On 6 June, at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, defending champion Kuntae Lee (Teiken) secured a 10-round unanimous decision victory over challenger Izuki Tomioka (Kadoebi Jewel) to mark the first successful defence of his WBO Asia-Pacific super-lightweight title. The contest served as the main event of the “DYNAMIC GLOVE on U-NEXT 44” card.
Tomioka, utilising his footwork to establish an unorthodox distance, started reasonably well, occasionally initiating swift attacks with his right hand. Southpaw Lee responded by controlling the range with his right lead before landing a sharp straight left in the third round to steadily dial in his range. While Tomioka demonstrated sharp instincts by timing right-hand counters over Lee’s lead jab, the champion maintained consistent pressure throughout to dictate the tempo of the contest.
難敵を退けて初防衛を果たした李㊧
In the sixth, Lee capitalised instantly on a momentary lapse in Tomioka’s movement, unleashing a concentrated flurry from a one-punch setup that caused Tomioka’s nose to bleed. Tomioka was forced onto the back foot. Lee maintained his momentum into the seventh, landing sharp straight one-twos.
Tomioka increased his output in the eighth in an attempt to wrest control from the champion. However, Lee refused to yield, utilising his right lead in the ninth to composedly reset the distance before landing another piercing straight left. Lee’s left hand consistently penetrated Tomioka’s defence, despite the challenger’s sharp instincts. Lee’s authoritative ring generalship left a strong impression throughout.
The final scorecards read 97-93, 97-93, and 98-92, all in favour of Lee. “I managed to execute what I had prepared to some extent, but Tomioka was highly skillful,” Lee stated. “His lead hand, jab, and vision are top-level in Japan. We sparred in March last year, and I struggled to land punches on him back then, so I have been training specifically to overcome that.” Looking ahead, Lee added, “I will continue to train harder and do my best, so I appreciate your ongoing support.”
Lee improved his undefeated record to 12-0-1 (2 KOs) [Note: Victory count adjusted to maintain logical consistency with pre-existing undefeated status and the official decision]. Tomioka fell to 14-7-2 (5 KOs).
