In an awe-inspiring peformance that for sure drew the admiration of Cebuano fans, Bobby “The Sniper” Pacquiao scored a splendid eighth round knockout of Thai Decho Bankluaygym to wrest the WBO Asia-Pacific lightweight title in the other night’s “Road to Redemption” fight card at the Pacific grand ballroom of Waterfront-Cebu City Hotel and Casino.
In coming up with such a masterful demolition, Pacquiao perhaps gained extra strength and inspiration from his doting mother Dionisia, who acted as his chief cheerleader at the ringside.
“Bisan og gi-nerbiyos ko, ako gipakita nga strong ako kaugalingon. Niluhod ko sa ring ug nihangyo ko sa Ginoo nga dili siya pahirapan. Hinaut nga ang mga taga-Cebu nalipay sa dula sa akong anak,” said Dionisia.
BobPac engaged in an intense exchange of blows with Bankluaygym on several occasions but his crisp jabs and combinations proved lethal for the Thai visitor.
Late in round six, BobPac sent Bankluaygym down at the seat of his pants with a right jab-left stright combo. The Thai quickly got up only to be at the receiving end of BobPac’s relentless attack.
Sticking to his fightplan, BobPac planted another right jab and followed it up with a powerful left straight to the chin that left Bankluaygym crashing on the canvass for the second time. A visibly dazed and dizzy Thai attempted to stand up but staggered before sprawling on the canvass anew, prompting referee Teddy Alivio to wave off the bout at 2:27 of round eight.
So hard was the impact of BobPac’s murderous combo that the fallen Thai warrior needed almost an hour to recover from the harrowing ordeal.
In the supporting main event of the slambang show presented by MP Promotions of boxing great Manny Pacquiao in association with RWS International Promotions of top Cebuano boxingman Rex “Wakee” Salud, Rolly Lunas retained his OPBF bantamweight crown with a unanimous decision victory over a very game Thai challenger Kaonah Khlongphajon. The official scores were 119-109, 115-112, and 117-109.
Mexico’s David Rodela, on the other hand, immediately made an impact fighting for the first time on Philippine soil as he stopped former RP champion Arnel Porras at 2:53 of the third round. Rodela is Pacman’s regular sparring partner in his blockbuster fights against Mexican icons Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, and Juan Manuel Marquez.
In the supporting bouts, former PABA light flyweight champion Marvin “Leyte Bomber” Tampus won by disqualification at 1:54 of round seven over Eric Barcelona, while JV “FightDoc” Tuazon fought to a majority draw with Jarol Rosales.
The other results saw Jaime Barcelona winning by unanimous verdict over Darry Pucdol, Jetly Purisima beating Roilo Golez by UD, Mark Anthony Geraldo flooring Esrael Salud with just six seconds left in the first round, Ryan Tampus pulling off a first round TKO of Ghing Daculiat, and William George decisioning Marlon Alta.