Gutsy Pagara keeps WBO title Servania easily destroys Indon foe; Jaca survives last-second knockdown

CEBU, Philippines - ALA Boxing Gym stalwart Jason ‘El Niño’ Pagara (31-2, 19KOs) hammered out a unanimous decision victory over his Mexican challenger Aaron ‘La Joya’ Herrera (25-2, 17KOs) to retain his WBO International light welterweight title in the main event of "Pinoy Pride XX:Laban Kung Laban" fightcard last Saturday night at the Pacific grand ballroom of Waterfront-Cebu City Hotel and Casino.

Wanting to prove that he is one of the upcoming stars of Philippine boxing, Pagara started the fight full of aggression, pounding his Mexican foe with solid combinations to the head.

Pagara connected a powerful left hook followed by a right uppercut that sent Herrera reeling against the ropes in the second round. International referee Bruce MacTavish ruled it a knockdown as Herrera's gloves touched the canvass.

Herrera, however, showed the heart of a true Mexican warrior as he quickly recovered from that ordeal and went on to exchange heavy blows with Pagara.

Herrera's brightest moments came in rounds eight to 10 whewre he toyed with Pagara using his crisp jabs and hooks.

Pagara maintained his composure though and managed to land some significant shots to Herrera as the fight reached the final round.

After 12 rounds of action, Pagara earned the nod of the three judges with the scores of 115-112, 116-111 and 119-108.

"He (Herrera) is a tough opponent. Honestly, I did not expect him to recover from that knockdown in the second round. He is strong but I just kept my intensity until the end of the fight," said the pride of Cagayan de Oro City.

ALA Promotions CEO and President Michael Aldeguer is impressed with Pagara's performance and he is now convinced that his ward is now ready for a possible world title shot in the future.

"We now know that he can go to the next level. Jason showed in this fight what he can become," said Aldeguer. "Herrera is not an easy opponent but our risk paid off as Pagara stepped up to the challenge."

"Right now, we are looking at a possible training camp for Jason in the United States so he could train and spar with other world-class boxer in his weight (140 lbs.). We know the competition is tough in his division with this strong boxers like (Brandon) Rios and (Mike) Alvarado, but at least we know that the Jason has what it takes to go on top."

In the supporting main event, rising ALA star Genesis 'Azukal' Servania (20-0, 8KOs) kept his unbeaten record intact as well as his WBO Asia-Pacific super bantamweight crown with a methodical third round knockout of Indonesian Isack Junior (20-8, 4KOs).

Servania jumped the gun on Junior right after the opening bell, launching a series of head shots that wobbled the hapless Indon boxer. In the third round, Servania landed two crushing body punches that sent Junior down at the seat of his pants. Junior did not bother to get up, prompting referee Ben Necesario to wave off the bout at the 2:15 mark of round three.

Servania now turns his focus on bigger stage as he takes on  Japanese Konosuke Tomiyama on the undercard of the WBO/WBA flyweight showdown between Mexican champion Juan Francisco Estrada and Milan 'El Metodico' Melindo on July 27 in Macau.

Jimrex 'The Executioner' Jaca (38-6, 21KOs), on the other hand,  overcame a 12th round knockdown to beat Mexican toughie Jose Emilio 'Gigante' Perea (22-3, 14KOs) by unanimous verdict to snatch the WBO Oriental light welterweight belt. (FREEMAN)