Champion Masamori Tokuyama outclassed fifth-ranked challenger Akihiko Nago over 12 rounds Tuesday to retain by unanimous decision the World Boxing Council (WBC) super flyweight title he won in August. Tokuyama, a pro-Pyongyang Korean resident of Japan whose real name is Hong Chang Soo, peppered Nago with left hooks and right straights throughout the fight at Maishima Arena for a one-sided victory as the southpaw challenger refused to press the action.
American judge James Jenkin saw the fight 118-108 for the champion, while Kazumasa Kuwata and Nobuaki Uratani, both of Japan, each scored the fight 117-109 for Tokuyama.
Tokuyama, 26, floored Nago with a right to the chin in the third round, while Nago connected with a left hook in the sixth that put the champion on the seat of his pants in the only knockdowns in the uneventful 12-rounder.
Tokuyama, who won the WBC crown from South Korea's Cho In Joo in August, improved his record to 23 wins with five knockouts against two losses and a draw. Nago, a 24-year-old native of Okinawa, suffered his second loss in 20 fights, losing in his second attempt at a world championship belt after falling to Hideki Todaka for the World Boxing Association super flyweight title in November 1999.
Maca holds onto belt
Jess Maca of the Philippines defended his Orient-Pacific Federation bantamweight crown with a unanimous decision over Japan's Katsushige Kawashima on Monday.
There were no knockdowns in the 12-round title fight held at Tokyo's Korakuen Hall.