January 09, 2008
OSAKA, JAPAN
A weigh-in ceremony for the WBC and WBA bantamweight title bouts took place at 2:30PM in Osaka, Japan. WBC champ Hozumi Hasegawa, Japan, tipped the beam at 117.75, while Simone Maludrottu, Italy, 117.5. Also, WBA titlist Wladimir Sidorenko, Ukraine, scaled in at 117.75 to the 118-pound class limit for Japanese challenger Nobuto Ikehara.
It was such a quiet and even solemn ceremony where no one shouted for joy after making the avoirdupois. Everything was so efficient that the ceremony was over in just ten minutes.
The Italian group consists of ten persons, and the German/Ukraine entourage was more than ten. They speak Italian, German and Ukrainian. Strange enough, we didn’t feel any antagonism between the champs and the challengers, though they are supposed to exchange hot fireworks tomorrow.
After the weigh-in, there was a customary rules meeting, where WBC supervisor Eric Buhain and WBA supervisor Alan Kim separately emphasized some important points on the rules and regulations at separate tables in a same room. In the WBC title bout, a three knockdown rule shall not be applied and an uncut boxer shall be penalized a point at an accidental butt that opens a laceration on the other. The WBA regulations say that the three knockdown rule shall be in effect.
The Sidorenko-Ikehara title bout will start at 7:05PM, and the Hasegawa-Maludrottu title go will begin at 8:14PM. One of the Italian entourage asked why everything was so smooth and punctual. It might be because we use a Seiko watch.
(1-9-08)