CEBU, Philippines – After engaging in a no-holds-barred sparring for a total of eight rounds with Marlon ‘Nightmare’ Tapales on a sweltering Tuesday afternoon at the RWS Gym, unbeaten featherweight prospect Dave ‘The Hunter’ Pe?alosa and lightweight contender Anthony ‘Zorro’ Sabalde were simply awed by the all-around skills and boxing mastery of the reigning WBO bantamweight champion.
So impressed that both the Cebuano boxers have a piece of advice for Shohei Omori, the Japanese fighter who dares to challenge Tapales again despite being flattened by the Filipino champ four times on the way to a brutal second round knockout loss during their first meeting 15 months ago.
“Tapales packs a punch. He also has speed and excellent footwork. He knows how to pace himself. He’s very focused on what he’s doing. There must be no room for mistake for Omori when they meet again in the ring,” said Pe?alosa, son of Dodie Boy and nephew of Gerry Pe?alosa who are two-division world champions during their heydays.
Just like Pe?alosa, who sports a clean 12-0 record spiked with 8KOs, three-time regional title challenger Sabalde speaks highly of Tapales, who will be honored as ‘Boxer of the Year” with fellow world champions Johnriel Casimero and Jerwin Ancajas in the 17th Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde Boxing Awards Banquet of Champions this Saturday at the Tent of Manila Hotel.
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“For me, he’s an all-around boxer. He moves fast and he hits very hard. Given his style, it’s difficult to beat a fighter of his caliber,” said Sabalde.
Pe?alosa and Sabalde will have another round of sparring session this afternoon with Tapales (29-2, 12KOs) , who is in the final three weeks of his rigid training regimen preparatory for his first WBO title defense against Omori (18-1, 13KOs) on April 23 at Edion Arena in Osaka, Japan. Freeman ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch:
During their previous encounter on December 16, 2015, Tapales made short work of Omori. After knocking down Omori thrice in the first round, Tapales came through with a powerful right hook that sent Omori down for good at 1:35 of the second round.
Tapales though expects a different Omorit this time.
?I’m sure that Omori is preparing himself very well for this fight,? Tapales earlier told Dong Secuya of Philboxing. ?So I’ll have to prepare well myself, anticipating anything new that my opponent will bring into the ring.?
The 24-year-old Tapales snared the WBO crown with an emphatic victory over two-time world champion Pungluang Sor Singyu on July 27 last year in Ayutthaya, Thailand. He bucked two knockdowns in the fifth round and battered Sor Singyu in the 11th round to pull off the win.
He’s up against Omori, who has fought three times since the Tapales loss, winning all by knockout the last one was against two-time world title challenger Rocky Fuentes of Cebu’s world-renowned ALA Gym last December 31 in Kyoto. (FREEMAN)
