Takayama retains title, Saito and Imanaga progress in tournament
Earlier today Korakuen Hall played host to a really interesting card, headlined by a Champion Carnival bout, and also featuring a JBC Youth title fight and 2 bouts as part of the Asia’s Strongest Lightweight tournament.
The first of the two Tournament bouts saw Yoji Saito (7-3-2, 7) [齊藤陽ニ] take victory over fellow Saito, Shinnosuke Saito (12-6, 3) [齋藤眞之助], with a 2nd round KO. On paper Shinnosuke was the favoured fighter, entering as the JBC #1 ranked Lightweight, but it was clear early on that the styles match up favoured Yoji. Yoji, the more powerful of the two, came forward, looking to get up close and use his physicality. Whilst he struggled at times, with the jab and movement of his opponent, he did manage to close the distance late in the round, dropping his man for the first time. In round 2 Shinnosuke tried to fight back and dropped Yoji for the bouts second knockdown. He beat the count and went on the offensive, with a seek and destroy mentality that saw him force Shinnosuke into the corner. With shots reigning down from Yoji he dropped his man a second time, who was up at 10 but in no fit state to continue.
The other tournament bout saw Taiga Imanaga (5-0, 4) [今永虎雅] stopping Chinese fighter Qiang Ma (6-4-2, 4) [马强] in the opening round. Imanaga, who suffered a broken jaw in his last fight, fought like a man with a point to prove, and went on the front foot from the off, looked super sharp, and dropped Ma, who got back to his feet but was stopped just moments later as Imanaga let shots fly. This was clearly a man with a point to prove, and prove it he did, in sensational fashion.
Both the winners of the tournament bouts received 200,000 Yen as the prize for scoring a KO in the tournament.
In the chief support bout Yuma Saeki (3-1, 3) [佐伯侑馬] was upset by Rento Miyazawa (7-2-1, 2) [宮澤漣斗] in a bout for the Japanese Youth Minimumweight title. This was nip and tuck from the off, with both men looking to establish their distance and tempo in the first round. It seemed early on that Miyazawa had the slight edge in speed and timing, and landed the higher volume of shots to take a lead in the first few rounds, but Saeki looked the more powerful, and he seemed to control the middle rounds as his pressure and heavier shots seemed to catch the eye. In round 6 however the bout had it's most notable moment, as a right hook dropped Saeki for the bouts sole knockdown. Saeki tried to turn things around in the final rounds, but it wasn't to be enough, as the judges gave the bout to Miyazawa 76-75, twice, whilst the third judge had Saeki winning, also 76-75. Given both of these men are 21 don’t be surprised if this is a bout we see again in the future, with what seems like a potential rivalry on the domestic scene.
The main event of the card saw Japanese Super Flyweight champion Suzumi Takayama (8-0, 7) [高山涼深] retaining his title, as he stopped mandatory challenger Akio Furutani (11-7, 4) [古谷昭男] in 3 rounds. Furutani got off to a good start, landing some solid shots in the first round whilst Takayama took his time, seeing what was to come from the challenger, before returning with a last left hand of his own. Takayama picked up the tempo in round 2, pressing more and landing much heavier shots than Furutani, who seemed to be a man who was slowly feeling the power of the champion. That power proved to be the difference maker in round 3, when a left hand to the body and a right hook sent Furutani to the canvas, He beat the count but was immediately under pressure, forcing the referee to save him from further punishment.
The first of the two Tournament bouts saw Yoji Saito (7-3-2, 7) [齊藤陽ニ] take victory over fellow Saito, Shinnosuke Saito (12-6, 3) [齋藤眞之助], with a 2nd round KO. On paper Shinnosuke was the favoured fighter, entering as the JBC #1 ranked Lightweight, but it was clear early on that the styles match up favoured Yoji. Yoji, the more powerful of the two, came forward, looking to get up close and use his physicality. Whilst he struggled at times, with the jab and movement of his opponent, he did manage to close the distance late in the round, dropping his man for the first time. In round 2 Shinnosuke tried to fight back and dropped Yoji for the bouts second knockdown. He beat the count and went on the offensive, with a seek and destroy mentality that saw him force Shinnosuke into the corner. With shots reigning down from Yoji he dropped his man a second time, who was up at 10 but in no fit state to continue.
The other tournament bout saw Taiga Imanaga (5-0, 4) [今永虎雅] stopping Chinese fighter Qiang Ma (6-4-2, 4) [马强] in the opening round. Imanaga, who suffered a broken jaw in his last fight, fought like a man with a point to prove, and went on the front foot from the off, looked super sharp, and dropped Ma, who got back to his feet but was stopped just moments later as Imanaga let shots fly. This was clearly a man with a point to prove, and prove it he did, in sensational fashion.
Both the winners of the tournament bouts received 200,000 Yen as the prize for scoring a KO in the tournament.
In the chief support bout Yuma Saeki (3-1, 3) [佐伯侑馬] was upset by Rento Miyazawa (7-2-1, 2) [宮澤漣斗] in a bout for the Japanese Youth Minimumweight title. This was nip and tuck from the off, with both men looking to establish their distance and tempo in the first round. It seemed early on that Miyazawa had the slight edge in speed and timing, and landed the higher volume of shots to take a lead in the first few rounds, but Saeki looked the more powerful, and he seemed to control the middle rounds as his pressure and heavier shots seemed to catch the eye. In round 6 however the bout had it's most notable moment, as a right hook dropped Saeki for the bouts sole knockdown. Saeki tried to turn things around in the final rounds, but it wasn't to be enough, as the judges gave the bout to Miyazawa 76-75, twice, whilst the third judge had Saeki winning, also 76-75. Given both of these men are 21 don’t be surprised if this is a bout we see again in the future, with what seems like a potential rivalry on the domestic scene.
The main event of the card saw Japanese Super Flyweight champion Suzumi Takayama (8-0, 7) [高山涼深] retaining his title, as he stopped mandatory challenger Akio Furutani (11-7, 4) [古谷昭男] in 3 rounds. Furutani got off to a good start, landing some solid shots in the first round whilst Takayama took his time, seeing what was to come from the challenger, before returning with a last left hand of his own. Takayama picked up the tempo in round 2, pressing more and landing much heavier shots than Furutani, who seemed to be a man who was slowly feeling the power of the champion. That power proved to be the difference maker in round 3, when a left hand to the body and a right hook sent Furutani to the canvas, He beat the count but was immediately under pressure, forcing the referee to save him from further punishment.