Special Sub-Topic: Ippo vs Kobashi: East Rookie King Quarter Finals Click Here To Play: Ippo vs Kobashi: East Rookie King Quarter Finals

In the opening round of the East Rookie King, Kobashi beat the third seed of the tournament. What was his name?

Yoshida Mitsuo. By combining jabs and clinches, Kobashi threw off Yoshida's rhythm. After four rounds Kobashi won by points.

Who throws the first clean hitting punch?

Kobashi & Kenta & Kobashi Kenta. Ippo threw the first punch, but it was effectively blocked. After Kobashi clinches Ippo he starts throwing a few swing punches, that are neither a jab or hook.

Kobashi uses what strong guard in the fight?

Cross Arm Block. Kobashi uses the almost impenetrable Cross Arm Block. It is a powerful guard that absorbs nearly all of the impact of a punch.

Ippo never hits Kobashi during the second round.

True. Ippo throws many punches out in this round, but all of them are blocked.

What is Kamogawa's plan for beating the Kobashi's guard?

Hit the guard high then low. Kamogawa expects Kobashi's guard tto break after many hits. Kobashi expects this, so he easily avoids it.

During the fourth round, Kobashi hits Ippo with a strong hit in what body part?

Jaw & chin. After hitting Ippo with a strong blow to the chin, Kobashi starts attacking Ippo with the intent of a KO victory. If this didn't happen, Kobashi would've won.

After getting hit by Kobashi's strong blow, what old plan does Ippo revert to?

Turtle & Kami. After getting hit hard by Kobashi, Ippo reverts back to his turtle stance to defend himself. He is waiting for the opening he needs.

What is the final decision of the fight?

Ippo by KO. Even though Kobashi was winning by points, after Kobashi did that strong hit on Ippo's jaw, he decided he wanted to win by KO. Ippo then hit Kobashi with a straight, KOing him.

How many times did Ippo hit Kobashi in that fight?

2. Surprisingly Ippo only hits Kobashi twice. Once to the body in the early fourth round, then the straight which ended the fight.

What injury did Kobashi sustain after the fight?

Broken nose. After Ippo hit Kobashi with the right straight, Kobashi's nose broke. Ippo learns that when he meets Kobashi while doing road work (running.) After that Kobashi tells Ippo to win the tournament.