Two unbeaten fighters from North Cotabato Vice Gov. Manny Pi?ol?s Braveheart stable were supposed to see action in the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Marco Antonio Barrera mainer in Las Vegas last Saturday.
Bantamweight Jundy (Pretty Boy) Maraon and featherweight Glenn (Rapid Fire) Gonzales were assured of slots in the Mandalay Bay Events Center show but had to back out because their US visa applications were denied.
Pi?ol said it was a case of miscommunication. The first-time travelers submitted a letter of invitation from promoter Bob Arum and fight contracts but the documents weren?t sufficient.
?A petition from the Department of Justice was required for a working visa since they would earn money in the US,? said Pi?ol. ?Unfortunately, the necessary papers couldn?t be ready in time for their departure.?
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita and Sec. Richard Gordon tried to work out a quick issuance of the visas but without the Department of Justice petition, the fighters just couldn?t leave.
Featherweight Michael Farenas of Sorsogon was yanked out of a Hard Rock Caf? at Las Vegas card scheduled two days before the Mandalay Bay blockbuster to fill in one of the slots. Aljoe Jaro?s superbantamweight prot?g? Bernabe Concepcion headlined the show at Hard Rock and halted Sal Garcia in the ninth round to raise his record to 23-1-1, with 13 KOs.
Farenas, 23, went on to stop Tijuana?s Arturo (Aguilita) Valenzuela at 0:59 of the second round in the Pacquiao-Barrera undercard. He decked Valenzuela in the first and finished him off in the second without much difficulty. Farenas was impressive in his US debut as he improved his record to 18-2-2, with 16 KOs. In his corner were brothers Erbing and Jonathan Pe?alosa. Farenas is co-managed by WBO bantamweight champion Gerry Pe?alosa and Pacquiao.
A southpaw, Farenas has not lost in his last 11 outings and his only defeats were on points to Pacquiao sparmate Aaron Melgarejo (whose mother is former Oriental champion Tiger Ari?s sister) and Jun Paderna.
For insurance, Arum summoned former Philippine superflyweight champion Vernie Torres and US-born Filipina Ana (Hurricane) Julaton to stand by for ?swing? bouts in case of early finishes in the scheduled fights. Torres was lined up to face Los Mochis? Manuel Sarabia while Julaton?s opponent was Hondi Hernandez, a late replacement for Elena Coto. As it turned out, neither Torres nor Julaton got to lace up their gloves.
Arum, however, promised to find a slot for at least Julaton in a future card.
As for Maraon and Gonzales, Pi?ol said all is not lost. They?ll be getting their visas soon. Pacquiao?s brother Bobby is getting ready to fight a still unnamed opponent on Nov. 29 in San Diego and Pi?ol?s boys are in the priority list for the undercard.
Maraon, 22, boasts a 10-0-1 record, with eight KOs, while Gonzales? slate is 6-0-1, with three KOs. Last July, Gonzales pulverized Indonesia?s Boydo Simajuntak at 2:03 of the first round to claim the WBO Asia Pacific Youth interim featherweight crown.
Assisting Pi?ol in managing the fighters is Chicago-based former Philippine national cyclist Rolando Hiso.
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