Soo Hwan Hong vs. Fernando Cabanela
Soo Hwan Hong 118 lbs beat Fernando Cabanela 118 lbs by SD in round 15 of 15
- Date: 1974-12-28
- Location: Jangchung Gymnasium, Seoul, South Korea
- Referee: Yusaku Yoshida 75-70
- Judge: Enrique Jimenez 72-74
- Judge: Kim Chae Duk 73-69
"Champion Soo Hwan Hong of South Korea won a split decision over challenger Fernando Cabanela of the Philippines Saturday night and retained his WBA bantamweight title. The younger champion was more aggressive through most of the 15-round match but there were no knockdowns, to the disappointment of some 5,000 hometown fans at Seoul's Changchung Gymnasium. Cabanela scored a first-round left to the Korean's face which puffed up his left eye. The champion also bled from the nose from the early rounds. Hong, however, kept chasing the Filipino, who staved off the champion's attacks by back-pedaling and clinching. Cabanela appeared to be in danger once in each of the last three rounds of the rather dull title fight but managed to survive by holding." -Associated Press
- Purses: Hong - $20,000 (app.), Cabanela - $7,000
Post-fight comment
- "I think I won the fight. Hong hit me only three or four times throughout. I scored clean hits at least 10 times. Ask Hong who won the fight. You can tell it too, if you look at his face." -Fernando Cabanela