Fight would've been different if Russell wasn't injured in Magsayo bout, says analyst

Veteran boxing analyst Atty. Ed Tolentino believes that the world championship showdown between Mark Magsayo and Gary Russell Jr. would have been more competitive if the latter did not suffer an injury.

Magsayo, 26, dethroned Russell by way of majority decision to snatch the WBC world featherweight title this past weekend. Russell, however, came into the contest with an injured right shoulder and barely threw his right hand.

Despite that, Russell was not too far behind Magsayo on the judges' scorecards.

“Russell was able to reveal the flaws of Magsayo even with one hand. He was able to land his left, imagine if there was a right hand to properly set that up. The scorecards were close,” Tolentino said.

“If it was a two-fisted Russell, it would be a completely different fight. Can Magsayo win? Yes, he can, but it would be a much better fight unlike this which was anti-climactic.”

Russell had hurt his shoulder in round 4 wherein he was able to throw his jab just twice, the following round he threw one, and zero jabs were thrown from round six onwards.

While a win is a win, it also became apparent that Magsayo has so much to work on, according to Tolentino.

“The first nine rounds were close because Magsayo can't land and was getting hit coming in. He was getting caught because he charges on a straight line,” Tolentino noted.

“The flaws were there. We are happy that Magsayo is now a champion but there are still flaws that need to be addressed.”

—JMB, GMA News