alright so my Rafael Herrera appreciation thread didn’t gain any traction.... So I hereby declare today Yoko Gushiken appreciation day! What are your thoughts on him, his career and how he would fare in any hypothetical fights against other jr fly weights? Just got done watching his fights with Guzman and Martin Vargas and have about 8 more on tap. Any takers? This content is protected
Just posted these https://www.boxingforum24.com/threa...-watch-today-scorecard-thread.186016/page-350
Not that I have found yet...but there are some on YouTube with Asian titles that I can’t read that could be?
I rember following Yoko thru The great Joe Kozuimes reports in The Ring in the 70s. Stories of a great fighter. Then yrs later I acquired a great career set and watch it often. Best ever , thats right Fleabag, at his weight.
Just got done 3 fights of his today, and have about 8 more to go through later this week. Very impressive! Good foot and hand speed, balance and foot placement, good power but patient enough to work the body. Great punch variety although can be sloppy with his uppercut when he does not have timing or space down, and his d is a little more open especially the way he drops his right some times taking more punishment than necessary. But outside of Vargas I have not seen him caught and hurt cleanly, so his chin also seems top notch. He reminds me of someone but I am not sure who just yet. Edit: you need to fight every second of every round with him...3 of the 6 KD’s I watched today came in the final 10 seconds of rounds.
I really like Gushiken, a fundamentally excellent and tidy boxer-puncher in that classic mould. Great straight/overhand left and right hook thrown in combo, usually after drawing shots from his opponent and slipping them in textbook fashion. Not a fighter you threw punches at and missed. Most things he did had a nice rhythm to them and he could do it all, by and large. Pretty versatile in his approach, a decent lateral mover with educated footwork who could box on the move or stalk in an aggressive slip/counter fashion. I've just been re-watching him take apart Vargas and Haw Mahachai. His level of opponent wasn't the greatest though, if solid enough, and he never unified. Plus his career ended very suddenly and disappointingly at the hands of the somewhat ordinary Flores, though I understand he was jaded and weight drained by then despite having convincingly beaten Vargas not long prior. It's a shame he didn't campaign at flyweight really where the opponents were much stronger at that time, he was certainly big and skilled enough. I think Chang was clearly greater myself and bad news for Gushiken h2h, but I think he would probably have beaten Yuh in a good fight and I'd also make him a slight fave over Lopez due to his better fluidity and elusiveness in the exchanges. I could see Zapata being a pain in the arse for him though; able to throw off his rhythm and offset his slip and counter on the front foot game as much as Chang would be able to invade his space and ruffle his feathers. Still, that afro is atg.
Which Vargas fight did you watch? Aniceto or Martin? What did you think of it? I watched the Martin Vargas fight today but have the Aniceto one on tap for later this week.
Martin. I think it was the Aniceto one where he didn't look too great. I thought he looked tops against the former though, who had campaigned up at fly and given Canto a good go iirc. A heavy, dangerous puncher. How about you?
I watched Martin who gave a very good account of himself in a fight that is closer than my scorecard. Martin made him work for this one. I have not watched the Aniceto one before. Martin fought Betulio and Canto only to come up short at the highest level but a very worthy forgotten challenger in my mind.
Vargas did indeed give a good account of himself, especially as he was past his best. His style was just made for Gushiken I thought and allowed him to operate in his rhythmic comfort zone on his own terms.
Ha, sorry brother. Life and all the rest. Long hours at work, fluctuating interest, looking after my little son etc. Limited time for different pastimes. If I'm moist it's usually because the little lad has pissed on me during the night. I'm going to try to post a bit more though.
