Kazuto Ioka
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is a Japanese
professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...
. He is the first male Japanese boxer and fourth Asian to be a four-weight world champion, having held the unified WBA and WBC mini-flyweight titles between 2011 and 2012, the
WBA (Regular) The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is the oldest and one of four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxi ...
light-flyweight Light flyweight, also known as junior flyweight or super strawweight, is a Weight class (boxing), weight class in boxing. Professional boxing The weight limit at light flyweight in professional boxing is 108 pounds (49 kilograms). When New York (s ...
title from 2012 to 2014, the WBA
flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb). Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of b ...
title from 2015 to 2017, the WBO
super-flyweight Super flyweight, also referred to as junior bantamweight, is a weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to . History The first title match in this division was in 1980, when the World Boxing Council responded to pressure from Asi ...
title from 2019 to 2023, and the WBA super-flyweight title since June 2023. As of July 2023, he is ranked as the world’s second-best active super-flyweight by ''The Ring'' magazine, and third by BoxRec and the
Transnational Boxing Rankings Board The Transnational Boxing Rankings Board (TBRB) is an all-volunteer initiative formed in October 2012 with the intention of providing professional boxing with authoritative top-ten rankings, identifying the singular world champion of every divisio ...
.


Amateur career

Kazuto Ioka is the nephew of flyweight champion
Hiroki Ioka is a Japanese former professional boxer who competed from 1986 to 1999. He has held world championships in two weight class (boxing), weight classes, having held the World Boxing Council, WBC mini-flyweight title from 1987 to 1988, and the World ...
. Kazuto asked his father to teach him how to box as a teenager. His father, Kazunori Ioka, would continue training him through his amateur and professional career. Ioka amassed a record of 95-10 as an amateur, winning six national high school tournaments along the way. He reached the semifinals of the 2008 King's Cup, an amateur boxing tournament held in Thailand, before losing to Amnat Ruenroeng. Ioka joined Tokyo Agricultural University, hoping to represent his country in the 2008 Olympics but he would fall short on the qualifiers.


Amateur highlights

*16th All Japan Selected High School Boxing Championships,
Light flyweight Light flyweight, also known as junior flyweight or super strawweight, is a weight class in boxing. Professional boxing The weight limit at light flyweight in professional boxing is 108 pounds (49 kilograms). When New York legalized boxing in 1920, ...
Tournament winner (2005) *17th All Japan Selected High School Boxing Championships, Light flyweight Tournament winner (2006) *59th Inter-highschool championships, Boxing, Light flyweight Tournament winner *60th Inter-highschool championships, Boxing, Light flyweight Tournament winner *60th National Sports Festival, Boxing, Boys, Light flyweight Tournament winner *61st National Sports Festival, Boxing, Boys, Light flyweight Tournament winner *62nd National Sports Festival, Boxing, Adult, Light flyweight Tournament winner *63rd National Sports Festival, Boxing, Adult, Light flyweight Tournament winner


Professional career


Early career

Upon failing to qualify for the Olympics, Ioka dropped out from college and turned professional in 2009. On April 12, 2009, he fought against Thongthailek Sor Tanapinyo, and won his debut via a third-round technical knockout. After this victory, he won six straight victories. After winning 5 fights, Ioka competed for the vacant Japanese
light flyweight Light flyweight, also known as junior flyweight or super strawweight, is a weight class in boxing. Professional boxing The weight limit at light flyweight in professional boxing is 108 pounds (49 kilograms). When New York legalized boxing in 1920, ...
title. Ioka captured the national title by stopping Masayoshi Segawa in the final 10th round.


Mini-flyweight


WBC mini-flyweight champion

In his next fight, Ioka won the WBC mini-flyweight title from Oleydong Sithsamerchai via a fifth-round technical knockout in the latter's seventh title defence at the
World Memorial Hall or World Hall is a multi-purpose arena located in the Chūō-ku Ward of Kobe, Japan. It has a maximum capacity of 8,000 people and is optimized for large-scale meetings, sport events, trade shows and concerts. It is located on the artificial isl ...
, in February 2011. Sithsamerchai was knocked down twice over the course of his first professional loss. Ioka went on to defend his title twice in 2011, first against Juan Hernández, winning via unanimous decision (118–111, 117–111, 116–112), and then against Yodgoen Tor Chalermchai, winning via first-round technical knockout on New Year's Eve 2011.


