December 13, 2005
TOKYO, JAPAN-Masayuki Koguchi (9-4-2, 2 KOs), 129.25, stopped Daichi Shibata (6-9-1, 4 KOs), 130, at 1:34 of the seventh round in a scheduled eight rounder on Monday in Tokyo, Japan. During this contest the crowd watched an unbelievable happening. Koguchi, a handsome upright stylist, kept boxing beautifully like Gentleman Jim Corbett until the fourth round, when his well-made wig was almost detached out of the skull. His cornerman roughly stripped him of the wig during the recess, and Koguchi, a bald man, went out fighting from the fifth round. Jim Corbett abruptly turned Bob Fitzsimmons. The crowd was at first stunned and then burst into laughter. The Japanese Fitzsimmons, 28, accelerated his attack to prompt the refereefs intervention midway in the seventh.
In the main event Koji Arisawa (34-4-2, 23 KOs), ex-Japanese 130-pound champ as well as once one of the most popular boxers, made his final appearance and decked a fine victory over Thailander Pichitchai Gokongkarngym (8-6, 2 KOs), 132, by flooring him three times en route to an automatic KO at 2:41 of the third round in a scheduled ten. The handsome and hard-punching Koji, one of the twin brothers with Kazu Arisawa, registered 18 wins straight with fifteen (including 12 KOs in a row) within the distance from his pro debut and planned to have a crack at the world throne against then reigning Joel Casamayol. Koji, however, lost his Japanese superfeather belt to future two-time world champ Takanori Hatakeyama via ninth round KO in 1998. Koji regained the belt by defeating Panther Yanagida in an elimination bout in the next year, but yielded it to Kinji Amano in 2001. Koji, the son of his father/trainer/manager/promoter Shigenori (who once held the Japanese shortest KO record of 13 seconds), kept fighting since despite peoplefs advice for him to hang up gloves, and recently struggled to win as he apparently lost his previous zip and power. Itfs good that the 34-year-old Koji now calls it quits to turn a trainer to assist his father and brother at the Soka Arisawa Gym. A ceremony in commemoration of his retirement took place in the ring afterward.
Promoter: Soka Arisawa Promotions.
(12-13-05)