BUZZER BEATER

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BY ADRIAN STEWART CO
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Ancajas making a name for himself

WHILE he is not as big as the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Nonito Donaire Jr. or Donnie Nietes, IBF world super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas is slowly etching his name as one of the boxing greats in the country.

On Sunday, the Panabo City, Davao del Norte fighter further cemented his case after a masterful sixth-round stoppage win over Jamie Conlan in Belfast, United Kingdom.

That was Ancajas’ third successful defense of the title he won at the expense of Puerto Rican veteran McJoe Arroyo in September 2016 at the Philippine Marine Corp. in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City.

Ancajas first staked his title against Mexican Jose Alfredo Rodriguez earlier this year in Macao, China before defending it again from Japanese Teiru Kinoshita in the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Jeff Horn match in Australia.

Against Conlan, Ancajas was clinical anew as he scored four knockdowns before forcing the referee to stop the match to prevent further damage on the hometown fighter.

Ancajas bucked the freezing Irish weather as he managed knockdowns in the first, third and fourth rounds before Conlan got his break in the fifth on a point deduction on the Filipino for an apparent low blow.

Ancajas went for the kill in the sixth round as he peppered Conlan with quick combinations to the head, prompting referee Steve Gray to call the fight off 52 seconds into the round.

“Kundisyon talaga si Jerwin kaya kahit sa lugar ng kalaban, hindi siya natatakot,” Ancajas’ trainer Joven Jimenez told Buzzer Beater. “Mabuti na lang hindi naging factor iyong sobrang ginaw dito sa Belfast.”

With the huge victory, Jimenez is hoping Ancajas can land much bigger fights in the super flyweight division against the likes of Roman Gonzales and Srisaket Sor Rungvisai.

“Tingin ko naman it’s about time. Naipakita naman na ni Jerwin ang kakayahan niya whether defending his championship dito sa Pilipinas o sa lugar ng kalaban. We are hoping to land a big fight next year,” Jimenez said.

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Still in boxing, Filipino fighter Harmonito Dela Torre failed to protect his unbeaten slate following a unanimous decision win over Tugstsogt Nyambayar on Sunday in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Despite scoring a knockdown in the second round courtesy of a straight right hand, the Filipino fighter failed to land the victory as Nyambayar regained his form down the stretch to snatch the title.

Even with the defeat, Sanman Promotions CEO Jim Claude Manangquil said he was impressed with the showing of Dela Torre against a former Olympic silver medalist.

“I’m very proud of Harmonito. He put on a great fight and I’m confident he will be back better,” Manangquil said. “It was a very close fight. Fight was more competitive than the scorecards show but Nyambayar deserve the victory.”

Dela Torre, who has been training under the Cuban Moro Fernandez in Miami, Florida since last year, accepted the first setback in his boxing career.

“Nyambayar is a good fighter. I will train harder and I will be back stronger,” said the 23-year old, who now sports a 19-1-0 win-loss-draw ring record, including 12 stoppage victories./PN
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