It could’ve been a draw

TOKYO — If Rodel Mayol only won the last round, he would’ve salvaged a draw with World Boxing Council (WBC) minimumweight champion Eagle Kyowa in their bloody 12-round brawl at the Korakuen Hall last Saturday night.

Before the bell rang for the final round, Kyowa led in two of the three judges’ scorecards—Gale Van Hoy, 107-102 and Chuck Hassett, 105-104. Mayol was ahead in Alejandro Rochin’s tally, 105-104. If Mayol took the 12th round with a 10-9 score, the decision would’ve been a split draw. It was that close.

But as things turned out, Kyowa floored Mayol and sealed the verdict with a late flurry. The three judges awarded Kyowa a 10-8 round to close out the scoring. Van Hoy’s scorecard of 117-110 raised not a few eyebrows because the bout was clearly not as lopsided as he saw it. He scored the last eight rounds for Kyowa. Rochin had it 114-113 and Hassett, 115-112.

Both fighters were bloodied and bruised in the end. Kyowa’s right eye was alm ost closed and he had a cut over the left eye. There was a huge welt on Mayol’s right cheek and a deep gash under his right eye.

Shortly after the fight, Mayol was brought to the Korakuen clinic where a nurse Rosuko Baba dressed his wound. Games and Amusements Board chairman Eric Buhain and trainer Juanito Ablaca accompanied Mayol to the clinic. Buhain consoled Mayol and stayed with him in the clinic, trying to ease the pain of the loss, as Baba attended to the fighter.

Later that night, Kyowa and Mayol were confined at the Japan University Hospital. Team Asia’s Joey Fornier told The Star the combatants were brought to the hospital for observation after vomiting in their dressing rooms.

Fornier said Mayol was on dextrose but doctors cleared him of any serious injury. A CT-Scan revealed no damage to his brain. Doctors were closely monitoring Kyowa’s condition at presstime.

Kyowa was paid a $47,000 purse for the fight while Mayol took home $20,000.

Meanwhile, Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation bantamweight champion Malcolm Tunacao’s 11th round stoppage of challenger Yasuo Kijima in the undercard was described "a class act" by Cebu sportsman Rex Wakee Salud who watched at ringside. Tunacao’s footwork and spin moves reminded Salud of Muhammad Ali in his prime.