Unified mini-flyweight champion

On 20 June 2012, Ioka met WBA champion
Akira Yaegashi is a Japanese former professional boxer who competed from 2005 to 2019. He was a three-weight world champion, having held the WBA mini-flyweight title from 2011 to 2012, the WBC and '' The Ring'' flyweight titles from 2013 to 2014, and the ...
in a match that marked the first time two Japanese fighters had met to unify world titles. The fight took place at the
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium is an indoor sporting arena located in Namba, Osaka, Japan. It first opened in 1952 and the current building was constructed in 1987. It is the venue of a professional sumo tournament ( honbasho) held in March every year. The capacity of the ...
. Ioka defeated the WBA champion
Akira Yaegashi is a Japanese former professional boxer who competed from 2005 to 2019. He was a three-weight world champion, having held the WBA mini-flyweight title from 2011 to 2012, the WBC and '' The Ring'' flyweight titles from 2013 to 2014, and the ...
via a unanimous decision (115–113, 115–113, 115–114). The two fighters exchanged hard shots throughout a tense, tactical fight. The fight ended with Yaegashi and Ioka trading combinations while looking for a knockout. From early in the fight, Yaegashi's eye was nearly shut. The ringside doctor performed several checks on it but Yaegashi was allowed to finish the fight. When asked whether the result would have been different unless he got swollen eyes, Yaegashi said "We should not think about it. There is no if's in boxing". The day after the fight, Ioka decided to move up a weight division.


Light-flyweight


WBA (Regular) light-flyweight champion

Shortly after the fight, Ioka moved up to light flyweight as well. On December 31, 2012, Ioka beat undefeated José Alfredo Rodríguez for the vacant
WBA (Regular) The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is the oldest and one of four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxi ...
light-flyweight title at the
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium is an indoor sporting arena located in Namba, Osaka, Japan. It first opened in 1952 and the current building was constructed in 1987. It is the venue of a professional sumo tournament ( honbasho) held in March every year. The capacity of the ...
. Ioka knocked Rodríguez down once in round 1 and twice in round 6 before the referee stopped the fight. Ioka held the Regular version of the WBA's title, while Román Gonzalez was the
WBA (Super) The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is the oldest and one of four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxi ...
champion. Ioka went on to defend his title three times but he never faced González.


Flyweight

On February 28, 2014, Ioka would vacate the WBA title to move up to the
flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb). Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of b ...
division in order to attempt becoming a three division world champion. On May 7, 2014, Ioka faced Thai
IBF The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...
champion Amnat Ruenroeng at the
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium is an indoor sporting arena located in Namba, Osaka, Japan. It first opened in 1952 and the current building was constructed in 1987. It is the venue of a professional sumo tournament ( honbasho) held in March every year. The capacity of the ...
. Ioka seemed to be the more active boxer but Ruenroeng landed heavier blows while countering Ioka. Ruenroeng lost a point for hitting after the break. Nevertheless, Ruenroeng retained his title with a split decision (119–108, 115–112, 113–114). The 119–108 card turned in by judge Pawel Kardyni was criticized as being far too wide.


