JADE Bornea lost a bloody battle against Fernando Martinez and failed to wrest the IBF super-flyweight crown on Saturday at the Armory in Minneapolis (Sunday, Manila time).
Martinez took control late in the fight, leaving Bornea with a bloodied earlobe in the ninth round.
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Referee Charlie Fitch eventually waved off the fight at the 29-second mark of the 11th round.
Martinez, who went down on both knees with his two arms raised in triumph after the fight was finally stopped, successfully retained the 115lb title which he won by dethroning another Filipino in Jerwin Ancajas.
Martinez led in all of the judges’ scorecards when the fight was stopped on scores of 97-93, 97-93, 98-92.
The bout was still close halfway through, but the champion repeatedly scored on a number of hooks against Bornea which eventually caused the challenger to bleed badly on his right ear.
Martinez went after where it really hurts Bornea.
“I definitely saw the injury in the ear. The inflammation was like nothing I’ve ever seen before,” said Martinez in the post-fight presser.
“I hit him with a left and it popped, exploded. I even told the referee to be cautious. I think he’s really hurt. That’s whan I just kept going at the ear and trying to finish this fight.”
The Argentine champion remained unbeaten with a 16-0 record (9 KOs) as he successfully defended his title for the second time.
It was the first career loss as a pro for Bornea (18-1, 12 KOs).
“The first seven rounds were pretty even, but then I had the injury to my ear,” admitted Bornea, who is fighting out of Sanman Boxing. “It’s unfortunate, but it happens. I tried to keep fighting to the end.”
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