(Boxing) Kazuto Ioka vs Joshua Boxing Match Begins 31 December 2022

[fennic]

The expected Dec. 31 fight between Kazuto Ioka and Joshua Franco is now official, with the two meeting in Tokyo for a pair of junior bantamweight titles.
The 33 Years old Loka Who was best player in it's generation and he won many titles of 105,108, 112 and moved to 115 in 2018 and he retired for some time and how he is going back again for boxing.
On the Other hand, Franco, 27, has fought six of his last seven fights against two opponents. He went 1-0-2 in a bantamweight trilogy with Oscar Negrete in 2018-19, then moved down in weight to beat Jose Alejandro Burgos in early 2020. And his last 3 fights were against Andrew Moloney and let's see what will happen.
Who is Willing to bet these two boxers. Time will tell who was right about winner.
I was expecting that someone might give me merit 🤣

[1714256049]

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[1714256049]

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[yazher]

Kazuto needs to fight more aggressively and fair because after what happened to the fight of Casimero in Japan against his countrymen, people are now considering fighting in their country is not a good choice at all because of how poor they actually managed the last one when their boxer cheated in the middle of the day and with the camera zoomed to his face. Also, the referee has something to do with it when he stops the fight because of clear drama. Anyway, that's just how they are when they really wanted to help their countrymen and hopefully Joshua will do his very best because if he doesn't give Kazuto a hard time, and take the chance to knock him down, he will end up losing by unanimous decision.

[aioc]

I remember Ioka when he fought Nietes I thought it was a unanimous win by Nietes because he dominated the fight but it was a split decision he has a 48.39% knockout ratio, against Franco he will a hard time Franco is a very aggressive fighter it's a very even match and it's an exciting match since this is a unification bout, my bet is on Joshua I like his style he loves to go all out one of his prominent matches is against Andrew Moloney.

[Daltonik]

Kazuto Ioka is an experienced boxer and he has had more fights over the past year and the last fight in which he won by decision of the judges was on July 13, 2022 with Donnie Nietes, Joshua's last fight took place on August 14, 2021 with Andrew Moloney. This year, the Joshua vs Estrada fight was supposed to take place, but after Estrada refused to fight and the title, Joshua became the only WBA champion in the first lightest weight, so he did not enter the ring for a year and a half. Whether such a simple one will benefit him will be seen very soon, but definitely the age difference is on his side.

[Botnake]

I thought Joshua Franco is a Fiipino boxer, but according to https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/727368.. he is an American boxer.

So, I think have a little interest in this fight, but judging by their records, I'm rooting for Kazuto Ioka to win as the is the most experienced boxer.
Both are not a KO artist, so that does not excite me.

[harizen]

Kazuto needs to fight more aggressively and fair because after what happened to the fight of Casimero in Japan against his countrymen, people are now considering fighting in their country is not a good choice at all because of how poor they actually managed the last one when their boxer cheated in the middle of the day and with the camera zoomed to his face.

Hmm, any official source or link that tells many people are now considering Japan as not a good choice for a fight? Anyways, never mind as Casimero and Akaho didn't fight on Japanese soil but on South Korea although the referee in charge was Japanese. And don't worry about the result of that fight as from NO CONTEST it was now changed to a TKO victory for Casimero. Akaho admits that he was clearly struggling against Casimero.

Anyways, that should not be a topic here.

Going back to the topic, the name Kazuto Ioka is quite still fresh for PH boxing fans after the Japanese defeated one of the PH greats Donnie Nietes way back in June this year. Can't say who has the better edge between Kazuto Ioka and Joshua Franco as both champions won't reach their respective status if they are not good. Although Franco is roughly 6 years younger than Ioka, we can't consider the age as a big factor here.

[Natalim]

Although Franco is roughly 6 years younger than Ioka, we can't consider the age as a big factor here.

That would matter if  Kazuto Ioka is already old, but he is only 33 years old, so it's not a big deal despite their huge age difference. I think the experience is way more vital here, and since  Kazuto Ioka has more experience, I guess he will have the edge in this fight. Anyway, I think we should wait for the betting odds to determine how bookies see this particular fight.

[Getmon]

Saw Joshua Franco fought Moloney live on television. He is a formidable boxer. I'm not familiar with Ioka, but I know he is very popular in Japan, where he was born. This is a style clash. We adore watching champions clash.

Ioka finished his defense versus Nietes. Apparently, he is the more active boxer. Backed by his Japanese fans, Ioka will prevail over his American opponent by unanimous decision.

This is a battle between two champions; we might be able to watch them live if we can locate a link. In the event that you can find down one, share your connections amigos. It surprises me that this will occur next week in New Year.

[cabron]

Saw Joshua Franco fought Moloney live on television. He is a formidable boxer. I'm not familiar with Ioka, but I know he is very popular in Japan, where he was born. This is a style clash. We adore watching champions clash.

Ioka finished his defense versus Nietes. Apparently, he is the more active boxer. Backed by his Japanese fans, Ioka will prevail over his American opponent by unanimous decision.

This is a battle between two champions; we might be able to watch them live if we can locate a link. In the event that you can find down one, share your connections amigos. It surprises me that this will occur next week in New Year.

