Kōsei Tanaka vs. Ryōichi Taguchi & Kento Hatanaka vs. Songsaeng Phoyaem RBR

Round 2

Taguchi is stepping in, slow & steady, laying some jabs on Tanaka - but the champion is cutting in past him and juddering his face around with sharp left hooks, eliciting shouts of encouragement & instruction from his corner and contingent of fans. Tanaka keeps turning his rival and vivisecting his dome with left hooks and straight right hands from a side angle upon reaching a perpendicular with Taguchi, employing his quicker feet. Taguchi keeps pressuring, never losing his composure, and in the final minute starts to connect on some downward-planking jabs when Tanaka ducks, and then right hands behind the neck.

10-9 Tanaka, close

20-18 Tanaka

 

Round 3

Taguchi comes out strong, throwing big left hooks on the body and looping rights up top, circumventing the guard. Tanaka stands in the pocket and tries fending him off with the 1-2 but Taguchi is now using just enough lateral motion to stay off-line, never squared up dead center, just unloading power shots and creeping aside. Tanaka unable to get a rhythm going, throwing his own hooks on the body yet never able to put much bite on them as Taguchi sidesteps, causing the champion's fists to clang off his upper hip. Taguchi now winning the jab battle and working some uppercuts inside. Big left hook by Tanaka, getting a cheer from the crowd but it was blocked.

10-9 Taguchi

29-28 Tanaka

 

Fair, just pointing out the silver lining

(assuming one is a fan of the Monster...the non-Chukyo one, that is )

 

Almost justifies the horrifically inconvenient time of 3am EST.

 

Round 4

Taguchi is letting Tanaka be first again, which spells doom for him with Tanaka's edge in hand & foot speed. Tanaka getting off, scoring uppercuts on the body, then working three- and four-punch combos on the face, piston-like straights in sequence, often puncturing the crossed-armed defense of Taguchi when he raises it. Tanaka knifing in with his ;eft jab, sawing past Taguchi's counter jab, then grinding in against him as Taguchi desperately hunkers down and slams both fists into Tanaka's flanks until they clinch and Steve Willis separates them. Some jabs by Taguchi but Tanaka dances around him landing his own jab more plentifully & cleanly.

10-9 Tanaka

39-37 Tanaka

 

There won't be open scoring, btw, if anybody is wondering - the co-main event was for a WBC trinket, but this is the WBO flyweight world title.