Champion Masamori Tokuyama stopped southpaw challenger Kazuhiro Ryuko in the ninth round of their World Boxing Council super flyweight title fight Saturday to successfully defend his title for a fourth time.
Tokuyama outclassed Ryuko throughout the scheduled 12-rounder at Yokohama Arena before putting the fifth-ranked challenger on the mat with a sharp right 2 minutes, 42 seconds into the ninth round.
Ryuko regained his feet before the count, but Japanese referee Kazumasa Kuwata signaled the fight was over.
Tokuyama, a pro-Pyongyang Korean resident of Japan whose real name is Hong Chang Su, scored the seventh knockout victory of his professional career and raised his record to 26 wins, two losses and a draw.
Ryuko fell to his second loss against 13 wins, including four by knockout, and three draws.