Kogawa keeps Japanese 112lb belt

By Joe Koizumi
Photo by Boxing Beat

WBC#15/WBA#11/IBF#7 Japanese flyweight champ Takuya Kogawa (27-4, 13 KOs), 112, kept his national belt as he had a tough time with the durability and determination of 37-year-old challenger Masafumi Otake (15-15-3, 7 KOs), 112, but pounded out a nearly shutout decision (100-90 twice and 99-91) over ten fast rounds on Thursday in Tokyo, Japan. Otake fought well, showing his heart, but the champ displayed his trademark pit-a-pat combinations in his Slapsie Rosenbloom style regardless of effect and precision, steadily piling up points as usual. Otake occasionally scored with a few solid right counters to the face of the faster champ, but failed to follow it up and have the edge on the light-punching champ. After the fifth, the JBC announced the interim tallies due to the regulation: 50-45 twice and 49-46, all in favor of Kogawa, who went on to sweep the second half with his faster windmill attack. Kogawa had failed to win the world belt twice, losing to Pongsaklek Wonjongkam in 2011 and to Sirichai Thaiyen in 2014—both in Thailand. He may need more power to win the belt abroad since it may be unlikely that he will have a third shot at the world throne here in Japan.

Japan’s #8 super-fly Jo Tanooka scored his career-first stoppage over unranked Shogo Sumitomo at 2:58 of the fourth round in a scheduled semi-final eight. Tanooka, handled by former world flyweight champ Shoji Oguma, raised his mark to 13-3-3, ONE KO, and Sumitomo impaired to 6-9-1, 5 KOs. We still remember Oguma’s three-time hairline competitions with Miguel Canto with the WBC title on the line. #1 in 1975, 147-145, 149-145, 147-147, majority decision for Canto; #2 in 1978, 147-146, 147-145, 145-147, split duke for Canto; #3 in 1978, 145-144, 147-145, 148-145, unanimous nod for Canto. Miguel Canto was such an artful dodger against the hard-punching southpaw Oguma, who was unfortunate to be contemporary with El Maestro.