Jonathan Gonzalez Outpoints Shokichi Iwata, Defends WBO Junior Flyweight Title

Jonathan ‘Bomba’ Gonzalez dug deep into his back of tricks to turn away a younger, more aggressive challenger.

A key second half adjustment by Puerto Rico’s Gonzalez went a long way towards outpacing Tokyo’s Shokichi Iwata to defend his WBO junior flyweight title. Judge Jesse Reyes (116-112), Pat Russell (116-112) and Danrex Tapdasan (117-111) all ruled in favor of Gonzalez in their ESPN+/DAZN/Amazon Prime/ESPN Knockout co-feature Tuesday evening (local time) at Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Gonzalez entered the ring as the defending titlist and by far the more experienced of the two. The Puerto Rican southpaw—who is promoted by All Star Boxing, Inc.—showed as much early in the fight, using every inch of the ring and getting Iwata to follow him around. Both boxers landed body shots, while Iwata found a home for his straight right hand.

Time was called in round two, as a clash of heads left Gonzalez dizzy and on the canvas. Iwata attempted a body shot, only for their foreheads to collide which forced Gonzalez to fall as he held his right eye. Referee Raul Caiz Jr. issued a hard warning to Iwata for the infraction. Action resumed, with Gonzalez landing a right hook and his momentum forcing Iwata to the canvas in what was correctly ruled a push.

Another clash of heads occurred one minute into round three. This time, Gonzalez was left with a cut on the bridge of his nose and another above his right eye. The defending titlist came out of the brief break with an overhand left. Iwata responded with an overhand shot of his own, forcing Gonzalez to clinch. Iwata began to time the fleet footed Gonzalez, connecting with right hands to the body.

Iwata enjoyed his first truly dominant stretch of the fight in round four. Gonzalez was clearly bothered by the uncontrolled aggression of his younger foe, complaining of headbutts and elbows as he turned to the referee for help. A similar pledge came as Iwata landed a right uppercut downstairs, with Gonzalez turning away and complaining of a low blow but waved off by Caiz Jr. as Iwata went on the attack.

Gonzalez adapted and fought with aggression in round five, landing a combination midway through the frame. Iwata slowed down his attack, though he managed a stiff right hand to the body late in the round though while fighting from the outside as the boxers briefly swapped roles.

Iwata settled down and offered a more disciplined attack at the bout’s midway point. Gonzalez continued to come forward after strictly boxing in the early rounds. He nearly paid the price, as Iwata timed the southpaw with a right hand along the ropes late in round six.

Gonzalez took control as the bout entered the second half. Iwata continued to come forward but was getting caught with lead left hands by Gonzalez, who returned to his more natural box and move style.

Iwata managed to close the gap in round nine after being outboxed in the previous two rounds, connecting with an overhand right and a left hook. Iwata pinned Gonzalez along the ropes, landing to the body and upstairs, though Gonzalez was able to land a body shot of his own along with an overhand left late in the round.  

A game of cat-and-mouse worked in Gonzalez’s favor in the final three rounds. Iwata went on the hunt but abandoned his jab and sustained body attack which allowed him to close the gap earlier in the contest. Gonzalez fought on the inside as needed, otherwise spending the final nine minutes effectively boxing on the outside and providing a moving target that Iwata couldn’t hit often enough to unseat the visiting titlist.

Headlining the four-fight telecast, WBC junior flyweight titlist Kenshiro Teraji (19-1, 11KOs) faces countryman and WBA ‘Super’ champ Hiroto Kyoguchi (16-0, 11KOs) in a highly anticipated title unification bout.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox