By Ian S Palmer
Unbeaten WBA ‘Super’ Jr. Flyweight Champion Hiroto Kyoguchi of Japan will be facing Esteban Bermudez in the challenger’s home land of Mexico this Friday, June 10th. The bout can be seen live in most nations on DAZN. Kyoguchi last fought in March when he stopped Axel Vega in the fifth round while Bermudez last saw action in May of last year when he stopped Carlos Canizales in the sixth round to take his WBA Jr. Flyweight Crown.
June 9, 2022; Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico; Hiroto Kyoguchi and Esteban Bermudez pose after weighing in for their June 10, 2022 bout at Domo Alcade, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom.
The 28-year-old Kyoguchi made his pro debut in 2016 and has boxed 100 rounds since. He stands 5-feet-4-inches tall with a 64-inch reach and enters the ring with a perfect mark of 15-0 with 10 Ko’s. He won the IBF Minimumweight Title in 2017 with a unanimous decision over Jose Argumedo and defended it against Carlos Buitrago by eighth-round stoppage and against Vince Paras by unanimous decision.
Kyoguchi then stepped up in weight and took the WBA Jr Flyweight Crown with a 10th-round KO over Hekkie Budler in December, 2018. He defended it against Tanawat Nakoon and Tetsuya Hisada by unanimous decisions before stopping Vega the last time out. Kyoguchi has pretty good power in his hands with a current knockout ratio of 66.7 per cent but has gone the distance in two of his last three fights. He’s quick boxer with speed and good mobility to go along with his power.
Bermudez enters the fight at 14-3-2 with 10 Ko’s and has a two wins, a draw and a loss in his last four outings and took the title from Canizales as the decided underdog. He fought to a four-round technical draw with Ivan Sanchez in 2014 while his defeats came at the hands of Francisco Cardenas by first-round stoppage in 2015, by eight-round unanimous decision to Gilberto Parra in 2016 and by 10-round unanimous decision to Rosendo Guarneros last October.
All of Bermudez’s fights have taken place in Mexico and other than Canizales, hasn’t beaten anybody else of note as of yet. He made his pro debut in 2013 and has boxed 79 rounds since. The 26-year-old is 5-feet-7-inches tall with an unlisted reach and carries around a 52.6 per cent knockout ratio, giving him a three-inch height advantage on Kyoguchi. It’s unclear how he rated a title shot against Canizales last year but he definitely took advantage of his opportunity.
Prediction…
Kyoguchi is another solid Japanese world champion who is 6-0 in world title fights with 2 Ko’s. However, he’s fighting in Bermudez’s backyard in Mexico and gives up three inches in reach. If he doesn’t dominate the fight it’s going to be hard to get the decision, but overall I think he’s a better boxer than Bermudez. However, it’s now up to him to prove it.
