Zerafa’s world-tight fight ends in knockout loss

Melissa Woods |

Michael Zerafa was knocked out in his WBA middleweight fight against Erislandy Lara in Las Vegas.
Michael Zerafa was knocked out in his WBA middleweight fight against Erislandy Lara in Las Vegas.

Erislandy Lara has shattered Michael Zerafa’s dream of winning a world title for his ailing sister with the Cuban-American emphatically retaining his WBA middleweight crown in Las Vegas.

Fighting on the blockbuster Tim Tszyu-Sebastian Fundora card, Victorian Zerafa’s night ended in the second round after he was sent tumbling to the canvas ay T-Mobile Arena.

Zerafa had dedicated the fight to older sister Michelle, who had surprised him by being ringside despite undergoing treatment for breast cancer.

Lara held the strap since 2021 but hadn’t fought since May 2022 but the 40-year-old southpaw showed he still had the slick moves that had made him a champion.

Zerafa, 32, had also been out of the ring for 16 months but had enlisted four-division Filipino superstar Nonito Donaire as his trainer for the campaign.

Both fighters felt their way through the opening round but Lara landed a heavy right-left combination with a heavily dazed Zerafa unable to continue.

AAP