By Joe Koizumi
Photo by Naoki Fukuda
Despite a high expectation of a very competitive national title bout, it disappointingly became a too lopsided affair with Japanese bantam champ IBF#10 Seiya Tsutsumi (8-0-2, 7 KOs), 118, dropping JBC#1 Jin Minamide (7-3, 5 KOs), 117.75, three times and finally halted him at 1:41 of the seventh round on Monday in Tokyo, Japan. In an all-southpaw affair Seiya connected with a well-timed leading right to Jin, sending him to the deck in rounds one, two and five. The open scoring system indicated all 50-42 in favor of the aggressive champ after the fifth. The mandatory challenger Minamide, stiff like a steel, looked too nervous and vulnerable to the southpaw right hook and too often lost his balance, hitting the deck. The seventh witnessed Tsutsumi accelerate a two-fisted attack to have the ref promptly intervene to save the loser. Minamide, formerly Komazawa university amateur boxer, was just a shell of himself despite a high expectation. Continue reading “Tsutsumi halts Minamide, keeps Japanese 118lb belt”