WORLD Boxing Organization (WBO) minimumweight king Oscar Collazo added another Filipino to his list of victims after forcing Garen Diagan to quit on his stool after the sixth round of his first title defense on Aug. 27 (PH time) at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The 27-year-old Diagan, ranked No. 9 by the WBO, got off to a hot start and landed a solid left overhand that caught Collazo’s attention in the opening round.
Collazo found his range in the second round and was very effective with his jabs. He continued to dictate the fight in the third round and connected with a left uppercut that snapped Diagan’s head back.
Diagan was contented with just backing up to the rounds and throwing solid counterpunches.
Collazo started to break Diagan down in the fifth round. He was very accurate with his punches and landed a solid left hook to Diagan’s head.
Collazo landed at will in the sixth round and was ready to finish off Diagan, who looked gassed out.
At the end of the round, Diagan looked hurt and refused to continue to fight.
Collazo successfully defended his belt for the first time and improved to 8-0 with six knockouts, while Diagan dropped to 10-4 with five knockouts.
The 26-year-old Collazo, a former amateur standout, became a world champion in just seven pro fights. He dethroned Filipino Melvin Jerusalem last May 27, forcing him to quit on his stool after the seventh round, in Indio, California. / EKA