## ORIENTAL UPDATE As of January 21, 2000

## WBC FLYWEIGHT TITLE BOUT IN THAILAND ON FEB. 25 MEDGOEN SINGSURAT (AKA Medgoen 3K-Battery), WBC flyweight champ, will defend his title against Japan's MASAKI KAWABATA, 16-3-2, 8 KOs, in Udon Thani, Thailand, on Feb. 25. Medgoen captured the WBC belt by finishing Filipino lefty Manny Pacquiao, already dethroned at the weigh-in, on a third round KO in Thailand on Sept. 17 last. Medgoen, making his first defense, is still unbeaten with a 19-0, 12 KOs mark. Kawabata, a game fighter, lost a highly controversial 9th round technical decision to WBC #5 ranked light fly Panieng Sasiprabha Okuda in Tokyo last Sept. Despite his local disadvantage, Kawabata may show a good fight with his determination and durability.

## WBC MINIMUM TITLE BOUT IN THAILAND ON FEB. 11 WANDEE CHOR CHAREON (AKA Wandee Singwangcha), WBC minimum champ, will risk his 105-pound throne against top contender JOSE ANTONIO AGUIRRE, Mexico, in Thailand on Feb. 11. Wandee is a young and excellent speedster with fine timing, having acquired the vacant WBC interim title by outscoring Taiwan's Rocky Lin in Tokyo in Aug., 1998. Since then, he defended it just once by halting Japan's Wolf Tokimitsu in the 12th and final session last May. Wandee, reportedly 24-3, 7 KOs, will see a formidable and hard-hitting challenger in Aguirre, 21-1-1, 14 KOs, who reigns as NABF champ since his second round stoppage of Martin Acevedo in Feb., 1998. Wandee may outspeed the Mexican hard-hitter, who will try to bring back the crown with a big KO win.

## EX-WBA SUPER-FEATHER CHAMP HATAKEYAMA RETURNS TAKANORI HATAKEYAMA, ex-WBA super-feather champ, will return to the ring warfare though he once announced his farewell to the squared circle. Hatakeyama, still 24, hung up gloves after his annihilation by Mongolian Lakva Sim last June. He sometimes appeared in TV programs as a publicity, but wasn't content with such a life. He made up his mind to make a comeback as a 135-pounder, aiming at a crack at the national title against WBA #5 ranked Rick Roberts Yoshimura at his first step. Hatakeyama, 22-1-2, 17 KOs, will return to a status as a good attraction here.

## OPBF TITLE BOUTS SHIN YAMATO, ex-Japanese bantam champ, will meet Korean 122-pound boss KIOH KIL in a bid for the vacant super-bantam title of the OPBF (Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation) in Tokyo on Feb. 19. Newly crowned OPBF fly ruler HIROSHI NAKANO, an unbeaten busy-punching lefty, will put his regional title on the line against Korean light fly champ PILKOO KANG in Nagoya on Apr. 2. OPBF super-middle champ YOSHINORI NISHIZAWA is planning to face ex-champ and top contender YONGSUK CHOI in Tokyo on Mar. 28. But problem is no Korean people know the 6'4" Choi's whereabout. The matchmaker of this OPBF title go is still looking for Choi to observe his option agreement with Yonekura Promotions.

## SENSATIONAL MATCH IN KOREA Ex-WBA world super-feather champs YONGSOO CHOI of Korea and LAKVA SIM of Mongolia will meet in an eliminator to decide the challenger to the WBA crown in Seoul on Mar. 5. Mr. Yangsup Shim, PABA president, advocated and recommended this signicifant encounter to materialize. The WBA orders the winner of the upcoming WBA title bout between Jongkwon Baek and compatriot Kyuchul Choi in Pohang, Korea, on Jan. 30 must fight the WBA interim champ Joel Casamayor. The winner of the WBA champs will be obliged to face the victor of the Choi vs. Sim bout. We'll see the ultimately strong WBA champ, who may fight a unification bout with the WBC ruler Floyd Mayweather in the near future.

## WHICH WILL BE THE CHALLENGER TO TODAKA? Japan's sole world champ HIDEKI TODAKA, WBA super-fly ruler, is planning to make his second defense against the then top contender and ex-champ Yokthai Sith-oar, who abruptly dropped to #3 in the last WBA ratings despite suffering no defeat. The WBA recommends Todaka to fight ex-WBA fly kingpin Leo Gamez who also abruptly zoomed up to the top rank in the latest ratings in the 115-pound division. This shift of the ratings produced great confusion in Japan and Thailand, since Toshiro Matsuo, the champ's manager/promoter, was preparing to promote Todaka's mandatory defense agaisnt Yokthai in Nagoya most probably on Apr. 23. Akihiko Honda, Japan's most influential impresario and international coordinator in Asia, is talking with the WBA headquarters to straighten out this complex situation.

## PROBLEMATIC "JUN ARLOS" CASE Filipino minimumweight boxer JUN ARLOS, then ranked #5 by the WBC, lost to Japan's #9 ranked MASANORI SUGA on a very lopsided decision (100-91 twice and 100-90) in Fukuoka, Japan, on Aug. 22, 1999. Thanks to this upset victory, Suga got rated #15 by the WBC. Arlos came back to Tokyo and also lost a unanimous decision to Japanese flyweight Hiroki Shinozaki on Dec. 8. Gabriel "Bebot" Elorde Jr., the son of the legendary world junior light champ Flash Elorde and one of the most influential managers in the Philippines, claimed that he had kept the passport of Jun Arlos when he fought Shinozaki last Dec. It almost became a scandal that there was a possibility that a bogus boxer fought under the name of Jun Arlos, but it proved that it was Jun Arlos himself that fought Shinozaki in Tokyo with the evidence of a videotape of that bout that was confirmed by Bebot Elorde. Then, how on earth did Jun Arlos enter Japan without having his passport? Did he use some bogus passport of himself or some other person's passport? If so, it might be more criminal that the Filipino boxer entered Japan without his own passport. The GAB is said to be investigating this case. For worldwide record-keepers, however, it was fortunately not necessary to correct the result of the Arlos vs. Shinozaki bout. END

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