At age fourteen[2] when he was in the third grade of high school in 1986, he learned boxing from a former boxer from Chuo University who lived near his family home.
[1] Tanaka had adored Sadahiro Gonohe, the president of Hachinohe Teiken Boxing Gym, who is known as a theorist.
Tanaka also actively participated in the Spanish-speaking people's parties and masses, where he got acquainted with an Argentine family.
[13] When Tanaka was twenty-two years old, then twenty-one-year-old Marco Antonio Barrera came to the gym where he was training, and asked for his focus mitts workout.
After training for the day, Tanaka agreed to become his co-trainer with Rudy Pérez[2][11] (1955–2013)[14] in response to his request.
When Brusa had coached the Golden Boy-promoted boxers in Los Angeles and Big Bear City, California, Tanaka studied under him.
Tanaka started to coach in Japan at times other than Barrera's training,[16] and signed a deal with Teiken Boxing Gym in May 2003.
Tanaka later told that he changed the plan during the fight and Linares neatly ran it since he was a superior boxer.
[10] Tanaka has so far trained the world champions such as Erik Morales,[2] Lorenzo Parra,[3] Edwin Valero,[4][25] Jorge Linares,[5][26] Román González,[6][27] Takahiro Aō[7][28] et al.
However, since Aō's first defense was scheduled in early April, Tanaka remained in Tokyo saying nothing about it, and continued training.
When he heard that Rudy Pérez had suffered from a severe disease, he canceled the contract with Teiken Boxing Gym and left Japan for Mexico.