TBS: Kazuto Ioka vs. Ryoji Fukunaga & Akihiro Kondo vs. Aso Ishiwaki RBR

Had it been just this one I would agree that it might be a one-off, but this is now two fights in a row where, flashes of brilliance aside, he looked really flat and uninspired.

I'm bummed... my plan was to switch to a new avatar of Ioka with a screenshot just like a year ago in the afterglow of beating Tanaka. I figured either he would dominate, or lose but put up the usual banzai spirit until the bitter end, or be down on the cards and score a miracle come from behind KO. Something av worthy, in any event.

But this? Long stretches passively on the backfoot, deserving to lose, and getting a slate of bad (one ridiculous) scorecards? Yeesh. Not sure these are visuals I want to carry into the new year.

I'm still glad he kept the tradition alive after Ancajas pulled out, but this wasn't as satisfying an experience as I'd hoped for.

 

Found it:

This content is protected

 

This content is protected

"64.5kg contract 8R #近藤明広 player vs #石脇麻生 player Ishiwaki player weighing over… Kondo player's 3-0 victory, the defense and sense of distance were outstanding, as if he was practicing. I want Ishiwaki to devote himself in various ways. There is a real difference between the top and bottom rankings in Japan."

Keeping my fingers crossed (but not breath held) that video turns up.

 

Rough translation of Ioka's victory interview:

"I had mixed feelings about the cancellation of the unification match, but I went into this one thinking that I wanted to fight for the people who support me and show them that we still fight on at a time like this. I went into the ring with a strong sense of gratitude to the gym staff, sponsors, TBS, and all the other people who made this fight possible. The unification match that was cancelled this time is something that I've always wanted, so now that I've successfully won this match, I'm going to ask them to move forward so that I can have a unification match with Ancajas next year."

He says that Fukunaga was very specifically selected to be a practice proxy for the Filipino, calling him a "virtual Ancajas", due to their similar size (Ancajas having an inch and Fukunaga two inches on Ioka; both lefties have identical 66½″ reaches) and both being southpaws.