Marvin Sonsona. FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — He’s not called “Marvelous” for nothing.
A loose-cannon in the ring, Marvin “Marvelous” Sonsona received his due after his third-round knockout of Akifumi Shimoda was included in ESPN’s top knockouts of 2014.
Dan Rafael, ESPN’s senior reporter, included the sleeper delivered by Sonsona to Shimoda during their February 22 fight when the Filipino snatched the World Boxing Organization International Featherweight championship at the Cotai Arena in Macau.
Sonsona, a southpaw, tagged Shimoda with a left uppercut that came straight out of a video game, knocking out the Japanese left-hander.
Shimoda had his knees give up—pinning his left leg behind him—as Sonsona, a former junior bantamweight world champion, celebrated with 1:17 left in the round.
Rafael describes that Shimoda’s “head snapped back and he fell to his rear end with his left leg pinned underneath him and then he fell flat on his back, out cold as his head slammed the mat.”
Referee Danrex Tapdasan, began to count but waved off the fight at the count of two as Shimoda lay unconscious for several minutes.
“Big shot catches him! That might be it,” Top Rank broadcaster Bob Sheridan exclaimed. “It’s all over! It’s all over! It’s gonna be scored a knockout. He’s not getting up at all.”
For the top punch, Rafael named the surprising left hook by heavyweight champion Vladimir Klitschko on Kubrat Pulev in the fifth round of their Nov. 15 bout at the O2 Arena.
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