Both don't have an impressive record despite being champions actually. Ioka spent almost all his fights are only in Japan While Franco had earn his popularity because of his trilogy with Moloney. Ioka however has the advantage over Franco since the event will be in Japan, fans will cheer him.

But it's good to see Japan has something to get crazy about before the new year ends. 

[Getmon]

Saw Joshua Franco fought Moloney live on television. He is a formidable boxer. I'm not familiar with Ioka, but I know he is very popular in Japan, where he was born. This is a style clash. We adore watching champions clash.

Ioka finished his defense versus Nietes. Apparently, he is the more active boxer. Backed by his Japanese fans, Ioka will prevail over his American opponent by unanimous decision.

This is a battle between two champions; we might be able to watch them live if we can locate a link. In the event that you can find down one, share your connections amigos. It surprises me that this will occur next week in New Year.

Both don't have an impressive record despite being champions actually. Ioka spent almost all his fights are only in Japan While Franco had earn his popularity because of his trilogy with Moloney. Ioka however has the advantage over Franco since the event will be in Japan, fans will cheer him.

But it's good to see Japan has something to get crazy about before the new year ends. 

Numerous boxing divisions are ruled by Japanese champions, such as Naoya Inoue. What's more, Japan is a rich country which implies there is a high probability that they will be the one facilitating world title events very much like the USA and Europe. In a literal sense, you need not necessarily venture into the hometown of your opponents to be impressive. But I also agree that going to fights anywhere will make some good impressions. It is risky, robberies happen whether you are the champion, Manny Pacquiao was robbed in Australia. Possibly one of the reasons Floyd Mayweather Jr. never fought outside of the USA.

[btc_angela]

Saw Joshua Franco fought Moloney live on television. He is a formidable boxer. I'm not familiar with Ioka, but I know he is very popular in Japan, where he was born. This is a style clash. We adore watching champions clash.

Ioka finished his defense versus Nietes. Apparently, he is the more active boxer. Backed by his Japanese fans, Ioka will prevail over his American opponent by unanimous decision.

This is a battle between two champions; we might be able to watch them live if we can locate a link. In the event that you can find down one, share your connections amigos. It surprises me that this will occur next week in New Year.

Both don't have an impressive record despite being champions actually. Ioka spent almost all his fights are only in Japan While Franco had earn his popularity because of his trilogy with Moloney. Ioka however has the advantage over Franco since the event will be in Japan, fans will cheer him.

But it's good to see Japan has something to get crazy about before the new year ends. 

This looks like 50/50 to me, both are great boxers with impressive record, but I do agree that Ioka was one advantage, that his he has the crowd behind him as another of their home town hero.

But as per one sportsbook, Ioka is 1.60 favorite against France at 2.30

So this fight could end up in the judges scorecard, I'm not seeing a knockout but it's going to be a war here.

[Jawhead999]

This looks like 50/50 to me, both are great boxers with impressive record, but I do agree that Ioka was one advantage, that his he has the crowd behind him as another of their home town hero.

But as per one sportsbook, Ioka is 1.60 favorite against France at 2.30

So this fight could end up in the judges scorecard, I'm not seeing a knockout but it's going to be a war here.

Yep, but if we look about Joshua Franco, he seems like a boxer who stuck and can't improve. This is because he's fight with a same boxer and the result is always same, when he fight with Andrew Moloney he win via unanimous decision, when he fight with Oscar Negrete the result is 2 draw and 1 win, but it's ended via split decision.

I'm more interested to bet by winning method option, Joshua or Ioka via decision is high chance will happen, but I think Ioka has a chance to win via knock out. The odds is really high for 8.80x, I will try to throw for few dollars.

[Ziskinberg]

Saw Joshua Franco fought Moloney live on television. He is a formidable boxer. I'm not familiar with Ioka, but I know he is very popular in Japan, where he was born. This is a style clash. We adore watching champions clash.

Ioka finished his defense versus Nietes. Apparently, he is the more active boxer. Backed by his Japanese fans, Ioka will prevail over his American opponent by unanimous decision.

This is a battle between two champions; we might be able to watch them live if we can locate a link. In the event that you can find down one, share your connections amigos. It surprises me that this will occur next week in New Year.

Both don't have an impressive record despite being champions actually. Ioka spent almost all his fights are only in Japan While Franco had earn his popularity because of his trilogy with Moloney. Ioka however has the advantage over Franco since the event will be in Japan, fans will cheer him.

But it's good to see Japan has something to get crazy about before the new year ends. 

This looks like 50/50 to me, both are great boxers with impressive record, but I do agree that Ioka was one advantage, that his he has the crowd behind him as another of their home town hero.

But as per one sportsbook, Ioka is 1.60 favorite against France at 2.30

So this fight could end up in the judges scorecard, I'm not seeing a knockout but it's going to be a war here.

True, there's no knockout here as both boxers are not heavy hitters. Well, if that is the betting odds and you think it looks 50/50, then you should choose the fighter with 2.30 odds as that definitely could give you great value if ever you win.

[harizen]

Although Franco is roughly 6 years younger than Ioka, we can't consider the age as a big factor here.

That would matter if  Kazuto Ioka is already old, but he is only 33 years old, so it's not a big deal despite their huge age difference. I think the experience is way more vital here, and since  Kazuto Ioka has more experience, I guess he will have the edge in this fight. Anyway, I think we should wait for the betting odds to determine how bookies see this particular fight.

