Former WBO bantamweight champion Tomoki Kameda beat Mike Tawatchai (also known as Pipat Chaiporn) of Thailand on Friday in a super bantamweight non-title bout, his first fight in Japan in more than three years.
Kameda, 25, won a ten round unanimous decision at Tokyo's Korakuen Hall, overwhelming his 31-year-old opponent with his quick moves and sending him down to the canvas with a right straight in the sixth round. The scores were 100-88, 100-90, and 99-90
"I had a good fight. It will lead to the next step," said Kameda, thanking his now-retired older brothers Koki and Daiki for supporting him as his trainers.
The three brothers had been barred by the Japan Boxing Commission from fighting in Japan after their old Kameda Gym was decertified following a controversy surrounding Daiki's world title fight in late 2013.
Tomoki Kameda, whose last bout in Japan was in December 2013, signed with Kyoei Gym in October last year and was issued a license by the JBC that allowed him to fight again in his country.
Kameda, bidding to conquer two divisions, has a 33-2 record with 20 knockout wins. Tawatchai, ranked sixth in the division, is now 42-10 (25 KO wins) with a draw.
Kameda snapped a one year layoff last October after suffering back to back defeats to Jamie McDonnell. He returned to Mexico where he groomed his career and blasted out Edgar Martinez in a single round of action.
