Ghana’s Isaac Dogboe made a charming return to the ring in his first bout since May 2019, with an impressive 8th round TKO win over American Chris Avalos in Las Vegas.
The former world champion seemed determined to make a statement after his 14-month absence, and dominated the opening rounds in his debut bout in the featherweight division after deciding to move up from the Super Bantamweight Division.
It was a different and revived Isaac Dogboe, showing exquisite movement and great defensive skill throughout the bout.
The Royal Storm started the bout very aggressively and made use of his trademark devastating body shots in rounds 1 and 2.
Avalos, who had the advantage in the fight, tried, without success, to work the jab, but Dogboe was a bit too quick and evasive for the American.
The 25-year-old Ghanaian boxer pounded Avalos with body shots, and the American almost hit the deck in the 4th round after a stinging blow into his body from Dogboe.
The former WBO Super Bantamweight Champion continued his dominance in the 5th and 6th rounds, continuing to work the body of the 30-year-old Avalos, who looked tired and worn out at that point.
The dominance of the former WBO Super Bantamweight world champion, finally paid off in the 8th and final round when Dogboe eventually stopped Avalos.
A quick combination, which ended in a hard right-hand punch in the face of Avalos, saw the referee waving off the fight, and handing Dogboe a TKO victory.
It was Dogboe’s first taste of victory since beating Japan’s Hidenori Otake in August 2018, and his first as a featherweight.