By Joe Koizumi

WBO junior lightweight champ Masayuki Ito (25-1-1, 13 KOs), 130, successfully made his initial defense when he battered #1 ranked Russian Evgeny Chuprakov (20-1, 10 Kos), 129.25, so furiously that his cornerman tossed in the towel for surrender at 2:11 of the seventh round on Sunday in Tokyo, Japan. Ito took the initiative from the outset, had Evgeny hurt with faster combinations and finally caught up with him in the fatal session. Laurence Cole (US) was the referee.

(More to come)