Photo taken from HBO Boxing’s (@HBOboxing) Twitter account
The world title fight between Filipinos Donnie Nietes and Aston Palicte for the vacant WBO super flyweight crown ended in a controversial draw on Sunday (Manila time) at The Forum in Inglewood, California.
Palicte had his moments, but Nietes clearly dominated the bout especially in the latter part.
Despite delivering a methodical performance, Nietes will have to wait before getting another crack at becoming a four-division world champion.
Only one judge saw the fight how it unfolded, scoring it 118-110 for Nietes. The other two, however, scored it, 116-112 for Palicte and 114-114. The fight was the co-main event of SuperFly 3.
It’s highly-likely that Nietes (41-1-5, 23 KOs), the longest reigning Filipino world champion, and Palicte will meet again in a rematch.
It was Nietes’ first fight in the 115-pound division. He hasn’t lost since 2004.
The much younger Palicte tried to use his height to his advantage but had futile success with Nietes able to make his way inside.
With a steely chin, Palicte managed to stay on his feet despite taking a handful of solid punches from Nietes throughout the fight.