OVERSEAS TRAINING STINT FOR NIETES AND SABILLO

World champs Donnie Nietes and Merlito Sabillo joined their ALA gym stablemates Milan Melindo and Genesis Servania in California for training and sparring sessions. ALA chief trainer Edito Villamor informed this writer that they will also undergo a two month regimen in San Diego and the world titlists also plan to go to Tijuana, Mexico for sparring.

Villamor also informed that he will be going back to the Philippines with Servania and Melindo this Sunday. Servania will be having his final stages of preparation for his stint as the headliner for the "Pinoy Pride" event this March. One of Servania's sparring sessions was with WBA world superbantamweight champ Scott Quigg of the U.K. Melindo also had an interesting learning experience sparring against the likes of former champ Brian Viloria and China's two-time Olympic gold medalist Zou Shiming. Their workouts in California took them to the Wild Card Gym and the House of Boxing Training Center. Nietes (32-1-4, 18KO's), the WBO light flyweight champion, is penned for a rematch against Mexico's Moises Fuentes. They fought to a majority draw in Cebu last March. Nietes last defense was a TKO win over Mexican Sammy Gutierez at the Araneta Coliseum last November. Sabillo (23-0-1, 12KO's) retained his WBO minimumweight title with a split draw at the same Araneta Coliseum card against Carlos Buitrago of Nicaragua.