Masashi Kudo vs. Ayub Kalue

October 24, 1979

The Plot:

Masashi Kudo of Japan, WBA Light-Middleweight Champion to defend his
154 lb. Title.

The 28 year-old Champion is making the 4th Defense of his Title, that
he won over Eddie Gazo, in August 1978. The busy Masashi Kudo will
fighting in his 5th Championship-Bout in 14-months.

Kudo is undefeated, with a record of 23-0-0 (13 KO's). He has never
lost a professional bout, and has never been floored.

During his reign as Champion, Kudo has not made a 'mandatory defense'
of his Title. This fight will be a mandatory one.

The Challenge:

Ayub Kalule of Denmark, the #1 WBA Light-Middleweight. The Ugandan,
now living in Copenhagen, has been the #1 Challenger since September 1977.
He has been in-line for a shot at the Championship for 25-months.

The 25 1/2 year-old Kalule, is undefeated, with a record of 30-0-0 (17 KO's).
He is and has been regarded as the Top 154 lb. fighter in the World.

He also, has never lost a professional fight, and has never been knocked off his feet.

The Location:

City Gymnasium, Akita City, Japan. The arena has a capacity of 10,000.
The bout is scheduled for Wednesday Night, and will be telecast
throughout several selected television broadcast outlets.

General Details:

Masashi Kudo, is a physical fighter with limited boxing skills, but utilizes
incredible strength, stamina and toughness. The 5' 10" fighter, is a former
Amateur Wresting star, and uses those skills to wear down his opponents.

Masashi likes to be on the defensive early, in an attempt to give his
opponents a chance to wear themselves down. He then will make a
charge with an unorthodox attack, and score with a variety of right and
left hands.

Kudo is effectively aggressive, as in every bout he is stronger than his
opponents. A natural Middleweight at 160 lbs., Kudo has the strength
to manhandle his smaller challengers. Though not a big-puncher, he can
hurt you with the straight right-hand, both as a lead and counter-punch.

Masashi does not have fast hands, but he can deliver his straight right hand quickly.
His footwork though not smooth, is suprisingly effective.
Defensively, he can be hit, but absorbs punches well and wards them off with
an awkward bending style.

Weakness, not highly-skilled and tends to rely more on his physical strength and
stamina to win the bouts, instead of punching. Can be hit,
as he relies on his solid chin to carry him through the bout.

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Ayub Kalule, is a former World Amateur Champion with tremendous
boxing skills. A converted orthodox-stance boxer, the now southpaw has a surgeon-like
right hand with both the jab and cross. At 5' 8" the Ugandan has a suprsingly long reach.
Not big on power, Kalule relies on the volume of punches and his sharp accuracy.
His left hand is more of a scoring punch, not a power shot.

Ayub Kalule likes to be agressive, and always moves forward behind his
right jab. His hand-speed is above-average, and his footwork though excellent,
is more deliberate than fast. Defensively, he is average, as he can be hit with counter
punches and right hand leads.

Weakness, is that he sometimes leads with his hands a bit low, and
pulls straight back, leaving himself vulnerable to counter-shots. He does have a
tendency to wait a bit too long to fire his heavy punches. A habit from the Amateur bouts.

 

Judges Scorecards and Comments;

Referee; Robert Ferrara.....149-139 (11-1-3 in Rounds) Ayub Kalule

AK-AK-AK-AK-MK__ E-AK-AK-AK-AK__AK-E-AK-E-AK === 11-1-3 (149-139) Ayub Kalule
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Judge; Harold Ledderman....146-139 (11-4-0 in Rounds) Ayub Kalule

AK-AK-AK-AK-MK__ MK-AK-AK-MK-AK__AK-MK-AK-AK-AK === 11-4-0 (146-139) Ayub Kalule
----------------------------------------------------------------
Judge; Tim Kelleher........149-145 (5-1-9 in Rounds) Ayub Kalule

AK-AK-E-E-MK__ E-AK-E-E-AK__E-E-AK-E-E === 5-1-9 (149-145) Ayub Kalule
----------------------------------------------------------------

Ring Magazine;

AK-AK-AK-E-MK__ E-AK-E-AK-AK__AK-E-AK-AK-AK === 11-1-3 (149-139) Ayub Kalule

Round 1. Kalule controls the round with effective boxing skills. Scoring with right jabs and left leads.
Kudo does land a couple of sharp right-hand counters at the end of the round. (Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 2. Kalule attacks fast, and staggers Kudo with a sharp 1-2, and staggers him
twice more with hard punches. Kudo suprises, and scores with his own heavy right hands at the end of the round.
(Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 3. Kalule controls the round with clean jabs, and sharp lefts. The fighters exchange hard punches at the 1:00
mark, and both are briefly shaken, but not hurt. Kalule scores with some hard right hands, and takes control of the round.
Kudo is on the defensive for the second half of the round. (Round for Ayub Kalule))

