Tugstsogt Nyambayar is fortunate he didn’t lose for the third time in his last four fights.
The featherweight contender was a heavy favorite to beat late replacement Sakaria Lukas but had to settle for a split-decision draw in 10-round bout on the Gary Russell Jr.-Mark Magsayo card Saturday in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
And had an apparent knockdown of Nyambayar in Round 8 been scored as such, the Namibian would’ve won the fight.
Nyambayar (12-2-1, 9 KOs) lost wide decisions to Russell, a 126-pound titleholder, and Chris Colbert in 2020 and last July. The 2012 Olympic silver medalist from Mongolia hoped on Saturday to get another victory under his belt and take a step toward another shot at a title.
Sakaria, who took the fight on short notice, had other ideas. He dictated the pace much of the fight, using his jab, straight rights and a high work rate to push Nyambayar to his limits.
Nyambayar probably landed the bigger shots, which undoubtedly got the attention of the judges. However, he wasn’t as busy as his opponent.
Sakaria seemed to put Nyambayar down with a left jab early in Round 8, which would’ve given him a 10-8 round. However, referee Eddie Claudio ruled it a slip. All three judges scored the round 10-9 for Sakaria.
The final scores were 96-94 for Lukas, 96-94 for Nyambayar and 95-95. Boxing Junkie also scored it 95-95.