Nigerian heavyweight prospect Efe Ajagba knocks out Kiladze in 5th round

Ajagba now has won 12 in 12 fights with 10 knockouts as a fast-rising heavyweight boxer.

Nigerian boxer Efe Ajagba further fueled his growing reputation with a fifth-round knockout of his opponent Kiladze at the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California on Saturday, December 21.

Ajagba knocked down Kiladze twice in the fight, first in the second round and then again in the fifth.

It was a win that came after Ajagba got up from the canvas following a knockout in the third round. It was a knockdown that came in a highly unusual sequence.

A powerful right hand from Ajagba had wobbled Kiladze badly in the final minute of the third and the Nigerian backed away thinking his opponent would go down.

But Kiladze remained on his feet and landed a punch with his right hand on Ajagba and for the first time in his professional career, the Nigerian went down. He, however, wasn’t badly hurt and beat referee Thomas Taylor’s count to continue the fight.

Ajagba continued his dominance and knocked out Kiladze in the fifth round. The Georgia native, however, beat Taylor’s count to continue the fight but the referee stopped their scheduled 10-rounder at 2:09 of the fifth round as Ajabga continued to land numerous punches to his red which made Kiladze’s trainer threw in the towel.

Ajagba, a 2016 Nigerian Olympian now has a 12-fight winning run with 10 knockouts.

Born in Ughelli, Delta State, Nigeria, the 25-year-old was a football player before he took up boxing in 2011.

As an amateur, he won a gold medal at the 2015 African Games and bronze at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.