By Joe Koizumi
Unbeaten Australian southpaw TJ Doheny (19-0, 14 KOs) arrived in Tokyo, Japan, and will participate in an ambitious shot at the IBF 122-pound belt against Japanese defending titlist Ryosuke Iwasa (25-2, 16 KOs) on this coming Friday. It will be a competitive confrontation of southpaws with skillful boxer Iwasa and aggressive puncher Doheny.
For Iwasa it will be his second defense since he captured the IBF belt from compatriot Yukinori Ogawa in September of the previous year and kept it by outscoring Filipino Ernesto Saulong this March.
Doheny, whose nickname is “The Power”, fought three times in the US, each once in Australia and Thailand in his last five bouts. TJ has been coached by Hector Bermudez in Boston, who previously handled Juan Guzman of Dominican Republic, who was dethroned by Oguni by an upset decision on New Year’s Eve in 2016. The IBF belt busily changed hands from Guzman to Oguni and to Iwasa. The trainer Bermudez said, “We’ve come here to win back the belt Guzman once held.”
We look forward to watching a good fight of the competitive contestants.