Magramo closes in on world title shot
By Joaquin Henson
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 09 Jan 2019
WBO Oriental flyweight champion Giemel Magramo added the WBO International belt to his collection as he stopped previously unbeaten Wenfeng Ge at the end of the 10th round in Suzhou, China, last Saturday to move closer to his dream of becoming a world titleholder.
Wenfeng started hot in the first round, displaying the busy boxing tactics that his Filipino cornerman Joma Gamboa used in winning the WBA minimumweight crown in Japan in 2000. Action picked up in the second but Magramo still couldn?t match Wenfeng?s activity. Then the tide turned in the third as Magramo skillfully cut the ring off on Wenfeng and began landing power shots. Wenfeng?s pace slowed down while Magramo raised his work rate. Magramo kept rushing Wenfeng and catching his opponent on the backfoot. Wenfeng?s early lead went down the drain when Magramo connected with a vicious left hook that triggered a swelling on his right eye in the sixth. Wenfeng was clearly bothered by the blow, repeatedly blinking and touching the battered eye with his glove as if to clear his vision.
Filipino referee Danrex Tapdasan summoned the ringside physician to examine Wenfeng?s eye at the end of the seventh and after consultation, resumed the fight. In the eighth, Wenfeng went for broke, looking desperate and fighting with a sense of urgency. He stood his ground to engage Magramo but couldn?t make headway. Tapdasan called the doctor again to look at Wenfeng?s eye, slowly shutting, at the end of the ninth and told the fighter he would stop it after one more round if there was no change of control. Tapdasan then waved it off with Wenfeng on his stool, bleeding from the nose and a cut over his swollen right eye, at the end of the 10th.
?Wenfeng was never knocked down or even on the verge of going down,? said Tapdasan. ?He was never wobbled. It was just the accumulation of punches and the punishment he took that led me to stop the fight. I could?ve stopped it at the end of the ninth but I wanted to give him one last chance. It was my judgment call. But at the end of the 10th, I stopped it. I wanted Wenfeng to come out of it healthy to fight another day.?
All three judges had Magramo ahead at the time of the stoppage. US judge Martino Redona had it 98-92, Macau judge Mark Leong 99-91 and Filipino judge Edward Ligas 96-94.
Tapdasan said Magramo?s most lethal weapons were his right straight and left hook to the body. ?He?s a volume puncher, quick on his feet,? said Tapdasan. ?He varies his punches, likes to jab and is relentless.?
Manager Johnny Elorde, trainer Eddie Balleran and Magramo?s father Melvin were in his corner. Elorde?s wife Liza, who videoed the fight on Facebook live at ringside, said Magramo?s a thinking fighter who studies his opponents carefully before moving in to attack. ?That?s why he started slowly against Wenfeng,? she said. ?But once Giemel figures out his opponent, he won?t back off. Sugod ng sugod, hindi umaatras. He finished the fight without a mark on his face.?
Liza said Wenfeng, 31, was no slouch but despite a 2 1/2 inch height advantage, couldn?t outbox Magramo. Wenfeng has fought as a superbantamweight, bantamweight and superflyweight but was groomed to shoot for the world flyweight title until Magramo came along. ?It was an upset and right after the fight, a lot of disappointed Chinese fans left the stadium even if the card hadn?t ended,? said Liza. ?We?re hoping the WBO gives Giemel a crack at the world title now held by Japan?s Kosei Tanaka. Giemel still has to work on adding more power to his punches and landing cleaner shots. But if he?s called to fight for the world title, he?ll be ready.?
Liza said WBA welterweight champion Sen. Manny Pacquiao has watched Magramo up close during a live fight and was impressed. ?Sabi ni Manny, matapang si Giemel and maganda kumilos sa ring,? she said. ?Natandaan ni Manny na in 1997, Giemel?s father Melvin gave him a hard fight in Cebu. Manny won on points but there was a report that mentioned Manny didn?t know which corner to go to after a round where they had a fierce exchange.?
The win raised Magramo?s record to 23-1, with 19 KOs. His only loss was a decision to Seoul-based Pakistani Muhammad Wassem in Korea in 2016 but it would?ve been a split draw if not for Japanese referee Yuji Fukuji?s one-point deduction for an accidental headbutt in the sixth round. Wenfeng?s slate dipped to 11-1, with 6 KOs. His list of victims includes Filipinos Ivan Soriano, Melmark Dignos and Joseph Omana.
Photo: Flyweight contender Giemel Magramo flanked by Johnny and Liza Elorde.
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