Albert Pagara (born February 18, 1994) is a Filipino
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...
. He currently competes in the
super bantamweight Super bantamweight, also known as junior featherweight, is a weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to .
There were attempts by boxing promoters in the 1920s to establish this weight class, but few sanctioning organizations or ...
division and was a
WBO and
IBF
The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...
Inter-Continental champion.
Professional boxer
Jason Pagara is his older brother.
Early life
Albert Pagara was born in
Barangay
A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...
Lib-og,
Maasin
Maasin (IPA: ɐ'ʔasɪn, officially the City of Maasin ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Maasin; war, Syudad han Maasin, fil, Lungsod ng Maasin), is a 4th class component city and capital of the province of Southern Leyte, Philippines. According to the 20 ...
,
Southern Leyte
Southern Leyte ( ceb, Habagatang Leyte; Kabalian: ''Habagatan nga Leyte''; war, Salatan nga Leyte; tl, Timog Leyte), officially the Province of Southern Leyte, is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital ...
to Reynaldo Pagara and Sabrian Herugalem.
His older brother,
Jason
Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He w ...
, is also a professional boxer.
Pagara started
amateur boxing
Amateur boxing is a variant of boxing practiced at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games, as well as many associations.
Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration, comprising three rounds of three ...
under the Maasin Sports Council.
Along with his brother, he moved to
Cagayan de Oro
Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...
to train further. There, the brothers studied at Misamis Oriental General Comprehensive High School. During his teens, he won a total of 10 gold medals in ''
Palarong Pambansa
The Palarong Pambansa (Filipino language, Filipino for "National Games") is an annual multi-sport event involving student-athletes from 17 regions of the Philippines. The event, started in 1948, is organized and governed by the Department of Ed ...
''.
Professional boxing career
Pagara made his professional debut on August 18, 2011, at the age of 17, defeating fellow debutant Sandy Cajil via
TKO in the second round at
Cebu IT Park
The Cebu IT Park (formerly known as ''Asiatown IT Park'') is a business park in Cebu City, Philippines. The park is envisioned to attract locators in the information technology industry. It is developed by Cebu Property Ventures and Development ...
,
Cebu City
Cebu City, officially the City of Cebu ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Sugbo; fil, Lungsod ng Cebu; hil, Dakbanwa sang Sugbo), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Central Visayas Regions of the P ...
, Philippines.
On October 8, 2011, he defeated Shabani Madilu of Tanzania via
unanimous decision
A unanimous decision (UD) is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and other sports involving striking and submission in which all three judges agree on which fighter ...
in Pinoy Pride IX held in
Bacolod
Bacolod, officially the City of Bacolod (; hil, Dakbanwa/Syudad sang Bacolod; fil, Lungsod ng Bacolod), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Western Visayas, Philippines. It is the capital of the province of Negros Occidenta ...
, Philippines.
On March 24, 2012, during the Pinoy Pride XIII held in Cebu City, Pagara
knocked out
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...
Thai visitor Phupha Por Nobnom in the second round.
During the Pinoy Pride 24 on March 1, 2014, Pagara knocked out former
WBO Asia-Pacific
Asia-Pacific (APAC) is the part of the world near the western Pacific Ocean. The Asia-Pacific region varies in area depending on context, but it generally includes East Asia, Russian Far East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and Pacific Isla ...
champion Isack Junior of Indonesia in the very first round at
Solaire Resort & Casino
Solaire Resort & Casino (formerly known as Solaire Manila) is a resort and casino in Entertainment City, a massive complex built along the Bay City area of Parañaque, in Metro Manila, Philippines.
Overview
Solaire Resort & Casino was the first d ...
,
Parañaque
Parañaque, officially the City of Parañaque ( fil, Lungsod ng Parañaque, ), is a first class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to t ...
. On April 11, 2014, he stopped Indonesian fighter Skak Max via TKO in the third round held in his hometown of Maasin.
Pagara wasted no time by gaining his first-ever title, the
IBF
The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...
International
Super Bantamweight Super bantamweight, also known as junior featherweight, is a weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to .
There were attempts by boxing promoters in the 1920s to establish this weight class, but few sanctioning organizations or ...
belt against Hugo Partida. He demolished the Mexican via TKO in the first round at the
Waterfront Hotel & Casino
Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino is a four star hotel located in Cebu City, Philippines. The hotel has 561 guestrooms. Hotel function rooms include the Pacific Grand Ballroom, with over 2,000 m2 floor area, ten function rooms, and two pool g ...
in Cebu City on June 21, 2014.
In his first international fight held at
Dubai World Trade Centre
The Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) ( ar, مركز دبي التجاري العالمي), historically called Sheikh Rashid Tower, is a 38-storey and a height 184 m skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which was erected in 1979. It is a purp ...
, in
Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
, United Arab Emirates on August 7, 2015, Pagara knocked down his Mexican opponent, Jesús Ríos on the very first round, defending his IBF Inter-Continental Super Bantamweight title. The 21-year-old boxer caught Ríos with a strong straight right punch behind the ear that immediately knelt him on the floor. After his foe regained his consciousness, Pagara delivered numerous shots on Ríos' head and made referee
Bruce McTavish
Bruce McTavish (born ) is a New Zealand-born Filipino boxing referee and philanthropist residing in the Philippines. He has been named World Boxing Council Referee of the Year in 2013, 2015, and 2017.
A long time resident in the Philippines si ...
stop the fight with more than a minute left on the first round while Ríos was literally still holding the ropes.
On July 10, 2016, Pagara sustained the first ever loss in his professional boxing career after his challenger Cesar Juárez of Mexico stopped him (knockout) in the 8th round, leading to Juárez's victory in the main event of Pinoy Pride 37 in
San Mateo, California
San Mateo ( ; ) is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula. About 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco, the city borders Burlingame to the north, Hillsborough to the west, San Francisco Bay and Foster C ...
. After the fight, Pagara, with a neck brace attached was taken out of a stretcher and rushed to the
Stanford Hospital
Stanford University Medical Center is a medical complex which includes Stanford Health Care and Stanford Children's Health. It is consistently ranked as one of the best hospitals in the United States and serves as a teaching hospital for the ...
in nearby
Palo Alto
Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto.
The city was estab ...
. He was later cleared by the doctors after undergoing several tests.
Controversies
On September 1, 2021, Pagara was arrested in Cebu City for allegedly molesting and raping a 14-year-old girl. According to relatives of the alleged victim, the incident happened around 4:00 p.m. that same day in Pagara's house. Pagara did not resist arrest but denied the accusations. The following night, Pagara reportedly attempted suicide by self-strangulation in his jail cell but was saved by his fellow detainees. However, police denied that any suicide attempt occurred. He was released after posting ₱100,000 bail on September 8.
Professional boxing record
Exhibition boxing record
See also
*
List of Filipino boxing world champions
The history of boxing in the Philippines is the history of boxing and the evolution and progress of the sport in the Philippines. In the Philippines, boxing is one of its most popular sports, together with basketball, due to the many accolades i ...
*
List of IBF world champions
This is a list of IBF world champions, showing every world champion certificated by the International Boxing Federation (IBF). The IBF is one of the four major governing bodies in professional boxing, and has certified world champions in 17 diffe ...
*
List of super-bantamweight boxing champions
This is a list of world super-bantamweight boxing champions, as recognized by the four major sanctioning organizations in boxing:
* The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Boxing Association (NBA). The WBA often rec ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pagara, Albert
1994 births
Living people
Lightweight boxers
People from Southern Leyte
Sportspeople from Cebu City
Boxers from Cebu
Filipino male boxers