July 8, 2002
TOKYO, JAPAN-WBC #17 ranked Jun Kitano (12-1-1, 2 KOs), 108, barely kept his Japanese light-fly belt as he mixed up with another soft-punching Masato Hatakeyama (8-2-1, 2 KOs), 107.75, en route to a majority draw over 10.
Scored: 97-97 twice and 97-95 for Hatakeyama. The challenger had the champ on the deck with his desperate combinations, but the referee called it a slip. Had it been a knockdown, Hatakeyama would have wrested the title. Some angry adherents of Hatakeyama threw water bottles into the ring to protest against the drawn verdict. Anyway, it was a lousy affair of the powder-puff punchers.
Ex-national 140-pound champ and current top light contender Junichi Ono (23-4-2, 9 KOs), 136.25, was awarded a technical decision over #3 ranked Kazuki Kubota (12-4, 3 KOs), 136.5, after the 6th, as he became unfit to go on due to a bad cut at the left eyebrow.
Scored: 59-56 twice and 59-57, all for the cleverer Ono.
Japanese #9 feather Masataro Matsunuma (12-4-2, 7 KOs), 130, exploded a countering left hook and finished #9 super-feather Isamu Sakashita (13-4, 9 KOs), 129.5, at 1:30 of the second.
Japanese #6 bantam Yuji Nukaga (14-1, 9 KOs), 120.25, failed to finish a durable Thailander Roonchai Muangsurin (13-10, 4 KOs), 119.25, due to his lack of sharpness only to earn a close but unanimous nod over 8.
Promoter: Yonekura Promotions.
(7-8-02)