As fight fans know, fans of the lower weight divisions, especially boxing, are buzzing right now in Japan, in a major way. It was then, a downer for the great country, when superstar and reigning WBA and WBC flyweight champ Kenshiro Teraji lost to Ricardo Sandoval in a July upset (and also a great fight). Teraji, nicknamed “The Amazing Boy,” was stopped for just the second time in his career, and some fans felt the 33-year-old might take the retirement option.
No Retirement Talk Here
Far from it. Instead, as he made clear when speaking with The Ring, Teraji, 25-2(16) aims to win another world title and then bag himself a super-fight. Teraji will return to action on a stacked card in Riyadh on December 27 – the card headlined by Naoya Inoue and Junto Nakatami, who will both be in world title fights, this as they get ever closer to facing each other in a massive all-Japanese epic some time next year – when he will move up in weight to challenge IBF junior bantamweight champ Willibaldo Garcia, 23-6-2(13).
Should he further stock up his trophy cabinet with a win, Teraji then hopes to land a big unification fight with Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez. Teraji has rebounded from a stoppage loss before, and he aims to prove he can do so again.
Garcia Challenge Awaits
“It was not that I wanted to move up [in weight], but since this great chance came to me, I moved up to take this opportunity,” Teraji said of the Garcia challenge he will make at the end of the year. “If I win this title, it will be my third weight division. I think I learned more from losing (to Sandoval) than winning. I think I am lucky now that there is an opportunity to fight for a [title in] the third weight division. I hope to show that I got stronger and win this title bout. I want to fight Bam. If he wins [against Fernando Martinez in their November 22 WBO/WBC/IBF unification fight] and I win, there might be a chance.”
Eyes on Bam Rodriguez
Bam, 22-0(15) and a pound-for-pound star, and for some fans one of the most exciting warriors out there today, faces a tough test in Martinez, who is 18-0(9). But assuming Teraji and Bam both win their upcoming fights, who wouldn’t want to see the two rumble sometime next year?
Bam would no doubt be a significant favourite to beat Teraji, but the Japanese warrior has shown us all in the past how good, indeed how great a fighter he really is.
Let’s see if this matchup gets made in 2026.