Marlon Tapales bounces back with KO1 in Manila, Reymart Gaballo suffers shock loss
One Filipino star took a step forward towards another title opportunity while another took a major step backwards from contention.
Marlon Tapales bounced back from his loss to Naoya Inoue with a first round knockout win over Thailand’s Nattapong Jankaew on Friday, while Reymart Gaballo likely saw his bantamweight title aspirations go up in smoke after getting stopped in one round by unheralded Mexican journeyman Kenbun Torres.
The fights took place at Midas Hotel and Casino in Pasay City, Philippines and was promoted by Sanman Promotions, MP Promotions and Viva Promotions.
Tapales (38-4, 20 knockouts), a former WBO bantamweight and IBF/WBA junior featherweight titleholder, wasted little time in getting rid of Jankaew (12-4, 8 KOs), dropping him with a right hook for the first knockdown, then a counter left hand for the second before the accumulation of punishment put him down for the final time near the end of the third. The win was the first for Tapales after he suffered a tenth round knockout loss to Inoue last December in Tokyo in a 122-pound unification bout.
Marlon Tapales bounces back from defeat to Naoya Inoue 井上 尚弥 as he drops Nattapong Jankaew 3 times in round one to win the WBC Asian Continental Super Bantamweight Title.
Tapales is ranked number 2 in the latest WBC Rankings pic.twitter.com/yaKPsL2bXV
— Tokkerū (@atokkers4) May 10, 2024
Tapales, 32, remains highly rated among the sanctioning bodies nonetheless, with the WBC rating him no. 2, and the WBA and IBF having him at no. 6 and no. 5, respectively.
“It feels good to return with a victory. Thank God and to all the people who supports me. I will continue to work hard to become a world champion again,” wrote Tapales on his Facebook page.
While Tapales is likely to be on the short list for those receiving a title opportunity once Inoue decides that he’s done with 122 pounds, his Sanman stablemate Gaballo (27-2, 22 KOs) will likely have to wait longer for his next chance after he was dropped three times in the first round by Torres (14-5, 10 KOs) of Celaya, Mexico.
The big-punching Gaballo was hurt midway through the first after Torres countered a reckless hook with a shorter one of his own. Moments later another hook put Gaballo down for the first time. Torres continued to exploit the defensive vulnerabilities of Gaballo, dropping him with another hook shortly after, followed by an assault of punches along the ropes which caused a third knockdown and stoppage at the 2:33 mark.
Gaballo, 27, had been rated no. 1 at 118 pounds by the WBO, but is likely to drop in the ratings as a result of the loss. His only previous loss came in 2021, when he was knocked out in four rounds by Nonito Donaire Jr. in a challenge for the WBC bantamweight title. Prior to this loss, Gaballo had struggled with unheralded Filipino boxer Michael Bravo, only defeating him by split decision.
Torres, 36, wins for the second straight time as a pro.
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