World title challenger Jeo “Santino” Santisima (W22 KO 19 L4) ended the drought of Filipino victories in Japan as he impressively demolished veteran Hiroshige Osawa (37-5) with a fifth round stoppage.

The fight was held at the Edion Arena in Osaka, Japan. It was a sweet victory for the Filipino having recently suffered a stoppage loss to featherweight contender Joet Gonzalez.

Osawa was down twice in the fight. A vicious body shot threw him on the canvas in the second stanza and another barrage put him out for good in the fifth round of action.

Santisima is managed and handled by the ZIP Sanman stable, who have partnered in staging fights around the world for promising Filipino boxers. Nobuyuki Matsuura and Marivic Kamiyama represents ZIP while Jim Claude Manangquil heads Sanman Boxing.

The dramatic victory opens a lot of doors for Santisima and brings him close to the bigger challenges.

Santisima was ecstatic with the win.

“I fought on the enemy’s turf and it would not have been wise to let the judges decide the fight. The game plan was really to finish the fight within the distance. Coach Michael Domingo had a great game plan and I executed it well. Props to Osawa for a great fight. I am very grateful to ZIP-Sanman for this opportunity and dedicate this win for my countrymen," Santisima exclaimed.