Filipino champion Marlon Tapales swears he is facing a fine-tuned version of the guy he easily knocked out almost two years ago when he makes the first defense of the World Boxing Organization (WBO) bantamweight crown on April 23 in Osaka, Japan.
?Based on what I have seen on line, Omori?s not the same guy I beat,? Tapales told the Bulletin yesterday afternoon upon arrival in Manila from Cebu City to attend last night?s Flash Elorde Banquet of Champions at the Manila Hotel.
Tapales insists that the 5-7 Omori, taller by over three inches, has changed and is most likely the easy-to-hit target he brought down in less than two rounds in Kobe.
?Since our last meeting, he has won three straight all by knockout,? said Tapales, who was supposed to defend the WBO 118-lb title last December but Japanese challenger Takuma Inoue suffered a hand injury during training.
Tapales had won the WBO title with an electrifying, 11th-round come-from-behind win over Thailand?s Pungluang Sor Singyu in Ayutthaya in July last year.
To get ready for Omori, who is also 24 years old, Tapales spent one month in Hong Kong as chief sparmate of rising Chinese puncher Rex Tso.
In Cebu City, Tapales also gets quality time with a bevy of fighters readied by co-trainers Brix Flores and Fernando Ocon.
With a little over three weeks before they leave on April 17, Tapales has already finalized his work schedule.
?My last sparring will be on April 13,? he said.
