Kōki Kameda

Kōki Kameda
Statistics
Real name Kōki Kameda
Nickname(s) Naniwa no Tōken (浪速の逃犬) "The Fighting Fist of Osaka" shame of Japan[1]
Rated at Light flyweight
Flyweight
Bantamweight
Height 1.66 m (5 ft 5.5 in)
Reach 1.68 m (5 ft 6.2 in)
Nationality Japanese
Born (1986-11-17) November 17, 1986
Osaka, Japan
Stance Southpaw/八百長
Boxing record
Total fights 35
Wins 33
Wins by KO 18
Losses 2

Kōki Kameda (亀田 興毅 Kameda Kōki, born November 17, 1986) is a Japanese professional boxer. He is a former WBA (Regular) bantamweight Champion and a former WBC flyweight champion. He is the oldest of the three Kameda brothers and presided over the Kameda Promotions.[2] His brothers, Daiki and Tomoki, are also boxers.

Amateur career

Back in 2000 when Kameda was only 14 years old, Kameda managed to get some national attention by taking on former two time division world champion, Hiroki Ioka, in a 2 round exhibition match. Ioka was the inaugural WBC minimumweight champion and was also the former WBA lightflyweight champion, a title which Kameda himself would controversially win in August 2006. Kameda at first was believed to have got a first round knockdown on the former champion by landing a left straight and a right hook, but the referee ruled it as a slip. Kameda throughout the exhibition bout, would try to go for a knockout. However, the fight went the distance and this would jump start Kameda by going all out on the former champion.

Pro career

On August 2, 2006, in his first attempt for the world title, Kameda squared off with Juan Jose Landaeta of Venezuela in Yokohama, Japan, for the World Boxing Association light flyweight title. The fight was rather controversial as Kameda won the fight in a split decision despite getting knocked down in the first round and being dominated in the final two rounds. Further fueling controversy was the fact that the Korean judge who scored the fight 114-113 in Kameda's favor gave the final round to Kameda 10-9, although the perception by most observers was that the clearly exhausted Japanese boxer did nothing but tie up his opponent and try to avoid being knocked out in that round. If the Korean judge had scored the final round in favor of Landaeta, the Venezuelan would have won the bout. The match reinforced the existence of a home field advantage and the bias a foreign fighter must face when fighting on Japanese soil.

There were mixed reactions from the Japanese public after the fight. Some 50,000 calls complaining against the decision were made to TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System, the station that broadcast the fight) to complain about the decision. While some hailed the 19-year-old's aggressiveness and impressive technique, others believed Landaeta was obviously the better fighter and exposed Kameda's inexperience and questionable stamina. Despite the controversial nature of the decision, it was a close, bitterly contested bout. Scoring some of the very close earlier rounds for Kameda would give the young fighter the necessary buffer on the scorecards to required to win, despite Landaeta's late charge. Kameda's father and trainer's backlash against the critics went as far as death threats.[3]

Rematch and defending the title

On December 20, 2006, in a highly anticipated rematch, Kameda decisively defeated Juan Jose Landaeta at Ariake Colosseum in Tokyo, Japan. Kameda employed a rather different boxing style from the one he used back in the title match on August. Kameda outboxed Landaeta for most of the match using his quickness and accuracy, and won by unanimous decision.

Kameda vacated his Light Flyweight Championship to move up to the Flyweight division on January 22, 2007.

Winning the WBC flyweight title

Koki Kameda beat Daisuke Naito on November 29, 2009 for the Lineal & WBC flyweight championships.[4]

Defending against Pongsaklek Wonjongkam

On March 27, 2010, Koki Kameda fought Wonjongkam to unify the WBC Flyweight championship and interim WBC Flyweight championship. The winner would also claim the vacant The Ring's Flyweight championship. Wonjongkam defeated Kameda by a 12 round majority decision to become the WBC and Ring/Lineal Flyweight champion.

