Dasmariñas faces young Japanese prospect in March

FILE PHOTO: Michael Dasmariñas poses with his team, wearing the WBF international featherweight belt around his waist during his fight in the Cayman Islands. | Photo from Michael Dasmariñas’ Facebook page

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Former world title challenger Michael “Hot N Spicy” Dasmariñas will test his mettle in his second fight in Japan next month.

Dasmariñas will fight Japanese up-and-comer Kyosuke Okamoto in an eight-rounder non-title fight in Tokoname, Japan on March 29.

Their bout will serve as one of the undercard fights for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) world flyweight title showdown between champion Masamichi Yabuki and Angel Lardizabal of Mexico.

READ: Michael Dasmariñas TKO’s Belizean foe, wrests WBF Int’l title

The 32-year-old Dasmariñas of Pili, Camarines Sur will try to stretch his six-fight winning streak since 2022. He is the current World Boxing Foundation (WBF) International featherweight champion and former World Boxing Council (WBC) Asian Silver featherweight champion.

Dasmariñas has a seasoned record of 36 wins with 25 knockouts paired with three defeats and two losses.

READ: ‘Hot ‘N Spicy’ Dasmariñas bags Philippine Games and Amusements Board super bantamweight title

He became known by many after challenging Japanese boxing superstar Naoya Inoue in 2021  in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was Inoue’s second fight in the United States which he won by a resounding third round knockout to defend his IBF world bantamweight title.

After losing, Dasmariñas bounced back winning six of his seven last bouts with a draw. His last outing was in November in George Town, Cayman Islands against Belizean foe Eduardo Esquivel.

READ: Dasmariñas guns for WBA, IBF world bantam belts against “Monster” Inoue

On the other hand, Okamoto has a 9-1-1 (win-loss-draw) record with six knockouts.

The 20-year-old Japanese prospect is on a three-fight winning streak after losing to countryman Towa Tsuji for the Japanese youth featherweight title in 2023.

Also, Dasmariñas is his first Filipino opponent.