Going into his WBC Super Bantamweight defense in October, some wondered if Toshiaki Nishioka 37-4-3(23) would grow old at 34 against the pressure of Britain’s Rendall Munroe. As it turned out Nishioka’s class told as he posted a near shut out win one of his best career performance’s. It was Nishioka’s fifth title defense, he’s also widely recognized as the number one fighter at 122. Here’s what the Japanese maestro had to say.
Hello Toshiaki, welcome back to 15rounds.com
Anson Wainwright – Congratulations on your win over Rendall Munroe, you looked very impressive. What are your thoughts on the fight? What did you think of Munroe?
Toshiaki Nishioka – Munroe was a very skilled opponent. I was very impressed with endurance.
Anson Wainwright – It seems that at 34 even with some tough fights you are getting better, why do you think that is?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I believe it comes from my dedication to make myself better. I train hardest I can to make myself a better boxer.
Anson Wainwright – Though it’s early days do you have any idea when we may see you back in the ring? Any idea on who you may face?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I do not have any fights scheduled at this time. Mr. Honda will speak with me once he determines what would be a good match for me.
Anson Wainwright – You have fought once previously in 2010 when you beat Balweg Bangoyan when you stopped him in five. What can you tell us about that fight and what did you think of your performance?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I recall that I was not really looking for a knock out. But I was able to put him away in the 5 round.
Anson Wainwright – Your 34 now how much longer do you think you can continue to fight at the highest possible level? What would you like to do when you retire?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I want box for anther 10 years,
Anson Wainwright – You had four fantastic wars with Thai legend Veeraphol Sahaprom they must of helped shape you into the fighter you are today. What can you tell us about those 4 fights?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I do have lots of respect for Veeraphol. But, I do not believe that those 4 fights have made me the fighter that I am today. But those fights are some what in the past.
Anson Wainwright – Your Teikken Team mate Hozumi Hasegawa lost to Fernando Montiel back in April, Montiel has said he like to become the first Mexican to become a 4 weight world champion. Is that a fight you like to try to get revenge?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I would love the opportunity to fight Montiel.
Anson Wainwright – Over the summer you and some other members of Teikken went to Cardiff to attend “The Night of Champions” how did you enjoy the experience of being in Britain? What were your thoughts on how you thought the event went?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I had a great time and enjoyed meeting the people from UK.
Anson Wainwright – Japanese food is known to be healthy, can you tell us a little about your diet before a fight as it would be very different from what we eat in the West?
Toshiaki Nishioka – My typical diet is pasta in the afternoon and home made chicken soup at night.
Anson Wainwright – What fighters past or present do you enjoy watching fight?
Toshiaki Nishioka – I am a big fan of Sugar Ray Leonard.
Anson Wainwright – What goals do you still have in Boxing?
Toshiaki Nishioka – To become the the best fight I can possibly be.
Anson Wainwright – Finally you broke a few British hearts when you beat Rendell Munroe, do you have a message for him and his loyal fans who travelled thousands of miles to see the fight?
Toshiaki Nishioka – Munroe is a very talented fighter. He has what it takes to become a world champion. I hope to see him become a world champion someday.
Thanks for your time.
Anson Wainwright
15rounds.com
Random Thoughts – Having been in Las Vegas for several days, I’ve headed to Texas to visit relatives in Odessa. It’s true everything in the “Lone Star State” is bigger. My relatives have a house that’s 21,000 square feet house not including the land around. It’s also the biggest house between Fort Worth, Tx & Phoenix, Az. Highly impressive isn’t the word, I don’t have my own room, I have my own wing!…Nate Campbell decided to hang up his gloves after the weekend, Congrats on a solid career in which he won the WBA/WBO & IBF Lightweight Championships…Chavez Jnr finally pulled out of this weekend’s fight, not a tremendous surprise as there were lots of rumors of various things being up or wrong…Arthur Abraham said he’s undersized at Super Middleweight but still intends to go through with his next fight of the “Super 6”, something seems up he isn’t the beats he was at 160. If he can get back down to Middleweight maybe he could mix things up with Sergio Martinez or head back to Germany and fight Felix Sturm or get Russian Dmitry Pirog, all would be interesting.
Photo by : Naoki Fukuda/TEIKEN PROMOTIONS
