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Home > Match Information > Hiraoka stops Akaiwa, retains Japanese super lightweight crown as Inoue-Donaire undercard

Hiraoka stops Akaiwa, retains Japanese super lightweight crown as Inoue-Donaire undercard

Jun 08, 2022 9:23 am

Andy Hiraoka of Ohashi Boxing Gym, unleashing a barrage of right-left combinations from various angles, stopped eighth-ranked Japanese super lightweight Shun Akaiwa of Manabe Boxing Gym in the six round and retained his Japanese super lightweight title on June 7 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama Prefecture.

The fight was held as the chief supporting card for the day’s title unification fight between World Boxing Association ‘’super’’ and International Boxing Federation bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue of the Ohashi gym and World Boxing Council bantamweight kingpin Nonito Donaire of the Philippines.

The technical knockout of the scheduled 10-rounder came 1 minute and 24 seconds into the sixth round when the referee stepped in to save Akaiwa from further punishment as southpaw Hiraoka wobbled his opponent with his wild but strong combination blows. Hiraoka also scored a knockdown in the first round with a left uppercut.

It was the 25-year-old Hiraoka’s second successful defense of the vacant title he captured last October by knocking out Jin Sasaki of Hachioji Nakaya Gym.

Hiraoka, who is also the World Boxing Organization’s Asia-Pacific super lightweight champion, said after the fight, ‘’This was the first time that I had had a fight before this many fans. That’s why I wanted to fight a little longer. My ultimate aim is to win a world title, and I want to fight strong boxers to that end.’’

With the victory, Hiraoka is undefeated in his 20 bouts, including 14 KOs, while the 29-year-old Akaiwa impaired to a 7-4-1 win-loss-draw record with five KOs.

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