Gainer Slips Further Away From Past Glories.

Former world featherweight champion Derrick Gainer completed his fall from grace with a failed bid to recapture his old belt in the steamy Britama Arena in Jakarta, Indonesia. Gainer, who held the belt through three defenses from 2000 to 2003, was unable to wrest the prize from the firm grip of current belt-holder Chris John. It wasn’t for lack of trying however as the American visitor decked the host fighter in the first, but was unable to finish the job. John moves to 35-1 (19)after retaining the WBA trophy for the third time, while Florida native Gainer settles into a record of 39-7-1 (24). John dominated the challenger on the judge’s scorecards and will be in line for potential unification matches with other world titlists such as Scott Harrison, Injin Chi and Juan Manuel Marquez. However, the aforementioned fighters may be reluctant to travel to Indonesia in order to face Chris John .

Richard Eberline can be reached at richardeberline@fastmail.fm