WBA2/WBC5 ranked OPBF feather champ Takashi Koshimoto (37-1-2, 17 KOs), 126, kept his regional belt as he steadily piled up points and finally caught Filipino champ Jeffrey Onate (29-19-7,16 KOs), 124.5, with a countering southpaw left to flatten him at 2:58 of the ninth round on Sunday in Munakata, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Onate, a wild-swinging puncher, roughly came forward and attempted to land big shots, but Koshimoto kept his cool and scored with accurate combinations to have the challenger’s face swollen. The elongated, 5 ft. 10 in. champ unleashed a well-timed short left to the face of Onate, who fell forward onto the canvas to stay prone for some 10 minutes. Referee Jaebong Kim, Korea, had promptly declared a KO win for the champ upon Onate’s bad visit to the deck. Koshimoto, 34, suffered his one and only defeat at the hands of Freddie Norwood, via ninth round knockout, in a bid for the WBA 126-pound throne in 2000. Since then, the stylish southpaw acquired the vacant OPBF belt and kept it seven times, scoring 14 straight victories. Promoter: Fukuma Sports Promotions. Matchmaker: Joe Koizumi.
