ONE-TIME world title challenger Jake Amparo will return to Japan to take on 18-year-old Japanese prospect Ryuta Tokoro in an eight-round bout on Aug. 31, 2026, at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan.
Amparo will be making his fifth appearance in Japan and his third in a row.
The 29-year-old Amparo lost his last two fights against Takero Kitano and Takeshi Ishii, both in Japan last year.
Amparo earned a shot at a world title in 2024. Coming in as a last-minute replacement, he was stopped by Ginjiro Shigeoka in their International Boxing Federation (IBF) minimumweight title bout in Nagoya.
Amparo has fought some of the best fighters in boxing’s lower weight division, including his now-teammate Regie Suganob, Shigeoka, and reigning IBF minimumweight king Pedro Taduran.
Tokoro, on the other hand, is new to the professional ranks, having turned pro only this year. In his debut, Tokoro demolished Thailand’s Suriya Puttaluska in the second round and then knocked out Filipino John Dominic Ledres in the third round of his next fight.
Amparo, who fights out of the PMI Bohol Boxing Gym in Tagbilaran City, has a win-loss-draw record of 16-8-1, with four knockouts, while Tokoro is undefeated at 2-0, both by knockout.
Two other Pinoy pugs will also see action on the same card: James Pacamalan and Kenneth Alquiza.
Pacamalan (9-2, 6 KOs) will battle Maato Nakai (2-0, 2 KOs) in an eight-rounder, while Alquiza (4-3-1, 2 KOs) will slug it out with Ryuto Yamada (5-4-2, 3 KOs) in a six-round encounter. / EKA
