Cuarto Keeps IBF Minimumweight Crown Via Technical Majority Decision Over Taduran
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 07 Feb 2022
In almost a replay of their first meeting last year, Rene Mark Cuarto retained the IBF world minimumweight championship but this time via technical majority decision over former titlist Pedro Taduran in the seventh round of a scheduled 12 round title bout that had to be stopped on account of the worsened cut above the eye suffered by Taduran.
The Ring physician who had earlier been summoned by Referee Danrex Tapdasan to look into the injury in the previous round this time recommended that the fight be immediately stopped and go for the judges scorecards to determine the winner.
Cuarto won on two scorecards by an aggregate of three points while the third judge had the fight even at that stage hence Cuarto was adjudged winner and still champion by technical majority decision.
Taduran was frustrated by the outcome as he had returned to Mindanao in a determined bid to reverse his title losing points loss to Cuarto in Gensan last year and regain the IBF world crown.
But he has himself partly to blame as his aggressiveness made him reckless in two instances where Cuarto was credited with two knockdowns and also was a factor in a number of accidental clashes of heads that caused the cuts, first on his forehead and later above his eye which became target of Cuarto counterpunching.
Cuarto was docked two points by Tapdasan for alleged headbutt thereby negating the two knockdowns he had scored and reverting the contest as anybody's game by the end of the fourth round.
However, instead of trying to protect his cuts and give Cuarto a different look in his attacks, Taduran predictably continued to wade in while throwing caution to the wind in seeming wild bulrushes.
Having seen that in their first fight, Cuarto kept his composure and countered brilliantly with his signature left hooks, including some impressive looking check hooks. Cuarto likewise showed willingness to trade with Taduran, even winning in some exchanges.
Quite possibly, those close quarter fighting that also saw some accidental head clashes caused the worsening of Taduran's eye area cut prompting Tapdasan to call in the ring physician again in the seventh round.
The Ring doctor determined Taduran was no longer fit to continue under the circumstance but in fairness to him rightly recommended Tapdasan to resort to the judges scorecards to determine the winner.
The fight held at the Digos City Gym was streamed live by Pow Salud in his Powcast Sports website with the authorisation of the Manny Pacquiao Promotion and it was seen in the Philippines and other parts of the world including Mexico where fans are reportedly keen on the fight as the winner is reportedly will be challenged next by Mexican top rated contender Daniel Valladares.
Ironically, it was the same Valladares that Taduran last successfully defended the IBF crown in 2019 in Mexico before he lost it to Cuarto in 2020. The result of that fight was 2nd round technical draw after the Mexican could not continue after suffering a deep eye cut in a head clash.
Anybody for Cuarto-Taduran 3?
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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