WBA flyweight champion

On April 22, 2015, Ioka realized his goal to be a triple champion, when he defeated
WBA (Regular) The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is the oldest and one of four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxi ...
champion
Juan Carlos Reveco Juan Carlos Reveco (born August 21, 1983) is an Argentine professional boxer who has held the World Boxing Association, WBA light flyweight title and the WBA (Regular) light flyweight and flyweight titles. Professional career Reveco turned prof ...
by
majority decision A majority decision (MD) is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking. In a majority decision, two of the three judges agree on whi ...
(116–113, 115–113, 114–114). The fight saw Reveco take the early rounds but Ioka came on strong in the middle rounds and got the nod in the end. Reveco appealed the decision to the World Boxing Association, who ordered an immediate rematch. Ioka was later granted a voluntary defense against Roberto Sosa, with the winner ordered to face Reveco. Ioka beat Sosa in a shutout unanimous decision (120–108, 119–109, 119–109). The Ioka-Reveco rematch was set for December 2015. Ioka outworked Reveco at the start of the match. However, Reveco started rallying in round 7. Ioka answered in kind, nearly knocking out Reveco. Reveco finally went down in round 11 following a series of hooks to the body. Ioka was nearing a deal to fight
WBA (Super) The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is the oldest and one of four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxi ...
flyweight champion
Juan Francisco Estrada Juan Francisco Estrada Romero (born April 14, 1990) is a Mexican professional boxer. He is a two-weight world champion, having held ''The Ring'' super flyweight title since 2019. He previously held the WBA (Unified) and WBO flyweight titles be ...
, when the latter vacated to compete at super flyweight. Ioka was knocked down for the first time in his career against 18 year old challenger and WBA
interim champion An interim championship is an alternate title that is awarded by the sanctioning bodies of professional boxing, and in other combat sports such as kickboxing, professional wrestling, and mixed martial arts. Occasionally, the champion of a particul ...
Stamp Kiatniwat Yutthana Kaensa ( th, ยุทธนา แก่นสา, born 7 January 1998), known as Stamp Kiatniwat (แสตมป์ เกียรตินิวัฒน์), Stamp Sithmorseng (แสตมป์ ศิษย์หมอเส็ ...
. Ioka rallied, pummeling Kiatniwat to the body, until he finally dropped the challenger twice in round 9. The referee halted the fight with the second knockdown. The win was Ioka's fourth flyweight defense. In November 2017, Ioka vacated his title after five successful defenses. He was planning to defend on December 31 but his father stated that he would not be ready to do so, as he hadn't kept up with his training after getting married earlier in the year to
Nana Tanimura , is a Japanese pop singer. Background Tanimura was raised mainly in Osaka. She moved frequently between Osaka and Hawaii between the ages of 3 and 8, after which she also stayed for an extended period of time in Los Angeles. Tanimura was enr ...
. Ioka went on to announce his retirement at age 28 after getting married and reportedly falling out with his father and promoter, Kazunori Ioka.


Super-flyweight

On New Year's Eve in 2018, Ioka fought four weight champion
Donnie Nietes Donnie Liboon Nietes (born May 12, 1982) is a Filipino professional boxer. He is a world champion in four weight-classes, having previously held the WBO mini-flyweight title from 2007 to 2011; the WBO and ''The Ring'' magazine junior-flywei ...
for the WBO super-flyweight title in an attempt to win a world title in a fourth weight class. Although many thought Ioka had done enough to win the fight, he controversially lost by split decision, with a 116–112 scorecard in his favor being overruled by 116–112 and 118–110 scorecards in favor of Nietes.


WBO super-flyweight champion

In June 2019, Ioka fought
Aston Palicte Aston Palicte (born 25 January 1991) is a Filipinos, Filipino professional boxer who challenged for the World Boxing Organization, WBO super flyweight title twice between 2018 and 2019. Professional career On September 8, 2018 he fought Donnie N ...
for the vacant WBO super flyweight title in his second attempt to become a four-weight champion. In the tenth round, after leading on all three judges' scorecards, Ioka scored a TKO victory to become the first Japanese boxer in history to win a major title in four weight classes. On New Year's Eve in 2019, Ioka fought undefeated Jeyvier Cintrón in his first defense of his WBO title, winning a twelve-round unanimous decision with two judges scoring the bout 116–112 and the third scoring it 115–113. Ioka made the second defense of his WBO title in an exciting fight against undefeated three weight champion and domestic foe Kosei Tanaka on New Year's Eve 2020 in Tokyo. After a competitive first four rounds in which Tanaka was the aggressor and Ioka found success with counter punches, Ioka dropped his opponent in the fifth round with a counter left hook. With about a minute left in the sixth round, he again knocked Tanaka down. In the eighth round, Ioka caught his opponent with another hard counter left hook, and referee Michiaki Someya caught Tanaka before he could fall and waved off the fight, with Ioka retaining his WBO title via eighth-round technical knockout. On June 1, 2021, the WBO ordered Ioka to defend his super-flyweight title against their #2 contender in the division, former unified mini-flyweight champion Francisco Rodríguez Jr. The bout between Ioka and Rodríguez took place on September 1, 2021 in Tokyo. Ioka won the fight by unanimous decision, with all three judges awarding scores of 116–112 in his favor.


