Veteran Dennis Laurente knocked out overweight Indonesian Elly Pangaribuan in the second round Friday night to retain his WBC Asian Boxing Council junior middleweight crown at Elorde Grand Ballroom in Sucat, Parañaque.
Displaying speed and power that belied his 37 years, Laurente caught Pangaribuan, who came in two pounds over the 154-lb limit but was nevertheless allowed to box, with a crunching left-right combination to end the fight with a second left in the round.
“I didn’t want to win by technicality,” said Laurente in Filipino. “I wanted to prove that I could beat him in the ring.”
Laurente, who raised his record to 48 wins against five losses and three draws, would have kept his title regardless of the outcome of the fight promoted by Johnny Elorde Management International and Rotary Club Manila 101. Pangaribuan dropped to 27-8.
Laurente’s victory capped a trio of triumphs by Filipinos over foreigners, with siblings Juan Martin and Juan Miguel Elorde, grandsons of the late boxing great Gabriel “Flash” Elorde, posting contrasting wins.
Juan Martin kept his World Boxing Organization Asia Pacific 133 lb title by technical unanimous decision over Juniston Simbolon of Indonesia while the younger Juan Miguel stopped Paulos Baransano in the fifth round.
Juan Martin took an accidental headbutt from Simbolon, forcing referee Sylvester Abainza to stop the fight in 2:56 of the sixth.
Elorde, who decked Simbolon with a right in the second round, was leading on all scorecards (60-52, 60-52 and 59-53) when the fight was halted. The win was his 16th against a loss and a draw.
Juan Miguel tagged the Papuan with a right to the breadbasket in the 2:18 mark to tally his 16th win against one draw. Roy Luarca