MANILA, Philippines – Filipino prospect Weljon “Triggerman” Mindoro flaunted his punching power anew with a fourth-round technical knockout (TKO) of Australian veteran Joel Camilleri on Friday, December 6 (Saturday, December 7, Philippine time) in the IBA Champions Night at The Agenda Arena in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The 24-year-old Mindoro wobbled Camilleri with an array of solid punches for a standing count early in the round, unloaded an uppercut for the second knockdown, and landed a left-right-uppercut combo to force the stoppage and capture the IBA Asian middleweight crown.
Mindoro, pride of Dumingag, Zamboanga del Sur and now based in the United States, raised his perfect record to 14 wins, all by knockout, no loss, and one draw.
What’s even more impressive was Mindoro, a 5-foot-11 southpaw, posted the victory less than a month after knocking out Lucas de Abreau (14-5) in the third round in Kissimmee, Florida, on November 9.
The 34-year-old Camilleri, who saw his seven-win run broken, fell to 29-9-1 with 14 knockouts.
After taking the third, Camilleri got confident and traded punches, paying the price in the next round.
“The guy’s (Mindoro) power is real, that’s for sure. He is a true warrior and has a big future in the sport,” said Camilleri.
Right after the referee halted the fight, Mindoro did a backflip in the ring in celebration.
Manny Pacquiao, the sport’s only eight-division world champion who will head the International Boxing Hall of Fame 2025 inductees, put the IBA title belt on Mindoro, who is under MP Promotions led by Sean Gibbons and Viva Promotions of Brendan Gibbons. The young Gibbons was at Mindoro’s corner in Dubai.
Pacquiao was in Dubai after gracing the first two games of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) Sixth Season National Finals between Pampanga and Quezon Province. Pampanga won both. – Rappler.com