February 25, 2002
OSAKA, JAPAN-Unbeaten Nobuaki Naka (15-0-1, 10 KOs), 117.5, barely kept his Japanese bantam belt as he failed to catch fast-moving Ryuichi Minoriyama (9-3-2, 4 KOs), 118, to absorb his sharper counters to end in a controversial majority draw over 10 in Osaka, Japan.
Scored: Uenaka 96-96, Kitamura 97-97, and Yasuda 96-95 for the challenger.
Minoriyama, 23, had the champ staggering with a well-timed right in the third, and kept averting Naka’s vaunted hard punches and outlegged him all the way. Naka, also 23 and making his 5th defense, turned aggressive in the second half, but Minoriyama maintained hit-and-run tactics and occasionally countered him with precision. Naka furiously came out fighting in the 10th and final session to carry him to a breathless draw.
Minoriyama, ex-national amateur high school champ, was forced to fight severely overmatched bouts against world-rated Jess Maca and Knight Alexander by his strict father-manager-trainer Shinnosuke, losing in his last two fights. But he obviously became strong mentally and physically to show a game performance.
Minoriyama wasn’t in tip-top shape, as he failed to pass the weigh-in by two pounds, which he barely shed with his best efforts in sauna bath and desperate massage by his father. But he overcame this handicap by his strengthened will power.
Japanese #3 super-bantam Nobuto Ikehara, 124.25, ran his unblemished mark to 14-0, 13 KOs when he embalmed Thai #4 bantam Singhdum Kaewvishnu (10-9, 4 KOs), 123.5, with a single body shot at 0:51 of the 4th.
Promoter: Osaka Teiken Promotions.
Matchmaker: Joe Koizumi (as for the Ikehara-Singhdum bout).
(2-25-02)