TOKYO, March 9: Alexander Munos of Venezuela continued his excellent record of knock-out victories by beating Shoji Kobayashi of Japan to become the new World Boxing Association (WBA) super flyweight champion Saturday.

The referee stopped the bout in the eighth round after the 23-year-old challenger sent the Japanese to the floor for the fifth time.

Munos had floored Kobayashi in the second, sixth and seventh rounds, as well as earlier in the eighth.

The knock-out time was one minute 31 seconds into the round.

“It was a tough match, I had expected it to be. It’s natural it was a tough match against a tough opponent. But I finished him off in the eighth round as I had promised before the match,” said Munos.

“Like all other Japanese champions, Kobayashi is a great champion. He prepared for the match very well. Fortunately, I marked a new record of 22 KO victories in Japan. I really feel great,” he added.

Kobayashi looked passive in the beginning as Munos got off to an offensive start, firing an array of left hooks and right straights to the face.

Munos unleashed a left hook to the face to score the first down in the second round and kept on the offensive for the remainder of the bout.

Kobayashi tried to hit Munos’ stomach but was cautioned by the referee for low punching. He was downed by big left hooks in the sixth and seventh rounds.

Kobayashi stood up after being felled by a series of right and left hooks in the eighth but Munos needed only one more right straight to finish him off.

Munos, ranked top in the WBA, stretched his unbeaten record to 22 wins, all of them knock-outs, and no defeats — a Venezuelan record.

“He (Munos) was tough. In the third round I felt I could not fight until the final round, so I tried to beat him earlier and I was beaten instead,” said Kobayashi, 29.

The fight was Kobayashi’s second defence of the title he wrested from Leo Gamez of Venezuela in March last year. He saw his record reduced to 24 wins, including 14 KOs, against five defeats and three draws.—AFP