By Joe Koizumi

Unbeaten southpaw speedster IBF#1 Ryosuke Nishida (9-0, 1 KO), 118, astoundingly dethroned IBF bantamweight champ Emmanuel Rodriguez (22-3, 13 KOs), 117.75, by winning an upset unanimous decision (115-112 twice, 117-110) over twelve speedy rounds on Saturday in Osaka, Japan. Nishida, less experienced and less powerful, was an undoubted underdog, but produced such an upset with his cleverness and positiveness. Ryosuke, formerly a Kinki university amateur boxer, had upset ex-WBC flyweight champ Daigo Higa in his fourth pro bout, which made him enter the world ratings. Rodriguez, four years his senior at 31, might have underestimated the Japanese challenger due to his very low knockout ratio, and he was less aggressive only to aim at a solid counter at a time in the beginning of the contest. Nishida, on the other hand, diligently put on a workman-like aggression and took the initiative for the first two rounds. Though the champ was in command in round three, Nishida found it groundbreaking and effective to score with body attacks from the fourth, when he surprisingly dropped the Puerto Rican on hands and knees.

Awakened by the unexpected knockdown (since Nishida had never been regarded as a solid puncher), Rodriguez tried to take back the initiative and dominated three rounds from the fifth, utilizing straight rights to the face of the lefty challenger. Nishida, however, turned loose despite his swollen right optic and positively unleashed less powerful but quick combinations to the face and belly of the champ. Emmanuel’s best might be demonstrated in the tenth, when he turned so aggressive that he obviously took a point. But he became tired with his desperate attack, and it was Nishida that was in command in the last two sessions, which confirmed his victory and coronation.

Now Japan remarkably has occupied three belts in the 118-pound category—WBC Junto Nakatani, WBA Takuma Inoue and IBF Nishida. In a couple of days, on this coming Monday, Japan’s unbeaten southpaw Yoshiki Takei will also have a very ambitious shot at formidable WBO bantam ruler Jason Moloney on the undercard of the Inoue-Nery super fight. We’ll see it.

The newly crowned IBF champ Nishida’s wife Sana used to be an amateur boxer at the same Kinki university, winning the national bantam belt for three years in a row. She had better amateur credentials than Ryosuke. Sana greatly supported Ryosuke’s conditioning with her invaluable knowledge on nutrition and boxing as well.

Promoter: KWORLD3 (AKA Kameda) Promotions.