Vietnamese boxer defends WBA Asia belt against Korean

Truong Dinh Hoang celebrates his victory against South Korea’s Dae Hyun-baek in HCMC, March 25, 2023. Photo by VnExpress/Quang Liem

Hoang, 32, entered the game confidently and overwhelmed Dae, who is eight years younger. Throughout 12 rounds on Saturday night, Hoang often had quick and powerful hooks to Dae’s face. He also showed experience in adjusting the pace and tempo to counter the opponent. From the seventh round to the end, he dominated with precise hits. He is also an expert when it comes to distributing physical strength and choosing the right time to strike, which stunned Dae many times.

Meanwhile, in his first boxing match abroad, Dae lacked awareness in defending despite having great tolerance in taking punches. The 24-year-old boxer’s effort to knock out Hoang in the last round when he had nothing left to lose was not enough and he was defeated.

“Going up against the young and energetic boxer, the coaching staff and I studied him very carefully in order to have a reasonable strength distribution and reduce the excitement of the opponent,” Hoang said after the match. “The home fans also gave me more energy to win.”

Truong Dinh Hoang (L) throws a left hook at Dae Hyun-baek in the WBA Asia super middleweight title match on March 25, 2023. Photo by VnExpress/Quang Liem

In another match, boxer Nguyen Ngoc Hai competed in the WBA South Asia super-lightweight title match against Thai boxer Campee Phayom.

In the first round, the two boxers had a careful approach as they launched consecutive attacks at each other, but neither fighter hit well.

The turning point came in the second round when Phayom suddenly lost focus. Hai immediately took the opportunity to land multiple punches on his opponent and knocked him to the floor twice. Phayom tried to continue but the referee stopped the match and Hai won by a technical knockout. With this victory, Hai won the first title in his professional career.

“I want to thank everyone who came to support me in this victory,” Hai said. “I’m very proud after trying my best to bring the WBA South Asia belt to Vietnam.”

Nguyen Ngoc Hai is declared the winner of WBA South Asia super-lightweight title match on March 25, 2023. Photo by VnExpress/Quang Liem

Another Vietnamese boxer who competed in title matches on Saturday, Le Huu Toan lost when he failed to defend his Asia minimum weight belt against Filipino boxer Garen Diagan. The result was tight, as Diagan only edged Toan out by one point from the referees after 12 rounds.

All three title matches were part of “Lead: Born To Lead,” an event hosted by Shadow Entertainment and the HCMC Boxing Federation, at the Saigon Sports Club in District 7.