(born November 23, 1980) is a Japanese professional boxer. He is a two-time world champion, having held the WBA super-flyweight title twice between 2012 and 2016 with three successful defenses.

Professional career

Kono vs. Niita Kono made his professional debut at the Korakuen Hall in November 2000, losing on points to Toshiaki Niita.

He had little amateur experience before his professional debut. However, Kono was able to win 17 of his first 20 pro bouts, steadily climbing up the rankings.

Kono vs. Kikui Kono's first title fight would be for the Japanese super flyweight title against Teppei Kikui in February 2007. Kono won the fight and the national title by unanimous decision (98-93, 97-93, 97-94).

Kono vs. Sonsona He then won the OPBF super flyweight title against Eden Sonsona by split decision (118-110, 115-113, 113-115).

Kono vs. Nashiro In September 2008, Kono fought Nobuo Nashiro for the vacant WBA (Regular) super flyweight world title. Nashiro had previously held the WBA title. In a close, contested fight, he would reclaim the belt, beating Kono by split decision (115-114, 115-114, 114-115). After the fight, Kono said ""I was able to keep my own rhythm and I thought I won. I think I hit some good punches. I did my best, but I must accept the result."

Kono vs. Rojas Kono once again fought for a vacant world title, facing Tomás Rojas for the WBC super flyweight title. This time Kono lost a wide unanimous decision (111-116, 111-116, 109-118), despite dropping Rojas in the final round. Kono's career suffered more setbacks, dropping decisions to Yota Sato and Yohei Tobe following his loss to Rojas.

Kono vs. Kokietgym Kono captured the WBA super flyweight title in his third world title shot against Thailand's Tepparith Kokietgym via fourth round knockout. at the Ota-City General Gymnasium in Tokyo on December 31, 2012. Kono dropped the Thai champion three times during round 4. The result was considered an upset. Yota Sato, who held the WBC title expressed interest in rematching Kono in a unification bout.

Kono vs. Solis Kono would lose his title in his first defense, dropping a majority decision (113-113, 112-114, 111-115) to Liborio Solís in a fight where both fighters traded knockdowns.

Kono vs. Kaovichit After Solís lost his title due to being unable to make weight in his next fight, Kono faced Denkaosan Kaovichit for the vacant WBA title. Denkaosan went down in round 4, but was ahead on the scorecards before Kono knocked him out in round 8 with a cross.

Kono vs. Jimenez Kono's first defense saw him fight to a split draw against Norbelto Jimenez.

Kono vs. Kameda He then fought Kōki Kameda at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago. In a scrappy brawl that saw both fighters lose points on the scorecards due to fouls, Kono retained his title, dropping Kameda in round 2 en route to winning a unanimous decision (115-109, 113-111, 116-108).

Kono vs. Concepcion Kono would lose his title in a unification bout against the WBA's interim champion Luis Concepción. Kono lost the fight by controversial decision (113-115, 112-116, 112-116).

Kono vs. Inoue Kono challenged WBO super flyweight champion Naoya Inoue in December 2016. Inoue stopped Kono in a commanding performance. Kono was dropped once by a left hook from Inoue before being stopped in the sixth round. This was the first time Kono lost a fight due to stoppage.

Kono vs. Tso In October 2017, Kono faced Rex Tso. Tso had sought to fight Kono while the latter was still a world champion, but was unable to draw him into the ring. After six rounds, Tso was unable to continue due to swelling around his eye. Nevertheless, Tso remained unbeaten by winning a technical decision.

Kono vs. Moloney In his next bout, Kono faced Jason Moloney, ranked 4# by the WBA, #5 by the WBO, #11 by the IBF and #13 by the WBC at bantamweight. Moloney managed to win the fight via a sixth round retirement.

Professional boxing record

ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes46LossJason Moloney6 (12), May 19, 201845Loss33–11–1Rex TsoTD7 (12)Oct 7, 201744Win33–10–1Rambo SithsaithongTKO5 (8), Jul 23, 201743Loss32–10–1Naoya InoueKO6 (12), Dec 30, 201642Loss32–9–1Luis ConcepciónUD12Aug 31, 201641Win32–8–1Tanawat PhonnakuUD12Apr 27, 201640Win31–8–1Kōki KamedaUD12Oct 16, 201539Draw30–8–1Norbelto Jimenez12Dec 31, 201438Win30–8Denkaosan KaovichitKO8 (12), Mar 26, 201437Win29–8Dawut ManopkanchangTKO3 (8), Dec 31, 201336Loss28–8Liborio SolísMD12May 6, 201335Win28–7Tepparith SingwanchaKO4 (12), Dec 31, 201234Win27–7Petchbarngborn KokietgymUD8Sep 10, 201233Win26–7Yusaku IshikawaTKO5 (8), Mar 31, 201232Loss25–7Yohei TobeUD8Oct 10, 201131Loss25–6Yota SatoUD10Apr 9, 201130Loss25–5Tomás RojasUD12Sep 20, 201029Win25–4Masafumi TonomuraTKO11 (12), May 17, 201028Win24–4Marvin TampusUD12Oct 3, 200927Win23–4Daniel FerrerasUD12May 2, 200926Win22–4Hendrik BarongsayTKO6 (10), Feb 7, 200925Loss21–4Nobuo NashiroSD12Sep 15, 200824Win21–3Kuniyuki AizawaUD12Feb 16, 200823Win20–3Eden SonsonaSD12Oct 6, 200722Win19–3Kenji Saegusa9 (10), Jun 2, 200721Win18–3Teppei KikuiUD10Feb 12, 200720Win17–3Saichon Or OunsuwonTKO6 (8), Sep 4, 200619Win16–3Prosper MatsuuraTKO9 (10), Feb 11, 200618Win15–3Petchdam SithsaithongKO2 (10), Oct 24, 200517Loss14–3Teppei KikuiUD8Jul 16, 200516Win14–2Kyohei WadaUD8Feb 1, 200515Win13–2Munetake EgawaSD8Aug 25, 200414Win12–2Kengo WakaoTKO7 (10), May 20, 200413Win11–2Asahi TakanoUD8Feb 5, 200412Win10–2Teppei Kikui8Nov 4, 200311Win9–2Makoto HorinouchiTKO2 (6), Jun 26, 200310Loss8–2Daigo NakahiroUD6Dec 22, 20029Win8–1Kenji SaegusaUD6Nov 9, 20028Win7–1Yuichiro KomuroUD6Sep 26, 20027Win6–1Yuki KishiUD6Aug 2, 20026Win5–1Kosuke Takamizawa4 (4), May 31, 20025Win4–1Ryoji Arai1 (4), Jan 28, 20024Win3–1Yosuke IshiwatariUD4Sep 26, 20013Win2–1Takaaki HayashiUD4Jun 19, 20012Win1–1Kazuya Hirata4Apr 18, 20011Loss0–1Toshiaki Nitta4Nov 22, 2000

See also Boxing in Japan List of Japanese boxing world champions List of world super-flyweight boxing champions

References

External links

Kohei Kono - Profile, News Archive & Current Rankings at Box.Live