FORILAN Saludar put himself back on track to another run at a world title after winning the World Boxing Organization (WBO) Asia-Pacific super flyweight strap with an eighth-round stoppage of young prospect Tsubasa Murachi at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. Saludar started out slow and was dropped by Murachi with a right in the first round. However, Saludar quickly regained his poise and sent Murachi to the canvass in the fourth and seventh rounds.

In the eighth, Saludar once again caught Murachi with a heavy blow that dropped him again, forcing the referee to stop the action. Saludar won his third straight fight since losing to Sho Kimura in a world title fight in 2018. He improved to 31-3-1 with 21 knockouts. Murachi, on the other hand, dropped to 4-1 with three knockouts. (EKA)