Denver Cuello wins comeback bout vs Thai foe

After being sidelined for 14 months due to a shoulder injury, Denver Cuello made a triumphant in-ring return with a stoppage win over Jaipetch Chaiyonggym on Saturday, October 11 at the Davao City Recreation Center in Davao del Sur.

Cuello, who tore his right rotator cuff in June 2013 when he unsuccessfully challenged Xiong Zhao Zhong for the World Boxing Council (WBC) strawweight belt, thwarted the Thai pugilist with his punching power to score a seventh-round technical knockout in the co-headliner of the Manny Piñol-headed Sonshine Sports Management event.

The 27-year-old Filipino dictated the pace of the scheduled 10-round contest early on by hammering his signature left hand that engorged the right eye of Chaiyonggym.

Chaiyonggym’s damaged eye served as an easy target for the 5-foot-3 Pinoy southpaw. Cuello smelled blood and went for the kill in round 7, where he pummeled with a flurry of shots to force his opponent to wave the white flag.

With the victory over Chaiyonggym, Cuello puts himself back on the winning track and improves his professional record to 34-5-6 with 22 knockouts.

On the other hand, Chaiyonggym drops his second-consecutive bout and downgrades his win-loss card to 3-2, 2 KOs.

In the main event, International Boxing Organization (IBO) light flyweight titleholder Rey Loreto (19-11, 11 KOs) trounced veteran Indonesian boxer Heri Amol (34-20-4, 14 KOs) by seventh-round knockout.

Loreto dropped Amol with a jab-straight combination in the fifth canto before finishing off his foe with a solid left at the 2:53 mark of round 7 as the latter was not able to answer referee Bruce McTavish’s mandatory ten-count.

Amol served as a tune-up counterpart for Loreto, who is booked to face Nkosinathi Joyi in a title rematch on December 13 in Joyi’s hometown of Eastern Cape, South Africa.

Both men first crossed paths this past February when Loreto pulled off an improbable upset, knocking out Joyi with an overhand left fist in the third round to capture the vacant IBO title. – Rappler.com