The country ended the year 2020 with four regular, full-fledged world boxing champions in Manny Pacquiao (WBA welterweight), Jerwin Ancajas (IBF junior bantamweight), John Riel Casimero (WBO bantamweight) and Pedro Taduran (IBF minimumweight). However, of the four world titlists, only two — Casimero and Taduran — actually saw action in the ring.
The dreaded coronavirus literally shut down all boxing activities in March, and professional boxing cards in the United States did not resume until June. Before the lockdown, at least two Filipino boxers figured in a world title fight, albeit with contrasting results.
On February 1, in Guadalupe, Mexico, IBF minimumweight (105 lbs) champ Taduran retained his crown with a four-round technical draw against hometown kid Daniel Valladares. The fight was a thrilling slugfest and had all the trimmings of Fight of the Year until Valladares sustained a cut on the right eye and the fight was stopped in the fourth stanza. The fight went down to the scorecards and while one judge scored the fight for Valladares, the two other judges had it as draw. Officially, the fight was de-clared a technical draw, allowing Taduran to remain the IBF king.
On February 22, in undercard of the heavyweight title rematch between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury in Las Vegas, Masbate’s Jeo Santisima was battered in 11 rounds in a bid to wrest the WBO junior featherweight (122 lbs) crown from Mexican star Emanuel Navarrete. Santisima entered the fight in the midst of a 17-fight winning streak, but he had never been outside the country or against any top-tier opponent. Navarrete was hammering away at Santisima in the 11th round when the referee de-cided to pull the plug.
Following the resumption of pro boxing cards in the US in June, General Santos City’s Mike Plania be-came the first Filipino to step into the international arena when he agreed to take on then WBO ranked No.1 bantamweight Joshua Greer of Chicago. Greer was unbeaten in his last 19 fights and was prepping for a title shot when he was ambushed by Plania. Using an unconventional left hook, Plania knocked down Greer twice en route to a 10-round decision victory. With the upset victory, Plania cata-pulted to No. 2 in the WBO’s bantamweight rankings.
Four more local boxers saw action in the international fight scene. On September 26, in Connecticut, WBO bantamweight champ John Riel Casimero battered the previously unbeaten Duke Micah of Gha-na to retain his world title. Casimero, 30-4 with 21 knockouts, was supposed to face WBA-IBF counter-part Naoya Inoue in April, but the fight was called off due to the coronavirus. Casimero, who accused Inoue of ducking him, vented his ire on the inexperienced Micah, bamboozling the Ghanaian in three rounds.
On October 3, in Los Angeles, hard-hitting Mark Magsayo eked out a hard-earned split-decision over game Mexican Rigoberto Hermosillo. Magsayo, who joined MP Promotions in March, improved his ledger to 21-0 with 14 knockouts.
On November 6, after several postponements, Giemel Magramo finally swapped mitts with Japanese Junto Nakatani for the vacant WBO flyweight (112 lbs) title. It did not prove to be worth the wait for Magramo as the taller Nakatani dominated him in eight rounds. Crispy combinations and debilitating body shots did the trick for Nakatani.
On December 16, in Los Angeles, amateur standout and Olympic bet Eumir Felix Marcial finally made his pro debut with a four-round decision win over Andrew Whitfield. Marcial’s pro debut created a lot of buzz because it has been a while since the country saw a middleweight boxer. Marcial is looking to follow in the footsteps of Ceferino Garcia, who was recognized world middleweight champion in 1939. Before resuming his pro career, however, Marcial will see action in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
On December 19, in Connecticut, unbeaten puncher Reymart Gaballo collared the interim WBC ban-tamweight (118 lbs) title with a hotly disputed decision win over Puerto Rican Emmanuel Rodriguez. Gaballo was awarded a split-decision although many thought Rodriguez deserved the verdict. The fight was hastily arranged after Nonito Donaire Jr., Rodriguez’s original foe, was supposedly diagnosed with Covid-19. It will be interesting to see if the WBC will order a rematch between Gaballo and Rodriguez.
As can be deduced, the coronavirus limited the appearance of our local fighters. As if things cannot get any worse, ALA Boxing Promotions closed shop in August after several decades of investing in Filipino fighters.
Hopefully, the new year will open more doors for our fighters. Pacquiao is planning to figure in two fights, one that may even involve a match with mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor. Former four-division champ Donnie Nietes, inactive since 2018, is also mulling a ring return. Casimero is eyeing a du-el with Cuban Guillermo Rigondeaux while keeping an eye on Inoue. Taduran is raring to defend his crown, most likely against countryman Rene Cuarto. Oh, do not count out Donaire as he zeroes in on a fifth division crown this year.
