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.