Kalihi's Limoz wins WBO title
By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer
Teddy Limoz Jr. turned his "hobby" into a championship last night.
Limoz scored a ninth-round technical knockout of Pimnimit Sitaran last night to win the World Boxing Organization (WBO) Asian-Pacific welterweight championship. The bout highlighted a card titled "Showdown in Honolulu" before about 1,500 fans at the Blaisdell Center Arena.
"This is the biggest win of my career," said Limoz, 34. "This is a world recognized title. This is what all boxers hope for."
Limoz improved to 8-1 with the seventh knockout of his career. Sitaran, who is from Thailand, fell to 12-6.
Limoz, who trains at Kalihi Valley Gym, left little doubt last night. He dominated Sitaran throughout the bout with repeated combinations to the head.
"I knew I was controlling the fight," Limoz said. "It was just a matter of time before I got to him."
The fight could have ended earlier were it not for Sitaran's ability to absorb punches.
Limoz landed numerous hooks — both from the left and right sides — to Sitaran's head in virtually every round.
"I came out anxious," Limoz said. "I tried to land some bombs."
After the third round, Limoz relied more on his jabs, which eventually opened up his devastating hooks in the eighth and ninth rounds.
"I told (Limoz) early in the fight that he was going to break his hand on the guy's head," said Peter Jhun, Limoz's trainer. "I told him hold back a little bit and just box."
The strategy worked in the eighth round, when Limoz landed seven unanswered punches to Sitaran's face. At the end of the eighth round, a dazed Sitaran wobbled toward Limoz's corner.
In the ninth, Limoz trapped Sitaran in a corner and landed a furious series of punches to the body and head, forcing referee Abe Pacheco to stop the fight with 45 seconds remaining in the round.
According to Jhun, Limoz will now have to defend his title within 120 days. His opponent will be Rey Pelonia of the Philippines, although the site has yet to be determined.
Pelonia was originally scheduled to fight Limoz last night, but could not leave the Philippines due to visa problems.
Limoz, a full-time construction worker, said he will now try to devote more time to boxing because of his new title.
"I have to feed my family, that's the main thing," he said. "Boxing was a hobby up until now. But now, who knows? I want to go as far as I can with this."
In other bouts:
• Jesus Salud of Nanakuli fought a three-round exhibition with International Boxing Federation (IBF) super bantamweight champ Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines.
"It was a last-minute thing for me," said Salud, 39. "I had only one week to train, so I wasn't at my best."
Judges did not score the bout, although many ringside observers favored Pacquiao.
• Gerry Penalosa (45-4-2) earned a technical knockout of Japan's Seiji Tanaka (11-5-3) to retain his World Boxing Council super flyweight championship.
Penalosa dominated the fight throughout, opening a gash above Tanaka's left eye in the sixth round. The bout was stopped when Tanaka's could not come out of his corner for the start of the eighth round.
• Juanito Rubillar (29-8-6) of the Philippines scored a third-round technical knockout of Takayuki Kourogi (9-3-2) of Japan in a flyweight bout.
• In related boxing news, trainer Freddie Roach said Brian Viloria has secured a bout with a fighter from Mexico for the North American Boxing Federation flyweight championship later this month in New York. Roach trained Penalosa and Pacquiao last night.
