September 25, 2005
YOKOHAMA, JAPAN-WBC bantam champ Hozumi Hasegawa (19-2, 6 KOs), 117.25, impressively kept his belt as he overwhelmed Mexican Gerardo Martinez (27-6-2, 20 KOs), 117.5, and floored him four times and finally stopped him at 2:18 of the seventh round on Sunday in Yokohama, Japan. The southpaw champ, who dethroned Thailander Veeraphol Nakhonluang-Promotion last April, proved faster and fresher than Martinez from the outset, scoring with sharp right-left combinations. The third saw Hasegawa explode a southpaw right hook to the face of the challenger, dropping him down to the canvas. Having swept all rounds thanks to his superior speed, the Japanese lefty champ turned loose in the seventh and floored the game Mexican three more times, when referee Laurence Cole declared a well-received halt. Before the stoppage, Duane Ford (US) and Bruce McTavish (Philippines) tallied 60-53, while Hubert Minn (US) had it 60-52, all in favor of the champ.
Yutaka Niida (19-1-3, 8 KOs), 104.5, Japan, barely kept his WBA 105-pound belt when he was awarded a majority technical decision over previously unbeaten Filipino Eriberto Gejon (21-1-1, 13 KOs), 104.75, at 2:01 of the tenth round as the challenger was declared unfit to go on because of a very deep gash over the right eyebrow caused by accidental head-butts. The scorecards were as follows: Pinit Prayadsab (Thailand) and Wansoo Yuh (Korea) both 96-95 for the more aggressive champ, and Medardo Villalobos (Panama) 97-93 for the Filipino jabber. Gejon made a good start by throwing more jabs to the much shorter champ. But Niida, in the fourth, found his range and started fireworks, freely swinging left and right hooks to the face and belly. Gejon failed to give more pressure to the champ, who landed stronger shots to the cautious challenger in the seventh and eighth. It’s such a close bout that either could have been a victor at the point of a stoppage, but Gejon apparently lacked the necessary aggressiveness as the challenger to wrest the world belt in the champ’s home-turf. . The referee was Luis Pabon (Puerto Rico).
WBA/WBC#5 feather contender, unbeaten Venezuelan Jorge Linares (17-0, 10 KOs9, 128, dropped durable Filipino Ayon Naranjo (13-6, 5 KOs), 125.25, in the final round to win a lopsided shutout verdict (all 60-53) over six. Linares suffered a right hand pain early in the bout, and had to attack only the breadbasket of the Filipino all the way. Naranjo, despite not having absorbed so many punches to the face but to the belly, complained of a headache afterwards and immediately sent to hospital because of a brain injury. Fortunately he was safe, but will have to stay at hospital for a week or so since slight brain hemorrhage was detected there.
Hard-punching southpaw Edwin Valero (16-0, 16 KOs; all in the first round), 132, caught Hero Bando, 131.25, Japan, dropping him with vicious right hooks twice to prompt the referee’s intervention at 1:50 of the opening session. Valero simply looked awesome with his hard-hitting ability.
Formerly six-time national high school champ Takahiro Ao (9-0, 6 KOs), 127.5, showed his sharpness in finishing previously unbeaten Korean Jaechun Moon (5-1, 3 KOs), 125, at 2:54 of the first round. Ao’s southpaw left was a haymaker.
Ex-national amateur champ Koji Sato (3-0, 3 KOs), 158.75, demolished Korean veteran Jooyoung Lee, 158.75, at 2:36 of the opening session.
Promoter: Akihiko Honda’s Teiken Promotions.
Matchmaker: Joe Koizumi.
(9-25-05)