December 23, 1998
NAGOYA, JAPAN-Venezuelan veteran JESUS "KIKI" ROJAS, 114 3/4, captured
the WBA super-flyweight title, as he was awarded an upset unanimous
decision over SATOSHI IIDA, 115, Japan, over 12 heats at Aichi
Prefectural Gymnasium.
Some 6,600 partisan fans were in attendance, but they watched it gloomily because of Iida's hard fight after his apparent dislocation of the right shoulder midway in the 5th. Iida was obliged to fight nearly with a single left hand thereafter.
Iida, making his 3rd defense, was a prefight favorite due to his superior physique, speed and age (5 years his junior to the 34-year-old Rojas). In the opening session Iida, a taller lefty, cautiously started to keep his distance, while Rojas occasionally connected with good jabs to the champ's face. Iida, a Univ. graduate, landed right-left combos to the midsection, and appeared to have an edge in the 2nd.
Iida disclosed after the fight, "I felt that I might have my right shoulder start being dislocated in the 2nd. So, I became very nervous in throwing right jabs and hooks since then." The defending champ looked defensive and negative, losing the 3rd and 4th.
Iida, midway in the 5th, almost turned his back, which had the crowd befuddled and embarrassed. Iida unfortunately had the right shoulder almost dislocated, and rotated his right arm to barely locate the shoulder at the original place. Referee Armando Garcia, from Miami, temporarily stopped the proceedings and asked the champ whether to go on. Iida didn't quit but nodded, and the fight was resumed. Rojas swarmed over the champ who suddenly slowed down, battering him from pillar to post.
Iida, however, showed his best in Round Six, when he desperately turned loose and pinned Rojas with a flurry of punches to the ropes to win a point. In the same round, Rojas was penalized a point due to hitting low again after receiving the third man's warning.
But it became a strange fight from the 7th on. The champ might feel severe pain at the shoulder, so he withstood the pain and had to fight with a southpaw left hand. Rojas, former WBA fly champ in 1989, kept taking the initiative, as he was stalking the retreating champ all the way. Iida, in a sense, fought well with a single hand and with his severe pain (though we could not realize during the bout).
The champ tried to counter the aggressor with his left hand, but Rojas kept coming forward and eventually had the upper hand in the second half. The partisan crowd encouraged the champ, but he was forced to fight with a left hand in a brave but apparently losing fashion.
In the 12th and final session, Rojas committed a low blow again to be penalized another point. But it didn't seem to effect his total domination of the fight from the 7th on.
Scored: Duan Fored (USA) 115-111, Hector Hernandez (Mexico) 116-112, and Arkom Wannasit (Thailand) 116-113, all for Rojas.
Rojas, who now wrested his second world throne 9 years after his first coronation, raised his credentials to 32-7-2 and a No Contest, 16 KOs. Iida fell to 25-2-1, 11 KOs.
DUAN FORD(USA)
| - | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | TOTAL |
| IIDA | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 111 |
| ROJAS | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9(-1) | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10(-1) | 115 |
HECTOR HERNANDEZ(MEXICO)
| - | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | TOTAL |
| IIDA | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 112 |
| ROJAS | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10(-1) | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10(-1) | 116 |
ARKOM WANNASIT(THAILAND)
| - | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | TOTAL |
| IIDA | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 113 |
| ROJAS | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10(-1) | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9(-1) | 116 |
REFEREE: ARMANDO GARCIA(USA)
WBA #9 ranked super bantam KOZO ISHII, 123 1/2, landed a vicious overhand right to a Filipino veteran named JAKE CARTE, 124, who staggered so badly as to be counted out by the ref at 1:55 of the 4th in a semi-final 10. The KO winner boosted his ledger to 18-1, 12 KOs. Ishii, who had entered the WBA and the WBC top ten thanks to his upset victory over world-ranked Yonghoon Lee last Jun., is one of the brightest prospects in Nagoya.
Ex-Japanese champ HIDEKI TODAKA, 115, defeated WBC #9 ranked flyweight YONGSOON CHANG, 115, by a unanimous decision over 10. Scored: double 97-94 and 97-95, all for Todaka whose domination of the later rounds carried him to an important triumph over the 2-time world challenger. Todaka is now 14-2, 7 KOs. Chang dropped to 21-4, 14 KOs.
Japanese light fly champ HIDENOBU HONDA, 115, engaged in an overweight go and halted Filipino JUN DAVALOS, 113 1/2, at 1:36 of the 3rd in a scheduled 10. The WBA #5 ranked Honda, a very tall lefty, bettered his mark to 16-1, 7 KOs.
Promoter: Midori Promotions in association with Teiken Promotions.
WBA supervisor: Renzo Bagnariol (Nicaragua).
(12-23-98)