Merlito "Tiger" Sabillo won by TKO 9 to defend his first WBO Minimum Weight Title

Merlito "Tiger" Sabillo won by TKO 9 to defend his first WBO Minimum Weight Title against Colombian fighter Jorle Estrada during their matching match in "Pinoy Pride XXI: When Worlds Collide."

In his first fight in Manila, the pride of Bacolod City crippled Estrada with a vicious hook to the body in the 9th round to end of their 12-round bout.

Sabillo, who extended his unbeaten run to 23 wins, was pleased with his performance at the Solaire Resort Hotel and Casino.

Estrada wanted to avenge the loss of his fellow Colombian Luis de la Rosa to Sabillo but it wasn’t meant to be.

The 24-year-old San Pelayo native fell to his 7th loss in 24 fights.

Meanwhile, other Filipinos in the Pinoy Pride card also won their respective matches.

“King” Arthur Villanueva won via 4th-round referee stoppage over Mexico’s Arturo Badillo.

Villanueva improved his record to 23 wins and took home the WBO Asia-Pacific upper flyweight belt.

Comebacking AJ Banal won over Abraham Gomez after two bruising rounds.

After getting cut due to an accidental clash of heads in the first round, both Banal and Gomez suffered knockdowns in the second.

An exhausted Gomez refused to continue in the third, prompting the referee to award the win to “Bazooka.”