Masamichi Yabuki to Defend IBF Flyweight Title Against Miel Fajardo in Tokyo on November 26

IBF flyweight champion Masamichi Yabuki will put his belt on the line against Filipino mandatory challenger Miel Fajardo on 26 November in Tokyo, in a meeting of two fighters who have built their records on knockouts. The bout tops an Ohashi Promotions card that also carries a WBA strawweight title defence by Takeshi Ishii.

A Mandatory Defence at EBARA WAVE Arena Ota

The fight was confirmed at the end of September, with The Ring reporting the double world title bill and Bad Left Hook and the Philippine Daily Tribune following with details of both camps. The venue is EBARA WAVE Arena Ota, the name the Ota City General Gymnasium in Tokyo's Ota Ward has carried since April 2026 under a four-year naming-rights agreement between the ward and Ebara Corporation.

For Yabuki it will be the third defence of the IBF title. Fajardo arrives as the governing body's mandatory challenger, which means this is a contest the champion was obliged to take rather than one chosen for convenience. The Ring noted that the 34-year-old Yabuki has previously spoken about moving up in weight, so a win could be the last thing he needs to settle at 112 pounds.

Yabuki's Road Back to a World Title

Born in Suzuka, in Mie Prefecture, Yabuki first became a world champion at light flyweight, stopping Kenshiro Teraji in the tenth round in Kyoto on 22 September 2021 to take the WBC belt. The reign was short: Teraji knocked him out in three rounds in their rematch on 19 March 2022.

He rebuilt at flyweight and won the IBF title on 29 March 2025 at Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, where he stopped Ángel Ayala in the twelfth and final round. His first defence, on 27 December 2025, also went deep before he knocked out Felix Alvarado in round twelve. In June 2026 he went the full distance for a change, dropping Rene Calixto twice on the way to a unanimous decision. He stands at 20-4 with 18 knockouts.

Yabuki is now promoted by Ohashi Promotions, the company behind Naoya Inoue, according to the Daily Tribune.

Fajardo, the Silent Assassin

Fajardo, 26, comes from San Francisco in the Philippine province of Agusan del Sur and fights under the nickname "Silent Assassin." His record of 14-3-2 includes 12 knockouts, and the Tribune counts seven of those as first-round finishes. One of them is a ten-second knockout of Sarawut Jiamthong for an ABF flyweight belt in December 2022.

His mandatory position came from an IBF eliminator in Argentina on 11 April 2026, when he stopped Tobias Reyes in the opening round after putting him down four times inside 65 seconds. The fight in Tokyo will be his first in Japan since April 2024, when he lost his OPBF light flyweight title to Thanongsak Simsri on a unanimous decision in Osaka despite scoring a knockdown in the tenth round.

The Tribune reported that Fajardo has been training in Hong Kong under coach Lennon Tsoi, with plans to finish his preparation at the Elorde Sports Center in the Philippines.

What Both Corners Are Saying

Neither side is talking down the other man's power. Yabuki told the Tribune that his opponent has a very high knockout rate and that he expects a very dangerous match. His trainer, Takashi Takizawa, described Fajardo as a fighter with strong punches on both sides who swings with full force, and predicted a contest that would demand attention from the first round.

The numbers support that view. Between them the two men have 30 knockouts in 34 wins, and both have finished important fights late as well as early, which leaves little reason to expect a cautious twelve rounds.

Ishii and the Rest of the Card

The co-feature has Takeshi Ishii, 26, defending the WBA strawweight title for the first time. Ishii (12-1, 9 KOs) won the belt with a 65-second knockout of Wilfredo Mendez, which The Ring reported as a Japanese record, quicker than the 70-second mark previously held by Naoya Inoue. His opponent has not yet been named. Sources differ slightly on how they describe his belt: Dan Rafael's schedule lists it as the WBA "regular" strawweight title, while The Ring and Bad Left Hook simply call Ishii the WBA champion.

Bad Left Hook also reported that the undercard will include Yabuki's brother, Masanori Rikiishi, and former bantamweight titleholder Yoshiki Takei. Opponents for both were not listed in the reports.

Sources

• Yabuki-Fajardo, Takeshi Ishii set for double world title bouts Nov. 26, The Ring, September 2026
• Masamichi Yabuki vs Miel Fajardo set for November 26, Bad Left Hook (via Yahoo Sports), September 2026
• Fajardo-Yabuki slugfest could be over fast, Daily Tribune (Philippines), 30 September 2026
• The updated daily fight schedule, Dan Rafael (Substack), 29 September 2026
• Masamichi Yabuki, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
• Miel Fajardo, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
• EBARA WAVE Arena Ota (Ota City General Gymnasium) facility page, Ota City official website, accessed October 2026