Ioka vs. Ancajas cancellation

Ioka was expected to face the
IBF The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...
super flyweight champion
Jerwin Ancajas Jerwin Juntilla Ancajas (born 1 January 1992) is a Filipino professional boxer. He held the IBF junior-bantamweight title from 2016 to 2022. Personal life Jerwin was born and raised in Panabo, a suburb of Davao City, Philippines. He was int ...
in a title unification bout on December 31, 2021, at the
Ota City General Gymnasium Ota City General Gymnasium is an arena in Ōta, Tokyo is a special ward located in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. In English, it is often called Ōta City. , the ward has an estimated population of 716,413, with 379,199 households and a populatio ...
in
Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
. The fight was officially postponed on December 3, as stricter
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...
measures imposed by the Japanese government prevented Ancajas from entering the country. Ioka was rescheduled to face the WBO Asia Pacific and OPBF super flyweight champion
Ryoji Fukunaga is a retired Japanese professional boxer. He was a one-time WBO super-flyweight title challenger and the former OPBF and WBO Asia-Pacific super–flyweight champion. Professional boxing career Early career 2015 Rookie of the Year tournament ...
instead, on the same date and at the same venue. He won the fight by unanimous decision, with scores of 115-113, 116-112 and 118-110.


Ioka vs. Nietes II

On April 1, 2022, the WBO ordered Ioka to make a mandatory title defense against
Donnie Nietes Donnie Liboon Nietes (born May 12, 1982) is a Filipino professional boxer. He is a world champion in four weight-classes, having previously held the WBO mini-flyweight title from 2007 to 2011; the WBO and ''The Ring'' magazine junior-flywei ...
. The bout will be a rematch of their December 31, 2018, fight, which Nietes won by split decision. The pair came to an agreement a month later, and officially announced the bout for July 13. Ioka won the fight by unanimous decision, with scores of 120–108, 118–110 and 117–111.


Ioka vs. Franco

On December 31, 2022, Ioka made his sixth super flyweight title defense in a unification bout with WBA champion
Joshua Franco Joshua Franco (born October 27, 1995) is an American professional boxer who has held the WBA super flyweight title since 2020. Professional career Early career Franco made his professional debut on August 6, 2015, scoring a four-round split d ...
. They fought into a majority draw and retained both their titles. Ioka vacated the WBO title on February 14, in order to face Franco in a rematch after being ordered to make a mandatory title defense against Junto Nakatani. Ioka beat Franco by unanimous decision to capture the WBA title, which was previously vacated as Franco failed to make weight.


Personal life

Ioka was born in Sakai, Osaka, and currently resides in Tokyo. In April 2021, reports surfaced that Ioka had failed a drug test and tested positive for marijuana, with the sample having been examined at length as part of an ongoing investigation with the
National Police Agency National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries: *Afghanistan: Afghan National Police *Haiti: Haitian National Police *Colombia: National Police of Colombia *Cuba: Cuban National Police *East Timor: National Police of ...
as well as the Japanese Boxing Commission (JBC). Speaking on Ioka's behalf, his lawyer Masanao Hattori said that Ioka “strongly denies he has ever used” any form of cannabis, and suggested it could be attributed to the use of
CBD oil Cannabidiol (CBD) is a phytocannabinoid discovered in 1940. It is one of 113 identified cannabinoids in cannabis plants, along with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and accounts for up to 40% of the plant's extract. , clinical research on CBD incl ...
. On 19 May 2021, Ioka was cleared of all doping charges, as it emerged that the JBC had mishandled the samples, and they took responsibility for their poor sample management.


Professional boxing record


See also

* List of world mini-flyweight boxing champions * List of world light-flyweight boxing champions * List of world flyweight boxing champions * List of world super-flyweight boxing champions *
List of boxing quadruple champions A quadruple champion in boxing refers to a boxer who has won world titles in four different categories of weight. Recognition Major sanctioning bodies There is some dispute on which sanctioning body is considered "major" enough to award champions ...
* List of Japanese boxing world champions * Boxing in Japan


References


External links

*
Kazuto Ioka - Profile, News Archive & Current Rankings
a
Box.Live
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ioka, Kazuto 1989 births Living people Japanese male boxers Sportspeople from Sakai, Osaka World mini-flyweight boxing champions World light-flyweight boxing champions World flyweight boxing champions World super-flyweight boxing champions World Boxing Association champions World Boxing Council champions World Boxing Organization champions 21st-century Japanese people