For the WBC featherweight Silver title, El Diamante's first defense as incumbent after dethroning the much younger Andres Gutiérrez in a minor upset during this impressive late career renaissance. Top of a bill airing next Saturday on Televisa that also features erratically weight-hopping former strawweight champion Francisco Chihuas Rodríguez, Jr. in a flyweight confidence-builder (having last fought at super fly, after some well-documented struggles making the limit the next three divisions below over the last few years) versus Filipino trial horse Crison Omayao, a natural straw perhaps best remembered as the first professional kayo victim of Naoya Inoue. Kawashima is 24 and unbeaten, though he is yet to progress beyond domestic competition (or indeed beyond 8-rounders, save one assignment scheduled for ten). Anybody that follows the Japanese scene want to chime in on his chances with Mijares? On paper he appears to be a comfortable step down from Jaguarcito with his thin CV and low KO %. I like this route taken by 35 year old Mijares - taking on credibly enough ranked opponents in line for a crack at the Silver belt, without overreaching and going after the division's elites (or toppling a weak link in the world title picture and then holding the prize hostage against this same level opponent). Milk the hardware for a spell, get up to a respectable 60 career wins erring too far in neither direction (mismatches with bums he can smash up without breaking a sweat, or mismatches in the other directions with elite natural feathers that would likewise smash him) and then call it a day.
This might actually be the best fight left in October. (besides Gavin vs. Eggington tomorrow, and maybe Juanma López vs. Papito Vázquez the same night)
Found some footage of Kawashima: This content is protected (he is wearing the red gloves, with maroon trunks w/ cursive script over the crotch) Yamamoto is a good-sized 122lber, probably closer to a true featherweight (as is Shohei), and has only been stopped a handful of times in 28 bouts...so perhaps Kawashima's pop isn't that bad (and his low rate just reflective of happening to face a bunch of tough customers in a row..and/or not having fully grown into his man-strength yet during his time at super bantam) ...though he does seem more of a precision-based sharpshooter (opened cuts by Yamamoto's eye just a couple of minutes in) than a real thunderous hitter. Difficult to gauge his timing or defensive ability from this as he was in sparring mode, almost cruise-control with someone that was clearly a walk in the park, and (literally and figuratively) thousands of kilometers from a world class if aging talent like a Mijares.
That's my guess... Not unlikely that these two trade several knockdowns and put on a FOTY contender(that or someone gets blown out early in which case it would probably be Juanma). Fairly dull month though.
