By: Sean Cross
In the combined junior flyweight championship, 20-1 Kenshiro Teraji entered the ring Tuesday in Saitama, Japan to take on 16-1 Hiroto Kyoguchi in a scheduled 12-fight WBC title fight.
Although Teraji looked a bit sharp, the first round saw each moving and swinging well. Kyoguchi looked open to Teraji’s overhand target in the second. Indeed, by the end of the round, Teraji was doing a great job on his opponent. Although he looks like an effective top guard, Kiyoguchi looks like a step behind the guy at third. Throwing combos and maintaining range, Teraji basically controlled the action.
In fact, the guy was putting on a boxing clinic, so it was hard not to be surprised by the fourth teraji. The latter part of the round looked like he was really getting to Kyoguchi… although Kyoguchi was able to land well on Teraji, often turning the tide heavily before the bell itself.
Teraji makes sure he’s back to normal when the Fifth drops the man with a body shot. Kyoguchi gets to his feet, and Teraji goes for a break. Kyogyuchi manages to survive the round – in fact, he effectively engages himself before the end of the chapter. In fact, Teraji finds himself in retreat before the end of the chapter.
Although there were no overtures in the sixth, the fight clearly showed that each man had his moments. But in the seventh, with Kyoguchi stumbling back to the ropes, Teraji was able to land rights that would have the referee step in and stop the fight. Teraji is now the WBC and WBA combined junior bantamweight title roster.
