One of the sport’s most active titlists is set for his next defense.
Anthony Olascuaga, 10-1 (7 KOs) will fight for the third time this year, as he risks his WBO flyweight belt against Taku Kuwahara. The scheduled 12-round contest completes prior plans for a title fight tripleheader on December 17 from Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo.
Headlining the show, Seiya Tsutsumi, 12-0-3 (8 KOs), and Nonito Donaire, 43-8 (28 KOs), meet in a WBA bantamweight title consolidation clash. For the moment, both boxers are uncertain of which version of the WBA title is at stake, as the sanctioning body has yet to make a final ruling.
Also previously confirmed for the card, WBO junior flyweight titlist Rene Santiago, 14-4 (9 KOs) faces WBA counterpart Kyosuke Takami, 10-0 (8 KOs) in a two-belt unification clash.
All three bouts will air live on U-Next in Japan. U.S. streaming rights were not yet confirmed as this goes to publication.
Both bouts were announced in October, though questions arose as to why Olascuaga’s rumored placement on the event was not also revealed.
At the time, Los Angeles’ Olascuaga was due to face Tokyo’s Jukiya Iimura, 9-1 (2 KOs), who withdrew just prior to the kickoff press conference.
Teiken Promotions representatives worked feverishly to find a suitable replacement and ensure that the 26-year-old Olascuaga would get in a third fight on the year.
The search led to Yokohama’s Kuwahara, 14-2 (9 KOs), who was already in training for a fight on a separate December show. Instead, the 30-year-old will enter his second career title challenge in a span of just three outings.
Kuwahara’s two career defeats both came against Seigo Yuri Akui. The most recent occurred in May 2024, when Akui earned a 12-round unanimous decision to successfully defend his WBA 112lbs title.
Incidentally, Akui is set to return on the December 17 undercard. It will be his first fight since a 12th-round knockout defeat to countryman Kenshiro Teraji in their epic March 13 WBA/WBC flyweight title unification clash at this famed venue.
Meanwhile, one win has followed for Kuwahara, a fifth-round knockout over made-to-order Hamson Lamandau on March 11 in Tokyo.
Olascuaga will attempt the fourth defense of the WBO 112lbs belt he claimed in a third-round knockout of Riku Kano in July 2024 at this very arena.
The outing was part of a five-fight stretch in Japan for Olascuaga before he returned to the U.S. for his most recent affair. It was a quick night at the office for the miniscule knockout artist, who blasted out mandatory challenger Juan Carlos Camacho in the second round on September 11 at Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
The event marked Olascuaga’s first title fight on home soil and also his first stateside outing since October 2022, when he was just six fights into his pro career.
Olascuaga will match Brian Norman Jnr as the most active American male titleholder on the year. Norman is also set for his third title fight in 2025, when he defends against former two-division champ Devin Haney this weekend in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Undisputed 122lbs king Naoya Inoue is the only more active male champion on the year. He next faces Alan David Picasso on December 27 in Riyadh, marking his fourth title fight in just 11 months.
