GREATER THAN JOE LOUIS?

JOE LOUIS, Brown Bomber, still holds the record of 25 consecutive defenses, which is the best record in history. But it may be a farce that some Thailanders say that his record was broken, as SAMSON TOYOTA-THAILAND (previously fighting as Samson Dutchboygym at first and then as Samson 3K-Battery), 35-0, 32 KOs, registered his 30th defense of the WBF super-fly title in Bangkok on Jan. 29. Problem is quality of his previous oppositions. Samson beat many mediocre Filipino challengers to extend his record of defenses, but no Asian experts seriously regard him as greater than Khaosai Galaxy, a retired Thai superstar with an excellent record of 49-1, 43 KOs, who had registered 19 defenses of his WBA 115-pound title during his long reign in 1984 through 1992.

PICHIT VS. YANG FOR WBA LIGHT FLY TITLE IN THAILAND

WBA light flyweight champ PICHIT CHOR SIRIWAT, 21-1, 13 KOs, doesn't forget how to box after his one-year inactivity, and will fight Korean lefty SANGIK YANG, 19-6, 13 KOs, in Sara Buri, Thailand, on Feb. 5. Pichit made his last appearance on Feb. 20 of the previous year and defeated the then WBA's top contender Joma Gamboa by a unanimous decision in Samui Island, Thailand. Because of a recession in Thailand, Songchai Ratanasuban, his promoter, had a very tough time booking his champ's defense since. Yang, WBC international 108-pound champ, is a durable and game southpaw who wrested the WBC inter. title by stopping Filipino Ric Magramo in Sept., 1997. Yang lacks finesse and sharpness, but has never been stopped nor KO'd in 5 defeats, including a couple of controversial decisions to Shiro Yahiro and Yuto Asai in Japan. If Pichit, making his 5th defense, displays his favorite Pernell-Whitaker-style, he will outmaneuver the onrushing Korean southpaw with ease. If the Thailander is successful in this defense, he will be obliged to risk his belt against the top contender Rosendo Alvarez.

FIGHT PLACE OF MEDGOEN VS. KAWABATA SHIFTED TO BANGKOK

WBC flyweight champ MEDGOEN SINGSURAT (AKA Medgoen 3K-Battery), 19-0, 12 KOs, will face Japan's MASAKI KAWABATA, 16-3-2, 8 KOs, in Bangkok, Thailand, on Feb. 25. This bout was originally slated to take place at Udon Thani, but it was moved to the capital of Thailand. Kawabata will arrive at Bangkok on Feb. 18 to prepare for an ambitious shot.

WBA INTERIM MINIMUM TITLE BOUT OF GAMBOA VS. SAI

JOMA GAMBOA, a Filipino hard-puncher, 27-5-1, 20 KOs, will put his WBA interim minimum title on the line against Japanese ATSUSHI SAI, 14-2-1, 7 KOs, in Hachinohe, Japan, on Apr. 9. It was planned to take place on Apr. 8, but was postponed by a day to Apr. 9. Gamboa acquired the WBA interim belt by flattening Japan's Satoru Abe in 6 lopsided rounds in Nagoya last Dec. 4. Atsuhi, a taller boxer, may show a good fight against Gamboa, who was elected Sportsman of the Year by Philippine Sportswriters Association. The humble boy from Cebu Island recently paid a courtesy call to President Estrada and received his encouragement. He is the sole world champ in the Philippines now.

OPBF SUPER-LIGHT TITLE BOUT OF SATAKE VS. MARKS

MASAKAZU SATAKE, OPBF super-light champ, newly ranked #15 by the WBC, will risk his regional title against the OPBF top contender STEVEN MARKS in Akashi, Japan, on Apr. 16. Satake, a lefty footworker, outlegged and outsped the hard-punching but slower champ Jongkil Kim, Korea, on a split decision last Dec. 19. It will be a good match between top Asian 140-pounders.

OPBF SUPER-FLY TITLE BOUT OF TOKUYAMA VS. SIAHAYA

MASAMORI TOKUYAMA, WBC #8 ranked 115-pounder, will defend his OPBF super-fly title against Indonesian JACK SIAHAYA in Osaka on May 20. Tokuyama, who had forced ex-WBA light fly and fly champ Hiroki Ioka into retirement with an upset TKO win in Dec., 1998, won the vacant OPBF 115-pound title by outscoring world-rated Thailander Pone Saengmorakot in Osaka last Sept. Tokuyama, a lanky speedster, wishes to have a shot at the WBC throne against Injoo Cho upon his second OPBF title defense.

OPBF SUPER-BANTAM ELIMINATION BOUT OF YAMATO AND KIL

KIOH KIL, Korean 122-lbs. champ, will face ex-Japanese bantam boss SHIN YAMATO, 15-2-4, 5 KOs, for the vacant OPBF super-bantam title vacated by ex-champ Kozo Ishii who showed a grueling battle with the WBA super-bantam champ Nestor Garza only to succumb on a 12-round TKO last Nov. 21. Yamato, a tall and lanky lefty, may have a tough time coping with the durable and aggressive Korean champ.

OPBF FLY TITLE BOUT OF NAKANO AND KANG

We, in Japan, haven't heard such miserable stories here that ex-world champs lead poor and shabby lives after their retirements as in some other countries, since our ex-heroes usually stay in the boxing fraternity to become managers or promoters by establishing their own gyms. Ex-WBC super-bantam champ Kiyoshi Hatanaka, who dethroned Argentine Pedro Decima and forfeited his title to Daniel Zaragoza in 1991, is one of successful examples. Hatanaka, still young at 32, produced national super-feather champ Ryuhei Sugita and OPBF fly champ Hiroshi Nakano to his credit. HIROSHI NAKANO, an unbeaten lefty, 12-0, 8 KOs, will defend his title against Korean boss Pilkoo Kang in Nagoya on Apr. 2. Nakano, making his first defense, dethroned busy-punching Filipino Melvin Magramo via a upset but well-received decision last Nov. 23. Nakano will display his improvement by stopping Kang with his trademark combination punching.

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