Kosei Tanaka looks to make his second title defense!
3KingsBoxing takes great pride in covering fighters from all over the globe, giving you insight on some of the best fighters in the world that may not be known among the boxing mainstream.
One of those fighters happens to be current WBO Flyweight champion Kosei Tanaka. As accomplished as any current champion in the sport right now, he returns to the ring on August 24 to defend his title against mandatory challenger Jonathan Gonzalez at the Takeda Teva Ocean Arena in Nagoya, Japan.
On paper, this looks to be an excellent fight and one of the toughest of Tanaka’s career. The fight can be watched on asianboxing.info staring 2:00 AM ET!
Kosei Tanaka
Age: 24
Location: Nagoya, Japan
When it comes to the smaller-weight divisions, Tanaka takes a back seat to no one. Already a three-division, three-time world champion, his (13-0, 7 KO’s) resume is as impressive as they come. And as a fighter, his skills in the ring are equally impressive.
He can do it all! He is well-schooled when it comes to skills and sports a pit-bull mentality. The defending champion is equally adept at boxing on the outside and fighting in the pocket, trading on the inside.
When he wants to stick outside, Tanaka sports one of the best jabs in the sport and is a terrific combination puncher.
He also sports a savage inside attack and is one of the best body punchers in the sport. In fact, during his last fight, a win over Ryoichi Taguchi, Tanaka’s body work was so damaging that Taguchi could barely stand at the end of the fight due to the punishment!
Keys to Victory
When on the outside, Tanaka needs to be the leader and establish both, the jab as well as the straight-hand against his southpaw foe. Gonzalez is elusive.
As a result, the champion needs to do an excellent job of cutting off the ring. If he’s able to get on the inside, Tanaka can’t waste opportunities. He should hit that body hard and often.
Jonathan Gonzalez
Age: 29
Location: Caguas, Puerto Rico
Nicknamed “Bomba”, the mandatory challenger is a southpaw. Sporting fast hand-speed, Gonzalez can fight at his best fighting on the back foot. When necessary, he has shown the ability to stand in the pocket and fight on the inside.
Keys to Victory
Make this a slow, methodical fight on the outside. Gonzalez (22-2-1, 13 KO’s) would much rather have his opponent come at him in order to use his hand and foot speed to let off with combinations then step out of the way.
A fast-paced fight does not benefit Gonzalez, and Tanaka is able to land with his vaunted body attack. That would be even worse for the Puerto Rican.
For Gonzalez to win, he must make this a slow-paced fight, utilize his speed and pot-shot.
Prediction
Jonathan Gonzalez has the speed and boxing ability to not only trouble Tanaka, but score what many would consider an upset win.
However, what’s concerning is that Gonzalez’s two losses have been by way of knockout stoppages. That leads to questions regarding chin of “Bomba”.
Tanaka is one of the most well-rounded fighters in the sport. Having not just skill, but boxing intelligence and power to boot, the defending champion will find a way to get to Gonzalez.
There may be issues getting to Gonzalez early on, but overall, Tanaka is the naturally bigger and stronger fighter. The size advantage, plus the skill will be too much for Gonzalez.
Tanaka will slowly, but surely wear Gonzalez down and find his questionable chin. The champion will successfully win this fight by decision.
By: Michael Wilson Jr.