That's why I said age can't be considered. You just rephrase it hehe.

Moving forward, I have to agree that experience matters, and not being biased against Akaho, but referring to his previous fights, he has the most competitive challenges compared to Franco. Defending his current title several times is not a joke.

I'm sure Akaho will be the Favorite here by the bookies but not sure if the odds gap is that distant or not.

[BitcoinPanther]

Although Franco is roughly 6 years younger than Ioka, we can't consider the age as a big factor here.

That would matter if  Kazuto Ioka is already old, but he is only 33 years old, so it's not a big deal despite their huge age difference. I think the experience is way more vital here, and since  Kazuto Ioka has more experience, I guess he will have the edge in this fight. Anyway, I think we should wait for the betting odds to determine how bookies see this particular fight.

Kazuto Ioka can be considered to be at his prime in this age so I think in battle between prime boxer, the one with more experience has the advantage unless the opponent has tremendous punching power that can KO his opponent anytime.  Looking at the record of both boxer, Kazuto had never been stopped while Franco got 1 stopped in his fight.  I will go with Kazuto Ioka in this fight because I believe he is the tougher boxer and has more experience.  The knock out percentage is almost identical but in term of toughness, I believe Ioka is tougher for the reason that Ioka hasn't been stopped yet.

[AmoreJaz]

Although Franco is roughly 6 years younger than Ioka, we can't consider the age as a big factor here.

That would matter if  Kazuto Ioka is already old, but he is only 33 years old, so it's not a big deal despite their huge age difference. I think the experience is way more vital here, and since  Kazuto Ioka has more experience, I guess he will have the edge in this fight. Anyway, I think we should wait for the betting odds to determine how bookies see this particular fight.

Kazuto Ioka can be considered to be at his prime in this age so I think in battle between prime boxer, the one with more experience has the advantage unless the opponent has tremendous punching power that can KO his opponent anytime.  Looking at the record of both boxer, Kazuto had never been stopped while Franco got 1 stopped in his fight.  I will go with Kazuto Ioka in this fight because I believe he is the tougher boxer and has more experience.  The knock out percentage is almost identical but in term of toughness, I believe Ioka is tougher for the reason that Ioka hasn't been stopped yet.

if kazuto is in good shape and has regular trainings, i would go for kazuto also. his last fight with donnie nietes was UD last july of this year. so this is not a long break for kazuto. obviously, kazuto is the favourite on this match.

the odds at stake right now -

[Baofeng]

This looks like 50/50 to me, both are great boxers with impressive record, but I do agree that Ioka was one advantage, that his he has the crowd behind him as another of their home town hero.

But as per one sportsbook, Ioka is 1.60 favorite against France at 2.30

So this fight could end up in the judges scorecard, I'm not seeing a knockout but it's going to be a war here.

Yep, but if we look about Joshua Franco, he seems like a boxer who stuck and can't improve. This is because he's fight with a same boxer and the result is always same, when he fight with Andrew Moloney he win via unanimous decision, when he fight with Oscar Negrete the result is 2 draw and 1 win, but it's ended via split decision.

I'm more interested to bet by winning method option, Joshua or Ioka via decision is high chance will happen, but I think Ioka has a chance to win via knock out. The odds is really high for 8.80x, I will try to throw for few dollars.

The odds for a knockout is high mate,

Ioka by KO - 8.60
Franco by KO - 9.80

That's already a juicy odd and your few dollars is worth every cent if this will be the outcome of this fight, so yeah why not throw a couple of dollars and see how it goes.

[robelneo]

Although Franco is roughly 6 years younger than Ioka, we can't consider the age as a big factor here.

That would matter if  Kazuto Ioka is already old, but he is only 33 years old, so it's not a big deal despite their huge age difference. I think the experience is way more vital here, and since  Kazuto Ioka has more experience, I guess he will have the edge in this fight. Anyway, I think we should wait for the betting odds to determine how bookies see this particular fight.

Kazuto Ioka can be considered to be at his prime in this age so I think in battle between prime boxer, the one with more experience has the advantage unless the opponent has tremendous punching power that can KO his opponent anytime.  Looking at the record of both boxer, Kazuto had never been stopped while Franco got 1 stopped in his fight.  I will go with Kazuto Ioka in this fight because I believe he is the tougher boxer and has more experience.  The knock out percentage is almost identical but in term of toughness, I believe Ioka is tougher for the reason that Ioka hasn't been stopped yet.

For someone who fought and lasted 12 rounds against Nietes in his prime and beating Nietes in their second match is already a huge achievement for him, he is now in battle tested and I'm sure he will use this experience to beat Joshua this is a good match up considering that both are champions and the fight could go either way, but predict Kazuto to win by a decision
here considering that it will be held in Japan.

[goinmerry]

For someone who fought and lasted 12 rounds against Nietes in his prime and beating Nietes in their second match is already a huge achievement for him, he is now in battle tested and I'm sure he will use this experience to beat Joshua this is a good match up considering that both are champions and the fight could go either way, but predict Kazuto to win by a decision here considering that it will be held in Japan.

In terms of weighing in the boxers that they fought in their entire career, I see that Ioka does have a better lineup of opponents compared to Franco.

