By Ronnie Nathanielsz
Undefeated Gabriel Pumar will receive a P300,000 ( about $5,500) incentive from an overjoyed Lapu Lapu City Mayor Arturo Radaza who has been a supporter of the young straw weight who scored a spectacular eighth round victory over favored South African Tshepo Lefele to win the WBC International title, Saturday Manila Time.
Well-known boxing manager and promoter Rex “Wakee” Salud said Mayor Radaza had also prepared a rousing welcome and victory celebration for the hometown hero.
A Super Sport reporter at ringside at the Wembley Arena in Johannesburg said Lefele appeared to have the edge in the first three rounds against the tough Filipino but a cracking left to the jaw dropped the South African in the fifth round. However, referee Andrew Smale inexplicably ruled it a slip.
Lefele never recovered from that first knockdown and was dropped once again nearing the end of the sixth round. Pumar kept the pressure on the South African champion and sent him crashing to the canvas one more time in the seventh round.
Pumar, at this stage, was in complete command and Lefele couldn’t do anything to counter the vicious combinations of the little Filipino who put him away for good at 2:56 of the eighth round to improve his unbeaten streak which now stands at 9-0 with 7 knockouts. Lefele who won the vacant title with a twelve round majority decision over stablemate Elmer Gejon last June 24 suffered his first defeat and dropped to 13-1 with 7 KO’s.
Well known boxing manager and promoter Rex “Wakee” Salud who arrived in Cebu City yesterday afternoon was ecstatic over Pumar’s win since he was a huge underdog. Salud said Pumar would rest for sometime before getting back into the ring. Salud said he had given promoter Branco Milenkovic three options because “they gave us the break.”
Salud said flyweight Benedict Suico who was down with a fever for two days with tonsillitis was “unlucky” but clearly lost to WBC International champion Mhikiza Myekeni in what South African reporters said was possibly the best performance of the night.
Myekeni was in fine physical condition and used his jab effectively against the southpaw Suico who was missing badly. Myekeni was warned twice by referee Daniel van der Wiele but no points were deducted from the South African who won handily on the scorecards of all three judges, 119-110, 120-108 and 119-109.
Salud also said Mercito Gesta was not allowed to fight since he was found to have hepatitis. Salud said “they are very strict in South Africa with everything” and he suspected that Gesta’s handlers thought they could possibly get away with it. Gesta was cleared by the GAB office in Cebu which conducted the medical tests but there was no way of confirming over the weekend whether Gesta was tested for hepatitis.
