Ten-man Kashima Antlers underlined their champion pedigree to hold in-form Kawasaki Frontale to a 1-1 draw and retain their comfortable lead in the J. League standings on Sunday.
Kashima had defender Atsuto Uchida sent off before falling behind to Juninho's first-half penalty, but a fine finish from Shinzo Koroki earned it a share of the spoils and kept Oswaldo Oliveira's side eight points clear at the top of the table.
With 16 games played, Kashima has 39 points, eight more than Albirex Niigata, Frontale and Urawa Reds. Niigata trounced Kashiwa Reysol 4-0 away on Saturday while Urawa won 3-2 at Montedio Yamagata.