IN a battle of former foes vanquished by Donnie “Ahas” Nietes, fellow Pinoy fighter Aston Palicte (25-3, 21 KOs) came up short when he lost via TKO in round 10 to Kazuto Ioka (24-1, 12 KOs) in a battle for the WBO superflyweight title.
Palicte’s camp protested the stoppage which they rued was premature. My heart goes out to this gallant young fighter, but the stoppage was not exactly controversial. I have seen worse. I counted at least 12 unanswered punches before the referee stepped in.
THE FIGHT. Early in the fight, Palicte alternated between boxing and counter-punching and the first three rounds were difficult to score.
Palicte appeared to be relaxed and using his reach advantage by landing jabs and uppercuts, but Ioka would sneak in every now and then and land good combinations.
I thought Ioka edged the middle rounds as Palicte slowed down, but in the seventh he came alive and really did a number on his Japanese opponent.
Ioka bounced back in the eighth by counter-punching and landing eye-catching shots. The ninth was close with both fighters landing a fair share of leather.
In the 10th, Ioka suddenly came alive after landing a good shot that landed flush and had Palicte reeling. Ioka followed it up with a barrage of punches that went unanswered before the ref called for the denouement of the fight.
To his point, Palicte did appear unhurt afterwards, but ultimately, the referee had to do his job after he was unable to defend against the onslaught.
What was so shocking was how Ioka suddenly came alive and attacked Palicte furiously after what appeared to be a fight fought on fairly even terms.
Palicte can hold his head up high, despite the loss. He fought valiantly against one of the elite fighters in the division.
Remember that Ioka only has two blemishes in his ledger, both by split decision. One to Amnat Ruenroeng and the other to Nietes.
At 28, Palicte has all the time in the world to regroup. I would suggest a little more head movement from him, and improvement on his defense. He still has what it takes to make one more world-title run.
VERBATIM. “May hangin pa ako. Tinamaan niya ako at bigla siyang sumugod. Good fighter si Ioka but mas magaling sa kanya si Donnie (Nietes). Payag ako mag-rematch, anywhere, anytime. Kung gusto niya sa Japan uli, ok sa akin.” Aston Palicte (www.philboxing.com)
LAST ROUND. It’s on my partner at the Zosa and Quijano Law Offices, Atty. Melanie Marie Zosa Tan, who celebrates her birthday this week. Cheers!