By Lito Delos Reyes/PNA
DAVAO CITY — World Boxing Association (WBA) interim bantamweight champion Reymart “Assassin” Gaballo kept his unblemished record unscathed with a knockout win against Yuya Nakamura of Japan in their 10-round fight at Midas Hotel and Casino in Manila on Saturday night.
Gaballo scored his third knockdown with a thundering left hook that sent Nakamura to the canvass at the middle of the second round, prompting referee Virgilio Garcia to count the Japanese fighter out.
Nakamura protested the call for being premature but Garcia stood firm in his call as Gaballo improved his impressive ring record to 21-0 with 19 knockouts.
The Filipino champ scored his first two knockdowns in the opening round to the delight of the crowd.
“I was trying to size him up in the opening round but his cockiness encouraged me to go for an early knockout while sticking to the game plan,” Gaballo said.
In the co-main event, Romero “Ruthless” Duno patiently studied and sized up his opponent Kuldeep Dhanda of India in the opening and scored knockdowns midway.
Smelling blood in the following round, Duno decided to go for the kill.
Dhanda tried to stay away from Duno’s attacks but got caught by a perfect vicious right haymaker that caught him flush on the jaw sending him sprawled on the canvass unconscious.
The Indian remained asleep for minutes with the medics attending to him. Luckily, he was able to recover and rested in his corner while Duno’s hands were raised in victory.
With the victory, Duno’s record improved to 20 wins with 16 knockouts and one loss.
“I am happy I won but I got so concerned when I saw him unconscious longer than I expected,” Duno said.
Meanwhile, Dave Apolinario also kept his clean record intact at 11-0 with a unanimous decision win against Romshane Sarguilla.
Sarguilla had his good moments in some rounds but Apolinario dominated the fight with class and excellent ring generalship.
