By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
And just like that, Filipino boxer Jonas Sultan strengthened his case as one of boxing’s rising superstars in the bantamweight division.
Going up against the undefeated Carlos Caraballo, boxing legend Miguel Cotto’s prodigy, the Filipino pug was unfazed and scored a major upset when he won via unanimous decision during their fight for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) intercontinental bantamweight crown.
Sultan was considered to be a heavy underdog against the talented and undefeated Puerto Rican who knocked all of his opponents out in 14 consecutive matches but the Filipino proved that he was the better and more powerful puncher.
From the get-go, Sultan looked to stand by his words of giving Caraballo the business as he engaged in several heated toe-to-toe exchanges and stunned everybody by scoring the first knockdown of the match courtesy of a booming right hand.
Sultan looked dominant in the next round after sending Caraballo down to the canvass for the second time but the Puerto Rican responded with a knockdown of his own after connecting with a strong left straight.
The momentum shifted to Caraballo’s side as he was able to regain his rhythm and started to outbox Sultan with his volume of jabs in the next rounds.
However, during the sixth round, Sultan came alive again and unleashed another right hand that sent Caraballo down for the third time.
The last and final knockdown of the match came three rounds after when Sultan perfectly timed his left hook that proved to be the perfect ending of a magnificent power clinic.
“He was good, but I felt I’m stronger. This is boxing. This is war. And I came to win tonight. Caraballo is a tough man, but I wanted this one,” said Sultan.