Although it doesn't mean that Ioka should be tougher as Franco is also a champion and to reach that stage is tough work.

I just wonder why some of the Japanese top boxers always fight in Japan and not considering to fight outside their country. Who's responsible for that?

[FinneysTrueVision]

In terms of weighing in the boxers that they fought in their entire career, I see that Ioka does have a better lineup of opponents compared to Franco.

Although it doesn't mean that Ioka should be tougher as Franco is also a champion and to reach that stage is tough work.

I just wonder why some of the Japanese top boxers always fight in Japan and not considering to fight outside their country. Who's responsible for that?

The smaller weight classes are often dominated by Asian fighters so there is not a lot of interest in these divisions in the United States and Europe. There is not really an incentive to fight outside of their country. Inoue has had a few fights in the United States but as good as he is he is not really that popular over there.

[coin-investor]

In terms of weighing in the boxers that they fought in their entire career, I see that Ioka does have a better lineup of opponents compared to Franco.

Although it doesn't mean that Ioka should be tougher as Franco is also a champion and to reach that stage is tough work.

I just wonder why some of the Japanese top boxers always fight in Japan and not considering to fight outside their country. Who's responsible for that?

The smaller weight classes are often dominated by Asian fighters so there is not a lot of interest in these divisions in the United States and Europe. There is not really an incentive to fight outside of their country. Inoue has had a few fights in the United States but as good as he is he is not really that popular over there.

The Japanese promoters have enough money to get the fight held in their backyard for their boxers, and of course, they want to serve their boxing community in their country so they want their best Japanese fighters to do their fight here in their backyard, of course, to get support from the home crowds, the smaller weight classes may not be popular in the US but some of the best fighters are on these or have been on these divisions like Inoue and Manny Pacquiao and Donaire and they are and once part of the ring magazine boxers of the year.

[inthelongrun]

In terms of weighing in the boxers that they fought in their entire career, I see that Ioka does have a better lineup of opponents compared to Franco.

Although it doesn't mean that Ioka should be tougher as Franco is also a champion and to reach that stage is tough work.

I just wonder why some of the Japanese top boxers always fight in Japan and not considering to fight outside their country. Who's responsible for that?

The smaller weight classes are often dominated by Asian fighters so there is not a lot of interest in these divisions in the United States and Europe. There is not really an incentive to fight outside of their country. Inoue has had a few fights in the United States but as good as he is he is not really that popular over there.

The Japanese promoters have enough money to get the fight held in their backyard for their boxers, and of course, they want to serve their boxing community in their country so they want their best Japanese fighters to do their fight here in their backyard, of course, to get support from the home crowds, the smaller weight classes may not be popular in the US but some of the best fighters are on these or have been on these divisions like Inoue and Manny Pacquiao and Donaire and they are and once part of the ring magazine boxers of the year.

I agree. If Japanese promoters have huge budgets then they can easily host their fighters' events. Back then, Japanese promoters like Teiken are handling foreign fighters too like Chocolatito Gonzales and Jorge Linares. Now it is declining but still, they have enough money to cover their fighters in order to stop them from visiting their opponents' backyards.

Actually, the super-flyweight division is currently popular in the US too. Chocolatito Gonzales and El Gallo Estrada are main-event fighters in the US over the years. So hopefully the winner of this unification will face Estrada (WBC) or Martinez (fresh from beating Jerwin Ancajas in their rematch) either in Japan or in the US for the undisputed belts. Hopefully, Martinez won't hide his IBF belt in Argentina.

[Baofeng]

In terms of weighing in the boxers that they fought in their entire career, I see that Ioka does have a better lineup of opponents compared to Franco.

Although it doesn't mean that Ioka should be tougher as Franco is also a champion and to reach that stage is tough work.

I just wonder why some of the Japanese top boxers always fight in Japan and not considering to fight outside their country. Who's responsible for that?

The smaller weight classes are often dominated by Asian fighters so there is not a lot of interest in these divisions in the United States and Europe. There is not really an incentive to fight outside of their country. Inoue has had a few fights in the United States but as good as he is he is not really that popular over there.

The Japanese promoters have enough money to get the fight held in their backyard for their boxers, and of course, they want to serve their boxing community in their country so they want their best Japanese fighters to do their fight here in their backyard, of course, to get support from the home crowds, the smaller weight classes may not be popular in the US but some of the best fighters are on these or have been on these divisions like Inoue and Manny Pacquiao and Donaire and they are and once part of the ring magazine boxers of the year.

I agree. If Japanese promoters have huge budgets then they can easily host their fighters' events. Back then, Japanese promoters like Teiken are handling foreign fighters too like Chocolatito Gonzales and Jorge Linares. Now it is declining but still, they have enough money to cover their fighters in order to stop them from visiting their opponents' backyards.

Yeah, even the famed Teiken boxing gym is now a relic in Japan if I'm not mistaken, other gyms are taking over. I guess for Japanese fighter to be really known overseas, they have to get out and find a US counter part promotional company just like what Naoya Inoue did with signing with Top Rank.

