WORLD BEAT
have graduated from Waseda University, one of the nation’s most prestigious colleges, immediately called out Yabuki for a 108-pound unification fight. “I believe that’s a matchup that fans want,” said Iwata. “I’ll work hard to stay at this weight if the fight comes true, although it’s really hard for me to maintain the same weight I’ve fought at since my high school days.” At flyweight, Seigo Yuri Akui defended his WBA belt with a split decision over Thai challenger Thananchai Charunphak on the same undercard that featured Iwata-Noriega, while Anthony Olascuaga retained his WBO title at the same venue on October 14 following a disappointing no-decision against Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez, who complained of impaired vision from a cut caused by an accidental headbutt in the opening round. That result was later changed to a TKO 1 win for Olascuaga, as it was noted that the ringside physician had ruled Gonzalez could continue but Gonzalez indicated he didn’t want to fight on. And former Ring Magazine/WBA/ WBC junior flyweight champion Kenshiro Teraji tossed his hat into the flyweight mix by winning the vacant WBC title with an 11th-round stoppage of Nicaraguan veteran Cristofer Rosales (who suffered a broken nose) on the October 13 card. “This is the first step to participate in a unification league,” said Teraji, who has set the goal of going undisputed at flyweight, a dream that fell short during his tenure at 108 pounds. Olascuaga is more than willing to put his belt on the line vs. Teraji, who stopped him in an April 2023 junior flyweight title bout when the L.A. native only had five pro bouts under his belt (as a late sub for Bomba Gonzalez). “It’s not personal, but the loss to Kenshiro was the only stain on my record. So I want to say that I am very open to a rematch, maybe somewhere along the line of next year,” Olascuaga said. “To unify our titles will be a great match.” The 112-pound weight class is so
his WBC title and No. 9 position in The Ring’s pound-for-pound rankings. “I’m happy that I was able to be the first one to drop him to the floor,” Nakatani said of Salapat (76-2, 53 KOs). “I studied him carefully to find the timing to land the punch to get the win. “Next, I want a unification fight with any champion in [the 118-pound weight] class.” A dream fight with Naoya Inoue is in the not-far future. In the meantime, one of Nakatani’s previous bantamweight targets, The Monster’s younger brother, lost his WBA title. While Nakatani’s superb composure and skills were priceless for boxing fans to witness, the most impressive performance during the busy three days belonged to Seiya Tsutsumi, who beat Takuma Inoue by unanimous decision. Physical strength, mental toughness and stamina honed by numerous battles against solid domestic competition combined to push the switch-hitting former national champ past the more polished boxing skills of Inoue, who defeated Tsutsumi in the semifinal of a national high school tournament 12 years ago. Tsutsumi (12-0-2, 8 KOs) ignored Takuma’s counterpunches from varied angles and kept connecting with combinations that eventually helped him tally 1,068 thrown punches, according to CompuBox, more than doubling Takuma’s total. Tsutsumi scored an eight count with the ropes needed to hold Takuma up in the 10th round. When Tsutsumi heard Jimmy Lennon Jr.’s “And the new!” he grabbed the WBA belt and lifted it up, crying “Anaguchi!” – the surname of Kazuki Anaguchi, who passed away following a brutal 10-round Japanese title bout with Tsutsumi in December. “His determination was superior to mine,” said Inoue (20-2, 5 KOs), who was attempting his third title defense. “He was well prepared technically, too.
attractive now that even Yabuki has made it public that he wants to move up and challenge Olascuaga. Former Ring Magazine 108-pound champ Hiroto Kyoguchi, who got back on track by outpointing Filipino Vince Paras in their rubber match in Yokohama on October 13, also adds to the flyweight division, which will be busier and hotter than ever in 2025. On the same October 14 card that featured Olascuaga, Japan lost its only titleholder in the deep junior bantamweight division when Kosei Tanaka lost his WBO belt to unheralded South African Phumelele Cafu (11-0-3, 8 KOs), who scored the fierce bout’s only knockdown en route to a razor- thin split decision. Tanaka (20-2, 11 KOs) remains a player at 115 pounds along with fellow four-division titleholder Kazuto Ioka, but bantamweight is Japan’s glamor division, with all four sanctioning body titles held by Japanese fighters. With two of those bantamweight bosses – Yoshiki Takei (WBO) and Ryosuke Nishida (IBF) – ringside at Ariake Arena, popular former kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa won his first pro
boxing belt (the vacant WBO Asian Pacific title)
with a 10-round unanimous decision over undefeated Filipino Gerwin Asilo. Nasukawa wasted no time in calling attention to Takei, also a former kickboxing champ. “I won today, Takei,” he said from the ring, adding, “I will definitely be fighting for the world title within the next year.” But the class of the 118-pound division is Junto Nakatani, the three- weight titleholder who scored his third consecutive stoppage by toppling Thailander Tasana Salapat (who had never been knocked down, let alone stopped) in six rounds. Nakatani (29-0, 22 KOs) defended
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