KOREAN CHO KEEPS OPBF SUPER-BANTAM TITLE ON 10TH ROUND TECHNICAL DECISION OVER EX-CHAMP YAMATO

  October 7, 2000 TOKYO, JAPAN
WBC #9 ranked Korean Yongin Cho, 122, kept boring in, swinging and stalking ex-champ Shin Yamato, 122, despite the Japanese southpaw's occasional counters, and was awarded a split technical decision at 0:47 of the 10th round to retain his OPBF super-bantam title.

  In their first encounter Cho had retired Yamato after the 8th despite the former's problematic shot after the bell to end the 7th, dropping the defending champ here last June.  The OPBF headquarters sanctioned a rare direct rematch because of the strong protest of Yamato's management.

  Yamato kept circling to avert Cho's roundhouse non-stop swings, but failed to score effective counters enough to win more points than the rough-and-tumble Korean.

  A bad collision of heads happened soon after the 10th started, and Yamato bled too profusely to go on.  A technical verdict was taken as follows:

  Referee: Pinit Prayadsab (Thailand) 87-84 for Cho
Judge: Manshik Cho (Korea) 88-85 for Cho
Judge: Ken Morita (Japan) 87-86 for Yamato

  This victory raised Cho'fs credentials to 11-2, 6 KOs.  WBC #18 ranked Yamato fell to 16-4-4, 4 KOs.

  Main event:
WBC #3 ranked super-feather Kengo Nagashima, 130, scored his 17th consecutive win and improved his mark to 18-1-1, 11 KOs as he dropped Korean #5 ranked feather Jongbong Lee, 130, twice in the opening canto and finally finished him at 0:22 of the 4th round.

  The slick-punching Nagashima, ex-OPBF 130-pound champ, dug heavy body shots to send him sprawling to the deck twice in the first, and it was a matter time when Nagashima would bring home the bacon.

  A very solid southpaw left of Nagashima, the promoter Kiyoshi's son, sunk him in agony with the towel fluttering from his corner. (A towel-tossing during the referee's count has it registered as a KO, not a TKO, here in Japan.)  Lee impaired to 8-6, 6 KOs.

  Promoter: 18 Koga Promotions in association with Teiken Promotions.
Matchmaker: Joe Koizumi. (10-7-00)