MASAM SPORTS 63: ANOTHER FILIPINO CHAMPION FALLS, RENE MARK CUARTO LOSES IBF MINIMUMWEIGHT TITLE TO DANIEL VALLADARES
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 03 Jul 2022
Rene Mark Cuarto lost to Daniel Valladares who survived two cuts to win via split decision grabbing the IBF strawweight title belt in Monterrey, Mexico.
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One judge scored the bout 114-113 in favor of the 26-year-old Cuarto, the Filipino champ from Jose Dalman, Zamboanga del Norte, while the other judges two had it 116-111 and 115-112 for the hometown Mexican hero Valladares (26-3-1, 15 KOs), who was successful in his second attempt at the world title.
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The 28-year-old Valladares took advantage of his superior reach and displayed good boxing talent to defend and counter attack the hard punching Cuarto (20-3-2, 11 KOs). The defending titlist used his heavy right hands and let Valladares suffered a deep cut in the 4th round. The ringside physician made several inspections on the cut above Valladares’ left eye.
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Referee Wes Milton missed a clean knockdown scored by Cuarto in the eighth round 8 as he hit Valladares with a right. A controversial point deduction for loose glove tape was imposed in the tenth round 10.
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MP Promotions President Sean Gibbons said their camp will demand a rematch, due to the missed knockdown call and the loose glove tape point deduction.
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“We feel we absolutely won the fight. The referee had an off night. He’s usually a good referee but he made some bad calls,” said Gibbons as quoted by Ringtv.
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“For the people who were not in the building, it was 110 degrees inside the building. The tape comes loose, how is that our fault when the conditions are so wacky?”
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It was Cuarto’s second defense of the title he won in February 2021 over Pedro Taduran via a unanimous decision, and successfully defended it February this year with a technical decision in a rematch.
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Valladares has now won four straight, having lost back to back decisions to unheralded fighters following the Taduran fight. Cuarto dethroned countryman Pedro Taduran via a close 12-round unanimous decision in General Santos City.
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Taduran lost to Cuarto in the second defense of the title he won in 2019 against Samuel Salva. His first defense against the same Daniel Valladares of Mexico ended with a technical draw as the challenger suffered a bad cut in the fight.
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Fighting before his cheering countrymen, Valladares was the slight favorite to win the fight. Betting odds put Valladares, who at 5-foot-3 is an inch taller than Cuarto, at -165, while the Filipino champion was at +130.
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Only one Filipino world boxing champion is left standing, WBC world featherweight champion Mark “Magnifico” Magsayo who will face former WBC super bantamweight champion Rey Vargas on July 9 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
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All-NBA center Rudy Gobert was traded by the Utah Jazz to the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
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Timberwolves receive:
• Rudy Gobert
Jazz receive:
• Malik Beasley
• Patrick Beverley
• Leandro Bolmaro
• Walker Kessler
• Jarred Vanderbilt
• 2023 first-round pick
• 2025 first-round pick
• 2026 pick swap
• 2027 first-round pick
• 2029 first-round pick (protected)
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Minnesota has now in its line-up one of the best defenders in the NBA. Gobert is a three-time Kia Defensive Player of the Year and has been a member of the First Team All-Defensive selection for six straight seasons. He joined the All-Star Game in three consecutive seasons with 15 points and 13.9 rebounds averages.
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Gobert now officially ended his pairing with guard Donovan Mitchell in Utah, a partnership that seemed good at times, and bad at other times. ESPN’s Wojnarowksi reported that Utah Jazz will now retool its roster and build around Mitchell.
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Utah was one of the favorites to win the NBA title. Like the Lakers and Nets, they turned up as disappointments. The Jazz retained many key players from the 2020-21 season, when they had the NBA’s best regular-season record. But they lost to the Dallas Mavericks in six games for their second first-round exit in three seasons.
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Meanwhile, Gobert is now a part of a new duo called the Twin Towers in the Twin Cities. He will start together with big man star Karl-Anthony Towns, teaming in what arguably will be the best 1-2 big-man combination in the NBA.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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