KHALIL Coe produced such a chalk and cheese display from his previous meeting with Manuel Gallegos that, rather than highlighting the fact he was stopped in nine rounds, we should be praising the fact he managed to battle to that point at all.
Coe emphatically answered any lingering questions from their first meeting by carrying out a one-sided revenge mission last night, on away territory. Claiming pre-fight that he was hindered by sickness the first time round, the sick note was stamped and verified with this revitalised rematch roasting.
“Flat out, I just wasn’t sick,” he outlined as the main reason behind his upturn in fortunes.
“The last fight, I was dealing with a lot of body and internal problems. I was hospitalised twice before my last fight. That pretty much made the difference.
“This camp, no problems all the way through, a hundred per cent cold. And y’all see what happened. I definitely want to give a shout-out to my coaches. I just want to thank everybody who supported me. We work and we train.”
One of Coe’s key weapons in the five rounds of authority was the New Jersey man’s thumping left jab that served more as a power punch than a rangefinder.
Splitting open Gallegos’ nose in the opener, Khalil kept it cracking all night, later turning his attention to the body on the corner instructions. The jab couldn’t miss. The power shots weren’t far behind.
“They wanted me to work off the jab more. The game plan was to stick to the jab. He’s a tough fighter. We weren’t expecting him to back down or quit anything. We were just trying to break him down and break his will. That’s what happened.
“We stuck to the game plan. They [training team] wanted me to work to the body a little more as we progressed, to slow him down.”
Overall, a satisfying win for a prospect-turned-contender who bounced back from a potentially damaging defeat to travel to his conqueror’s neighbourhood. Promoters Matchroom have stuck by him as well.
“I wouldn’t say it’s the most satisfying, but it’s definitely one of the biggest statements I made. I came to a whole other country and I fought him in his backyard,” added Coe.
“I came all the way to Mexico, south of Mexico. I’d never been to Mexico before. I love it here, but we came to get the job done. That’s what we did.”
Following that statement, Khalil Coe had a few choice words for any rival fighters who may have been ripping into him.
“Watch your mouth when you speak on me. That’s all I’m gonna say!”
