May 15, 2005
May 15, 2005
OSAKA, JAPAN-WBC 115-pound champ Katsushige Kawashima (28-3, 18 KOs) (right photo) will defend his belt against ex-champ Masamori Tokuyama (30-3, 8 KOs) at the Osaka Central Gymnasium, Osaka, Japan on July 18. It@will be a rubber match between the grudge rivals, as Tokuyama, the then WBC ruler, defeated Kawashima by a close but unanimous verdict in June 2003, but Kawashima turned the tables by amazingly stopping the champ, making his ninth defense, in a first-round shocker a year later. Kawashima, a rugged hard-puncher, kept it twice by defeating Mexicans Raul Juarez and Jose Navarro on points last September and this January respectively. The Kawashima-Tokuyama winner is mandated to face Navarro due to a controversy on the decision when Kawashima was awarded a split decision over Navarro in a hard-fought affair in Yokohama.
On the undercard, OPBF middleweight champ Sakio Bika, Australia, will put his regional belt on the line against ex-Japanese ruler Yoshihiro Araki in a grudge fight, too. This show will be presented by Kanazawa Promotions.
(5-15-05)