Dondon Sultan Battles Kazuhiko Hidaka Tonight for the OPBF Welter Belt
By Salven L. Lagumbay
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 21 Jul 2005
Reigning Philippine welter champ Dondon Sultan takes on a herculean task today as he tries to wrest the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation welter title from tough champion Kazuhiko Hidaka of Japan in a 12-round tiff at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan.
At yesterday`s official weigh-in, both came in a shade below the 147-lb regulatory limit, with Sultan coming in at 145.9 lbs while the taller Hidaka tipped the scales at 146.5 lbs.
`I`m not bothered at all by his height advantage. I came here to win the title, and in top shape for the fight,` Sultan said moments after the weigh-in.
Sultan received a much-needed boost yesterday for his campaign when two top-notch Filipino fighters vowed to be at ringside tomorrown when leathers start flying at 8PM.
Ex-WBC king Malcolm Tunacao and reigning OPBF minimumweight boss Rodel Mayol, accompanied by manager Yasuo Matsuoka and trainer Brix Flores, yesterday said during the weigh-in that they will be at ringside for Sultan`s fight.
`Dondon Sultan has a good chance of beating Hidaka. He has the tools,` said Flores, who is familiar with Hidaka`s style as his ward Rev Santillan had lost the title previously to the Japanese.
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