We are just days away from the WBA junior bantamweight title being on the line at the Ota-City General Gymnasium in Toyko, Japan. WBA champion Joshua Franco (18-1-3, 8 KOS) will face Kazuto Ioka (29-2-1, 15 KOS) in the rematch to their great fight in December.
THIS CAN BE JOSHUA FRANCO’S DEFINING MOMENT
Franco is one hell of a fighter and for someone who has seen him go from the club shows in downtown L.A. to being the main event in Japan, he has matured into the version of himself that he is today. He doesn’t possess knockout power which is why he is always in these close fights but his desire to win and his motor are something to recognize. He has benefited from some of the best sparring Southern California has to offer while working at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy which is why we continue to see him grow as a fighter and champion.
This rematch with Ioka reminds me of his trilogy with Oscar Negrete where they shattered some punch stats. The fights resulted in two split draws and one split decision victory for Franco. In their second fight, Franco had to be first and put a ton of pressure on Negrete for him to get the victory. He has to do the same with Ioka if he wants to leave Japan with his title. Ioka doesn’t do well defensively on the back foot and this pressure would force Ioka to move instead of planting his feet for some counter punches. Is this the moment where Franco demands the respect from the junior bantamweight division?
THE OLD WARRIOR KAZUTO IOKA WANTS TO SHOW HE STILL HAS PLENTY LEFT IN THE TANK
#FrancoIoka2
— ボクシングビート (@beat_macc) June 16, 2023
初戦の引き分けから #井岡一翔 が学んだことは？
「次はもっとサイドを使い、メリハリのあるパンチを要所で」（佐々木修平トレーナー）
ジョシュア・フランコも再戦に強い
「今度はジャッジに好印象を与える。よりアグレッシブな姿勢で」
最新号でチェック→https://t.co/QQ0MJ9GzI7 pic.twitter.com/DlsbZeJkwq
Ioka will one day make it into the International Boxing Hall of Fame as his career is hard to ignore. At one point in the last few years, Ioka was almost done with boxing but he once again found his desire to be great and has turned it into another run. Instead of defending his title against whoever was next, Ioka decided to vacate the belt and go after the rematch with Franco so that there can be a clear winner this time around.
Ioka has a little more pop in his punches but not enough to create a knockout against a fighter like Franco. Ioka will have to be smart, keep his feet planted when Franco comes in and land those crisp shots to get the attention of the judges. If he can do that and his conditioning is up, we may have a new champ when it is all said and done.
JOSHUA FRANCO VS. KAZUTO IOKA 2 PREDICTION
This one is going to look exactly like the first fight on New Year’s Eve but this time, Franco will come away with the majority decision victory.
#FrancoIoka2
— ボクシングビート (@beat_macc) June 16, 2023
初戦の引き分けから #井岡一翔 が学んだことは？
「次はもっとサイドを使い、メリハリのあるパンチを要所で」（佐々木修平トレーナー）
ジョシュア・フランコも再戦に強い
「今度はジャッジに好印象を与える。よりアグレッシブな姿勢で」
最新号でチェック→https://t.co/QQ0MJ9GzI7 pic.twitter.com/DlsbZeJkwq
JOSHUA FRANCO VS. KAZUTO IOKA 2 BETTING ODDS
Per BetOnline.ag, Joshua Franco is currently sitting at -128 (Over 10 ½ rounds -600), and Kazuto Ioka is at -102 (Under 10 ½ rounds +400). It’s truly a 50/50 type of fight, just as the first one was back on New Year’s Eve.
Joshua Franco: Decision +115; TKO/KO +650
Draw: +1200
Kazuto Ioka: Decision +150; TKO/KO +700
Round Group Betting
Ioka, Kazuto by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 1 to 3 +6600
Ioka, Kazuto by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 4 to 6 +2500
Ioka, Kazuto by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 7 to 9 +1600
Ioka, Kazuto by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 10 to 12 +1800
WBA & IBF SUPER FLYWEIGHT TITLES ARE ON THE LINE AT THE SAME DATE ON JUNE 24RTH!
— OLE (@ajoaquinarieta) April 24, 2023
Joshua Franco vs Kazuto Ioka for the WBA Super Flyweight Title
Fernando Martinez vs Jade Bornea for the IBF Super Flyweight Title#FrancoIoka2#MartinezBornea#JustSayin@KnuckleheadSean @RGMPROMO pic.twitter.com/o6yDqIj43e
Franco, Joshua by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 1 to 3 +4000
Franco, Joshua by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 4 to 6 +2000
Franco, Joshua by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 7 to 9 +1200
Franco, Joshua by KO/TKO/DQ in
Round 10 to 12 +1400
JOSHUA FRANCO VS. KAZUTO IOKA 2 FIGHT DATE, START TIME
- Date: Saturday, June 10
- Time: 7 a.m. ET / 4 a.m. PT
- Main event ringwalks (approx): 7:45 - 8:00 a.m. ET / 4:45 - 5:00 a.m. PT
These timings could change due to the length of the undercard fights.
WHAT CHANNEL/STREAM IS JOSHUA FRANCO VS. KAZUTO IOKA 2?
- U.S.: TBA (Rumor is that the fight will not be picked up here in the U.S.)
- UK: TBA
JOSHUA FRANCO VS. KAZUTO IOKA 2 FIGHT CARD
- Joshua Franco vs. Kazuto Ioka, rematch, 12 rounds, for Franco’s WBA junior bantamweight title
- Musashi Mori vs. Takuya Watanabe, 12 rounds, junior lightweights
- Daigo Higa vs. Sirichai Thaiyen, 10 rounds, bantamweights
- Kantaro Juri vs. Wilbert Berondo, 8 rounds, junior bantamweights
- Taiga Tamegai vs. Fumiaki Iwasaki, 4 rounds, junior featherweights