Actually, the super-flyweight division is currently popular in the US too. Chocolatito Gonzales and El Gallo Estrada are main-event fighters in the US over the years. So hopefully the winner of this unification will face Estrada (WBC) or Martinez (fresh from beating Jerwin Ancajas in their rematch) either in Japan or in the US for the undisputed belts. Hopefully, Martinez won't hide his IBF belt in Argentina.

It's possible, specially if they have boxers in the super-flyweight that can match against Estrada and Martinez and have it either in Japan or US.

I guess it's a dream for boxers as well to travel to Japan and have that experience fighting in a different soil because that's how tough boxers are build. Traveling to the opponents backyard and hand them a beating.

[Saisher]

I guess it's a dream for boxers as well to travel to Japan and have that experience fighting in a different soil because that's how tough boxers are build. Traveling to the opponents backyard and hand them a beating.

But not when you're fighting Inoue, Donaire learn it the hard way, but we have a lot of Filipinos who beat the best Japan can offer
one of these is Nietes who has done it many times in the past, Japanese promoters offer the best deal to entice boxers to come to Japan and fight there, they are capable of holding big fights, and its good that a lot of good boxers are carrying the torch of representing the Asian regions in World class boxing, Japanese, Filipinos, and Thailanders are three countries with the best boxers in the lower weight class.

[Baofeng]

Fresh from his final trilogy win against Chocolatito, Juan Francisco Estrada will be watching this fight because he wants to fight the winner and unify the belts,

“Ioka is a great fighter. He’s a four-division champion. Joshua Franco is a terrific fighter who is on the rise," Estrada told BoxingScene.com. “Honestly, I’d fight either one, so whoever wins is fine.”

“Ever since I was at flyweight, I’ve always wanted to fight Ioka. I would love to unify against him because that’s the fight I’ve wanted longer."

https://www.boxingscene.com/estrada-on-ioka-franco-whoever-wins-fine-love-unify-against-ioka--171449

So Estrada is looking for another war, winner of this fight. Ioka is still the favorite in this fight and if ever he wins here, for sure he will be obliged to fight Estrada as well, so the feeling is mutual. So let's see, everyone should be excited to see this fight with Franco but and it seems that Ioka is the favorite but not gonna be easy for him as Franco is also durable and might bring everything he can in this fight to try to pull an upset and derail his plans on Estrada.

[bisdak40]

So Estrada is looking for another war, winner of this fight. Ioka is still the favorite in this fight and if ever he wins here, for sure he will be obliged to fight Estrada as well, so the feeling is mutual. So let's see, everyone should be excited to see this fight with Franco but and it seems that Ioka is the favorite but not gonna be easy for him as Franco is also durable and might bring everything he can in this fight to try to pull an upset and derail his plans on Estrada.

Agree on this one bro. Personally, I just felt that there is something lacking in the style of Ioka, though he won against Ancajas but still he did not impressed me yet maybe if he could bet Franco, he could get my nod hehe but definitely Ioka is not the same level as Estrada or Chocolatito Gonzales.



I think Franco will upset today's festivity in Japan.

[bisdak40]

Lost my bet on this fight as the result was a majority draw, the scores were 115-113 for Franco while the other two judges give a typical 114-114 score.

Have not watched the fight live, only the highlights but seeing the comments that Franco was robbed, i think they have some reason to cry because Japan is known for its hometown decision (at least for me). If you want to win in Japan, you need to KO your opponent.

[coin-investor]

Lost my bet on this fight as the result was a majority draw, the scores were 115-113 for Franco while the other two judges give a typical 114-114 score.

Have not watched the fight live, only the highlights but seeing the comments that Franco was robbed, i think they have some reason to cry because Japan is known for its hometown decision (at least for me). If you want to win in Japan, you need to KO your opponent.

I checked the highlight of the fight and the fight may be too close but there was some point that Franco is dominating Ioka it was Franco who was strong with more jabs and Ioka relied on counterpunches, the fight was too close but I have Franco winning based on my observation, this is the kind of fight where no boxers totally dominated the fight, not to disappoint the crowd because its a championship they score it a draw, but yes it's hard to fight in Japan you must totally dominate your Japanese opponent like what Nietes did or knock out your opponent.

[Jawhead999]

I'm surprised why the fight ended as draw since Joshua has an edge over Ioka.

Ioka didn't really successful to play in defensive style and counter punch, there's many times Joshua's punch hit his face. If we count based on the total punch and domination, Joshua is win, while based on the clean punch, I'd say both of them are have same result. I think the score should be 115-113 favor on Joshua just like Christodoulou's scorecard. Does this result will change since it's quite controversial? just like Casimero vs Akaho

[aioc]

I'm surprised why the fight ended as draw since Joshua has an edge over Ioka.

Ioka didn't really successful to play in defensive style and counter punch, there's many times Joshua's punch hit his face. If we count based on the total punch and domination, Joshua is win, while based on the clean punch, I'd say both of them are have same result. I think the score should be 115-113 favor on Joshua just like Christodoulou's scorecard. Does this result will change since it's quite controversial? just like Casimero vs Akaho

It's unlikely that it will be changed, the judges' decisions are always final although there are exceptions like the fighter totally dominated the fight and even knock his opponents down and still lose we don't see these in this fight, there could be a rematch and done in a neutral ground like in Nevada.
For me, fight could have been won by Franco even by split so they can file a complaint for a rematch if they want it and the fight is held in Franco's country.