Round 4. Kalule again with the same tactical plan, jab and press, and an occassional straight right. Kudo battle back
with a couple of right-hand leads, and has his best moments since the end of Round 2. (Round Even)

Round 5. The best round of the fight, as Kalule goes into attack mode, and scores thoughout with
sharp jabs, 1-2 combinations, and hard straight lefts. Kalule pins Kudo on the ropes several times,
and unloads with accurate right-lefts. Kudo comes back with his own hard right hand counters.
With moments left in the round, and his back up against the ropes, Kudo unloads a left hook and hard right hand
to Kalule's jaw which stuns him, and buckles his legs. (Round for Masashi Kudo)

Round 6. Fought on relatively even terms. Kalule presses and scores, but not with anything heavy.
Kudo continues to score with right hand counters. (Round Even)

Round 7. Kalule opens up faster and picks up the pace, and charges forward. Kudo uses his footwork
to move backward, and looks to score with single right hand leads.
Kalule scores with his right jabs, then unloads his best punch of the fight, a bomb of a right hook.
Kudo is in the defensive, but is not hurt. (Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 8. Kalule continues his press and jab tactics, which are working. Kudo still
shoots hard right hand counters to keep Kalule honest. Kalule lands a long left
hand to Kudo's jaw which backs him up. Kudo stays in counter-punch mode throughout.
the round. (Round Even)

Photo (Ayub Kalule scores with a left hand counter-punch on Masshi Kudo in the 8th Round)

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Round 9. Kalule again continues to press forward, scoring with light, but effective right jabs. Kalule does
switch to the body with several lead left hands. Kalule mixes up his attack, and drives Kudo back with a
solid right hook. Kudo stumbles after being rocked, but battles back with his hard counter rights to the head.
With 0:45 left in round, both fighters go toe-to-toe near the closer neutral corner. Both fighers land their
best hard punches as the round closes. Kudo does freeze Kalule twice in the last seconds of the round
with hard rights to the head. But, Kalule lands a crushing right hook to the jaw of Kudo, as the bell sounds.
(Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 10. The pace is slower at the beginning of the round, as Kalule is tossing out light jabs. Kudo drops his
hands by his side, to shake them as he is slight arm-weary. Kudo starts to press Kalule, and moves in close,
when Kalule counters with a big right hook, which staggers Kudo at the 0:55 mark. Kalule attacks
with a mix of rights and lefts to the head and body, as Kudo reels. Kudo is on the defensive, as Kalule
pecks Kudo with jabs, he then scores with another hard right hook. Kudo, suprisingly hangs tough, and
comes back with his own hard right hands. Kalule scores with several light jabs, and then lands a bomb left hand
at the 1:55 mark that rocks Kudo. Kalule forces the action, and scores with medium punches over the last section
of the round. Both fighters tap each other at the end of round, showing good sportsmanship.
(Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 11. Sensing he is behind, Kudo stands his ground instead of moving away. Kudo actually lands some
halfway decent left jabs, something he doesn't normally attempt. Kalule patiently waits for an opening, and at the
1:20 mark lands a brutal right hand that hurts Kudo. Kalule opens up with a two-fisted attack over the next 20-seconds.
Kudo recovers, and at the 2:00 mark jumps in with a solid 1-2 to thwart Kalule's attack. Kalule, goes back to his
methodical jab and poke pattern, and Kudo retreats for the last minute of the round.
(Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 12. Both fighters are bouncing well on their feet. No signs of weariness. Kudo moves as the agressor, and
stays his ground. Kudo flicks out light jabs, and measures Kalule with a straight left. Kudo is looking to unload
his straight right. At the 1:00 mark, Kalule makes his offesnive move, with sharp right jabs and straight right
counters. Kudo is rocked back, but does come back with a couple of crisp right hands, but they lack any heavy power.
(Round Even)

