MP Promotions head Sean Gibbons knows it’s an all-or-nothing deal for WBC No. 2 super featherweight Mark Magsayo as he can’t afford to lose his next two fights in lining himself up for a title shot. Last Saturday, Magsayo decked Ecuador trialhorse Bryan Mercado twice in the first round and twice in the second before referee Gerard White stopped the scheduled sixer at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, California.
Gibbons plans another tuneup for Magsayo, possibly on the same card as the Eduardo (Rocky) Hernandez-Rene (El Bravo) Tellez Giron bout in Oaxaca, Mexico, on Feb. 28. If Magsayo and Hernandez win their next outings, they’ll be matched against each other in a title eliminator with the survivor to challenge the WBC 130-pound champion.
“Mark’s been in the gym for six months and I didn’t want him to go without a fight ‘til the end of the year,” said Gibbons, explaining why he set up the Mercado match. “He’s got to be focused on beating Hernandez and at this point of his career, it’s all or nothing. The dream is for Mark to become a two-time WBC champion.”
Magsayo, who once wore the WBC featherweight crown, is itching to return to the throne, this time in a higher weight class. “Every single day, it’s all what Mark does is box, box, box 24/7 with coach Marvin (Somodio) and him putting in the time,” said Gibbons. “Even though Mercado wasn’t much of a fight, it definitely put Mark through the motions of making the weight, getting the body ready and now he can take a couple of weeks off for the holidays then get right back at it because he’s gonna be fighting for the world title.”
Magsayo said he took the opportunity to experiment a new point of attack against Mercado. “Masaya ako kasi nabigyan ng opportunity ni Sir Sean pagbutihin ko pa sa sunod na fight na mas malaki,” he said. “Masaya din si coach Marvin kasi na-execute ko ang gameplan at ang prinaktis namin. Gusto ko ma-try ang body shot.” It was Magsayo’s left hook to Mercado’s rib cage that produced four knockdowns.
Hernandez, 27, packs a 36-2 record, with 32 KOs. In October last year, the Mexican battled O’Shaquie Foster for the WBC super featherweight belt in Cancun and led on two of the three judges’ scorecards when he was dropped and stopped in the 12th round. Hernandez has since come back to win two in a row. Gibbons said if and when Magsayo turns back Hernandez sometime in May, he’ll be the mandatory challenger for Foster who still reigns as WBC strap-holder.