Joshua Franco and Kazuto Ioka battle to a majority draw

Joshua Franco and Kazuto Ioka battle to a majority draw

The final title fight of the year in 2022 failed to produce an outright winner as WBO World super-flyweight champion Kazuto Ioka (29-2-1, 15KO) and WBA beltholder Joshua Franco (18-1-3, 8KO) battled to a majority draw at the Ota-City General Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan.

Two scorecards were matching at 114-114 but Franco managed to win by a score of 115-113 on judge Stanley Christodoulou's card.

Ioka was fighting at the venue for his sixth consecutive time and although the home advantage didn't get him the win, he did manage to keep his WBO World super-flyweight belt.

Despite being out the ring for over 16 months, Franco started brightly, establishing his jab.

33-year-old Ioka settled into a rhythm early in round two but found difficulties handling visiting fighter Franco’s superior hand speed.

Franco repeatedly drove Ioka back to the ropes with higher volume combination punching. Ioka had his moments with single power punches which caught the attention of the American.

Franco came flying off his stool for the second half of the fight, a right hand and left hook forced Ioka backwards. Ioka was forced to fight off the ropes, then a left hook by Franco visibly affected Ioka, who tightened up his guard as Franco walked him down.

The Texan continued to dominate in round eight. The action was fierce along the ropes when Ioka found room to let his hands go, producing two-way exchanges to the delight of the crowd.

Ioka bounced back in the ninth round. Franco’s longer reach served as a deterrent in the round, overextending as Ioka slipped punches and countered with a left hook to the body and uppercut.

Franco had Ioka in trouble at the end of round 11, coming after both fighters struggled to get the lead over the other. The Texan charged forward to land a right hand. Ioka responded quick enough for both to simultaneously land left hooks. Franco connected to the body and then to the chin in the final seconds, forcing Ioka to the ropes and into a defensive shell.

Ioka used his movement in an attempt to slow down Franco’s attack in the 12th and final round. He found just enough space to reel off a flurry, most of which missed the mark but were effective enough to prevent a response from Franco in the moment. Franco forced the action back towards center as he saw the finish line in sight in search of a career-best win that seemed to be well within his reach.

Two of the three judges didn't quite see it that way, as another draw gets added to Franco's hard-luck record. He retained the full version of the WBA junior bantamweight title for the first time since being upgraded from secondary titlist.

History-making Ioka was denied a bid to become the first-ever Japanese fighter to unify titles in two separate weight divisions. Ioka is Japan’s only ever boxer to win titles in four weight divisions. This was his 11th time fighting on New Years Eve.