Mark Anthony Barriga fell short in his first world title fight after absorbing a narrow loss to American Carlos Licona in their minimumweight bout Sunday (Manila time) at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, USA.
Barriga, the London Olympian, failed to win the vacant IBF belt in the 105-pound class as Licona earned a split decision victory.
The 23-year-old Licona extended his unbeaten start to 14 wins with two knockouts and dealt Barriga his first professional defeat after going 9-0.
Licona, who was born in Mexico and grew up in California, earned a 115-113 score from two judges while the other had it, 115-113, for Barriga.
Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.