Mayol-Calderon ends in split draw

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino Rodel Mayol again failed in his bid to become a world champion when he settled for a split draw against undefeated Puerto Rican Ivan Calderon who went on to keep his WBO light-flyweight crown at the Madison Square Garden Saturday evening (yesterday noon in Manila).

An accidental headbutt in the fourth round opened a nasty cut on Calderon’s forehead, and the referee had to stop the fight at the 1:50 mark of the sixth round. The fight scheduled for 12 rounds went to the scorecards.

Tony Paolillo had it for Calderon, 58-56, Tom Schreck for Mayol, 58-56, and Steve Weisfeld even at 57.

“I was coming in and he would go down low and that’s when I got hit in the head,” Calderon said in an ESPN.com report. “I got cut and I got head-butted again. The blood started to come and the referee (Benji Esteves) told me he might have to stop the fight. I said, ‘That’s your decision.’ But I thought the fight was going the way I wanted it to go.”

Calderon is undefeated in 32 fights while Mayol dropped to 25-3-1 with 19 knockouts.

Mayol had previously lost in his bid to win the WBC minimumweight title against Eagle Kyowa in 2006 and the IBF light-flyweight crown when he took a crushing knockout loss to Ulises Solis in August last year. Solis lost the crown to Fil-American Bryan Viloria last April at the Araneta Coliseum.

A second clash of heads left both fighters in pain, and the ring physician had to step in. But the fight was allowed to continue until another headbutt came in the sixth round, and the fight had to be stopped.

“I’m very disappointed. I thought I won the fight. As soon as he heals up, I hope they let me fight him again,” Mayol told ESPN.com.– Abac Cordero