As a hardcore fight fan of the lower weights, and the Asian scene, there are bouts that excite me a lot more than they’d excite a typical fan. For example a rematch between Kenji Ono and Jun Takigawa would genuinely have me more excited than hearing that David Haye and Anthony Joshua were going to fight. Likewise a fight Koki Eto and Luis Concepcion would be more exciting to me than most other bouts.
One such bout was announced this past Thursday as SGS announced a bout between Filipino warrior Ardin Diale (31-9-3, 15), the current OPBF Flyweight champion, and fast rising Japanese youngster Daigo Higa (9-0, 9). Set to take place on July 2nd at the Korakuen Hall.
For those who have seen Diale’s bout with Higa’s stable mate Koki Eto, an OPBF Flyweight title bout from 2014, or Higa’s bout with Kongfah CP Freshmart there really should be no need to explain why this bout is so exciting. For those who haven’t either of those bouts, stop reading and watch them instead!
Diale, a Filipino veteran with more than 40 bouts to his name, is a talented boxer with more power than his record suggests. He’s lost a high number of fights but that shouldn’t put fans off him as he has fought at a solid level through his career, and faced the likes of Rodel Mayol, Wanheng Menayothin, John Riel Casimero, Julio Cesar Miranda, Juan Francisco Estrada and the aforementioned Eto. Those losses seem to have left Diale with a chip on his shoulder and in recent years he has gone 11-1 (8).
Diale is neither a defensive master nor an offensive machine, but he’s a good old fashioned “trier” and a genuine all rounder who always gives his all. Win or lose.
When it comes to Higa we have one of the sports most exciting and promising young talents. He’s an out offensive warrior, much like his mentor and promoter Yoko Gushiken. Their are defensive flaws with Higa but he appears to have the chine, durability and stamina to make up for those flaws and in fact it often seems that his offense is his best defense. It’s that style that has seen him receive comparisons to Roman Gonzalez in Japan, with some dubbing him the “Roman Gonzalez of Okinawa”.
To date Higa’s best wins have been stoppages over Kongfah, Renren Tesorio and Cris Alfante. Diale is a step up in class from those three men, but it’s a step up that Higa’s team will be confident about.
Whilst both men will be confident of winning the reality is, as a fan, this has all the ingredients to be a FOTY contender, fought at an incredible pace, with the styles gelling perfectly. Higa’s pressure and offense against Diale’s more rounded boxing and sharp straight punching. If you’re a genuine fight fan you should do your best to either find a stream or a recording of this, as it really will be something very special.
Scott Graveson covers the Asian boxing scene for www.asianboxing.info
