Belingon pummels Leone, scores impressive 2nd round stoppage
MANILA, Philippines — Kevin Belingon went into Friday night’s main still trying to prove he's worthy of another crack at the bantamweight title.
But as soon as he stepped in the ring, he made a strong case in the showpiece dubbed as "Heroes of Honor" at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The 30-year-old Team Lakay ward unloaded a barrage of strikes that had American Andrew Leone curling for protection.
Leone, who was already bloodied midway in the opening salvo, survived the initial onslaught.
Belingon picked up where he left off as soon as the second round started. After tagging his foe with a spinning sidekick, he made sure Leone wouldn’t have another chance. He raced to the corner where he kept Leone on the ground and finished him off with brutal knee strikes to the head.
Olivier Coaste called the fight off 1:27 into the second round, extending Belingon’s win streak to five and marking the Filipino fighter's return to form as a rightful contender to division kingpin Bibiano Fernandes.
Kevin "The Silencer" Belingon put on the performance of a lifetime in front of a boisterous hometown crowd, scoring a breathtaking TKO at 1:27 of round 2! #HeroesOfHonor #Manila #MartialArts pic.twitter.com/JJJz2MEtBJ
— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) April 20, 2018
“I saw him stepping back. When I saw the opportunity, I took it,” Belingon offered when asked about the decisive moment. He now has 17 wins and five losses.
“I would like to say thank you to my fans, my sponsors, and to my team for this victory. I'm just waiting for the decision of ONE. I'll take whatever they give me,” he added.
Earlier, stablemates Honorio Banario and Gina Iniong scored victories via decision.
The comic lightweight hung tough against a gritty performance by Australian Adrian Pang via split decision to stretch his win streak to five.
Iniong, who faced Jenny Huang in a strawweight clash, won on all judges' score cards with masterful striking and grappling. The Filipina, like Huang, was reeling from a loss to Mei Yamaguchi.
Banario upgraded his pro record to 13-6, as Iniong improved to 7-3.
Belingon on his win over Leone. #ONEFightNight pic.twitter.com/fLzk4kLUsM
— Denison Rey Dalupang (@sonrd) April 20, 2018
Banario... in his element ????#ONEFightNight pic.twitter.com/6TcwzmRyu8
— Denison Rey Dalupang (@sonrd) April 20, 2018
Meanwhile, Giorgio Petrosyan, highly revered as among best in the sport, topped Jo Nattawut in a beautiful display of kickboxing to cap off the inaugural ‘Super Series.
The Italian scored a unanimous decision win over his Thai foe to the delight of the crowd.
Other results:
- Adrian Mattheis of Indonesia def. Lan Ming Qiang of China, Unanimous Decision (R3)
- Regian Eersel of Netherlands def. Brad Riddell of New Zealand in Kickboxing, Unanimous Decision (R3)
- Akihiro Fujisaw of Japan def. Kaji Ebin of Philippines, Submission off injury (R1)
- Cosmo Alexandre of Brazil def. Elliot Compton of Australia in Muay Thai, KO/TKO (R2)
- Dae Hwan Kim of S.Korea def. Masakazu Imanari of Japan, Unanimous Decision (R3)
- Marat Gafurov of Russia def. Emilio Urrutia of United States, Submission (R1)
- Nong-O Gaiyanghadao def. Fabio Pinca in Muay Thai, Unanimous Decision (R3)
- Latest
- Trending
