Saw Nga Man sneaks a kick past Lone Chaw’s defences during their fight last week. Pic: Hein Latt Aung

AT the entrance of the Thuwanna Stadium prior to last Sunday’s title fight between defending freeweight champion Lone Chaw and Saw Nga Man, stood a poster of the two men glaring at each other with a what seemed like a shared burning desire to win.

And while other fights were underway in the ring the two boxers displayed very different pre-fight temperaments: Lone Chaw was busy warming up and sparring under one of the stairwells, while Saw Nga Man sat calmly waiting for the fight.

In a brief pre-fight interview with The Myanmar Times Saw Nga Man said little, declaring only that he would win.

A friend sitting alongside added more for the intense boxer: “He’s tried hard for two months to get a fight with Lone Chaw and he’s focused on winning that freeweight title.”

Lone Chaw was similarly unresponsive, although he suggested that he was the underdog going into the fight: “My decision to fight against Saw Nga Man, who has more experience and a better technique than mine, is for my beloved audience,” he said.

Once the fight got underway, the two boxers swapped their pre-fight states: Now Lone Chaw was calm, while Saw Nga Man was excited, bouncing around the ring as he limbered.

The first round was a scrappy affair as Lone Chaw attempted to get close to Saw Nga Man and deliver his usual barrage of heavy punches but Saw Nga Man was too quick and expertly evaded most of the blows. Tellingly, Saw Nga Man was also able to land a heavy kick to Lone Chaw’s calf and ended the round fractionally ahead.

In the second round Saw Nga Man extended his control over the fight, repeatedly hitting Lone Chaw with punch combinations and successfully avoiding the latter’s trademark flying knee. Saw Nga Man even managed to open up a cut underneath the champion’s right eye, swelling his nose in the process.

But Lone Chaw is not freeweight champion for nothing and fought his way back to level-pegging in the third round by finally hitting his opponent with some flying knees. However, Saw Nga Man was also effective on the counter-attack and floored Lone Chaw with a particularly incisive punch combination.

As the fight moved into the fourth round, it seemed to be heading for a draw because both men were able to withstand their opponents’ strongest assaults and displaying admirable stamina.

In the final round, the pretence of tactics was abandoned and both men attempted to finish the fight with the heaviest blows their tired bodies could muster. However, such a Hail Mary finish always seemed unlikely and the fight petered out to a draw.

After the end of the two-day tournament, which featured three main challenges and 14 other fights, climaxing with the Lone Chaw vs Saw Nga Man draw, spectators were left hungry for the next rematch between the two boxers.