Round 13. Kudo, knowing he's behind comes out to center ring, and lands with a solid right hand. Kudo keeps
the fight in center-ring, and is looking to load-up on the right hand. At the 1:00 mark, Kalule starts working with right jabs and
straight right hand power shots. Kalule is dominating the round, but Kudo starts to fire back.
Both fighters get into a slug-fest at the 2:00 mark, but Kalule comes out the better of the two.
At the 2:51 mark, Kalule lands a tremendous left hook, that stops Kudo in his tracks, Kudo appears to be stunned
as he grabs at Kalule. Ayub swings free, and unloads a booming left hand /right hook combination that drives
Kudo backwards. As Ayub moves in for a follow-up, Kudo bends down to avoid the Kalule rush and falls to the
canvas. The bell rings. No knockdown, as per Referee Robert Ferrara.
(Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 14. Masashi Kudo comes out, not showing he was hurt in the last round. But his left eye is partially swollen
shut from Kalule's right hand pin-point punches. Kudo tries to keep the fight in center-ring, where he attempts to
land the one big punch. Kalule is content to box, with his hands held high. Kudo's opening comes at the 0:20 mark,
when he lands a hard straight right, down the middle. Kalule backs off, and fires pesky right jabs to keep Kudo
at bay in center-ring. At the 1:00 mark, both land hard shots, Kudo lands his straight right, and Kalule lands
a bomb straight left. Kalule gets the better of the hard pucnhes, and Kudo backs into the ropes where he is stunned.
Kudo is trying to grab Kalule to buy time, and moves to center-ring again. Mid-way through the round, Kudo looses the
bounce in his legs. Kalule presses by scoring 1-2 punches, repeatedly over the second half of the round.
(Round for Ayub Kalule)

Round 15. Back to center-ring, where Kudo trries to mount an offense. Kalule is using excellent footwork to jab and
move. As Kudo attempts to throw wild punches, he leaves himself open. Kalule scores with a monster right uppercut that
drives Kudo back. Kudo hurt, bends down as Kalule moves in, and tackes his lower body to hold on. Kalule moves back to
jab and move mode. Kudo lands one more decent right hand at the 2:00 mark, but his energy level is low. Kalule
still pokes the right jab over the last minute, as Kudo cannot get close to score.
(Round for Ayub Kalule)

 

Lora,

Through 10-Rounds, I had it 6-1 for Ayub Kalule, with 3 Even, just like
Ring Magazine.

I had Rounds 1, 2, 3, 7, 9 and 10 for Ayub Kalule.

I gave the 5th Round to Masashi Kudo, on the strength of the last 5-seconds,
when he landed a bomb left hook and monster straight right, that staggered
'The Great Ugandan'

Masashi Kudo scored with just enough hard right hand counters in Rounds 4, 6 and 8,
to make those rounds close, though Ayub Kalule landed more punches.

 

It looks like Ring Magazine and Referee Robert Ferrara had the proper Scorecards.

Harold Ledderman did lean a bit towards Kudo's harder, but in frequent punches.

Ayub Kalule, technically masterful, but his hand-speed is not blinding by no means.

On his chin, Ayub had a good one, as Masashi Kudo did nail him many times with
very hard right hand counters, both flush and as he was walking straight into them.

Have to remember, Masashi was a big Light-Middleweight. 5' 10" and strong, and
he had incredible leg strength. He was a 160 lb. fighter, who came down to 154 lbs.

 

The Ayub Kalule, 'I did not know this',,,

The WBA (corrupt organizaion) tried to slide Columbian Emiliano Villa into
the Light-Middleweight Championship bout with Masashi Kudo in October 1979.

Villa, with WBA connections, actually had a signed contract with the Japanese
fight promoter, and full sanctioning from the WBA.

Mogens Palle, Ayub Kalule fight manager went ballistic after finding out,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Ayub Kalule got the Championship bout, but had to kick back $25,000 of his $75,000 fight
purse to #8 Ranked Emiliano Villa (step aside money) to get his fair shot at the title.

 

I think Masashi Kudo landed enough hard right hands,,,,,,,,,,,,to give us an
indication that Ayub Kalule had a 'good chin'.

And that brutal left hook and monster right hand that Masashi landed
on Ayub at the end of the 5th Round, would have floored any
154 lb. fighter that night.

Ayub Kalule had very good chin (graded at A-), the problem was that his defense was only average (graded at B).

Ayub could be tagged with the counter straight right hand and counter right hooks.

 

Lora,

I always thought Ayub Kalule was a small Light-Middleweight.

He looked more like a Welterweight.

Did Mogens Palle put him into Light-Middleweight, so he could have an easier to road to a World Championship.

He was supposed to fight at 139 lbs. at the 1976 Olympics.
Of course he was only 22 1/2 years-old at the time.