MANILA, Philippines -- Filipino slugger Reymart Gaballo absorbed a tough first-round knockout loss against Mexico’s Kenbun Torres in their bantamweight clash Friday evening at the Midas Hotel and Casino in Pasay City.
The two fighters were trading blows early on in the fight, with Gaballo hitting punches.
But things quickly turned south as the Filipino was caught by a counter. At the 1:23 mark of the round, a left hook dropped the former world title challenger for the first time.
After beating the 10-count, Torres kept the pressure on, landing heavy hits. A left uppercut off a combination knocked "The Assassin" down for the second time.
Groggy, the 27-year-old pride of General Santos City tried to survive the round, but the Mexican smelled blood.
Landing punches from everywhere, a booming left hand from Torres sent Gaballo to the canvas for good.
The Filipino dropped to a 27-2 win-loss record. Both of his professional defeats came in the way of knockouts.
The 36-year-old Mexican rose to 14-5 with 10 knockouts.