Boxing: Welter champ Norman Jr. humbles Jin Sasaki with 5th-round KO
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Jin Sasaki fell to a fifth-round knockout defeat against WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. of the United States on Thursday, failing to become the first Japanese boxer to win a belt in the division under any of the sanctioning bodies.
Second-ranked, 23-year-old challenger Sasaki was the first Japanese to fight a world title bout in the weight class since 2009 but was soundly beaten at Ota City General Gymnasium in Tokyo.
Norman Jr. knocked Sasaki down twice in the opening round with his left and while the challenger had a more positive second round, the 24-year-old American had him back against the ropes in the third.
Norman Jr. then reeled off a deadly left hook that caught Sasaki square in the face in the fifth to send his opponent straight to the canvass and to the hospital.
The unbeaten champion improved to 28-0 in his career with 22 knockout wins, while Sasaki dropped to 19-2 with 17 KO wins and a draw.
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