Jerwin Ancajas falls short in bid to regain world title against Martinez

The Philippines remains without a boxing world champion as Jerwin Ancajas fell short in his bid to regain the IBF world super flyweight title following a unanimous decision loss in the rematch against Fernando Martinez this Sunday at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California.

Martinez was aggressive in the early going similar to what he did in the first fight while Ancajas boxed in circles throwing his jab to keep his foe at bay. Martinez threw punches with bad intentions while Ancajas kept his composure as he looked to land counterpunches.

Ancajas landed clean shots in round two that caught Martinez's attention. Martinez stuck to his aggression but missed most of his wild punches and was made to pay with counters.

The pair traded heavy leather in the center of the ring in round 4 landing shots of their own but it was Martinez that landed the best punch of the fight with a right hand on top in round 6.

War Grounds delivering once more ????#MartinezAncajas2 #FundoraOcampo pic.twitter.com/f9TnfxUJnR

— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) October 9, 2022

The rematch started to look like the first fight as Ancajas stood his ground and started to trade in round 7. Martinez looked fresh as Ancajas started to lose steam and was cut on his forehead from an accidental headbutt.

Ancajas showed signs of fatigue in round 8 but so did Martinez as the latter was unable to consistently press forward and throw punches in bunches.

Martinez went on the inside throwing punches to the head and body the following round. Ancajas fought with all his heart but was visually tired and lost the sting of his punches.

In round 11, Martinez pressed the action while Ancajas stood his ground as he looked to land a counterpunch that could turn the tide in his favor. Ancajas fought with urgency in round twelve but so did Martinez up until the final bell.

All three judges saw the bout for Martinez after twelve rounds, improving his record to 15-0 with 8 knockouts while Ancajas fell to 33-3-2 with 22 knockouts. The scorecards were 119-109, 118-110 and 118-110.

—JMB, GMA News