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Philippines, 04 Jul 2008 |
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A Warrior’s Last Hurrah PhilBoxing.com 17 Mar 2007  Gerry Peņalosa’s skills set him apart from most Filipino pugilists. He is not a Pier 6 devil-may-care brawler but a smooth southpaw stylist gifted with hand speed and he could bob and weave and slip punches with the greatest of ease. This rare talent carried him to the top of the 115 lb. division in 1997, winning the WBC superflyweight championship from Hiroshi Kawashima in a thrilling split decision win in Tokyo, Japan. Ten years later and seven pounds heavier, Gerry is back once again on center stage this time at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. His opponent, the defending champ Daniel Ponce de Leon is eight years younger and turned pro a few months before Peņalosa lost in his bid to reclaim the WBC 115 lb. title from Masamori Tokuyama. Ponce De Leon has a record of 30 wins (28 ko's) and 1 loss. He gained some measure of notoriety with his one-punch, 52 second KO of Thai challenger Sood Looknongyangtoy. This was the second of three successful defenses of his WBO superbantamweight title. Another familiar name in De Leon’s resume is Emmanuel Lucero, the same guy flattened by Manny Pacquiao in 2003. Lucero lost to De Leon also by 3rd round KO in 2004. He has shown he can hit. But can he hit Gerry? Peņalosa, whose record now is 51W (34 ko's) L5 D2, will certainly call upon his vast ring experience. Since his comeback, he has shown that he still has what it takes to make crude brawlers like Dario Azuaga and Mauricio Martinez look amateurish. He has labeled De Leon as “ordinary”. But is he really? Gerry will have to use his vast defensive knowledge to avoid being tagged and caught against the ropes early in the fight. Ponce De Leon is not in the mold of Tokuyama or InJoo Cho, tall, lanky and would rather jab and run than mix it up. This type of style gave Peņalosa trouble. When a boxer stands in front of him or goes forward that is when Gerry is at his best. The defending champ will obviously be the “bigger” man because he has stayed in this weight division longer than Peņalosa. He will try to overpower the challenger, as Tomas Rojas almost did last year. The clock is ticking and when the bell tolls, will the old warrior give us one more reason to cheer? Win or lose, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Gerry Peņalosa for the memories of the battles he fought. Good luck and the prayers and hopes of a nation will be with him once he wages his final battle. Click here for a complete listing of columns by this author. Click here for a complete listing of this author's articles from different news sources. |
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