[btc_angela]

I'm surprised why the fight ended as draw since Joshua has an edge over Ioka.

Ioka didn't really successful to play in defensive style and counter punch, there's many times Joshua's punch hit his face. If we count based on the total punch and domination, Joshua is win, while based on the clean punch, I'd say both of them are have same result. I think the score should be 115-113 favor on Joshua just like Christodoulou's scorecard. Does this result will change since it's quite controversial? just like Casimero vs Akaho

Yeah, in my eyes it in very close but I think Franco should have won the fight by that score in my card. The thing is that he went to Ioka's home town and it's going to be very difficult to win unless it is a clear victory to win that the judges can't do anything but to award the win for him.

And I also doesn't think that they will reverse this decision, it's a sanction bout so the best that they can do is order for a rematch in a neutral country and see how it goes. We can't call it a robbery because there is no winner, but it's quite controversial at the end of year decision in boxing.

[robelneo]

And I also doesn't think that they will reverse this decision, it's a sanction bout so the best that they can do is order for a rematch in a neutral country and see how it goes. We can't call it a robbery because there is no winner, but it's quite controversial at the end of year decision in boxing.

It's a draw and I doubt they are going to reverse that, its a bad precedent and will cast doubts on the integrity of the two judges, it's better to have a rematch, Franco can opt to have that because he won on one judge, there's always a hometown decision if the fight is close, you have to totally dominate the fight or knock your opponent out if you are fighting in your opponent soil, this is what Haney did on the two occasions he beat Kambosos, he silenced the crowd and shut down opposition by dominating the fight from start to finish.

[Jating]

I look at the compubox numbers and it seems that it is also close, Franco throws a lot of punch, but Ioka is more consistent.

Nevertheless, since this is Japan so expect some biases judge in favor of the hometown hero. I know it's kinda disappointed to see a fight end in a draw with no winner and both keeping the belts, but the judge score is final here and will not be reverse in my opinion. Good fight though to end the year and most likely there could be a rematch so settle once and for all the winner between this two warriors.

[klidex]

I'm surprised why the fight ended as draw since Joshua has an edge over Ioka.

Ioka didn't really successful to play in defensive style and counter punch, there's many times Joshua's punch hit his face. If we count based on the total punch and domination, Joshua is win, while based on the clean punch, I'd say both of them are have same result. I think the score should be 115-113 favor on Joshua just like Christodoulou's scorecard. Does this result will change since it's quite controversial? just like Casimero vs Akaho

It's unlikely that it will be changed, the judges' decisions are always final although there are exceptions like the fighter totally dominated the fight and even knock his opponents down and still lose we don't see these in this fight, there could be a rematch and done in a neutral ground like in Nevada.
For me, fight could have been won by Franco even by split so they can file a complaint for a rematch if they want it and the fight is held in Franco's country.

The referee's decision is always final and nothing can interfere with contesting from both sides of the fighter.
Even though the decision is considered unfair, in a match it is the judges who determine the points and victory, unless the match ends by TAKE KO then it is clear who the winner is.
Usually, arguments and discussions on unfair referee decisions will occur after the match is over and the losing fighter will appeal for a rematch.

[Russlenat]

I look at the compubox numbers and it seems that it is also close, Franco throws a lot of punch, but Ioka is more consistent.

Nevertheless, since this is Japan so expect some biases judge in favor of the hometown hero. I know it's kinda disappointed to see a fight end in a draw with no winner and both keeping the belts, but the judge score is final here and will not be reverse in my opinion. Good fight though to end the year and most likely there could be a rematch so settle once and for all the winner between this two warriors.

Fans are not happy, you can read in the comments on social media that they are disappointed with the result, Franco should have won the fight but they didn't give it to him. His mistake is that he was not able to knock him out, there should be no controversy if that happened.

As they say, it's a home court advantage, so as a visitor, he needs to be extremely good to win a match.

[Baofeng]

I look at the compubox numbers and it seems that it is also close, Franco throws a lot of punch, but Ioka is more consistent.

Nevertheless, since this is Japan so expect some biases judge in favor of the hometown hero. I know it's kinda disappointed to see a fight end in a draw with no winner and both keeping the belts, but the judge score is final here and will not be reverse in my opinion. Good fight though to end the year and most likely there could be a rematch so settle once and for all the winner between this two warriors.

Fans are not happy, you can read in the comments on social media that they are disappointed with the result, Franco should have won the fight but they didn't give it to him. His mistake is that he was not able to knock him out, there should be no controversy if that happened.

As they say, it's a home court advantage, so as a visitor, he needs to be extremely good to win a match.

Yeah, that's why as I said, if you are going to travel and fight on a hostile environment, be sure to knock your opponent out to not give the chance to lose on a the judges hand. And this really what happen to Franco here, numbers don't lie, but the judges didn't see this going the fight, or maybe they see that the local Kazuto Ioka is losing the fight so the best thing they can do is to make the score very close and make it a draw so that there will be no uproar in the social media. But it was the opposite since the fans saw the fight, the same fight that the judges saw and yet the score is very much different and controversial. And we felt sorry for Franco because we did everything he can in this fight, but unfortunately since he is the visitor, there's no way that the judges are going to award him the win. Two controversial fights in Asia as we close the show for boxing in 2022, one in Casimero vs Akaho which fortunately, was overturn, and this one. But I doubt that there will be changes in the record, a rematch should happen next but it should be in the US.

