3 Pinoy Pride boxers win By Ronnie Nathanielsz | May. 27, 2013 at 12:01am Jason “El Nino” Pagara banked on a second-round knockdown and flurries of combinations through most of the rounds to score a unanimous 12-round decision over resilient and fiercely competitive Mexican challenger Aaron Herrera before a large crowd that enjoyed every moment of the action- packed card at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino in Cebu City on Saturday. The Pinoy Pride XX fight card of ALA Promotions staged in partnership with ABS-CBN, packed a wallop not merely in terms of the action, but also in the large number of foreigners present, clearly presenting a new breed of fight fans in the highly successful series that turns in remarkable ratings nationwide on its telecast over Channel 2. Pagara started off with a right to the head, and then a left hook but Herrera recovered behind a snapping jab and a solid right straight. After a furious exchange in Round 2, Pagara caught the Mexican with a left hook, followed by two right uppercuts that dropped the challenger, who was given a mandatory eight-count by international referee Bruce McTavish. But the well-conditioned Herrera survived Pagara’s onslaught. A Pagara left hook shook Herrera in Round 10, before the champion, his confidence growing, began to switch from the head to the body and although he caught Herrera with a vicious right hand, the Mexican warrior refused to back off. Pagara also sported a bruise on his left cheek as both fighters went for a killer punch in the final round, but neither was able to land a really telling blow before the final bell sounded. Pagara, who appeared to grow from a boy to a man in the ring, is bound to improve his No. 4 world ranking by the World Boxing Organization after his fine performance characterized by the fact that he didn’t fade in the championship rounds unlike in the past. All three judges scored the fight for Pagara. Salven Lagumbay scored it 115-112, Tony Pesons had the Filipino the winner by a wider 116-111 margin, but the third judge, Arnie Najera’s 119-108 scorecard bordered on the ridiculous. With the win, Pagara improved to 31-2, 19KOs while Herrera lost for the second time in his career, dropping to 25-2 with 17 knockouts. Sweet win for Servania Meanwhile, sweet-punching, 21-year-old super bantamweight Genesis “Azukal’ Servania abandoned his usual patient style and went after his opponent, Indonesia’s tough Isack Junior, with both fists blazing to score a third-round knockout. Servania landed some vicious combinations from the opening bell as he rained punches on the Indonesian. However, he was cautioned for a low blow in Round 2 that dropped Isack, who was given time to recover by referee Ben Necessario. That was the only respite for the hapless Indonesian as Servania ripped into him with devastating punches to the body that ended with Isack crumbling to the canvas to be counted out at 2:15 of the third round.
Posted on: Sun, 01 Dec 2013 05:50:59 +0000