CONFETTI poured down on the ring and fans cheered loudly as Donnie Nietes? hand was raised after Carlos Velarde, who vowed to score a knockout, just couldn?t take it anymore.
It was a fitting atmosphere for Nietes? latest victory inside the ring, because not only did he retain his World Boxing Organization (WBO) light flyweight belt but he is also just a few months shy of making history by breaking the late great Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde?s 47-year-old record of being the longest reigning Filipino world champion.
At the start of next year, the 32-year-old janitor-turned-world champion will surpass Elorde?s record of being a world champion for seven years and three months, and all Nietes has to do to break it is just sit out the rest of the year.
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?Just stay humble,? said Nietes on his latest career milestone.
After receiving the best of Nietes? heavy punches including his patented uppercut, the 24-year-old Velarde had enough punishment for the night and didn?t come out for the eighth round of the scheduled 12-round main event of Pinoy Pride 28 ? ?History in the Making? at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino last Saturday night.
?He moved differently. I had a hard time at first but I made adjustments. He would have been knocked out on either the ninth or 10th rounds,? said Nietes.
His promoter, ALA Promotions president Michael Aldeguer, also felt that if the fight had gone longer then Velarde had been knocked out.
?I think so. He already had the momentum. Donnie is always a late bloomer, he?s like diesel. I really thought he would have knocked him out,? he said.
Nietes improved to 34-1-4 with 20 knockouts, while Velarde dropped to 26-4-1 with 14 knockouts.
Milan Melindo (32-1, 12 KOs) earned the mandatory challenger status after a unanimous decision over Saul Juarez (20-4, 11 KOs) in an International Boxing Federation (IBF) light flyweight title eliminator in the main supporting bout.
All three judges scored the fight 115-113, 116-112 and 118-111 in favor of Melindo.
Albert Pagara (22-0, 15 KOs) showed that he is indeed the real deal, barreling through veteran Raul Hirales (22-4-1, 11 KOs) en route to a unanimous verdict.
The 20-year-old Pagara successfully defended his IBF Inter-Continental super bantamweight crown and had two shutout scores of 120-107, 120-107, while the third judge saw it 119-108.
The night also had its share of surprises.
WBO and IBF mini-flyweight king Francisco Rodriguez came here to the Philippines thinking that he?ll have an easy fight and then get a shot at Nietes after. He was wrong.
Last-minute replacement Jomar Fajardo (14-5-2, 7 KOs) lived up to his moniker as the ?Wallop Man? as he walloped his way to a split draw with Rodriguez.
Fajardo frequently landed his wallops that even bloodied Rodriguez?s nose. However, his performance wasn?t enough to convince all the judges. One had it 96-94 for him, the other saw it 98-92 for Rodriguez, while the last one saw it a 95-95 draw.
Unheralded Faris Nenggo (9-6-3, 2 KOs) didn?t look much of threat for former WBO mini-flyweight titleholder Merlito Sabillo (23-2-1, 12 KOs). But he did the unthinkable and stopped Sabillo in the fourth round.
The ring physician ordered the bout to be stopped after Sabillo suffered a huge gash on his right eye from a legitimate punch.
AJ ?Bazooka? Banal (32-2-1, 22 KOs) walked away with a unanimous decision over Thai veteran Maxsaisai Sithsaithong (15-6, 4 KOs), while 19-year-old Mark Magsayo (9-0, 7 KOs) easily demolished South Korean teenager Moon Sun Jung (2-4-3).
Nietes won?t be moving up in weight just yet, as he defends his title again in the undercard of a Top Rank event headed by Zou Shiming in Macau on Feb. 14. Pagara will also be slated in the same event.
However, Nietes? long term plan is still to move up in weight and face the best in the 112-pound division, the likes of WBO and WBA flyweight champion Juan Francisco Estrada and WBC flyweight titlist Roman Gonzalez.
?I plan to move up in weight. I want to fight Roman and Estrada,? said Nietes, who will be aiming for another career milestone, a third division world title.
