Jerald Into wins vacant WBC Asia lightweight crown

Jerald Into goes into attack mode against Mark John Yap in the main event of Blow-By-Blow in Cantilan, Surigao del Sur.–Photo from Blow-By-Blow

Promising lightweight Jerald Into battered veteran Mark John Yap to bag the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) Asia lightweight title late Thursday during Manny Pacquiao Presents: Blow-By-Blow in Cantilan, Surigao del Sur.

The end came at the end of the eighth round after Yap’s corner decided not to answer the bell for the ninth stanza.

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Yap had been down once and appeared to have regained his strength but the pounding he had absorbed finally took its toll.

The victory raised Into’s undefeated mark to 11-0 with nine knockouts while the loss saw Yap’s card slide to 34-19 with 17 knockouts.

Eight-division legend Manny Pacquiao was in attendance and he received a warm welcome from the people of Cantilan, knowing that he had driven all the way from General Santos City on board his BMW GS 1200 Trophy to attend the card.

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“I have nothing but kind words for welcoming the Blow-By-Blow family to Cantilan,” Pacquiao said after completing the 500-kilometer journey that took almost 12 hours to complete, including a couple of stopovers.

The visit to Cantilan marked the fifth time Blow-By-Blow staged a show outside Metro Manila after stops made in General Santos City, Imus in Cavite, Narvacan in Ilocos Sir and Passi in Iloilo.

Blow-By-Blow is being shown on primetime TV starting at 8:30 p.m. every Sunday.