Five sizzling world title bouts are ready to erupt over two action-packed cards from Japan, streaming live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+ early next year.
The festivities launch on Tuesday, Jan. 23, with WBC/WBA light flyweight champ Kenshiro “The Amazing Boy” Teraji putting his belts on the line against Venezuela’s Carlos Canizales at EDION Arena Osaka. Not to be outshone, Ukraine’s WBA flyweight king, Artem Dalakian, gears up for his seventh title defense against Japan’s own Seigo Yuri Akui. This title twin-bill and an entourage of undercard scuffles start streaming at the crack of dawn, 5 a.m. ET/2 a.m. PT.
Teraji (22-1, 14 KOs) is all set for his third go-around as unified world champion, marking his 15th dance in the world title ring. Canizales (26-1-1, 19 KOs) is on a four-fight victory streak post his sole career hiccup.
Dalakian (22-0, 15 KOs), reigning supreme since nabbing the vacant title over Brian Viloria in February 2018, faces Akui (18-2-1, 11 KOs), a phoenix risen from the ashes of two TKO losses, now riding a six-fight winning wave since 2019.
Also lighting up the Jan. 23 card, ex-kickboxing star and junior featherweight newbie Tenshin Nasukawa (2-0) tangles with Luis Robles Pacheco (15-2-1, 5 KOs) in an eight-rounder. Opening the ESPN+ stream, Juiki Tatsuyoshi (14-0-1, 10 KOs) squares off against Yuki Yonaha (13-5-1, 8 KOs) in another junior featherweight clash.
Fast forward to Saturday, Feb. 24, and Ryōgoku Kokugikan in Tokyo sets the stage for three more world title epics. Alexandro Santiago defends his WBC bantamweight title against Japan’s pugilistic prodigy Junto Nakatani. In the co-main event, WBA bantamweight boss Takuma Inoue aims to fend off former world champ Jerwin Ancajas from the Philippines. And, for the vacant WBO junior bantamweight title, triple-world champ Kosei Tanaka seeks glory in a fourth division against Mexico’s Christian Bacasegua Rangel. This triple-threat title tussle, plus an 8-round bantamweight bout between Jonas Sultan (19-6, 11 KOs) and Riku Masuda (3-1, 3 KOs), kicks off at 5 a.m. ET/2 a.m. PT.
Santiago (28-3-5, 14 KOs) snatched the WBC title in July, outdueling the legendary Nonito Donaire. Nakatani (26-0, 19 KOs), a two-division champ, relinquished his WBO junior bantamweight title post his September win over Argi Cortes.
Inoue (18-1, 4 KOs), Naoya Inoue’s younger sibling, outlasted Liborio Solis in April for the WBA crown. Ancajas (34-3-2, 23 KOs), a Filipino southpaw and ex-IBF junior bantamweight ruler, bounced back from two title losses with a fifth-round KO of Wilner Soto in June.
Tanaka (19-1, 11 KOs) is hunting for a belt at 115 pounds after conquering 105, 108, and 112. Rangel (22-4-2, 9 KOs), from Mexicali, Mexico, rides a nine-fight unbeaten streak dating back to 2019.
