October 9, 2005
TOKYO, JAPAN-WBC flyweight champ Pongsaklek Wonjongkam Kratindaeng-gym(57-2, 31 KOs), a Thai southpaw, will put his belt on the line againstWBC #2 ranked Japanese titlist Daisuke Naito (27-1-2, 19 KOs) at theKorakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan, tomorrow (Monday). Both tipped in the beamat the 112-pound class limit at the weigh-in ceremony.
The officials are as follows: referee Guadalupe Garcia (Mexico); judgesGale Van Hoy, Gary Ritter and Ray Hawkins (all US); and supervisorChandru Laluwani (Indonesia).
Pongsaklek, 29, is a formidable champ who has kept his throne eleventimes since his coronation by dispatching defending champ MalcolmTunacao in the first round in 2001 to his credit. The lefty Thailanderhasn’t lost in last 48 bouts for nine years. He suffered adecision loss and a TKO defeat by the same Filipino Jerry Pahayahayearly in his career, but avenged them by a unanimous decision in 1998.The improving Thailander kept his belt by defeating Hayato Asai (TKO5),Alex Baba (TD8), Luis Lazarte (TKO2), Daisuke Naito (KO1), JesusMartinez (W12), Hidenobu Honda (W12), Randy Mangubat (W12), HusseinHussein (W12), Trash Nakanuma (W12), Luis Angel Martinez (TKO5) andNoriyuki Komatsu (TKO5), showing his tight defense and accuratecombination punching.
Naito, a tricky hard-puncher, once went to Thailand to have an ambitiouscrack at the WBC belt against Pongsaklek in 2002, when he registered aninfamous record of being knocked out cold in just 34 seconds of theopening session. It’s the quickest KO defeat in the worldflyweight title bouts in history. Then, Naito started showboating andattacking the cautious champ. hanging both hands very low, withPongsaklek’s single southpaw left sending him to dreamland.For him, the Thai canvas seemed hot and bitter as he was stretched pronethere. Naito kept winning since his sole defeat and captured thenational belt by dropping lefty defending champ Hiroshi Nakano time andagain en route to a unanimous six-round technical decision in hisrival’s home-turf Nagoya in June of the previous year.Naito, 31, successfully defended his national belt twice by finishingTakeyuki Kojima in one and unanimously decisioned lefty Nobuyuki Enomotoover ten.
Naito is a tricky and unorthodox stylist with good physical and mentalpower, if not skillful, nor sophisticated. He may show a good fight atbest, but it may be hard to dethrone such a formidable and courageousthinking boxer as Pongsaklek, who can solve his opponent’sstrategy as the fight progresses. Against a boxer, he goes and stalksto overcome his hit-and-run tactics. Against a puncher, he outboxes himor exchanges blows toe-to-toe with him with better precision. Naito hasonly a puncher’s chance, but it might be a longer fight thantheir first encounter ending in only 34 seconds.
Should Pongsaklek make his twelfth defense tomorrow, he will be obligedto meet the WBC interim ruler Jorge Arce who has just annihilatedHussein Hussein in only two rounds in Las Vegas with the unified WBC112-pound belt at stake.
(10-9-05)