February 21, 2002
NAKHON RATCHASIMA, THAILAND-Unbeaten top ranked Thailander Yoddamrong Sithyodthong, 122, captured the WBA 122-pound belt as he upset awkward but hard-hitting southpaw Venezuelan Yober Ortega, 122, by a unanimous decision over 12 rounds.
Scored: Luis Rivera (US) 117-112, Erkki Meronen (Finland) 118-111, and Philippe Verbeke (Belgium) 116-112. Referee was Armando Garcia (US).
The Venezuelan champ started well with his two-fisted attack in a southpaw stance in the first three rounds. But Yoddamrong, 21, solved Ortega’s aggressive but monotonous strategy and turned loose in the 4th and 5th, when he landed sharp rights followed by left hooks to the face and belly.
Ortega kept going forward but Yoddamrong scored more accurate countering shots all the way, piling up points steadily.
The Thailander, reportedly 18-0-1, 7 KOs, previously fought to a hard-fought draw with the current OPBF bantam champ Jess Maca for a vacant PABA interim title in Thailand in April, 2000. Yoddamrong, in the previous year, went to Indonesia to wrest the PABA belt by stretching the defending titlist Bugiarso, then highly ranked by the WBA, flat to send him to hospital, and got rated by the WBA thanks to this important triumph.
Ortega, a 36-year-old veteran, acquired the interim WBA belt by halting Japanese Kozo Ishii in Nagoya in 2000, and finally became the legitimate WBA 122-pound champ by dismantling his compatriot Jose Cheo Rojas in the US last year.
The crestfallen ex-champ said, “Yoddnamrong was a difficult target to catch. I admit my defeat tonight. He was stronger and smarter than I expected.”
Promoter: Songchai Ratanasuban.
WBA supervisor: Yangsup Shim.
(2-21-02)