## WORLD TITLE SCHEDULE IN JAPAN

August 11, 2009

TOKYO, JAPAN

Despite our notorious humid summer weather, frequent earthquakes, onrushing typhoons and nationwide recession, our Japanese boxing impresarios seem to be active enough. The following is the schedule of world title promotions from this month on:

On August 23, in Osaka, WBA female minimum champ, unbeaten Etsuko Tada (5-0, 2 KOs), a southpaw sharpshooter, will make her initial defense against also unbeaten PABA titlist Yani Kokietgym (6-0, no KO), Thailand, over ten frames. Tada, one of the most brilliant girls here, had compiled an excellent amateur mark of 47-3, gaining many national championships prior to her entry into the paid ranks. Yani also had a good amateur ledger of 30-5, and acquired the PABA belt in her fifth pro bout. Yani, eight years her junior at 20, may show a good and hot performance against the Japanese Million Dollar Baby.

On August 30, in Osaka, WBA#4 Nobuhiro Ishida (20-5-2, 7 KOs), a Japanese six-footer, will face #5 Venezuelan veteran Marco Avendano (27-6-1, 19 KOs) for the vacant WBA interim 154-pound belt. The full WBA champ is Daniel Santos, Puerto Rico, who lately participated in a purse bidding with official challenger Yuri Foreman. This WBA interim title go may be very problematic, since they are not the leading available contenders and it is still uncertain whether the WBA really sanctioned it as the interim championship bout. Will Santos be obliged to face the winner and interim champ after this eliminator? Avendano, last September, dropped Ishida with a solid right, but lost a controversial split decision (115-114, 114-115 and 113-115) in a self-proclaimed eliminator in Osaka. Since then, neither Ishida (33) nor Avendano (36) has fought for eleven months before their rematch.

On September 30, in Osaka, WBA super-fly champ Nobuo Nashiro (13-1, 8 KOs), Japan, will defend his belt against top contender Hugo Casares (30-6-1, 22 KOs) in a mandatory defense. Nashiro, in his second reign, decked his first defense by displaying a come-from-behind TKO win over ex-OPBF ruler Konosuke Tomiyama in eight give-and-take rounds this April.

On October 6, WBA flyweight champ Denkaosen Kaowichit Kratindaeng-gym (47-1-1, 20 KOs), Thailand, will put his belt on the line against Daiki Kameda (14-1, 10 KOs), Japan, in Osaka. The 20-year-old Daiki had been suspended for a year because of his tremendously dirty fighting against WBC champ Daisuke Naito with the world belt at stake in Tokyo in October 2007. After his comeback Daiki scored four wins in a row. We just wonder why Denkaosen will not face the WBA top contender Koki Kameda, Daikifs elder brother.

All the four world title bouts, if including the disputed Ishida-Avendano one, will take place in Osaka, where they have happened shameful internal conflicts among promoters and managers in the JPBA (Japan Professional Boxing Association; the union of licensed managers). We hope all will be held smoothly and successfully without any cancellation.

(8-11-09)

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