Lightweight champion Raka knocks out Paul in 6th round

PAPUA New Guinea’s lightweight champion in professional boxing Junior Kauko Raka has proven that he was the man to beat following his win over Richard Paul in the Oceania Fight Promotions (OFP) fight night on Saturday.
However, the victory didn’t come easy as upcoming boxer Paul made Raka work hard.
Paul put on a contest which saw both men went toe-to-toe in the opening two rounds of the six rounds by 3 minutes’ bout.
Raka congratulated Paul for his bravery and tough fight.
“It’s good to see young boxers like Richard Paul coming up because he is a potential star,” Raka said.
“After all, we want professional boxing to grow in PNG and such event hosted by the OFP and to have competitive boxers like Richard, it’s only good for the sport in PNG.
“The bigger picture is to represent the country at the international stage and winning titles and medals overseas and it starts here through such events.”
Paul showed signs of a broken knuckle on his right hand in the third round. He could only fight with high left hand in the remaining rounds as Raka knocked him out in the final round.
Raka was composed throughout the fight as he let Paul come to him in the first two rounds. Paul showed what he could offer as he landed some great jabs and swings as Raka was on the back foot.
However, the momentum swung after round three when Paul started to slow down showing signs of injury on his hand. Raka capitalised on Paul’s lack of speed, throwing some solid punches in round four and five.
It was only a matter of time that Raka might put Paul to sleep and the 31-year old finally landed a jab that put Paul on the floor with a bleeding nose.