Anthony Cacace Shocks Joe Cordina In 8th Round Stoppage, Wins IBF 130-Pound Title

Anthony Cacace could not have found a more appropriate occasion to find his power.

The IBF 130-pound title changed hands in upset fashion Saturday evening at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Cardiff’s Joe Cordina was floored in a round three and battered in rounds seven and eight. The latter barrage forced a stoppage at 0:39 of the eighth round.

Cordina entered the fight unbeaten and in the vicinity of a -600 favorite to make the second defense of the IBF title. He was stripped of the belt in 2022 when a broken hand forced him to withdraw from a mandatory title defense.

This reign ended emphatically in the ring.

A chess match broke out early before action picked up in the third. Minor controversy soon ensued once that moment arrived.

Cacace was disciplined by referee Bob Williams for landing a right hand after a verbal ‘Break’ command. Cordina was barely given time to recover beyond that brief time out. Cacace—who was in his first career title fight—shook off the warning and immediately went on the attack. Cordina was rocked by a right uppercut and floored by a subsequent right hand.

To his credit, Cordina showed a championship heart in recovering from the sequence and bouncing back strong in the fourth. Cacace still landed the more telling blows but Cordina occasionally found a home for his left hook.

Cacace had Cordina in trouble late in round seven. There was growing concern for the defending titleholder as he was battered along the ropes and unable to defend himself. The referee gave him a long hard look but Cordina was able to make it to the bell.

Cordina wouldn’t be so fortunate when summoned to rise from his stool to begin the eighth round.

Cacace brimmed with confidence and went straight towards the unbeaten Welshman. A right hand over Cordina’s guard was the beginning of the end. Cacace battered Cordina along the ropes until the fight was mercifully brought to a halt.

Cordina (17-1, 9 knockouts) entered the bout unbeaten and as The Ring’s No. 3-rated junior lightweight. While there were post-fight talks of an immediate rematch, there are questions of whether he returns to the division. Rumors swirled that he struggled to make weight, which triggered the suggestion of a move to lightweight.

Cacace (22-1, 8 KOs) hadn’t scored a knockout since Sept. 2016 prior to Saturday. Eight straight fights went to the scorecards, including his lone career defeat to Martin Ward in their July 2017 battle. There was no time like the present for the 35-year-old southpaw, who ended Cordina’s 13-month reign.

Cacace-Cordina served as part of an eight-fight DAZN/ESPN+/PPV.com pay-per-view event. The show is headlined by the Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk undisputed heavyweight championship.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Follow @JakeNDaBox

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