[fortunecrypto]

I look at the compubox numbers and it seems that it is also close, Franco throws a lot of punch, but Ioka is more consistent.

Nevertheless, since this is Japan so expect some biases judge in favor of the hometown hero. I know it's kinda disappointed to see a fight end in a draw with no winner and both keeping the belts, but the judge score is final here and will not be reverse in my opinion. Good fight though to end the year and most likely there could be a rematch so settle once and for all the winner between this two warriors.

Fans are not happy, you can read in the comments on social media that they are disappointed with the result, Franco should have won the fight but they didn't give it to him. His mistake is that he was not able to knock him out, there should be no controversy if that happened.

As they say, it's a home court advantage, so as a visitor, he needs to be extremely good to win a match.

In boxing hometown decisions always have an impact, especially in championship bouts where the match is too close, the two judges who scored the fight a draw could have given the match to Ioka if the match is too close to call and could go either way but it's not, I think Franco won 1 or two rounds but to please their host they marked it a draw and so both fighters will keep their respective title, but it's obvious from the perspective of the audience that the fight should have gone to Franco, it's better for them to have a rematch in a neutral ground so they can unite the title if Franco file a protest there's a possibility of an immediate rematch.

[AmoreJaz]

I look at the compubox numbers and it seems that it is also close, Franco throws a lot of punch, but Ioka is more consistent.

Nevertheless, since this is Japan so expect some biases judge in favor of the hometown hero. I know it's kinda disappointed to see a fight end in a draw with no winner and both keeping the belts, but the judge score is final here and will not be reverse in my opinion. Good fight though to end the year and most likely there could be a rematch so settle once and for all the winner between this two warriors.

Fans are not happy, you can read in the comments on social media that they are disappointed with the result, Franco should have won the fight but they didn't give it to him. His mistake is that he was not able to knock him out, there should be no controversy if that happened.

As they say, it's a home court advantage, so as a visitor, he needs to be extremely good to win a match.

In boxing hometown decisions always have an impact, especially in championship bouts where the match is too close, the two judges who scored the fight a draw could have given the match to Ioka if the match is too close to call and could go either way but it's not, I think Franco won 1 or two rounds but to please their host they marked it a draw and so both fighters will keep their respective title, but it's obvious from the perspective of the audience that the fight should have gone to Franco, it's better for them to have a rematch in a neutral ground so they can unite the title if Franco file a protest there's a possibility of an immediate rematch.

if they will have a rematch, should not be in Japan as you said, should be in the neutral ground. seems that there was bit of a bias regarding the results. though the judges were from south africa, new zealand and puerto rico.  franco may have won if it was not in japan. maybe.
if they will schedule a rematch, much better if it will be this year or next year. a KO would surely give a clear winner next time around.

[Botnake]

if they will have a rematch, should not be in Japan as you said, should be in the neutral ground. seems that there was bit of a bias regarding the results. though the judges were from south africa, new zealand and puerto rico.  franco may have won if it was not in japan. maybe.
if they will schedule a rematch, much better if it will be this year or next year. a KO would surely give a clear winner next time around.

True, that is to prevent from what happened in this fight, a rematch is necessary because the fans are not convinced with the judges decision, Franco should have won the fight, and instead of complaining about the result, maybe a rematch is the best thing to do to determine the real winner.

[Jating]

if they will have a rematch, should not be in Japan as you said, should be in the neutral ground. seems that there was bit of a bias regarding the results. though the judges were from south africa, new zealand and puerto rico.  franco may have won if it was not in japan. maybe.
if they will schedule a rematch, much better if it will be this year or next year. a KO would surely give a clear winner next time around.

True, that is to prevent from what happened in this fight, a rematch is necessary because the fans are not convinced with the judges decision, Franco should have won the fight, and instead of complaining about the result, maybe a rematch is the best thing to do to determine the real winner.

Yes, I do agree, it shouldn't be in Japan wherein Ioka is very much comfortable or at least we don't want to see another biased scoring from the judges. Might better if this is held in the US and so it will be the other way around and we will see if Ioka is that good even fighting in a place wherein he is not comfortable. Franco is the victim here so hopefully he will be the one to choose the venue and hopefully this will be in US. The best thing to do to really determine who is the winner of this fight is to have a rematch and for sure this 2 fighters want that to happen.

[inthelongrun]

I haven't seen the fight nor did I do a review on the full replay yet. But I did read and heard from a lot of people on social media that Franco deserved the win. Today I reviewed the punch stats and I am surprised that Ioka seems to have edged Franco. Based on the unbiased per-round punch stats, I have it 115-113 or 7 to 5 in favor of Ioka. Although there are times that jabs can be as good or even better than power punches, I just considered that generally, power punches weigh more than jabs. So I gave Franco rounds 4, 6, 7, 11, and 12 for a total of 5 rounds only. I agree that a rematch should happen or if not, let them face the other champions and stars in their division like Chocolatito, Estrada, and Bam.

