By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Reporter
EVEN before Manny Pacquiao took the ring yesterday for the “Battle of Brisbane,” the Philippines already notched a win after International Boxing Federation junior bantamweight champion Jerwin “Pretty Boy” Ancajas successfully defended his title over challenger Teiru Kinoshita by way of technical knockout in the seventh round of their scheduled 12-rounder.
Fought in the co-featured event for the Pacquiao-Jeff Horn title fight at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia, Mr. Ancajas of Davao del Norte made it 2-of-2 in title defenses following his conquest of Japanese Kinoshita.
The win was in follow-up to Mr. Ancajas’s first defense against Mexico’s Jose Alfredo Rodriguez last January of the title he won in September last year.
What he considered as the biggest fight of his career to date as far as profile was concerned, 25-year-old Ancajas made sure to strike at the opportunity while it was hot and was successful in it, getting the better of the challenger for much of the contest.
Save for a “feeling out” period in the opening round, it was Mr. Ancajas all the way, highlighted by the Filipino busting open his opponent’s right eye in the third round that proved to have affected the latter’s ability to compete against the champion.
Showing his impressive skills set that has many proclaiming him as possibly the next big thing in Philippine boxing, Mr. Ancajas pounded on Mr. Kinoshita unrelentingly thereafter.
The end came in the seventh round when after a short exchange Mr. Ancajas managed to throw a solid right hook to the body of his opponent that instantly dropped Mr. Kinoshita.
The referee ruled the Japanese unfit to continue despite beating the count and ordered a stop to the fight at the 1:53 mark and handing out the win to Mr. Ancajas.
With the victory, Mr. Ancajas, fighting under Mr. Pacquiao’s MP Promotions, improved to 27-1-1 and stretched his current winning streak to 14 fights.
Mr. Kinoshita, 31, meanwhile dropped to 25-2-1.
DAPIDRAN LOSES
While Mr. Ancajas wound up on the winning end yesterday, Jonel Dapidran, the other Filipino seeing action at the Battle of Brisbane, lost out in his international debut, bowing to hometown bet Brent Dames by unanimous decision in their scheduled six-round junior welterweight battle earlier in the day.
A cousin of Mr. Pacquiao, Mr. Dapidran, 19, was edged out 55-59, 56-58 and 56-58 to lose for the second time in 10 fights so far and dropped to 8-2.
His opponent Dames, meanwhile, improved to 6-3.
IBF Junior Bantamweight Champion Jerwin “Pretty Boy” Ancajas of the Philippines retained his title with a seventh-round TKO win over Japanese challenger Teiru Kinoshita yesterday in Brisbane, Australia. — ALVIN S. GO
