 9 rounds 3 times in his career was starting to tire. Jaro seemed to be coming back into the bout and in a big way.
Going into the championship rounds it was anyone's game and whilst we had Igarashi in a slight lead we could see an argument for almost any score possible with only 3 or 4 clear rounds in the first 10. The 11th round however was, like round 9, a clear Jaro as he caused a nasty cut on Igarashi's eye and landed a number of heavy shots, it seemed as if Jaro was trying to close the show and whilst Igarashi wasn't badly hurt he struggled to get much off offensively.
Knowing the bout was close both men put it all on the line in round 12 with Igarashi taking the round and almost forcing down at one point as Igarashi turned up the heat and took the round with a blistering final 90 seconds.
The fight, one of the best of the year, was competitive through out with the score cards (116-112, 115-113, 112-116) all reflecting the competitive nature of the bout though it was Igarashi's work that was preferred by 2 of the judges with him taking the title back home. For Jaro it may well be his farewell, for Igarashi however it may be his coming out party. Whilst it's unlikely we would love a rematch between these two before Jaro hangs them up.
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