Elorde brothers retain WBO titles
Elorde brothers Juan Martin “Bai” Elorde and Juan Miguel “The Boss” Elorde crafted identical technical knockout wins over their rivals from Thailand and Indonesia last night at the Elorde Sports Center to retain their crowns and line themselves up for a possible crack at the world title.
Bai Elorde kept his WBO Oriental lightweight crown by TKO when his opponent Aekkawee Kaewmanee of Thailand refused to continue before the start of the seventh round.
Younger brother Mig got off to a powerful start by knocking down Erick Deztroyer of Indonesia and went on to control the succeeding rounds to retain his WBO Asia Pacific super bantamweight belt.
Both fights by the grandsons of the legendary Gabriel “Flash” Elorde were the main events of a boxing promotion dubbed “Boxing Kontra Droga” presented by Johnny Elorde Management International in cooperation with the Rotary Club of Manila Premier.
The first two rounds saw an even exchange of punches between Bai Elorde and Kaewmanee but the 32-yearold Elorde kept his composure before a sellout crowd that included his grandmother Laura Elorde, who watched the bout at ringside with family members.
Bai’s combination of upper cuts and right hooks staggered the opponent. He continued to pressure Kaewmanee with solid body blows that put the Thai on the defense. The Thai did not get up anymore from his seat, prompting referee Ferdinand Estrella to declare a TKO win by Bai Elorde who now sports 22 wins with nine KOs against one loss and one draw.
Mig, rated No. 3 in the WBO rankings, started strongly by knocking down Deztroyer in the first round. The Indonesian fell to the canvass again on the fourth round although referee Bruce Mctavish ruled a slip.
Mig’s successful defense of his WBO Asia- Pacific super bantamweight title will improve his ratings and give him a possible crack at the world crown.
Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez and newly appointed Games and Amusements Board boxing chief Jun Bautista and a WBO representative awarded the belts and trophies.
In the other championship match, Randy Braga had his hands full for 12 rounds over challenger Landy Cris Leon but got the judges’ nod to retain his Philippine featherweight crown.