LOS ANGELES — He was very thankful but Cebu?s Bert Batawang took a step back and gave himself only an even chance of winning when told yesterday that his mandatory challenge for the IBF light flyweight championship has been officially set for Oct. 4 in Las Vegas.
?Mahirap sabihin, basta doon ko na lang ipakikita sa laban? [?It?s hard to say, I?ll just show my capability during the title fight?], the 35-year-old challenger told the Inquirer on Friday.
Last week, Batawang said he had a good chance of dethroning Ulises Solis after viewing a fight video of the champ via a YouTube feed on a borrowed laptop computer.
Batawang and trainer Jeremiah Quijano had claimed there was nothing superior or extraordinary ?in the amateur fighting style of Solis,? whose alleged shoulder injury caused a cancellation of the original Sept. 16 title fight.
Yesterday, without making a complete turnaround, Batawang humbly downplayed his chances.
Trainer Quijano also spoke cautiously, while stressing the best he could do was assure Batawang is in tiptop shape.
?Wala naman problema, todo kundisyon, pero mahirap magsalita nang tapos? [?He?s at his best, but we can?t promise a sure win?], explained the soft-spoken trainer, who has drilled Batawang with no letup despite at least two successive big cancellations.
Batawang, who suffered a cut on the eyebrow the other week, will spar eight rounds today against Rodel Mayol, whom Solis defeated in a Chicago title bout on Aug. 4.
Batawang?s first big fight here as member of the Philippine team in the Boxing World Cup in Sacramento fell through last month after Mexican Gerson Gerrero was discovered with a torn retina two days before the bout.
Batawang said that prior to the World Cup there was another scheduled title eliminator last May, against Mexican Francisco Rosas, that had to be canceled.
Cooling his heels at the 3C (not Tracy as earlier reported) off Vermont Avenue here, Batawang thanked and extolled his manager, Sammy Gello-ani, for finally clinching a title shot for him.
Batawang, despite regular full meals, weighed 111 lb, only three pounds over the light flyweight limit, yesterday.
A Mexican bantamweight has been called in to add depth to his sparring, whose number of rounds will be increased next week.
The Solis-Batawang card will be aired in the United States by Versus Channel.
The bout, to be held at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, marks Batawang?s first crack at a world title after 17 years as a pro, and his first appearance in Sin City.
Batawang (50-6, 34 KOs), who has been training for almost three months in California, reports to Freddie Roach?s gym daily and regularly spars with Mayol, who has been giving him pointers on how to fight Solis.
The 26-year-old Solis (25-1-2, 19 KOs) will be making the sixth defense of his IBF title.
If victorious against Solis, Batawang will become the fourth Filipino to hold a world title after IBF minimum weight champ Florante Condes, IBF/IBO flyweight king Nonito Donaire and WBO bantam ruler Gerry Pe?alosa. With a report from Salven L. Lagumbay
