It’s rare to see a foreign fighter receive a standing ovation in foreign territory.
Filipino super bantamweight Richard Pumicpic suffered a 10-round, unanimous decision loss to Mexico’s Cesar Juarez, Saturday morning at the Auditorio Municipal in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
Initially scheduled to be a title fight for Juarez’s WBO Intercontinental belt, the fight was changed to a non-title bout. Even with the circumstance, it did not affect the mindset of the two warriors as they turned up the aggression once the opening bell rang.
The two didn’t hesitate to exchange heavy blows early in the first round with Juarez tagging Pumicpic with a left hook. The Filipino boxer returned the favor with multiple blows to the body in the clinch
Following the round break, Juarez and Pumicpic went at it again; this time, it was the Mexican who smothered Pumicpic to the ropes. The third round turned to be more of a clinch game for both pugilists.
By the fourth round, Juarez started to find his range and was able to land more accurate punches over the Filipino fighter. Despite the damage, Pumicpic continued to fight on close quarters, landing a series of uppercuts.
Midway into the sixth, a missed hook from Pumicpic resulted for the two men to class heads but the fight still went on. In one of the succeeding exchanges, Pumicpic landed a counter right that landed straight to Juarez’s face, instantly rocking him before getting his bearings. He fired back with body shots that sent Pumicpic to the corner. With less than a minute to end the round, Pumicpic slipped while throwing a haymaker and the referee deemed it as a knockdown.
In the remaining rounds, Juarez and Pimicpic continued their wild exchanges much to the delight of the crowd. When the result was announced, all three judges saw it in favor of Juarez, 95-93, 96-93 and 98-91.
Despite the loss, Pumicpic received an ovation from the crowd following his brave stand.
“Di namin nakuha ang panalo. Pero okay naman pinakita ni Richard. Pagkasabi na nanalo si Juarez, nag-boo mga tao,” Pumicpic’s manager Anson Tiu Co shared to Tiebreaker Times.
The victory improve Juarez’ record to 19-5, winning his last two fights over Filipino opponents. On the other hand, the 26-year old Pumicpic suffered his eight defeat in twenty eight bouts.
