April 2, 2005
TOKYO, JAPAN-WBA#6/WBC#9 fast-punching footworker Nobuhito Honmo (26-4-2, 5 KOs), 129.75, registered the seventh defense of his Japanese 130-pound belt as he kept moving to-and-fro and rained quick combinations to highly-touted hard-punching top contender Keita Manabe (20-2-1, 18 KOs), 130, to pile up good points before he sustained such a deep and wide laceration that he could not go on to be awarded a unanimous technical decision (97-94, 98-94 and 97-95) at 1:35 of the tenth and final round on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan. Manabe attempted to catch the elusive champ with a big punch at a time, but Honmo defended himself well with his tight guard, swift footwork and sly grabbing skills. Honmo suffered a gash over the left eyebrow by a legal punch in the fourth, and had another caused by an accidental butt near the first cut midway in the final round. With his face grotesquely covered with streaming blood, referee Fukuchi stopped the proceedings to go to the votes. Honmo is already slated to face ex-national feather champ Dainoshin Kuma, an aggressive southpaw, in his next defense, but it will be postponed considerably long due to such a nasty gash.
Promoter: Kadoebi Jewel Promotions.
(4-2-05)