Takuma Inoue Upset but Belt Remains in Japan; Japanese Fighters Win Three More World Titles
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 14 Oct 2024
In what could be considered as an upset, Takuma Inoue lost his WBA bantamweight title dropping a close but unanimous decision to fellow Japanese challenger Seiya Tsutsumi in the main event of the multiple world title card (part1) held Sunday in Japan.
It was the second all-Japan world title bout held in Japan this year following Toshiki Takeii's successful defense of his WBO bantamweight crown against Daigo Higa in a potential fight of the year candidate last month.
Tsutsumi, 28, was able to get Inoue to play his game for most of this fight, which just didn’t work out for the defending champion who lost his on scores of 114-113, 115-112, and 117-110. Takuma, also 28, was down in round 11.
The loss ended a seven-fight win streak for Inoue, who had really looked like he’d been coming into his own, and establishes the very entertaining Tsutsumi as a name to watch at 118 lbs.
Meanwhile, Japan has been able to crown three more world champions, either by merely holding the fight on its territory or through astute matchmaking.
Japanese promoters were able to lure a established South African titlist to defend in Dai Nippon and secured rated but suspect fighters as opponents for their bets in fights for vacant world titles over the weekend.
True enough, the strategy paid handsome dividends.
Former unified light flyweight champion Masamichi Yabuki got him another world title via smashing 9th round stoppage of erstwhile IBF defending titlist Sivenathi Nontshinga of South Africa.
Per report of Joe Koizumi:
"Yabuki dropped Nontshinga (13-2, 10 KOs) three times and finally halted him at 1:50 of the ninth round in a scheduled twelve on Saturday in Tokoname, Japan.
Yabuki, 32, controlled the fight with sharp jabs and left-right combinations from the outset, though Nontshinga, 25, responded with fewer jabs and occasional rights. Steadily piling up points, Masamichi exploded a vicious right to the head of the champ, who fell down in the closing seconds of the eighth to have a narrow escape. The eighth saw Yabuki turn very pugnacious with a fusillade of punches, badly decking the champ twice more. The ref Mark Calo-oy, US, then called a well-timed halt over the crestfallen ex-champ who couldn’t show any of his usual zip this night."
In the co main event bout Sunday, Former WBC and WBA light flyweight king Kenshiro Teraji (24-1, 15 KOs), seized the vacant WBC flyweight belt when he battered Nicaraguan Cristofer Rosales (37-7, 22 KOs),, from all angles, had him badly bleeding in the nose and scored a TKO victory at 0:06 into the eleventh round. For Kenshiro, it was his second acquisition of the world belt this time in the heavier 112-pound category. It was Teraji, 32, that controlled the contest all the way by making good use of his speed, versatile jabs and right counters to the taller Rosales.
The curtain raiser of the quadruple world title event saw a quick but dramatic stoppage with Japanese hard-puncher WBO #1 Shokichi Iwata (14-1, 11 KOs), 108, acquired the vacant WBO junior flyweight belt when he caught up with unbeaten Spaniard WBO#2 Jairo Noriega (14-1, 3 KOs), 108, badly floored him twice and halted him at 3:00 of the third round in a scheduled twelve.
Koizumi reported:
"Having failed to win the same belt from Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez on points two years ago, Shokichi this time looked so much determined to win the belt and turned loose in round three. Though Noriega made a good start, he absorbed a vicious long right uppercut and hit the deck.
The damaged Spaniard barely regained his feet, but Iwata swarmed over him and landed a solid right to the belly followed by a wicked left hook. Noriega fell prone with the referee Raul Caiz Jr. promptly calling a well-timed halt. The flattened loser stayed there for a while, which showed Iwata’s lethal power punching. Shokichi, 28, became the ninth current world titleholder out of Japan."
What is quizzical about the two pairing was how Rosales and Noriega got their respective #2 rating behind Teraji in the WBC and behind Iwata in the WBO making them their opponents for the vacant world titles when Boxrec which compiles a comprehensive ratings of fighters in the light flyweight and flyweight classes, only had them at #24 and #25 respectively?
For example, how was Rosales rated higher in WBC than ex titlists Sunny Edwards, Felix Alvarado and Artem Dalakian who could have given Teraji a tougher fight? Rosales, apart from aging is to say the least had seen better days.
The case with Noriega is more blatant as there are a number of Thai and Filipino fighters who are rated higher by Boxrec including for instance Thanomsak Simsri and Panya Pradabsri and Regie Suganob, Jayson Vayson and Miel Fajardo who could have given Iwata a run for his money.
When was the last time a Spaniard won a world boxing championship?
Oh well...
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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