By Jake Donovan

Donnie Nietes is already in the history books as the longest reigning active titlist in Philippines' boxing history. That run—which began with his first time win in Sept. '07—was never in jeopardy at any point during his landslide decision win over Francisco Rodriguez in their junior flyweight title fight Saturday evening in Cebu, Philippines.

The bout was proof of styles making fights, as Nietes' sharper punching was perfectly complemented (and perhaps enabled) by Rodriguez' come-forward, never-say-quit style. 

The biggest question mark heading in was how Rodriguez would hold up over the long haul after struggling mightily to make weight. The former unified strawweight titlist had to strip down to his birthday suit—fitting since Friday was his 22nd birthday—in order to hit the 108 lb. mark, and appeared sluggish through the first few rounds of Saturday's main event.

Of course, Nietes had a lot to do with the latter part. The defending junior flyweight titlist picked apart the visiting challenger from Mexico, scoring left hooks to the body, along with right hands and uppercuts upstairs, at times landing virtually at will. There was never any quit in Rodriguez, but also few if any answers for his opponent's precision punching as he fell into a deep hole.

Adding to his woes, Rodriguez had to contend with a left eye that was rapidly swelling shut as well as a stern warning from referee Russell Mora for an assortment of fouls. Point deductions never came of it, although Nietes was also warned for hitting on the break and pushing down on the back of Rodriguez' neck. 

What was well on its way to becoming a rout suddenly became survival of the fittest down the stretch. 

Nietes showed signs of fatigue late in the fight, the effects of constant lateral movement and keeping pace with Rodriguez' aggression. If anything, it meant Rodriguez closing the gap only between the two fighters but seemingly also on the scorecards.

Two of the three judges apparently weren't impressed, as subpar judges Robert Hecko and Lisa Giampa turned in laughable cards in the end. The will and determination of both fighters, however, was no laughing matter. Nietes battled fatigue as well as a cut over his right eye, while Rodriguez—whose corner did a masterful job in containing the swelling in his left eye—fought through a bloodied nose for all of the 12th and final round.

Both fighters were hoisted in triumph by fight's end, but Nietes was rightfully hailed the winner. Scores of 119-109 and 118-110 from Robert Hecko and Lisa Giampa were blatantly disrespectful to the action that took place, with a third card of 115-113 much closer to reality. 

Nietes improves to 36-1-4 (21KOs) with the win in what continues to be a memorable run for the 33-year old, whose reigns between strawweight and junior flyweight have now covered nearly eight full years with at least one title around his waist.

Rodriguez Jr. suffers his first loss in nearly two years, falling to 17-3-1 (12KO). His last defeat came at the lethal hands of Roman Gonzalez in a Sept. '13 non-title fight, going unbeaten in his next six starts.

Included among the run was a pair of strawweight title wins, including his prevailing in 2014's Fight of the Year, a 12-round decision over Katsunari Takayama last August. The unforgettable slugfest came on the heels of his 10th round stoppage of previously unbeaten Merlito Sabillo last March in claiming his first major title.

The win over Takayama was his last at strawweight, with three subsequent bouts underlying his having fully grown out of the division. 

Rodriguez was a fleshy 113 lbs. in being held to a stunning 10-round draw versus Filipino journeyman Jomar Fajardo last November. He went on to score a win in their rematch this past January before coming up short versus the excellent Nietes on Saturday. 

The bout was streamed live on ABS-CBN website , due to air Sunday morning (local time) on Channel 2 in Philippines and Saturday evening on beIn Sport Espanol in the United States (12AM ET/9PM PT) .

UNDERCARD


The bout was a stern test for Magsayo, an undefeated featherweight prospect on the rise. Reyes (16-5, 12KOs) came to fight, putting the Filipino's chin and punch resistance to the test for as long as the action lasted. 

Magsayo was credited for a knockdown in round three, although the sequence was initiated by a left hook that strayed well south of the border. Reyes turned and winced in pain, at which point referee Silvestre Abainza appeared to move in stop the action. There was enough hesitation from the third man to prompt Magsayo to land two more punches to put Reyes down on the canvas.

The only discipline offered by Abainza was to warn Magsayo for hitting Reyes while on the canvas. Rather than grant the visiting challenger time to recover from the foul, he instead ruled the sequence a knockdown in issuing a mandatory eight count. Reyes beat the count, only to get clipped by a headbutt seconds later. 

As the bout finally moved towards clean exchanges, Magsayo eventually took over before closing the show. A right hand from long range momentarily froze Reyes in his tracks, as the local favorite briefly played to the crowd. 

Rather than going in for the kill, Magsayo took a step back, daring Reyes to counter. Once drawing the opening he desired, the hot prospect landed a left uppercut to put his foe down and out. 

The official time was 2:29 of round five. 

Magsayo improves to 11-0 (9KOs), picking up his fifth straight knockout. Reyes—a stablemate of Rodriguez Jr.—falls to 16-5 (12KOs), having now dropped four of his past six starts. 

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox