Sonsona Gets Revenge, Snags Split Nod Over Vazquez

By David P. Greisman

Madison Square Garden, New York City - It wasn’t the prettiest form of revenge for Marvin Sonsona, but he got a rematch win over Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. more than four years after Vazquez knocked him out with a hook to the liver.

Sonsona took a split decision on Saturday, two judges seeing him ahead 96-92, the third edging Vazquez 96-92 in their 10-round featherweight fight.

Vazquez had dropped Sonsona for the count with a body shot back in the fourth round of their February 2010 bout. In the rematch, Sonsona put Vazquez down in the first round with the same punch, yet Vazquez rose at seven.

The fight ultimately devolved into plenty of ineffective punches and far too much holding. Sonsona was docked a point in the sixth round for spinning Vazquez and then popping him behind the head.

Sonsona, a 23-year-old from General Santos City in the Philippines, moves to 19-1-1 with 15 KOs. He briefly held a world title at 115 pounds before coming in overweight for his first title defense and having that bout end in a draw. The loss to Vazquez came next via fourth-round knockout, and Sonsona didn’t return to the ring for nearly 20 months. He’s scored four wins in a row since then, including a big one-punch uppercut knockout of former 122-pound titleholder Akifumi Shimoda this past February.

Vazquez, 29, of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, is now 23-4-1 with 19 KOs. The former 122-pound titleholder has lost four of his last seven fights, getting stopped in the final round by Jorge Arce in May 2011, dropping a decision to Nonito Donaire in February 2012, and losing a decision to Yasutaka Ishimoto in April 2013.