ABOUT TAKANORI HATAKEYAMA
WBA Lightweight Champion who twice defended his title, WBA Super Featherweight Champion from September, 1998 to June, 1999.
He was an aspiring baseball player before becoming obsessed with boxing.
Despite not being Christian, he often entered the ring wearing a large cross, which he says brought him a sense of calm one would get from walking inside a church.
He married announcer Kumiko Kiyohara in 2006.
He and Livingstone Bramble are both former WBA Lightweight champions.
