Reynaldo “Boom Boom” Bautista of the Philippines won a 12-round unanimous decision over Argentina’s Sergio Manuel Medina here Saturday in a showdown of unbeaten super bantamweights.
Bautista was one of four winners among five unbeaten fighters from outside North America fighting on the undercard of the Floyd Mayweather-Oscar de la Hoya super-welterweight showdown.
Bautista knocked down Medina for the second time in the fight midway into the 11th round and judges awarded him the victory by scores of 115-109, 115-109 and 116-108. Bautista improved to 29-0. Medina fell to 22-1.
Bautista suffered a one-point deducation for low blows in the fifth round but responded by knocking down Medina late in the sixth round.
Medina answered with a furious flurry in the seventh round, hammering the Filipino fighter against the ropes twice before Bautista clinched twice and reached the end of the round, never to be so jeopardized again.
Alex Banal, an 18-year-old Filipino southpaw, improved to 13-0 with a draw with a unanimous junior bantamweight decision over Mexico’s Juan Rosas by scores of 78-73, 78-73 and 76-75.
Despite a one-point deduction for low blows in the third round, Banal won his first fight outside his homeland while Rosas fell to 25-3.
Australian junior lightweight Billy Dib remained undefeated, the 21-year-old Sydney southpaw improving to 16-0 with a unanimous decision over Mexican Jose Gonzalez by scores of 78-74, 78-74 and 77-75. Gonzalez dropped to 14-4.
Unbeaten English lightweight John Murray, 22, improved to 21-0 by stopping Lorenzo Bethea after 28 seconds of the seventh round, his 11th triumph inside the distance. The American slid to 6-5.
English southpaw John O’Donnell, 21, suffered his first loss after 15 victories, being stopped by Mexico’s Christian Solano 1:50 into the second round of their welterweight bout. Solano improved to 20-11 with four drawn.
