Earlier today Hideyuki Ohashi announced a notable, and strong, card for June as part of his long running Phoenix Battle series of shows at Korakuen Hall. The event not only features two title bouts but also the debuts of 4 notable former amateur stand outs, making it a great show not just for fans of the current Japanese scene, but also for the future of Japanese boxing.
The main event of the show will see
Keisuke Matsumoto (10-0, 7) [松本 圭佑] defending the Japanese Featherweight title against #9 ranked contender
Yushi Fujita (12-9-4, 3) [藤田裕史]. The unbeaten Matsumoto will be seeking his third defense of the belt here, and the bout comes after a hard fought mandatory defense against Jinki Maeda, in what was a great bout back in February. For Fujita the bout is his first title bout and whilst he is the clear under-dog he will feel somewhat confident, riding a 3 fight winning run, and winning 5 of his last 6, with the only loss in the run coming to the aforementioned Jinki Maeda.
The other title bout on the card will see Korean fighter
Deok No Yun (8-1, 6) [윤덕노] defending the WBO Asia Pacific Super Middleweight title against
Tyson Koki (16-5-3, 13) [王杉康輝], in what should be a fight with a lot of bombs being thrown, and some really flawed defensive work, form both. Yun won the title in November, when he stopped Tej Pratap Singh in 6 rounds, to secure his 5th straight and add the WBO Asia Pacific title to his Korean title, and this will be his first defense. As for Tyson, the current Japanese champion, the bout gives him a chance to build on a 2023 win over Yuki Nonaka.
As for the debutants on this card the most notable is 18 year old
Yuta Sakai (0-0) [坂井 優太] who will make his debut against Korean fighter Ji
Yong Kim (3-1-1, 1) [김지용], in what is a very solid debut. Kim is ranked by KBM in South Korea and has experience fighting in Japan, losing a 6 round decision to Shunpei Kaneshiro in March. Sakai on the other hand is seen as one of the brightest talents in Japan, having won numerous amateur tournaments, including a gold medal at the World Youth Championships. If Sakai is as good a professional as he was an amateur, he’ll be moved on the fast track, and could end up being in with world ranked opponents within 18 months.
Another debutant on this show is
Sora Tanaka (0-0) [田中空] who will face
Dong Young Kim (3-4-1, 3) [김동영], in a bout that is expected to have real fireworks. Tanaka has a style similar to Mike Tyson, with an ultra-aggressive style, built around getting close and letting loose with uppercutts and hooks, and Kim has been something of a stop or be stopped fighter. This really could be a short, fun, shoot out, though it’d be a huge shock to see Tanaka lose.
Shogo Tanaka (0-0) [田中将吾], no relation to Sora, will also be debuting, and he is making his debut in probably the best looking of the debutant bouts, as he takes on 2023 East Japan Rookie of the Year winner
Ryunosuke Takaguma (8-2, 3) [高熊龍之介]. Shogo Tanaka is a lot more polished than Sora, who will likely be more fun to watch but has a lower ceiling, and that’s seen in some ways but his tough debut bout here. Takaguma lost in the All Japan Rookie of the Year final to Ryo Sakai, and has shown enough to show some promise, though he will the clear under-dog against Tanaka, who is tipped for a lot of future success.
Another debutant on this card is
Ren Ohashi (0-0) [大橋蓮], who is tipped for big things, but currently has not opponent confirmed for his debut.
The show will take place on June 25th at Korakuen Hall and will be shown on the Lemino streaming service in Japan.
