And the bad vibes just kept coming to Filipino boxers, with Rey ‘Boom Boom’ Bautista as the latest recipient via a World Boxing Organization (WBO) bout against Mexican Jose Ramirez.
Bautista lost to Ramirez by split decision, as he failed to bounce back after a first-round knockdown in the main event of Pinoy Pride XIX at University of Southern Philippines gym, in the southern Philippine city of Davao.
Bautista, 26, yielded his WBO International featherweight crown even when Edward Ligas surprisingly gave him a score of 114-111, since the two other judges, Salven Lagumbay and lawyer Danrex Tapdasan, gave Ramirez the victory with the same 114-111 scores.
“Ramirez was so well ahead that not even a one-point deduction slapped on him by Referee Bruce McTavish for a wayward elbow that left a bloody cut an inch from Bautista’s left ear in the 10th round could sway the outcome,” Roy Luarca, writing for the ‘Philippine Daily Inquirer’, said.
Bautista’s record dipped to 34-3 with 25 KOs while Ramirez’s improved to 25-3 with 15 KOs.
ALA Promotions President & CEO Michael Aldeguer said that Bautista should now hang up his gloves. Aldeguer’s father, Antonio, said that should Bautista insist on fighting again, it would not be under his watch.
Bautista, who also lost to another Mexican, Juan Ponce de Leon, about six years ago in a WBO bantamweight title via a first-round TKO, became one of three elite Filipino fighters who surrendered their titles in three weeks.
On April 6, two-division world titlist Brian Viloria lost his unified flyweight title by split decision to Mexican Francisco Estrada, in Macau. On April 13, the 2012 Fighter of the Year Nonito Donaire yielded his super bantam unification bout to Cuban Guillermo Rigondeaux via a unanimous decision in New York City.
The alleged boxing jinx started off last December 8, when eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao was knocked out by Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez in the sixth round in Las Vegas.