Rodex Piala in one of his pro bouts. | By Glendale Rosal
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Unbeaten Cebuano prospect Rodex “The Tank” Piala is more than ready to trade gloves with Kenji Fujita in his first fight in Japan on Saturday, June 1, at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.
Piala of the ARQ Boxing Stable will try to bring home the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) featherweight title.
His fight against Fujita is scheduled for 12 rounds in the undercard of the Teiken Promotions-backed fight card that pits Japanese Yamato Hata and Kosuke Saka for the OPBF super featherweight strap.
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In an interview, Piala said he’s more than ready to take on Fujita.
“Magkig ilis ni ug nawng ako-a. Bisaya nga tanke (tank) ni, bahalag magkataya ang agi. Bomba gyud ni,” said Piala.
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For his part, Roger Justine Potot, an official of the ARQ Sports, said that they’ve been training Piala since January this year.
OPBF Title
Like Piala, he is as confident as his ward in their chances of winning the OPBF title but didn’t downplay how lethal Japanese boxers are in the ring.
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“We expect a very tactical and challenging fight from Rodex and Kenji. Both have experienced amateur backgrounds. Rodex is a bemedalled amateur boxer. Kenji Fujita also had his fair share of amateur and pro fights as part of the Japanese Boxing Team (against Charly Suarez) and as a pro against Jeo Santisima and Ambo,” said Potot.
The 29-year-old Piala holds 10 wins with no defeat and one knockout.
Meanwhile, Fujita, 30, has a 6-0 (win-loss) record with three knockouts.
He is a former World Boxing Organization (WBO) Asia Pacific featherweight titlist and has beaten five Filipinos in his young pro career.
Incredibly, Fujita defeated Jestine Tesoro, Ronnie Campos, Daniel Nicolas, Jeo Santisima, and Joseph Ambo.
Japan Debut
“Rodex is well prepared for his championship match in Tokyo Japan. Since January 2024 he has trained hard for his title shot. Now it’s within his grasp especially since it’s in Tokyo Japan Korakuen Hall pa one of the Boxing Mecca in Asia he is very excited and motivated to win,” added Potot.
Potot along with ARQ Boxing Stable chief trainer Eldo Cortes and ARQ Sports official Chelito Caro will accompany Piala in his Japan debut.
They are scheduled to fly to Japan on Thursday, May 30.