Jerwin Ancajas stopped Mexican challenger Israel Gonzales in the 10th round to retain his International Boxing Federation junior bantamweight crown last Sunday at the Bank of America Center in Corpus Christi, Texas.
Groomed to follow the footsteps of eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao, the 26-year-old Ancajas made sure he would create noise in his solid United States debut by knocking out Gonzales in the one minute and 50 seconds mark of round 10.
In a quick sequence of exchanges with a minute gone in the 10th, the Panabo City-born boxer sneaked a left that floored the challenger for his second knockdown of the bout.
Gonzales beat the 10-second count, but Ancajas was up for a finish and uncorked another lethal left that put the fight to an end.
As candid as his story from poverty to ring greatness like his copromoter and soon-to-be Hall of Famer Pacquiao, Ancajas also saw much success with his southpaw style.
The first knockdown came in the opening round when Ancajas unleashed a thunderous left.
After that swift fall from round one, Gonzales became more cautious in engaging the much-disciplined Filipino champion.
He went aggressive in the fifth round, but Ancajas had already dominated the bout through his jabs and one-two combinations.
Ancajas immediately dismissed comparison between him and Pacquiao, but was quick to promise that he will set his goal higher.
“I’ll try my best to gain the success he had,” he said.
Ancajas improved to 29 wins against a loss. He also has 20 knockouts. It was his fourth successful defense of the title he won from McJoe Arroyo in 2016.
Gonzales, meanwhile, fell to his second loss in 23 bouts.