Kuniaki Shibata vs. Victor Echegaray

Kuniaki Shibata 129 lbs beat Victor Federico Echegaray 128 lbs by UD in round 15 of 15

• Date: 1973-06-19
• Location: Nihon University Auditorium, Tokyo, Japan
• Referee: Yusaku Yoshida 73-70
• Judge: Ken Morita 72-68
• Judge: Takeo Ugo 72-71

"WBA junior lightweight champion Kuniaki Shibata of Japan twice dropped challenger Victor Echegaray of Argentina in the 15th round Tuesday night to emphasize a winning decision in his first title defense. Echegaray, the WBA No. 2 contender, used a height and reach advantage well in his bid to dethrone the champion and appeared to have the upper hand until the final round. There were no knockdowns up to this point. Apparently feeling he was behind on points, Shibata started fighting aggressively as the gong sounded for the final round. He drove Echegaray into a neutral corner and fired away with both hands. Echegaray went down on a knee and referee Yusaku Yoshida called an eight-count. Shibata then opened up with another two-fisted attack and Echegaray went down on a knee again for an eight-count. Echegaray regained his poise and tried desperately to knock out the champion with a two-handed attack before the final bell." -United Press International

• Unofficial UPI scorecard - 70-69 Echegaray