April 20, 2006
TOKYO, JAPAN
Unbeaten Japanese Hiroshi Yamaguchi (15-0-1, 11 KOs), 147, wrested the OPBF welterweight belt as he was awarded a split verdict over WBC #11 ranked Filipino lefty defending champ Rev Santillan (22-3-1, 16 KOs), 147, over hard-fought gory twelve heats on Thursday in Tokyo, Japan. The official scores were as follows: scoring referee Anek Hongtongkam (Thailand) 114-113 and Ukrid Sarasas (Japan) 115-113, both for Yamaguchi, and Alex Vidal (Philippines) 115-112 for Santillan.
The OPBF #7 ranked Yamaguchi, ex-amateur national champ, made a good start to take the first two rounds, and Santillan suffered a gash over the left eyebrow in the second. The taller Filipino, however, found his range and rhythm to be in command in middle rounds. Yamaguchi, also bleeding from a cut over the left optic from the third on, moved well and fought back hard in the seventh through ninth. The southpaw champ shifted his target to the midsection of the fast-moving Japanese and slowed him down effectively. The eleventh saw Santillan floor him with a long southpaw left and furiously follow it up with Yamaguchi barely withstanding his assault. Yamaguchi, in the final canto, displayed his last surge and gained an important point on the neutral referee Hongtongkam’s tally (which had been 104-104 after the eleventh). It was such a close affair that there were arguments for and against the verdict.
Japanese #5 ranked 130-pounder Kei Igarashi (16-3-2, only 2 KOs), 134.25, showed his busier hands in winning a unanimous nod (100-94, 98-95 and 97-95) over Koji Toyoshima (16-12-1, 8 KOs), 135, managed by ex-world bantam champ Fighting Harada, over ten.
Promoter: JB Sports Promotions.
Matchmaker: Joe Koizumi (as for the Santillan-Yamaguchi bout).
(4-20-06)