RBR - God's Left Bantamweight Tournament Semi Final Show

1-Both taking a few seconds to see what the other has, Minamide looking to counter, and then Nakajima goes on to the back foot, get the feeling both are looking to keep the touch paper at range to begin with, combination from Nakajima backs up Minamide, huge counter hook from Nakajima and they trade bombs...Nakajima down-slip, another counter from Nakajima, and another, down goes Minamide! That was a hard KD but he popped up, Biney Martin buys Minamide a few extra seconds...and he's down again! Martin waves it off

TKO1 Nakajima

 

Main event is next Japanese title eliminator at Super Featherweight between the hard hitting Taiki Minamoto (16-5-1, 13) and the stupidly tough Takuya Watanabe (36-9-1, 21) (watch his blood bath with Jaesung Lee you ****ers!)

 

1-Minamoto has the edge in speed and is on the outside but Watanabe is applying some basic pressure behind his high guard, suspect Watanabe wants to gauge Minamoto's power before taking too many risks, Minamoto landing the better single shots but not getting any chances to land anything too big, Watanabe with some very solid jabs and a right hand late.

10-9 Minamoto

 

2-Watanabe's footwork has sped up a touch here and his pressure is a touch more intense, big body shots from Watanabe, Minamoto jabbing whilst going backwards, huge uppercut from Minamoto, Watanabe misses with 2 power shots, a stiff Watanabe jab, and another, a Watanabe upper cut forces a responses from Minamoto, nice combination from Watanabe, Minamoto with a body shot late

Funnily Minamoto is a Watanabe Gym fighter, Watanabe is an Aoki gym fighter - a gym that will close this year

 

3-The touch paper has been lit! Both firing off big shots early in the round, the power edge is with Minamoto but the clean punching is Watanabe's and his combinations are catching my more, very good start to the round, pressure coming from Minamoto, and they are taking it in turns to land a single bomb before the other fires back, body shots are the order of the day as both land to the mid section at close range, Minamoto seems to have gotten the better of things but then Watanabe fires back with a flurry, Watanabe forced to back off..WOW!

 

4-Minamoto is forcing Watanabe to cede ground early on but Watanabe comes back, body shots from both, combination up top from Minamoto, Watanabe fesponds with one of his own, another combination from Watanabe to the head, then to the body, Minamoto dropping his guard just out of range, they get back to mid range and begin touching each other with jabs, Minamoto begins to back off, looking to force a mistake and Watanabe jumps on him backing him to the ropes, huge body shot from Watanabe

 

Minamoto bleeding from the nose, Watanabe from the eye brown

5-Watanabe on the front foot, Minamoto playing to his speed advantage and boxing on the move all of a sudden (the tactic he used against Takenori Ohashi), certainly a change in tactic from Minamoto who is looking to avoid the inside action now, but he gets dragged into, big head shots from Minamoto seemed to stiffen Watanabe's legs, much better round for Minamoto

 

6-Watanabe upping his pressure speeding up his foot work again, Minamoto still the quicker man but Watanabe is getting closer, Minamoto shakes Watanabe, Watanabe recovers but again he was tagged harder, and Minamoto looking to let power shots go, Minamoto appears to have found his rhythm the last couple of rounds

 

7-We are back on the inside and they are trading, huge body shot from Watanabe, Minamoto gets back out of dodge, Watanabe continues to press but can't get the break through he needs, trading on the inside, Watanabe being pushed backwards, a nice left hand from Watanabe, and a flurry, he stiffened Minamoto for a second, Minamoto fires back and a counter stiffens him again

 

8-Final round
The crowd are chanting "Takuya" and the guys are again on the inside where Watanabe's lack of foot speed is less an issue, they are loading up and firing off shots, Minamoto struggling to connect with head shots, Watanabe going to the body, Watanabe told to keep them up, a right from Watanabe, a wild miss from Minamoto, body work from Watanabe, a left from Watanabe, a right from Watanabe, Minamoto struggling to respond, a right from Minamoto, and another, a a huge Watanabe flurry, Minamoto stands up to it, Watanabe just letting shots fly! Another huge right, they land simulteanous left hooks

76-76 maybe...wasn't actively scoring but...wow a great fight!

 

Watanabe gets it!
77-75, 78-74 and 79-73 (EURGH)