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SPORTS SHORTS 11: TANAKA FAILS TO BREAK DE LA HOYA'S RECORD AS HE LOSES TO IOKA By Maloney L. Samaco PhilBoxing.com Fri, 01 Jan 2021  Ioka (L) drops Tanaka. Kazuto Ioka retained his WBO super flyweight title by stopping compatriot Kosei Tanaka in the last title fight of the year 2020. Both fighters were engaged in a war and Ioka was just simply the better boxer last night by knocking down Tanaka twice en route to an eighth round TKO. Tanaka went down in the fifth and sixth round but a very powerful left hook in the eighth demolished the challenger and Ioka defended his title for the second time at Tokyo's Ota City General Gymnasium. * * * The 25-year-old Tanaka of Tajimi, Gifu, Japan, struggled to become the fastest fighter to win four weight divisions as he previously held the WBO mini-flyweight title from 2015 to 2016, the WBO junior-flyweight title from 2016 to 2017 and the WBO flyweight title from 2018 to February 2020. He failed to break Oscar de la Hoya's record for fewest fights to become a four-division titlist with 16 to De La Hoya's 24. But he still has seven more fights to beat Golden Boy's record but his professional record is now blemished at 15-1 with 9 KOs. * * * "I thought I'd trained well, but the proof is in the ring," said Ioka after the fight. "Tanaka is still young, and he is boxing's future," Ioka said. "Fighting him was a great experience for me." The 31-year-old Ioka of Sakai, Japan improved his career slate to 26-2, with 15 KOs. He is a four-weight world champion, being the WBO super-flyweight champion since 2019. He was the unified WBA and WBC mini-flyweight titlist between 2011 and 2012, the WBA (Regular) light-flyweight king between 2012 and 2014, and the WBA flyweight title holder between 2015 and 2017. * * * According to Compubox statistics, Ioka was little less active (65.3 punches per round to Tanaka's 69.2) but compensated it with more superior jabs (34.8 attempts/9.7 connects per round to Tanaka's 36.4/3.1), more successful body punching (38-31 in connects), superior accuracy (35%-17% total punches, 28%-8% jabs, 44%-27% power punches) and lead in total punches connected 174-89 overall, 73-23 in total jabs hit and 101-66 in power punches landed. The scores at the time of the knockout were 69-62, 68-63, 68-63 in favor of Ioka. * * * The Boxing Writers Association of America award winners will be announced Friday, January 22, 2021, and are voted on by due-paying full BWAA members. BWAA 2020 Award Nominees for: Sugar Ray Robinson Award Fighter of The Year 2020 Canelo Alvarez Gervonta Davis Tyson Fury Teofimo Lopez Jr. Errol Spence Jr. Joe Smith Jr. Muhammad Ali – Joe Frazier Award Fight of the Year 2020 Gervonta Davis-Leo Santa Cruz Carlos Gongora-Ali Akhmedov Juan Francisco Estrada-Carlos Cuadras II Masayoshi Nakatani-Felix Verdejo Alexander Povetkin-Dillian Whyte Jose Zepeda-Ivan Baranchyk Eddie Futch Award Trainer of the Year 2020 Robert Garcia Sugar Hill Derrick James Teofimo Lopez Sr. Eddy Reynoso Cus D’Amato Award Manager of the Year 2020 Keith Connolly Peter Kahn David McWater Rick Mirigian Eddy Reynoso John McCain-Bill Crawford Courage Award 2020 Magomed Abdusalamov family Mark Breland Prichard Colon Derrick James Jose Santa Cruz * * * Teófimo López, age 23, was born in Brooklyn, New York, U.S.A. He is the current unified lightweight world champion, and held the IBF title since 2019 and the subsequently the WBA (Super), WBO and Ring magazine titles since October 2020. As an amateur he represented Honduras at the 2016 Rio de Janiero Olympics. He defeated WBO, WBA and WBC (franchise) champion, Vasiliy Lomachenko, on October 17, 2020 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was the first major fight since the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. With no live audience in attendance, Lopez defeated the Ukrainian world champion by unanimous decision and maintain his unblemished record of 16-0 with 12 KOs. * * * Tyson Fury Fury, age 32, is from Wythenshawe, Manchester, England. He is a two-time heavyweight world champion, being the WBC, The Ring magazine and lineal title holder since defeating Deontay Wilder by seventh-round TKO at the MGM Grand Arena, Las Vegas in February 2020. He previously held the unified WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, The Ring, and lineal titles after beating Wladimir Klitschko in 2015. With his defeat of Wilder, Fury became the third heavyweight, after Floyd Patterson and Muhammad Ali, to hold The Ring magazine title twice, and the first heavyweight fighter in history to have held the WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring magazine titles. * * * New Year wish list for great fights to happen in 2021: 1. Anthony Joshua vs. Tyson Fury 2. Errol Spence Jr. vs. Terence Crawford 3. Canelo Alvarez vs. Jermall Charlo 4. Teofimo Lopez Jr. vs. Gervonta Davis 5. Shakur Stevenson vs. Vasiliy Lomachenko 6. Canelo Alvarez-Gennadiy Golovkin III 7. Josh Taylor-Jose Ramirez 8. Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez-Juan Francisco Estrada II, 9. Caleb Plant-David Benavidez 10. Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol. * * * The Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. eight-round exhibition boxing match at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on November 28, 2020, was a very successful pay-per-view (PPV) event. The fight earned over 1.6 million buys, dislodging UFC 251 from its position to become the biggest pay-per-view event of 2020 and raking in over $80 million in solely pay-per-view revenue. The fight also ranks in the top 10 pay-per-view events of all time. It was sanctioned sanctioned by the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) with three former WBC champions acting as judges and the result was scored as a split draw. * * * John Wall had played a comeback game from a two-year injury which was delayed further for another week by a mandated quarantine of COVID-19 protocols. After 735 days of NBA absence, Wall played during the Rockets' 122-119 win over the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night in Houston, since he had last played in an NBA game that counted. He had undergone surgery to remove the bone spurs in his left heel and another operation of his Achilles tendon. He was traded from the Washington Wizards together with a protected first-round pick for Russell Westbrook. Wall had 22 points, 6 rebounds, and 9 assists. Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.  |
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