MANILA – Filipino boxer Jeo Santisima tried his best to keep in step with the heavily-favored WBO world super bantamweight champion Emanuel Navarrete of Mexico in 11 rounds.
The Mandaue City, Cebu-native Santisima was not on par when it comes to power against the Mexican but still managed to exceed expectations at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night (Sunday in Manila).
Santisima, who was tipped to not last before round number six, survived the volume of punches thrown at him, but he responded with minimal hits – not enough to hurt Navarrete.
A highlight was recorded by Santisima midway in the match after he sent the Mexican to the ropes with a vicious hit. Navarrete, however, easily got out of the Filipino’s attack and continued his dominance.
The 11th round was when Navarrete went out of the kill after he successfully cornered Santisima while unloading consecutive punches. It forced the Filipino fighter’s corner to throw the towel.
With the outstanding victory, Navarrete improved to 31-1-0 win-loss-draw record (27 KO’s), while Santisima, on the other hand, saw his slate drop to 19-3-0(16 KO’s).
