Melindo, Banal win in 'Bakbakan sa Sinulog'

Milan Melindo and the returning AJ "Bazooka" Banal did not frustrate their Cebu fans Thursday night after beating their respective opponents in the "Bakbakan sa Sinulog" boxing event at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel. Melindo snatched Anthony Villareal’s World Boxing Council (WBC) Youth Intercontinental flyweight championship belt after pulling off a unanimous decision victory over the American fighter while Banal scored a fourth-round knockout win over Mexico's Cecilio Santos. All three judges scored the fight for Melindo (97-93, 95-94, and 96-93). Melindo kept his unbeaten record after 20 fights with five of his wins coming by way of knockout, while is Villareal suffered his third loss against nine wins (4 KO). After letting the deposed champion control the opening minutes of the first round, Melindo worked his way in the final half by flooring Villareal in the final seconds. Shaken but not totally hurt by Melindo’s right, Villareal again started out strong in the second but his aggressiveness was once again silenced by the Filipino challenger when he countered with another right. Melindo slowly took control of the match in the third when he began to throw more solid punches against the tough Villareal. Villareal became desperate to turn things around in the latter rounds when he throws shots in volumes but most of his punches were wild. Banal, meanwhile, only needed four rounds to silence his Mexican opponent. Banal, who improved to 21-1-1 (16 KOs), connected with a right hook to Santos' left temple that stunned the Mexican. Banal, upon seeing that his opponent was shaken with his punch, let loose a barrage of shots to bring down Santos, who then failed to beat the referee’s 10-count. The fight started out slow as Banal and Santos tried to size each other. Banal fired up the crowd when he connected with a left straight before the first round ended. Banal connected with more jabs and body shots in the second while at the same time avoiding Santos’ punches. In the third round, Santos (24-11-3) managed to catch his opponent off guard and connected with a 1-2 combination that caused a slight swell on Banal’s cheekbone. Not wanting to lose in front of his hometown fans, Banal unleashed a barrage of powerful combinations that staggered Santos at the end of round three. Banal stepped up his attack in the fourth that resulted to Santos being knocked down with 35 seconds left. – GMANews.TV