Melindo tames Indon ‘Cobra’ to preserve unbeaten record
WBO Asia-Pacific minimumweight champion Milan “Milenyo” Melindo showed great ring craftsmanship, but was pushed to the limit before taming Indon “Cobra” Sofyan Effendi via 10-round unanimous decision in the highly entertaining main event of the “Do or Die:Power of Two” boxing extravaganza the other night at the Mandaue City Cultural and Sports Complex.
Even though it’s already late at night, the crowd stood still and kept holding their breath as Melindo and his very game Indon foe locked themselves up in an intense exchange of rapid-fire punches on several occasions.
There was no doubt though as to who is the superior warrior between the two as Melindo, brandishing his electrifying hand speed and excellent footwork, outclassed Effendi on all range the entire match.
Melindo peppered Effendi with solids shots to the head and body, but the Cagayan de Oro City fighter clearly lacked punching power to finish off the Indon visitor.
Effendi also deserved to be given credit for his big fighting heart. In the face of Melindo’s relentless offensive, the iron-chinned Indon did not bracktrack. He even drew the admiration of fans as he kept charging on everytime he got hit by the ALA Stable stalwart.
But that didn’t stop Melindo from getting the nod of all the three judges. The official scores were 97-93, 98-92, and 96-94. Melindo improved his undefeated record to 15-0, 4KOs, while Effendi dropped to
“It’s a good fight. He’s (Melindo) impressive, but he has to be more aggressive next time,” said ALA Promotions president Michael P. Aldeguer.
In the supporting main event, another ALA rising star Weng Haya (9-1, 5KOs) passed his first acid test with flying colors, pounding out a 10-round unanimous
decision victory over veteran Pedro Malco (14-15-2) with the scores of 96-94, 96-94 and 97-93.
On the other hand, the ring comeback of ALA Boy Sherwin Paro ended in a nightmare when he was stopped by Nelson Llanos in just 36 seconds.
After he was caught by Llanos’ crackling right straight to the chin that sent him down at the seat of his pants, Paro managed to get up, but his corner quickly threw in the towel prompting referee Ben Necessario to wave off the match.
In the other bouts, Jether Oliva (8-0, 7KOs) survived a flash knockdown in the fifth round to beat Roel Honor by unanimous verdict, Jason Pagara knocked out William Jorge at 1:46 of round three, Ray Las Piñas prevailed over Renan Branzuela in the clash of debutantes, whileTagbilaran City’s Eman Labanza outpointed American Steven Garrett.
The fights of Jerson Mancio vs. Ed Earl Orellano and Alde de Zosa vs. Allan Jay Tunacao both ended in unanimous draw.
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