I don’t this fight will be all that competitive as while Agaton does come to win he usually loses versus top prospects and often gets stopped by them. Raul Curiel is certainly a good prospect and I imagine after this fight he’ll be stepping up quickly as long as he wins.
Ramses Agaton will come forward and exchange for four or five rounds but after Curiel puts his punches together and goes to the body he’ll get the stoppage in round six or seven in my opinion.
This should be one of the best fights of the year and one i’m personally really looking forward too. Kosei Tanaka is looking to become the fastest four weight world champion in history while Ioka is trying to defend his title he recently earned.
Kazuto Ioka is very good technically and has a nice jab. I think he has a very underrated body attack and does everything to a good level. He’s not some defensive wizard but hes capable enough to not get hit overly much. He’s not the biggest puncher in the world but he does possess good power though rarely knocks out opponents who are truly world class.
Kosei Tanaka is also good technically and has great punch selection. He’s a much more aggressive fighter than Ioka is and won’t stop walking him down over the twelve rounds. I think he’s also a very good body puncher and has shown himself to have reasonable power which has helped get him out of a tough spot or two. I didn’t think he looked great in his last few fights at Flyweight but judging from the weigh in he should be refreshed at Super Flyweight.
I think this is a very close and competitive fight but i’m going to predict a Tanaka decision due to his relentless come forward style combined with me thinking he will be more explosive now that hes moved up. Both have put in not great performances recently but I think that Tanaka should be the more fresh of the two.
This is the third fight for Higa since he returned to boxing earlier this year. In his most recent fight he was held to a draw in a fight which could have gone either way. I don’t think hes the same fighter at Bantamweight as he was at Flyweight however it also could be down to his opponent being a good fighter who held amateur wins over Higa.
Yuki Strong Kobayashi is on a good run at the moment but in my opinion is stylistically perfect for Higa. He’s not that hard to hit and has been down numerous times in his career so a massive puncher like Higa shouldn’t have much trouble getting to him. He is tough and will keep getting up but I think Higa’s power and finishing skills will be to much for Kobayashi.
I think Daigo Higa will win by knockout in the 7th or 8th round due to having more power and also being fully adjusted to being a bantamweight now.
Canelo will fight Yildirim in February most likely in Mexico according to multiple people including his trainer. While it hasn’t been 100% confirmed yet it is highly likely that the fight will occur some time in February. Avni Yildirim is the mandatory to Canelo’s WBC super middleweight world title and took a step aside so that Canelo could fight Callum Smith recently.
I don’t think this fight will be competitive at all and i’m surprised that Yildirim has been given the shot at Canelo even if he is the mandatory. The fact hes managed to get a Canelo fight and massive pay day (the thing all fighters from 160,168 and 175 are trying to do) is a bit impressive in all honesty.
It’s good too see Canelo be so active and personally I hope he keeps taking these in-between fights as it keeps him active and I don’t agree with the two fight a year mentality most of the top fighters have.
Earlier today former world champion Takayama won a six round decision over former title challenger Konishi. Takayama is now 37 and is looking for one last run to the top of the sport.
This fight is between two big punchers and likely won’t go the distance. My gut tells me that Kirkland is past his best and versus a hard hitting puncher he’ll come apart after a few rounds.
I think Montiel will win by knockout due to being younger and more active in recent years.
This shouldn’t be a very competitive fight as Morrell is highly skilled and has already beaten better competition than Gavronski. Morrell is a former Cuban amateur standout and has adapted well to the pro ranks and proved that in his last fight where he beat Lennox Allen who was 22-0-1 at the time.
I think David Morrell will win by knockout in the 7th or 8th round due to being better all round and Gavronski having been knocked out twice before.
This is a solid fight between Yabuki and Ouchi over ten rounds for the Japanese Light Fly title. Yabuki is on a good run right now and with a few more wins could be looking at a title shot in the near future. Ouchi came out of a three year retirement last year and got two wins against lower level competition.
Yabuki has a lot of power with an aggressive style which has led to all of his wins being by knockout. He’s still in his prime while Ouchi is 35 and hasn’t faced anyone good since 2016. He’s been knocked out before and I think after spending so much time out the ring that he’ll likely get stopped early as he isn’t at Japanese title level anymore.
I think Yabuki will win by knockout due to his superior power and that he’s been much more active while being closer to his prime.
This should be a fun eight round fight for however long it lasts. Sasaki is one of the best prospects coming out of Japan at the moment and currently holds a record of 9-0 with 8 knockouts. Aso Ishiwaki is 8-2-1 with 6 knockouts and is someone I see as an exciting domestic fighter.
Jin Sasaki throws a good amount of punches and clearly has good power. I think he’s hittable but people have to walk through a lot of punishment to get to him.
Aso Ishiwaki has power himself and isn’t afraid of getting into a war. I don’t think hes quite as skilled as Sasaki which will likely let him down in this fight. His defence isn’t great which versus a big puncher is a recipe for disaster.
I think Jin Sasaki will win by early knockout because I think his power will win in a shoot out and they have styles which makes me think they will exchange early.
This should be an excellent fight between two Japanese Super Featherweights who are competing at lightweight for this bout. Ito is a former world champion but hasn’t been very active since losing his belt to Jamel Herring. Mishiro is undefeated at 9-0-1 but hasn’t faced the same level of competition as Ito.
Masayuki Ito has decent power with a come forward brawling type of style. He doesn’t have a good defence and is there to be hit for any competent fighter. He throws a lot of punches which leaves him open to counters and he doesn’t deal with a jab that well. I didn’t think he looked great at the weigh in and is coming off an injury which required surgery so he may not be at his peak in this fight.
Hironori Mishiro isn’t as big as a puncher as Ito but is just as good technically if not a little better. He’s faced good competition in his ten fights so far which should have prepared him well for this fight. He’s the bigger fighter in this match up and for him its his world title fight while Ito has already been at the top level and may not have been able to get motivated for this fight. I thought he looked a lot better than Ito at the weigh in.
I think Hironori Mishiro will win a decision after ten rounds in what will be a very competitive fight as they are relatively evenly matched. I give the edge to Mishiro because he’s slightly bigger and looked much more prepared at the weigh in.
Boxing Fulcrum