YOKOHAMA, Japan – It was a knockout start to kick off the night at the BUNTAI in Yokohama, Japan, with each of the four contests leading into the world title double-header ending inside the distance.
Tsubasa Narai picked up the Japanese junior lightweight title with an eighth round stoppage victory over defending champion Yuna Hara. The contest carried extra significance, as by claiming the Japanese title Narai is now eligible to fight for a world championship.
Refreshingly, the Japanese Boxing Commission only allow fighters who have won their domestic belt or an Ocean Pacific title to fight for world honors. Narai, who rose to 16-2 (11 KOs) with the victory, will now look to push up the 130lb rankings.
The opener was a cagey affair with Narai taking a look at the defending champion before choosing to commit to his work. Late in the round he seemed to find his range as he planted a left jab to the body of Hara and followed with another upstairs. Hara responded well in the second, scoring with a jab of his own and letting fly with three straight punches.
The hard-hitting Narai stayed calm in the third and landed a good left hand that rocked Hara before hurting him again in the next with a right hand. The champion then came back into it, using his long leavers to pick off Narai as he attempted to land another hard blow.
The contest really caught fire in the sixth as both men realized they would have to do more if they were to leave with the title. Narai kicked things off with a right hand and followed it up with a left to the body. Hara fired back with a right uppercut and landed his own left hand to Narai’s midsection.
The seventh was again entertaining but there was a feeling that Hara was feeling the shots more than Narai. The challenger finally broke through in the eighth, landing a hard right over the top that floored Hara. The champion returned to his feet but was visibly still hurt by the shot. Referee Tetsuya Lida gave him a chance to fight on but Narai threw everything at Hara who was rescued at 1:55 of Round 8. Hara, who fell to 14-4-2 (8 KOs) with the defeat, complained about the stoppage but Lida had saved him from the inevitable.
Earlier Ryu Isgane picked up another stoppage victory to take his record to 6-1-1 (5 KOs) in the junior flyweight division. Tomoya Yamamoto, now 9-4 (1 KO), was the man in the opposing corner but the lively Isgane proved too much for him to handle with the referee stepping in with one minute gone in the sixth round.
Isgane started aggressively from the southpaw stance and whipped in wild hooks at Yamamoto, who stood firm. Yamamoto looked a little out of his depth but Isgane was guilty of searching for the stoppage too early. He finally made a breakthrough in the fourth, knocking Yamamoto down with a left hand.
Yamamoto recovered well and made it out of the round despite Isgane throwing the kitchen sink at him. However, in the sixth the inevitable occurred. Another left hand caused Yamamoto to retreat to his corner where Isgane leathered him to the head, body and anywhere he could land a glove. With nothing coming back from Yamamoto the referee Koji Tanaka jumped in to save him from further harm.
Before that, amateur standout Kazuma Aratake made a stunning start to his professional career. Aratake fights out of the famous Ohashi Gym in Yokohama alongside pound-for-pound star Naoya Inoue. The 22-year-old made his debut in the junior flyweight division and looks to be another Japanese fighter from the lighter weights with heavy hands.
Aratake, now 1-0 (1 KO), was up on his toes from the opening bell and snapped a southpaw jab into the face of Hirunsuk. He then skipped out of range and came back in with a left hand to the body that brought a wince from his opponent. There was a clear gap in class, but Aratake did not rush the stoppage, he took his time and waited for an opening.
It came midway through the second when he again landed his left hand to the body, but this time he followed it up with a right hook upstairs. Hirunsuk’s chin jerked horribly from the power of the shot, and he sank to the canvas. The referee Katsuhiko Nakamura wasted no time and instantly waved the contest off as Hirunsuk, who fell to 16-8 (10 KOs) with the defeat, hit the floor. The stoppage came at 2:13 of the second round.
Junior bantamweight Ryuto Yamada kicked off the night with an explosive first round finish of Suriya Kraimanee. Yamada’s record, 4-4-2 (2 KOs), may not make him seem like much on paper, but boy could he punch.
Yamada wasted little time and immediately went for Kraimanee, who looked as though he was a rabbit caught in the headlights. Kraimanee shuffled backwards in a panic after eating a stiff left jab, and once his back touched the ropes Yamada unleashed a vicious left to the body that almost certainly broke a rib.
Kraimanee screamed in pain and went to fold over but the ropes kept him up. Yamaha took full advantage and fired in a left hook to the head and Kraimanee hit the canvas in a heap. Kraimanee, now 5-5-2 (3 KOs), was left rolling around in pain, clutching his injured rib, and was unable to make the referee Shuhei Terayama’s 10-count. The time of the stoppage was 1:10 of Round 1.