MAGNIFICENT MAGSAYO WINS OVER STRONG AND STURDY HAYASHI
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 26 Nov 2017
Mark "Magnifico" Magsayo showed his fellow Boholanos why he is the No. 2 contender in his division and a prospective challenger for a world title showdown. True to his nickname, he showed magnificent display of tenacity and willpower to endure a debilitating battle against the sturdy Japanese challenger Shota Hayashi in Pinoy Pride 43 "Battle in Bohol" last night. Hayashi is indestructible as he survived the Boholano boxer?s unyielding blows and took the solid punches which Magsayo pummeled him.
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Magsayo's dynamic left hooks and agile upper cuts on Hayashi piled up points for the champ even if the Japanese bounced back and snagged with his own vigorous right hooks and jabs during their WBO international featherweight title fight.
Magsayo connected a power punch to the torso of Hayashi in the ninth and made the Japanese grimace in pain, but Hayashi easily recovered and engaged the Filipino in a toe-to-toe battle. The unanimous decision win could earn a possible shot against Oscar Valdez.
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The Japanese stood up with a robust defense at the start of the match. Magsayo started to get stronger in the third round connecting with solid blows to the head and body of Hayashi as his defense weakens. Hayashi recovered in the fifth and sixth rounds retaliating with several blows to the head and body of Magsayo. Although he seemed to lose steam in the ninth round, Magsayo again bounced back and connected his punches on the volatile Japanese fighter.
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Magsayo, who fought for the first time in Tagbilaran City since 2014, won the nod of all three judges Edward Ligas, Edgar Olalo and Tony Pesons who all scored the 12-round bout 116-112 in favor of Magsayo. In a post-fight interview, he said he thinks of his family and his belt that he would not it give up and that keeps his fighting spirit stronger. Magsayo improved his record to 18-0 with 13 KOs, while Hayashi?s record dropped to 30-7-1 with 8 KOs, in which is possibly the Japanese?s final boxing match.
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"He was very tough. It was my hardest fight thus far. He had a very tough chin. I felt that I hurt him," Magsayo said to the media after the fight. "I was not thinking of a knockout because I felt that he was a formidable opponent." He learned some lessons too in that match in which he was a heavy favorite to win. "I learned that I should pace myself, not be too overconfident and stick to the plan," added Magsayo. "We expected Hayashi to be tough," said ALA Gym head trainer Edito Villamor.
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Hayashi had previously declared before the reporters that a loss to Magsayo would mean his retirement from his 12-year career. While Magsayo had earlier announced his intent to challenge Oscar Valdez for the WBO world featherweight title and the victory could lead him closer to that dream. But he will have to face a dangerous fighter in Joseph Diaz Jr. of the United States in a title eliminator. Diaz also has an unblemished record of 25-0, 13 KOs with a 52% KO rate.
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Prince Albert Pagara (29-1-0, 20KOs) dropped Mohammed Kambaluta (16-4-0, 5KOs) of Tanzania to the canvas twice which resulted in a KO win at 2:29 of the second round in the undercard of the "Battle in Bohol" at the Bohol Wisdom Gymnasium. Pagara has piled up his third straight victory after his only loss to Cesar Juarez in July 2016. Jeo "Santino" Santisima (15-0, 13KOs) was simply too dominant for his Indonesian opponent Kinchang Kim (8-5-1, 2KOs) by stopping him at 36 seconds of the very first round.
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Sergey Kovalev destroyed Vyacheslav Shabranskyy to win the WBO light heavyweight title. "Krusher" knocks him three times before the fight was stopped 2:36 of the second round at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. Kovalev (31-2-1, 27 KOs) landed 50 punches to only 16 for Shabranskyy (19-2, 16 KOs). He wins back the belt that Andre Ward relinquished when he retired. "It?s my goal to be the best in this division. I don?t think in the last fight I was stopped. It was an illegal decision by the referee," Kovalev said.
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Two champions are from Russia, WBA champ Dmitry Bivol, and IBF titlist Artur Beterbiev, now living in Canada. The Canadian WBC king Adonis Stevenson has avoided a fight against Kovalev. ?The belts have different owners, and that makes the boxing very much interesting,? Kovalev said. ?We can make good fights for the boxing fans and also for boxing history. I just want to find out who is the best in the light heavyweight division in the future.?
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The Boston Celtics franchise is the most successful in NBA history, with 17 championships, winning 24.3 percent of all NBA championships since the league's founding. Percentage-wise, the Celtics are the most successful franchise in the four major North American professional sports leagues - baseball, football, basketball and hockey. They have played the Los Angeles Lakers a record 12 times in the NBA finals, including their most recent showdown in 2008 and 2010, with the Celtics winning nine meetings.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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