WBA Bantamweight title

On December 26, 2010 Kameda went up to the Bantamweight weight class and fought Alexander Munoz of Venezuela for the vacant WBA Bantamweight Regular Title. Kameda defeated Munoz by unanimous decision to win the title.[5] In May 2012, Kameda status was changed to "Champion in Recess", as he claimed an injury that prevented him from fighting mandatory contender and Interim Champion Hugo Ruiz.[6][7] Kameda was restored to Champion in November 2012, but vacated his title in December 2013, following a call for a unification match with WBA Super Champion Anselmo Moreno, in order to move down to the super flyweight division.[8]

Professional Boxing Record

33 Wins (18 knockouts, 15 decisions), 2 Losses, 0 Draws[9]
Res. Record Opponent Type Rd., Time Date Location Notes
Loss 33–2 Japan Kohei Kono UD 12 2015-10-16 United States UIC Pavilion, Chicago, Illinois For WBA World Super Flyweight title.
Win 33–1 Mexico Omar Salado KO 4 (10), 2:21 2014-11-01 United States UIC Pavilion, Chicago, Illinois
Win 32–1 South Korea Jung-Oh Son SD 12 2013-11-19 South Korea Grand Hotel, Jeju Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 31–1 Philippines John Mark Apolinario UD 12 2013-07-23 Japan Tokyo Big Sight, Tokyo Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 30–1 Thailand Panomroonglek Kaiyanghadaogym SD 12 2013-04-07 Japan Bodymaker Colosseum, Osaka Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 29–1 Mexico Hugo Ruiz SD 12 2012-12-04 Japan Bodymaker Colosseum, Osaka Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 28–1 Indonesia Nouldy Manakane UD 12 2012-04-04 Japan Yokohama Arena, Yokohama Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 27–1 Mexico Mario Macias KO 4 (12), 2:04 2011-12-07 Japan Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 26–1 Mexico David De La Mora UD 12 2011-08-31 Japan Nihon Budokan, Tokyo Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 25–1 Nicaragua Daniel Diaz RTD 11 (12), 3:00 2011-05-07 Japan Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka Retained WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 24–1 Venezuela Alexander Muñoz UD 12 2010-12-26 Japan Saitama Super Arena, Saitama Won vacant WBA (Regular) Bantamweight title.
Win 23–1 Mexico Cecilio Santos KO 4 (10), 0:49 2010-07-25 Japan Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka
Loss 22–1 Thailand Pongsaklek Wonjongkam MD 12 2010-03-27 Japan Ariake Colosseum, Tokyo Lost Lineal and WBC Flyweight titles.
For vacant The Ring Flyweight title.
Win 22–0 Japan Daisuke Naito UD 12 2009-11-29 Japan Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka Won Lineal and WBC Flyweight titles.
Win 21–0 Mexico Humberto Pool KO 5 (10), 2:29 2009-09-05 Japan Differ Ariake Arena, Tokyo
Win 20–0 Mexico Dolores Osorio KO 2 (10), 2:09 2009-09-05 Japan Saitama Super Arena, Saitama
Win 19–0 Mexico Salvador Montes UD 12 2008-08-30 Mexico Monterrey Arena, Monterrey, Nuevo León Won vacant WBA (Regular) Inter-Continental Flyweight title.
Win 18–0 Mexico Marino Montiel TKO 2 (10), 1:54 2008-07-12 Mexico Palenque De La Expo, Hermosillo, Sonora
Win 17–0 Philippines Rexon Flores UD 10 2008-03-22 Japan Makuhari Messe, Chiba City
Win 16–0 United States Cesar Lopez UD 10 2007-07-28 Japan Ariake Colosseum, Tokyo
Win 15–0 Indonesia Irfan Ogah TKO 8 (10), 2:23 2007-05-23 Japan Central Gym, Osaka
Win 14–0 Mexico Everardo Morales UD 10 2007-03-24 Japan Kokugikan, Tokyo
Win 13–0 Venezuela Juan Jose Landaeta UD 12 2006-12-20 Japan Ariake Colosseum, Tokyo Retained WBA World Light Flyweight title.
Win 12–0 Venezuela Juan Jose Landaeta SD 12 2006-08-02 Japan Yokohama Arena, Yokohama, Kanagawa Won vacant WBA World Light Flyweight title.
Win 11–0 Nicaragua Carlos Fajardo TKO 2 (10), 1:28 2006-05-05 Japan Ariake Colosseum, Tokyo
Win 10–0 Mexico Carlos Bouchan KO 6 (10), 2:20 2006-03-08 Japan Kokugikan, Tokyo
Win 9–0 Venezuela Noel Arambulet RTD 7 (10), 3:00 2005-11-26 Japan Saitama Super Arena, Saitama
Win 8–0 Thailand Wanmeechok Singwancha TKO 3 (12), 0:50 2005-08-21 Japan Bunka Gym, Yokohama, Kanagawa Won OPBF Flyweight title.
Win 7–0 Thailand Saman Sorjaturong KO 1 (10), 2:59 2005-06-20 Japan Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
Win 6–0 Thailand Yodkeng Singwangcha KO 1 (10), 2:10 2005-02-21 Japan Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
Win 5–0 Thailand Nopadetchlek Chuwatana KO 2 (10), 0:59 2004-12-13 Japan Central Hall, Osaka
Win 4–0 Thailand Daochai KT Gym UD 10 2004-09-27 Japan Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka
Win 3–0 Thailand Saming Twingym KO 1 (8), 1:48 2004-05-22 Japan Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka
Win 2–0 Thailand Prakan Twingym KO 1 (6), 1:12 2004-03-13 Japan Central Gym, Osaka
Win 1–0 Thailand Dennarong Sithsoba KO 1 (6), 0:44 2003-12-21 Japan Central Gym, Osaka Professional debut.

