Carlos Canizales had clearly not forgotten the sting of outboxing Panya Pradabsri over 12 rounds last December, only to see his opponent’s hand raised instead.
So rather than relying on his boxing skills, Canizales was determined to prevent the fight from going to the scorecards, knocking out Pradabsri in the fifth round Friday in his hometown of Caracas, Venezuela, to lift the WBC junior flyweight title.
Canizales, 28-3-1 (20 KOs), finished off Thailand’s durable Pradabsri with a left hook to the body, leaving his opponent writhing in pain for the full 10 count. It was the first time Pradabsri, 45-3 (28 KOs), had been stopped in his 11-year pro career, while it was Canizales’ first KO win since 2022.
It was clear from the outset that Canizales wanted to prevent a replay of their first meeting, which ended in a controversial majority decision win for Pradabsri in Thailand. Canizales showed no interest in boxing a safety-first fight, backing up Pradabsri with wide, swinging hooks and body shots. Canizales continued his aggressive approach into the second as he pushed Pradabsri back to the ropes and rocked him with right hands.
Pradabsri, who had previously held the WBC title at 105lbs, still had some fight in him, as he fired back with right hands and body punches. Just when it appeared that Canizales may run over Pradabsri, the Thai showed he still was dangerous in the fourth, when a right hand early in the round knocked Canizales into the ropes for a knockdown. Canizales recovered quickly and had once again regained the upper hand behind his jab.
Canizales opened what would become the final round of the bout with his jab, this time looking for the openings instead of forcing it. He found it midway through the round as his right hands upstairs blinded his opponent to the power shots that followed downstairs.
With the victory, Canizales claimed his first major title.
The 32-year-old previously held a secondary version of the WBA 108lbs title from 2018 until being stopped by Esteban Bermudez in six rounds back in 2021. Canizales rebounded with a technical decision win over Cuba’s previously unbeaten Daniel Matellon in a 2023 title eliminator, before dropping a majority decision to then WBC/WBA junior flyweight titleholder Kenshiro Teraji in a 2024 Fight of the Year contender.
Ryan Songalia is a reporter and editor for BoxingScene.com and has written for ESPN, the New York Daily News, Rappler, The Guardian, Vice and The Ring magazine. He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at ryansongalia@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ryansongalia.
