By VSP Promotions
Nguyễn Văn Hải's trip to the famous Korakuen Hall ended in round five on Saturday night. The referee stepped in at 2:48 to save the Vietnamese veteran from Japan's WBO Asia Pacific featherweight champion, Ryota Muto.
The night got harder before the first bell. Hải came in 300 grams over the featherweight limit at Friday's weigh-in, so only Muto could leave with the belt. Had Hải won, the title would have been declared vacant.
Once they got going, the 21-year-old southpaw set the tempo from round one. Muto worked behind the one-two and a hard straight left, then dug left uppercuts to the body and followed with the right hook, mixing his attack up and down. Hải is a former national champion with a deep amateur résumé, and he leaned on the tight, high guard that has carried him through a long career. From round two, though, his punches dried up. Once a fighter stops letting his hands go, a champion of Muto's quality gets to pick his shots at will. Muto kept going to the body, trapped Hải in the red corner in round five, and the referee had seen enough.
Credit where it is due. Muto is no ordinary regional champion. He won this belt in May by stopping Kenji Fujita, then the WBO's No.1 contender, and the WBO now rates him No.2 in the world. Even his corner admitted they had prepared counters that Hải never let them use.
For Hải, now 9-4 at 38, the lesson from Tokyo is clear. Against world-rated opposition, the guard alone won't win rounds. You have to make the other man respect your punches. For Vietnamese boxing, the bigger picture still matters: a Vietnamese fighter is getting the call to fight for regional titles against world-ranked champions at the sport's most iconic small hall. Those nights are where the next step gets learned.
Respect to Muto and his team, who held up a photo of the late Shigetoshi Kotari in the ring after the fight.
The result: Ryota Muto (Japan) def. Nguyễn Văn Hải (Vietnam) by TKO, Round 5, 2:48. WBO Asia Pacific featherweight title, 10 rounds scheduled. DYNAMIC GLOVE on U-NEXT vol.48, Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Saturday 3 October 2026.
VSP PRO 10 boxers being part of history and putting ink on their fight posters.
Who knows who will be the next Vietnam champion - maybe he is in this photo even !
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