Unknown to many, a Filipino-American trainer was the chief architect behind the masterful win by Thai Somsak Sithchatchawal over Mahyar Monshipour for the WBA superbantam crown last March 18 in France.
Fil-Am Bobby Villaver, who lives in Hawaii but has been based in Thailand for the last four months training Somsak, has been credited for turning Somsak into a certified wrecking crew when he knocked down Monshipour en route to an incredible tenth-round stoppage at the Sport Hall Marcel Cerdan de Lavallois in Paris.
Fil-Am Bobby Villaver strikes a pose with his protege Somsak in Chiang Mai, Thailand one month before leaving for France to take on WBA king Mahyar Monshipour.
Prior to their departure for France, Villaver and Somsak were holed up in an extremely spartan training somewhere in Chiang Mai, which accounted for Somsak's terrific shape going into the fight.
"This was what Bobby had planned along. He wanted no distractions for Somsak months before the fight," revealed WBO Asia-Pacific chairman Leon Panoncillo, who convinced Villaver to fly from Hawaii to Bangkok to take charge of Somsak's training chores.
When interviewed in Thailand one month before the bout, Villaver had told this writer that his ward was in terrific shape and would most likely dethrone the champ in stunning fashion.
Somsak was a long-time PABA champion who worked his way into becoming Monshipour's challenger. With the win, he upped his record to 46-1-1, 37 KO's. Monshipour, who had been undefeated in eight years, announced his retirement after his loss to Somsak.
Villaver, who traces his roots in Carcar, Cebu, had also trained former WBO bantamweight king Ratanachai Sor Vorapin.
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