…wins WBO AP 115lb belt

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unsung prospect Tetsuro Ohashi (12-3-1, 3 KOs), 115, brilliantly upset WBC, WBO both #2 Kenta Nakagawa (24-5-1, 12 KOs), 115, by scoring a fine TKO victory at 2:48 of the tenth round in a scheduled twelve, and wrested the WBO Asia Pacific junior bantam belt on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan.

It was a see-saw affair, but it turned out that Ohashi had been leading on points at the stoppage: 86-85, 87-84 for him, but 84-87 for Nakagawa. The aggressor Tetsuro caught the fading champ with a vicious southpaw left to the button, badly dropping him on the knees. Ohashi, 25, swarmed over the 38-year-old groggy champ with a fusillade of punches and prompted the referee Fukuchi to intervene and call a well-received halt.

The newly crowned champ dedicated his coronation to his stablemate, the late Kazuki Anaguchi who pitifully passed away after his final appearance on December 26.

Promoter: Teiken Promotions.

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