[dothebeats]

I haven't seen the fight nor did I do a review on the full replay yet. But I did read and heard from a lot of people on social media that Franco deserved the win. Today I reviewed the punch stats and I am surprised that Ioka seems to have edged Franco. Based on the unbiased per-round punch stats, I have it 115-113 or 7 to 5 in favor of Ioka. Although there are times that jabs can be as good or even better than power punches, I just considered that generally, power punches weigh more than jabs. So I gave Franco rounds 4, 6, 7, 11, and 12 for a total of 5 rounds only. I agree that a rematch should happen or if not, let them face the other champions and stars in their division like Chocolatito, Estrada, and Bam.

I just watched the replay and I must say that Ioka scored good points, but Franco just got around the ring better and delivered some power punches, and some that might be seen as a power punch from some perspectives but those didn't land. I guess the public's emotion is high and really tensioned which caused the opinion that the judging is biased for Ioka (although there have been a lot of professional opinion about this for a while now too).

Stats don't lie, and if Ioka delivered more jabs and punches that connected compared to Franco, then the Japanese deserves the win. I guess this could have been handled better by the judges and the organizers. Then again, if they responded to the accusations, they will just fan the flame even more.

[Distinctin]

Stats don't lie, and if Ioka delivered more jabs and punches that connected compared to Franco, then the Japanese deserves the win. I guess this could have been handled better by the judges and the organizers. Then again, if they responded to the accusations, they will just fan the flame even more.

Fans do remember the later rounds, I guess Franco did better in the later rounds. Enough for this accusation, it will take nowhere, instead, they should start negotiating for a rematch, that way they'll be able to satisfy the fans and eliminate their doubts about the transparency of the result. Also, that stats alone cannot be a big basis on how the judges should score the fight, they have their criteria, so it's their decision that will be followed.

[Jawhead999]

Fans do remember the later rounds, I guess Franco did better in the later rounds. Enough for this accusation, it will take nowhere, instead, they should start negotiating for a rematch, that way they'll be able to satisfy the fans and eliminate their doubts about the transparency of the result. Also, that stats alone cannot be a big basis on how the judges should score the fight, they have their criteria, so it's their decision that will be followed.

I think matches that ended in draw, mostly there's will be a rematch to prove which one is better. But in the first fight, Joshua should win to be honest, even though a rematch would happen, still Joshua's side isn't get any advantage and it would be possible if Ioka will win the rematch. So, all thing that Joshua already put in the first match was useless. I just hope if Joshua can win via knock out, so there's no excuse and biased scorecard from the judges.

[yazher]

Fans do remember the later rounds, I guess Franco did better in the later rounds. Enough for this accusation, it will take nowhere, instead, they should start negotiating for a rematch, that way they'll be able to satisfy the fans and eliminate their doubts about the transparency of the result. Also, that stats alone cannot be a big basis on how the judges should score the fight, they have their criteria, so it's their decision that will be followed.

It should be settled for another fight because this one is close and I'm sure that they will gonna work hard to prove to everyone who really wins the first fight. Just other fights from the past, most likely they settled it after the 2nd time they fought in the ring. This sometimes happens in boxing especially when the two boxers took their opponent's punches lightly.

But they deserve to fight once more this year or else their rivalry will extend until they are no longer in their primes.

[LUCKMCFLY]

Stats don't lie, and if Ioka delivered more jabs and punches that connected compared to Franco, then the Japanese deserves the win. I guess this could have been handled better by the judges and the organizers. Then again, if they responded to the accusations, they will just fan the flame even more.

Fans do remember the later rounds, I guess Franco did better in the later rounds. Enough for this accusation, it will take nowhere, instead, they should start negotiating for a rematch, that way they'll be able to satisfy the fans and eliminate their doubts about the transparency of the result. Also, that stats alone cannot be a big basis on how the judges should score the fight, they have their criteria, so it's their decision that will be followed.

I think Joshua is very clear about it, he is thinking about unification, it is his only objective, everything was not very clear to some, a better verdict can be expected and especially from the fans themselves, in my case Joshua has a lot to prove and that is what it will do, I think that it has already begun to move all its chips, and it will create more of the things that can give it more respect and above all recognition, the suspicions regarding them are many, I have a personal opinion and here in The forum also gives opinions, but I think that they all pursue the same objective, the great revenge that is undoubtedly what will give the spicy touch that we are looking for.

Ioka-Franco Aftermath: Franco Aims For Estrada Unification, While WBO Expected To Order Ioka-Nakatani

Joshua Franco still has the same target in mind for his next fight even with one less belt at stake.

A title unification with lineal/WBC junior bantamweight champion Juan Francisco Estrada is still the priority for San Antonio’s Franco. The goal has not changed even after the reigning WBA titlist was forced to settle for a twelve-round, majority draw versus WBO champ Kazuto Ioka in their New Year’s Eve clash in Tokyo, Japan.

Judge Stanley Christodoulou (115-113) had Franco winning the year-ending unification clash but was overruled by ringside officials Ferlin Marsh (114-114) and Jose Roberto Torres (114-114) who both scored it dead even. The hope was for a two-belt titlist to emerge from the contest and next face Mexico’s Estrada (44-3, 28KOs), who was ringside for the event and equally keen on further unifying the division

Source: https://www.boxingscene.com/ioka-franco-aftermath-franco-aims-estrada-unification-wbo-expected-order-ioka-nakatani--171544