Criticism

Kameda is often criticized for his flamboyance, immaturity, and lack of respect both inside and outside the ring. He has never spoken courteously towards anyone in his numerous TV appearances, (considering that the Japanese language has tenses specifically used for courteous speech) and often taunts opponents with insulting presents and language. Criticism also revolves around his boxing skills and sportsmanship. The fact that Kameda's first six opponents had a combined record of 0-18 brought much criticism during the early part of his professional career. Many Japanese boxers, including former WBC Super flyweight champion Masamori Tokuyama and WBC Minimumweight title Eagle Kyowa, have stated that they could easily defeat Kameda if given a chance, and that his boasting and popularity are greatly out of proportion with his actual skills in the ring.

There was an outcry from the Japanese public about his first bout against Landaeta being fixed. Former world champions Guts Ishimatsu and Yasuei Yakushiji have commented that they believe Kameda lost the fight.[10]

He was also involved in the controversy surrounding his brother Daiki during his fight with Daisuke Naito. Koki escaped with a warning about advising Daiki to elbow Naito in the eye. His brother was suspended from fighting for one year and his father was suspended indefinitely for the incident.[11]

It was originally rumored and intended that Kameda would fight then WBC Light Flyweight title holder, Brian Viloria, in a WBA/WBC unification title fight. However, Kameda's controversial decision over Landaeta in the first match and Viloria losing to Omar Nino made the match difficult to produce further talks.

He is dubbed as Naniwa no Tōken (浪速の闘拳) in Japanese.[12] Naniwa is a former designation of Osaka. The nickname denotes "The Fighting Fist of Osaka", though it is sometimes derided by his anti-fans as "浪速の逃犬" (pronounced the same as the original one),[13] which means the run-away dog of Osaka.

See also

References

External links

Vacant
Title last held by
Roberto Vásquez
WBA Light Flyweight Champion
August 2, 2006 January 19, 2007
Vacated
Vacant
Title next held by
Juan Carlos Reveco
Preceded by
Daisuke Naito
WBC Flyweight Champion
November 29, 2009 March 27, 2010
Succeeded by
Pongsaklek Wonjongkam
Lineal Flyweight Champion
November 29, 2009 March 27, 2010
Vacant
Title last held by
Anselmo Moreno
Champion promoted to Super Champion
WBA Bantamweight Champion
Regular Title

December 26, 2010 May 8, 2012
Status changed
Vacant
Title next held by
Kōki Kameda
Vacant WBA Bantamweight Champion in Recess
Regular Title

May 8, 2012 November 9, 2012
Status changed
Vacant
Vacant
Title last held by
Kōki Kameda
WBA Bantamweight Champion
Regular Title

November 9, 2012 December 6, 2013
Vacated
Vacant
Title next held by
Jamie McDonnell
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