Tipon wins; Tacuyan, Payla fall

BANGKOK – Unfazed by the numbing setback of fellow Asian Games gold medallist Violito Payla, bantamweight Joan Tipon went to work and pounded Jordan’s Ebraheem Algharageer with a flurry of punches to score a 13-2 decision in the first AIBA Asian Boxing Olympic Qualifying tournament at the Dhurakij Punjit University here Saturday.

Tipon proved elusive from the attacking Algharageer from the opening bell, showing impressive lateral movements while flicking away shots that often landed on the face of his Jordanian rival, whom he also clobbered in the 2006 Tammer Cup in Finland.

“Maganda ang laro ni Joan, na-execute ang plano. Hindi gigil at hindi din relax,” said national team coach Pat Gaspi.

Tipon’s one-sided victory came like a whiff of fresh air for the RP-PLDT Smart boxing team, whose top bet for an Olympic berth took an early exit.

Ranged against a taller, quicker rival, Payla flinched and absorbed a severe beating from Yunusov Anvar of Tajikistan, blowing his bid for an Olympic berth for the second straight time.

The RSC (Referee-Stopped-Contest)-Outscored verdict (30-10) hardly came as a surprise for the RP PLDT Smart boxing squad as Anvar completely outclassed the Filipino bet with his reach, power and technique to march into the second round of the 51-kg division.

Later in the night, Orlando Tacuyan Jr. failed to sustain a superb second round fightback and went on to drop a 16-25 verdict to Kazakhstan’s Galib Jafarov in their featherweight clash.

Tacuyan, 19, fell, 3-6 in the first round but came back strong in the second to seize a 9-7 advantage. But the Angeles City bet failed to thwart Jafarov’s assault in the last two rounds, falling behind again at the end of the round, 11-18, before eventually losing the match.

In contrast, the 25-year-old Tipon had no problem disposing of Algharageer, whose speed and power powered him past Tajikistan’s Malaev Emomali, 30-22, in the first round Friday.

But the Jordanian’s style proved no match for the talented Tipon, who dominated the four-round encounter with his quick right-left combinations and footwork.

He came out rather slow with a 5-1 lead after two rounds, but stepped up in the third where he piled up points with head blows while eluding his rival’s onslaught with swift side-to-side movement.

Tipon next faces Pakistan’s Mukamamad Ali, who earlier smothered Sayiel Lasa of Indonesia but whom Gaspi said would pose no problem for the Talisay, Negros Occidental native.