Nishida Becomes Bantamweight Champ By Besting Rodriguez
Japan’s Ryosuke Nishida (9-0, 1 KO) took full advantage of his first world title opportunity as he wrested the IBF bantamweight title with a unanimous decision (117-110, 115-112, 115-112) over Emmanuel “Manny” Rodriguez (22-2, 13 KOs) at the DION Arena in Osaka, Japan. A look into the future for Nishida could spell a fight to become a unified champion.
SEIZING THE MOMENT
A two-time IBF champion at 118, Rodriguez was making the first defense of his second reign as a world title holder. But it was lefty Nishida who got off to a fast start. Halfway through round four, he put Rodriguez down with a left uppercut to the pit of the stomach.
Manny rallied in the middle rounds. He found success in landing the right hands and was getting the better of the exchanges. The two went toe-to-toe in the championship rounds. But in the end, Rodriguez could not overcome the early points deficit in an exciting fight that was closer than the score from the judges.
A CRYSTAL BALL LOOK
With the victory, Nishida is now the third fighter from Japan to be a reigning world bantamweight champion. He joins Junto Nakatani, who won the WBC title with a sixth-round stoppage over Alexandro in February 2024. The WBA champion is Takuma Inoue, who has an upcoming title defense against mandatory challenger Sho Ishida on May 6 in Tokyo, Japan.
Takuma is on record saying that he wants to follow in the footsteps of his big brother, Naoya, and become an undisputed champion. Nakatani believes he’s one of the elite fighters in the lower-weight divisions. He would have no problems putting his title on the line against Nishida. Given the current dynamics of the division, if Nishida can hold the title, things will likely get very spicy at 118.
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