Kazuto Ioka vs. José Francisco Rodríguez Tamayo & Yuichiro Kasuya vs. Aso Ishiwaki RBR

Banzai!

Undercard streaming on a separate internet PPV courtesy Shisei Gym through BitFan, starting from 1920 local time in Tokyo (6:20am EST) for a price of JP¥500 ($4.55 in USD). Main event on TBS in Japan from 2100 local time/8am EST.

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@CST80 @IntentionalButt @Serge @kirk @Rumsfeld @McGrain @The Professor @Sammy123 @PinoyProdigy @Drinquor @Drew101 @Chuck Norris @KiwiMan @UnleashtheFURY @lewis gassed @Russell @Boxing Prospect @mirkofilipovic @lepinthehood @JordanK2406 @Pimp C @Willie Maeket @Robney @f1ght3rz @Somachenko @Max Thunder @Reg @Bustajay @nellybc @Kapparino @pistal47 @eltirado @HamburgBuam @GK BOX @escudo @rorschach51 @MVC! @latineg @BigBone @Ukansodoff @Loudon @dinovelvet @pincai @bandeedo @C.J. @Boxed Ears @robert ungurean @Power_tek @Dance84 @RockyMarciano @George Crowcroft @roughdiamond @Leoh @SladeW @Perkin Warbeck @Rock0052 @Holler @PaddyGarcia @ShovelHook @Jake LaMotta @Inglis_1 @Pakkuman @Goose @miniq @sasto @Wizbit1013 @BaronSamedi @sniffmybadger @FrankinDallas @Accurate @kiwi_boxer @JOKER @Scott Cork @johnny_o @sid @anjawnaymiz @heerko koois @Boomstick

...how's that for a clarion roll-call?

 

I'm catching forty winks before dropping my five hundred yen.

 

Yes, but....from what I can gather (from admittedly dodgy Google translations, but dodgy Google translations of numerous different tweets and source articles), the Shisei Gym is pretty much handing over the proceeds to all the no-name local fighters on the undercard, who are getting no cut of live gate because, well, there's no crowd in light of recently scaled-back Covid protocols. Ioka gets his champ's purse + tv money and Chihuas his challenger's share no matter what, but this is a cool way to make sure the little guys don't get screwed by the change.

Oh and the couple of guys in the co-main (or, the main event of the 500 yen stream, I guess you could say) reportedly can both GO. Aso in particular is described as doggedly aggressive.

 

First bout is over, me sitting here with debit card still in hand like a mook on the outside looking in.

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...for Yoshimura vs. Ogawa specifically? Neither of whom ever fought professionally before today?

The main event is going to be aired on TBS so no worries there (I'll be doing RBR for it as soon as it starts in about one hour), but this is a very disappointing way to start the morning after wasting an extra hour or two's worth of sleep to get up and support the kids in the prelims.

 

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Lower skill level of course, but that fight had all-action written all over it with a good chance of it ending up being more competitive and entertaining than Ioka vs. Rodríguez does, IMO.

Not even mad they paywalled it, just ...make the site work properly and take my goddamn money!

 

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That's because no live audience in the venue. Those restrictions that have caused so many fights over the last year to end even earlier than usual was to get people home before Covid curfew, basically.

Back in the day 8am EST wasn't unheard of for a televised main event. And the whole thing'll be wrapped up by 9am EST (10pm local time, which is reasonable...not like some of these African or European countries where you push an hour or two past midnight local time before ring walks)