By Rocky Morales at ringside
Photos: Luis Mejia/TGB Promotions
Former unified super bantamweight champion Guillermo “El Chacal” Rigondeaux (18-1, 12 KOs) made his ring return a successful one with a first round knockout over Giovanni Delgado (16-9, 9 KOs) on Sunday night in a super bantamweight clash at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California.
Rigondeaux was fighting for the first time in 13 months following his loss to Vasiliy Lomachenko. A perfectly placed lead left cross landed flush on the chin of Delgado at the bell to put him down for the count at 3:00 of the first round of a scheduled eight round super bantamweight bout. This is the fourth consecutive time, three times in the last 10 months, that Delgado has been stopped. With the victory, the now 38-year-old Rigondeaux instantly becomes a title contender to fellow PBC fighters Leo Santa Cruz and Gary Russell Jr.
“This is my division. This is my time,” said Rigondeaux. “I am the king of 122 pounds. I felt 100 percent. Delgado is a good fighter. I take my hat off to him and his team. I came prepared and I am ready to face people that are undefeated. Whoever has a belt, I am taking it. You can expect me back in less than two months.”
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