Filipino Tepora suffers first-round KO to Colombian foe

MANILA, Philippines – What was supposed to be Jhack Tepora’s pass to another world title crack turned out to be his undoing on Sunday, December 22 (Manila time), in California.

The highly favored Tepora got caught by Oscar Escandon with a wicked left hook to the liver, crumbled to the canvas a second later, and was counted out at the 1:30 mark of the opening round at the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California.

Though it was Tepora’s first loss in 24 fights with 17 knockouts, it puts serious doubts on the Filipino’s capability to become a world champion as the 35-year-old Escandon was inactive for 15 months after losing his last 3 by knockout prior to the bout.

The 24-year-old Tepora accepted the defeat in stride.

“That’s boxing. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose,” said Tepora, who was given another chance by MP (Manny Pacquiao) Promotions president Sean Gibbons after coming in overweight in his defense of the World Boxing Association interim featherweight title in January.

Despite his five-inch height and reach advantage, Tepora was unable to fend off Escandon’s early attack and got pinned on the ropes, where the Colombian unloaded more power punches, including the killer blow that raised his record to 25-5 with 18 knockouts.

While Escandon can look forward to more enticing fights, Tepora and his team will have to review what happened and rechart his ring career. – Rappler.com