Japanese Scene: Iezumi Tops Effendi, Kiyota Stops Piper, Kameda vs Wonjongkam Next Week

Sidney Boquiren of RingwalkNippon has all the latest Japanese boxing fight reports and news.  For more Japanese boxing updates, you can follow Sidney on twitter: RingwalkNippon@Twitter

Iezumi retains OPBF Light Flyweight crown in shortened fight (Tuesday, March 16)

OPBF Light Flyweight titleholder Katsuhiko Iezumi successfully departed Korakuen Hall Tuesday night with his belt secure around his weight, but had to pick himself up off the canvas and battle through a cut over his right eye to squeeze out a majority decision in a shortened fight with Sofyan Effendi (9-8-2, 8KO).

The hard-punching veteran admitted to underestimating his less experienced opponent after the fight, and that over-confidence may have been apparent in the first round as a left hook from the Indonesian floored Iezumi. From there on, however, the champion took control, accurately find a place for his straight right, reported Sponichi. Though he was cut in the fifth round upon an accidental clash of heads, Iezumi overwhelmed Effendi, leading on two of the scorecards at the time the bout was stopped in the 6th round.

Final tallies for the early stoppage were 58-56 (twice) against one even 57-57 card.

Iezumi had long been a contender on the national level, holding the #1 JBC ranking for a period of 22-months before finally getting his shot at the Japanese title against former OPBF titleholder and world title challenger Munetsugu Kayo in November 2008. That challenge ended quickly as Kayo scored a TKO in the fourth round. Iezumi, however, somehow retained his OPBF ranking and beat Tsutomu Yamanaka in his first fight after the failed title challenge to win the interim version of the more coveted OPBF crown. He became the full title holder upon beating Yukio Wadamine last December.

At 29-years old with 38 pro bouts under his belt, Iezumi may have reached a plateau in his career. Though the victories over Yamanaka and Wadamine were solid, his performance Tuesday was far from stable. The seven losses on his record (28-7-3, 19KO) include a couple of defeats by points early in his career, but he has had mixed results against higher competition. In addition to Kayo, the Chiba native has lost to two-time world title challenger Trash Nakanuma and former national champ Nobuaki Masuda (granted, those fights occurred in 2000 and 2002).

Iezumi has good power behind his small frame, particularly in his attack to the body. Just outside of the top ten for both the WBA and the WBC, he might be able to target one of the interim beltholders, but I doubt Giovani Segura or Rodel Mayol would be interested in fighting him. In terms of domestic competition, however, Iezumi would make an interesting B-side in the next few years to prospects like current Japan Light Flyweight champion Ryo Miyazaki and phenom Kazuto Ioka.

Kiyota defends OPBF Super Middleweight Title with TKO of Piper (Tuesday, March 16)

Rugged Yuzo Kiyota extended his KO streak to seven as he stopped Australia’s Les Piper (11-5-3, 2KO) in the 8th round of their fight Tuesday. In making the fourth defense of his OPBF title, Kiyota advanced his record to 19-2-1, 17KO.

Nikkan Sports reports that Kiyota began the fight focusing his attack on Piper’s body. Scoring a knockdown in the second with a left hook, he continued to apply pressure in the middle rounds landing several heavy shots. While the Aussie survived to make it the eight, a single left hook buried him in the canvas, forcing the stoppage at the 2:11 mark.

The Hokkaido native seems to have settled in nicely at 168, a weight that is not rated by the Japan Boxing Commission (there should be ratings soon, however, as the JBC has allowed for rankings in all weights). While the OPBF title positions Kiyota to fight better opposition from abroad, he may still be a little too green to face world-class talent. Even if he clears out the top competitors in the regional rankings, full of Aussies with glossy records, he might want to continue to cultivate his craft within the OPBF for a few more years before venturing out against higher rated super middleweights.

Kameda/Wonjongkam next week

WBC Flyweight champion Koki Kameda takes on interim champ Pongsaklek Wonjongkam on the 27th and the Japanese media have been creating some build up to the fight. While several outlets were on hand for a public workout Wednesday, today’s headlines focused on a new challenger for the brash titleholder – Olympic Women’s Figure Skating silver medallist Mao Asada. It appears that the World Figure Skating Championship will be broadcast at the same time as the title bout.

Even before the Naito fight, Koki’s matches would bring in ratings in the upper 20s. It will be interesting to see how much star power the 23-year old actually does have when this fight lacks the themes that generated attention among the general public in his fight with Naito, and he is put up against an athlete that had the support of the entire nation just weeks ago.

Look out for a preview of the fight by the middle of next week here on The Boxing Bulletin.

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