Still a champion
Srisaket outpoints Diaz to retain WBC superflyweight belt
Srisaket Sor Rungvisai retained his WBC super-flyweight title with a comfortable points win against Mexican challenger Iran Diaz on Saturday night.
The 31-year-old Thai was the better boxer throughout the 12-round bout and the three judges scored it in favour of the home hero: 119-109, 120-108, 119-109.
It is probably the best wedding present for his girlfriend Pornpimol Sarakaew with whom he will tie the knot in her home province of Chumphon on Nov 11.
“I have some good news — I am marrying on Nov 11 in Chumphon. You [journalists] are all welcome to my wedding party,” the champion announced after the fight.
They were engaged in July after they had met for a few months following Srisaket’s split with his longtime live-in girlfriend Patchareewan Kanha earlier this year.
In a one-sided contest at Bangkok’s Muang Thong Thani, Srisaket failed to turn his dominance into a knockout victory against a back-pedalling opponent.
It was the Thai’s third defence of the belt and first on home soil since he dethroned the previously unbeaten Roman Gonzalez with a majority decision at New York’s Madison Square Garden in March 2017.
He scored a knockout win against the Nicaraguan in a rematch last September in California and defeated Mexico’s Juan Francisco Estrada by a majority decision in February, also in California.
The 115-pound king, known in his country as Srisaket Nakornloung Promotion, had promised to finish off Diaz inside the first eight rounds but it did not look like he would be able to knock out the challenger.
“I am happy that I won. I am happy that I made all Thais happy,” Srisaket said.
But while a large number of Thai fans were happy to see him keep the crown, they were disappointed by his performance.
Banking on his heavy hands and southpaw stance, Srisaket persistently hammered the taller Diaz with hard body shots from the opening bell.
The consistent attack to the midsection paid dividends for Srisaket in the later rounds as Diaz dropped his defensive guard, prompting the Thai boxer to increase his offence that had his opponent reeling inside the ring.
In the closing stages, Srisaket unleashed a series of powerful shots, but Diaz withstood the blitz of punches from the hometown hero.
Diaz did send Srisaket to the canvas in the ninth round but the Thai got up quickly.
The referee did not make a count and Srisaket said it was a slip.
“The challenger was very strong and had prepared well for this fight,” said Srisaket, who now has a 46-4-1 (41 KOs) record.
The contest was the main bout of ONE: Kingdom of Heroes, organised by MMA organisation ONE Championship, which also featured several MMA fights.
Srisaket claimed one reason behind his failure to knock out Diaz was the ring, which was set for MMA bouts and was too big.
It was the first professional boxing bout staged by ONE Championship.
Diaz, 28, with 14 wins (6KOs) and three draws, suffered the third loss of his career.
Reports say Srisaket is likely to face a Japanese challenger in Japan on New Year’s Eve.
If he wins, he will have to have a rematch with old foe Estrada in a mandatory fight.
“I need to improve if I were to meet Estrada again,” Srisaket said.
“I have to be stronger. I have to train harder. I have to be more than 100 percent fit.”