On May 10 (Japan time May 11), a WBC Silver Welterweight Title and Final Eliminator 12-round bout took place at the Sipopo Congress Center in Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea.
The match featured Silver champion and WBC No.2 ranked Souleymane Cissokho (France, 17 wins, 9 KOs) against WBC No.5 Egidijus Kavaliauskas (Lithuania, based in California, USA, 24 wins, 19 KOs, 2 losses, 1 draw). Cissokho won by unanimous decision. The judges’ scores were 116–110, 115–111, and 114–112.
In Round 2, Cissokho was knocked down by a right uppercut and left hook from Kavaliauskas. In Round 5, he was dropped again by a left uppercut and fell through the ropes—his right foot barely caught on the ropes, narrowly preventing a full fall out of the ring.
Although Cissokho secured the mandatory challenger position for WBC champion Mario Barrios (USA, 29 wins, 18 KOs, 2 losses), his vulnerability to punches remains a serious concern.
Souleymane Cissokho (33), originally from Senegal, won a bronze medal in the welterweight division representing France at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. Since turning professional in January 2017, he has remained undefeated, climbing the world rankings with his sharp straight punches delivered from his tall 179 cm frame.
WBC champion Mario Barrios is reportedly scheduled to defend his title on July 19 (Japan time July 20) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, USA, against 46-year-old former six-division world champion Manny Pacquiao (Philippines, 62 wins [39 KOs], 8 losses, 2 draws). Cissokho is expected to challenge the winner of that bout.
In another bout, Kevin Lele Sadjo (France), ranked No.3 by the IBF, No.8 by the WBO, and No.9 by the WBC at super middleweight, improved his undefeated record to 24 wins (21 KOs) by defeating former world title challenger Habib Ahmed (Ghana, 30 wins [21 KOs], 3 losses, 1 draw, 1 NC). Sadjo scored a knockdown with a left to the body in Round 2, and in Round 3, landed a flurry of uppercuts followed by another left body shot, winning by knockout at the count of ten.
In a 6-round middleweight bout, Nico Ali Walsh (USA, 10 wins [5 KOs], 2 losses, 1 no contest), the grandson of Muhammad Ali, faced off against unbeaten Ebenezer Tetteh Sowah (Ghana, 7 wins [7 KOs], 1 draw). Walsh won the bout by majority decision, with scores of 59–55, 58–56, and 57–57.
The Olympic bronze medalist has remained undefeated while rising into the world rankings — expectations are high for his future.
This article has been translated and published with permission from BOXING MASTER.
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