José Medel’s Harada Rivalry Brought a Knockout
José Medel stopped Fighting Harada in Tokyo on September 26, 1963, producing one of the Mexican bantamweight contender’s signature victories. Their rivalry continued with a world championship contest in Nagoya in January 1967.
The Tokyo stoppage
Harada began their first meeting strongly, but Medel’s body punching helped change the contest. In the sixth round, Medel scored three knockdowns and won by technical knockout under the Japanese three-knockdown rule.
The scheduled ten-round contest was a non-title fight. Medel’s finish came at two minutes and twenty-eight seconds of the sixth round.
The championship rematch
Harada entered their January 3, 1967 return as world bantamweight champion. He retained his title by unanimous decision after fifteen rounds at Aichi Prefectural Gym in Nagoya.
Both fighters suffered cuts during the rematch, which went the distance without a knockdown. Medel’s two meetings with Harada produced a stoppage victory and a defeat in a world-title challenge.
Medel remained dangerous in the championship rematch, threatening Harada during the tenth and fifteenth rounds. A point deduction in the tenth further complicated the challenger’s task. Harada’s cautious bursts of activity ultimately earned all three official votes. Medel’s manager, Lupe Sánchez, accepted the result afterward and credited Harada’s improvement since their first encounter, despite the pressure his own fighter had applied.
Sources
- BoxRec / United Press International: Medel’s 1963 stoppage of Harada
- BoxRec / Pacific Stars and Stripes: the 1967 championship rematch
