CEBU CITY, Philippines ? After a long night of boxing, ?Prince? Albert Pagara and Mark ?Magnifico? Magsayo held on to their championship belts and kept their perfect records intact at the Waterfront Hotel here.
The future stars of ALA Promotions also boosted their hopes for a world title.
It was midnight Saturday when Pagara, in his favorite neon green attire, answered the bell for the 12th and final round against Nicaragua?s Yesner Talavera.
No one expected the fight to last. Pagara blamed Talavera.
?Tumakbo ng tumakbo eh (He kept running). Baka marathon ang sport. Walang kwenta (He?s nothing). He?s not a warrior,? said Pagara, 26-0 and still the WBO Intercontinental junior featherweight champion.
Talavera, accompanied to the ring by two-time world champion Rosendo Alvarez, also from Nicaragua, vowed to put up a good fight against Pagara. Sportshub ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1
But he didn?t. He tried to be elusive inside the ring and at times was comical and looked foolish. In 36 minutes, he circled the ring more than a dozen times.
Alvarez, a great world champion, shook his head from the corner, more embarrassed than amused.
Pagara went for the knockout and tried to entertain the crowd. He floored Talavera with a right straight to the mid-section in the seventh round but didn?t get the knockout.
Just as the final bell sounded, most of the fans that packed the carpeted venue got up on their feet and left, not bothering to hear the decision.
It was a lopsided one in favor of the Filipino.
?Para siyang aso takbo namg takbo (He was like a dog that kept running). Walang pupuntahan ang ganyang boxer (He?s not going anywhere),? said Pagara.
The pride of Maasin in Southern Leyte now wants a title shot.
?Gusto ko na lumaban para sa world title,? he said.
Tony Aldeguer of ALA Promotions was impressed with Pagara?s style and patience inside the ring.
?Pagara fought a mature fight. I think he?s ripe and ready,? said the top Filipino promoter.
Magsayo faced another runner in Mexico?s Eduardo Montoya. He scored a knockdown in the seventh round but also failed to finish. He moved up with 13-0 with 10 knockouts.
Montoya refused to engage and just fought to survive. His best moment came after the fight when he had his picture taken with the beautiful round girls at the center of the ring.
?Tumakbo lang (He just ran). Sinugod ko na lang para wag naman ma-bore ang tao (I went at him to keep the crowd from getting bored). Ayaw lumaban eh,? he said.
The Filipino trainers, Edmund and Edito Villamor, said there was nothing they could do.
?Wala. Parehong ayaw masaktan (They didn?t want to get hurt),? said Edito of the foreign fighters.
Talavera and Montoya dropped to 15-4-1 and 17-5-1, respectively. They left Cebu and headed home Sunday with their paychecks.
KJ Catajara moved up to 3-0 after scoring a unanimous decision over Mexico?s Tony Rodriguez in an eight-round flyweight contest that failed to produce any spark.
Former IBF minimumweight champion Florante Condes staged a comeback but was a mere shadow of his old self, losing to young turk Melvin ?Gringo? Jerusalen, now 9-0.
Condes, used to be called the ?Little Pacquiao,? took a humiliating defeat, his 10th against 27 wins and a draw. In the fourth, he swung hard at his opponent, hit air, lost his balance and fell hard on the floor.
During the break, he watched the slow-mo replay on the giant screen and almost laughed at himself.
Super-bantam Jeo Santisima (9-2-0 with eight knockouts) provided the excitement for the night when he stopped the seasoned Marco Demecillo (21-5-1) with a great body shot in the 1:07 mark of the sixth round.
Santisima rejoiced after the victory then jumped into the arms of his father as he stepped down the ring.
They celebrated like champions.
